ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

February

3,

1977

NORTH SHORE

SIH1ITJ\R~

DISTRICT,

)

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 76—285

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

Respondent,

OPINION

AND

ORDER

OF

THE

BOARD

(by

Mr.

ZeitLin~

This

matter

is

before

the

Board

on

a

Variance

Petition

filed

by

Petitioner

North

Shore

Sanitary

District

(NSSD)

on

November

9,

1976.

Respondent Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency)

filed

its Recorn-

mendation

on January

3,

1977.

No hearing was held.

NSSD~sPetition

is the most recent in a lengthy series seeking

relief

for the area serviced by its Waukegan Sewage Treatment Plant

(STP)

from

a

“sewer ban” imposed

on NSSD by this Board some six

years ago.

League of Women Voters

v,

NSSD,

PCB 70-7,-12,-l3,-l4,

1 PCB 369

(March

31,

1971).

Paragraph

7 of our Order in League of

Women Voters provided that,

“The District shall not permit any additions

to

present sewer connections,

or new sewer connections,

to its facilities until the District can demonstrate

to the Board that it can adequately treat the wastes

from

those

new sources so as not to violate the

Envi ronmen

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1

Protc’rl—

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,

or t~h~

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rind R~ju—

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in

NSSD

V.

EPA,

E~CB71-343,

3 PCB 541 (d~u~..~L, L972’~

Kended~

Order March

2,

1972,

3 PCB 697),

the Board allowed 13,333 Population

Equivalents

(PE)

for the Waukegan STP.

That Variance grant, based

on hardship to persons other than the District itself, was strictly

conditioned and continued a prohibition on connections upstream of

overloaded sewers.

See,

3 PCB at

552,

558;

3 PCB at

702.

The following year the Board extended

the

Variance granted

in

PCB

71-343

for

another

year,

inasmuch

as

only

180

additional

hook—up

permits

(1,460 PE)

for

connections

tributary

to the Waukegan STP

had been issued.

NSSDv._EPA,

PCB

72—451,

7 PCB

107

(Feb.

14,

1973)

24—701

---

The Board

found that although NSSD had not kept pace with the earlier

Orders with regard to Waukegan,

it was apparently trying

to do

so.

In addition,

the Board

noted

that

the

original

grant of 13,333 PE

had contemplated

a prolonged construction and hook—up period for

r~e~

housing under

the Variance.

Then

in PCB 73—502,

11 PCB 337

(Feb.

21,

1974)

,

the Board

granted an additional one year period for NSSD to use the 13,333

allotted

PE,

Expansion of the Waukegan STP was by then apparently

in progress,

and the Board found on the record there

that NSSD

would probably be able

to meet applicable discharge limitations

upon completion of the additional

facilities.

Again

in 1975,

in PCB

74—344,

15

PCB

197

(Jan.

9,

1975)

,

the

Board continued the Variance, hut cut

the

remaining

PE

connection

allowance from 8,653

PE

(left out of the original 13,333

PE)

to

2,000 PB.

The Board based its cut on the fact that Waukegan’s

continuing discharge to Lake Michigan was

in violation of both the

applicable Board Regulations and the prior Orders,

supra.

The

Board also stated that,

“

Un

wet weather,

the Waukecjan plant may

already now be exceeding

its design capacity.”

15 PCB at 198.

Hydraulic loading and capacity

(along with effluent quality)

were again central

issues in the most recent Variance covering the

Waukeqan STP and our sewer ban in League of Women Voters.

In that

case, PCB 75—301,

19

PCB

589

(Jan.

8,

1976)

,

NSSD

requested

a

lifting

of the general sewer ban

as

it

applied

to

Waukegan

or,

alternatively,

an additional authorization of 5,000 PE for connections tributary

to that plant.

The Board,

however,

found that the record did not

contain sufficient evidence to indicate that the sewer ban could be

lifted,

and instead granted

1,500

PE for the period ending

December

31,

1976,

Finally,

in

this

case,

NSSD

has

incorporated

the

records

of

all

of

the

above

cases,

and

has

asked

alternatively

for

the

following

various

forms

of

relief:

I

.

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omit

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,

5(H)

PH

qrriuiLed

in FCB 75—301)

2.

Variance

extension

allowing

a

“a

greater

number

of

connections;”

or,

3.

Removalof

all

restrictions

on

connections

to

the

Waukegan

plant.

24

--

702

---

As the basis

for such relief, NSSD alleges that expansion of

the Waukegan plant will finally be completed in June of

1977.

By

that time,

NSSD claims, the plant effluent should have been diverted

frorr

Lake

Michigan to the Des Plaines River, and that effluent

should

meet Board

standards.

The Agency~sRecommendation

is that our Order in PCB 75-301 be

extended for one year

(to allow the remaining

790 PB

in connections)

and that the sewer ban be lifted with regard to Waukegan on June

30,

1977 or upon the completion of diversion and upgrading at Waukegan.

