ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
August 12, 1976
CITY OF DES
PLAINES, RICHARD
F.
)
WARD, and ROSEMARY
S.
ARGUS,
)
Complainants,
v.
)
PCB 76—157
METROPOLITAN SANITARY DISTRICT OF
)
GREATER CHICAGO and THE ILLINOIS
)
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,
Respondents.
DISSENTING STATEMENT
(by Mr. Dumelle):
This cause is once again before the Board on an alternative
Motion to Reconsider and Vacate its Order of July
8,
1976 and to
Grant the Complainants leave
to file a Second Amended Complaint
Instanter.
I
moved
to grant this alternative Motion but received
no second.
Inmy Dissenting Opinion of July
8,
1976
I dwelt at length
upon the possibility of a health hazard from airborne bacteria or
viruses from this new sewage treatment plant.
The new material
considered today cites an article in Public Health Reports.
Un-
fortunately, the article was not furn~hedto us and no Board
Member has yet seen it.
Group Exhibit “C” which was attached to the rejected Second
Amended Complaint is
a U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
memo
dated February
4, 1975
(the year is obliterated but seems
correct from the text).
This Exhibit clearly shows that the
matter of a possible health hazard from sewage treatment plant
aerosols was explored thoroughly by Federal authorities and
that covering of the tanks may be required by them.
Therefore,
the MSDGC cannot claim surprise on this matter.
And the
City of Des Plaines and the resident-complainants ought to be
able to litigate this matter before us.
To allow a sewage plant
to be built and then to determine that a public health hazard
exists is folly if that determination can be made
in advance.
Why
expose nearby residents for 1-2 years while retrofitting
of tank covers and air purification equipment takes
place?
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327
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The counsel for the Complainant argued on August 12 that
the water supply of residents had been polluted by the on-going
construction and that this had first occurred on or about
August 10, 1976.
No notice of this was served upon the Board
or the Respondents and due process in this matter
is lacking.
The Board could entertain a complaint based upon this allegation
but injunctive relief can only be had in the courts.
Several of the allegations of the complaint seem to be
based upon a misreading of the Board Regulations.
Count 13(D)
assumes incorrectly that process weight regulations apply to
sewage treatment plants.
Counts
13(F)
and 13(G)
refer to
regulations devised to deal with organic solvents which are
precursors
to photochemical smog formation.
Counts
11(A)
,
11(B)
and 11(C)
are not proper since Rule 916 of the Water Pollution
Regulations has not been triggered.
The foregoing
is not meant
to be exhaustive.
In conclusion
I would have allowed the Second Amended
Complaint on at least Counts 9(A)
and 9(B).
Submitted by
I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control
Board, hereby certify the above Dissenting Statement was submitted
on the
~7’~day
of August, 1976.
Illinois
‘trol Board
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328