ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

June

9,

1977

COMMONWEALTH EDISON COMPANY,

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 77-13

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent.

Dissenting Opinion

(by Mr. Dumelle)

My principal reason for dissenting

in this matter

is the long

delay by Edison in complying with the Board’s effluent standards

which were to be met by December 31,

1973.

An examination of the record shows that Edison engaged

three consultants in April

1975.

Their reports were submitted

in November 1975

(R.

87,

89)

.

In December 1975 the waste treatment

improvements were presented for funding to the Edison Board of

Directors

(R.

95).

Thus,

two full years had elapsed after the

deadline before all the projects were even authorized for

construction.

Edison’s Petition quotes the U.S. Environmental Protection

Agency as stating

“that each of the schedules

(of construction)

are reasonable,

and that the time required to have the systems

operational cannot be shortened.”

(Ex.

16,

p.

4, Petition.)

But

had Edison started its program in a timely fashion

(i.e.

after

passage of the Board’s Effluent Standards

in early 1972)

some

three years would have been saved!

11

‘I

I

(

)I I

(

(

I

I

I

I

I

ilfihl

i I~ ‘I 1C

()

I

I

~

)

I

I~.1.

~)2—’O()

I

H

()cLob.’r

of

19/2.

Edison

md(Ie

d

del ibel’dLe decision

to do nothing until the Federal regulations under P.L. 92-500

were finalized

(Pet.

p.

10).

This occurred on November

7,

1974.

25

—

707

---

—2—

Edison should have come to this Board for a variance prior

to December

31,

1973.

The Board should not dignify the flaunting

of a Board deadline by granting the variance afterward.

By

doing so,

the Board has encouraged other dischargers to decide

themselves when to come into compliance.

I would have denied the variance because of the long delay

in coming into compliance.

Respectfully submitted,

n

(2

cob D

Dumelle, Chairman

Illinois Pollution Control Board

I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certify the above Dissenting Opinion was submitted

on the

~

day of

,

1977.

Christan

L. Moff

,

Clerk

Tilinois

PollutHo

ontrol

Board

25

—

708