We had hoped

that this would be our last examination of the

sewer ban insofar as it bears on the Waukegan STP;

that is

unfortunately not the case,

We are left in the same position as

in

PCB 75-301:

There is simply not sufficient information available to

justify

lifting the ban.

First, we have not been shown that the

conditions which led to the sewer ban have been abated.

As far

as

the record now shows, Waukegan

is still discharging to Lake Michigan

an effluent which exceeds allowable standards.

(See,

e.g., NSSD

Report under PCB 75-301 of April 26,

1976,

referenced

at Petition,

p.

2;

Greeley and Hansen Report,

Id., of August

26,

1976.)

Second,

in

light

of the many past delays in construction at

Waulcegan,

we are not inclined to assume that any proposed date

is

firm;

in PCB 75-301,

completion of the plant was assumed by

November,

1976.

Third,

the same questions that were present in PCB 75-301 with

regard to plant flows and capacity are still present.

The Reports

cited above, by NSSD after various problems with regard to those

issues were aired at hearing, indicate that the design capacity of

19.9 MGD at Waukegan may have already been exceeded on a number of

occasions.

We simply cannot lift the ban until these issues have been

resolved.

While we do not particularly relish the prospect of yet

another round of adjudication with roqard

to the

Wrinkoqan

STP,

it

~

in:;

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ban

-

With

regard to the Agency~scontentions regarding

the Judge

Avenue sewer, we feel that the condition on

all

of the prior Variances,

prohibiting connection

to overloaded sewers,

will be sufficient.

If the Agency

is satisfied that the other sewers tributary

to the

Waukegan STP are adequate for additional loads,

our Order

in PCB 71-343

of January

31,

1972,

as subsequently extended and modified, will

permit use of the allowed additional PE for connections

to such

sewers.

See also,

3 PCB at 552.

24

—

703

---

In PCB 75-301,

the Board estimated that NSSD would require

approximately 1,500 PB in connection allowances during

1976;

710 PE

were used.

We shall allow

a

totail

1,500 PB for the

coming

year,

providing for

the

apparently untuitilfed needs shown

last year

(including conversion

of some areas from septic fields

to NSSD

service)

,

and some additional growth.

As was the case last year, we shall retain jurisdiction

in this

case

to consider raising that limit,

or possibly lifting the sewer

ban entirely as it affects areas tributary to the Waukegan STP.

To

provide

for

those possibilities, NSSD shall by July

1,

1977,

submit

a report detailing the status of the Waukegan STP.

We shall Order

a

further Recommendation by the Agency

in response

to NSSD~sReport.

A hearing will be ordered at that time, hopefully

for final disposition

of this matter.

All applicable conditions from PCB 71-343,

PCB 72-451,

PCB 73-502,

PCB 74—344 and PCB 75—301 shall remain in effect.

ORDER

IT

IS

THE

ORDER OF THE POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD that:

1.

Petitioner North Shore Sanitary District be granted

a

Variance for its Waukegan Sewage Treatment Plant from Order No.

7

in League of Women Voters

v. NSSD, PCB 70-7,-12,-13,—14

(Mar.

31,

1971),

to allow sewer connections totaling 1,500

PB during the period from

December

31,

1976

to December 31,

1977.

2.

Said Variance grant shall be subject to all applicable

conditions

in PCB 71—343, PCB 72—451, PCB 73—502, PCB 74—344,

and

PCB 75—301.

3.

Said Variance grant shall be conditioned upon the submittal

by Petitioner of

a report detailing all appropriate information on

the status of expansion, construction,

and diversion at

the Waukeqan

Sewage

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Agency by June

30

,

1977

4.

Respondent Environmental Protection Agency shall file a

response and further Recommendation

in this matter,

based on its own

investigations and the reports submitted

to them as required

in

paragraph

3, above, by July

31,

1977.

5.

The Board shall retain jurisdiction

in this matter for the

term of

the

Variance.

24

—

704

---

—5—

6.

Said

Variance

grant

shall

further

be

conditioned upon

the submittal

to

the

Environmental

Protection

Agency,

within

thirty--five

(35)

days

of

the

date of

this Order,

of

a

Certificate

of Acceptance

in the following form:

I,

(We)

,

__________________

__________

having

read

the Order of the Illinois Pollution Control Board in

case No.

PCB 76—285,

understand and accept said Order,

realizing that such acceptance renders all terms and

conditions thereto binding and enforceable.

SIGNED

TITLE

DATE

I,

Christan

L. Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution

Control

Board,

he~eby

certify

the

above

Opinion and Order weçe

adopted on the

day

of

________

,

1977,

by a vote of

5..c~.

Christan L. Moffel~’1Clerk

Illinois Pollution Control Board

24