ILLINOIS

POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

January

23,

1975

GENERAL

ELECTRIC

COMPANY,

Petitioner,

v.

)

PCB 74~382

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY,

)

Respondent,

OPINION AND ORDER

OF

THE LOARD

(by Nr.

Durnelle):

On

October 23, 1974 General Electric

Company

(GE)

submitted

a variance petition

for

their

General

Purpose

Control Products Department,

located

in

Bloomington

in

McLean County.

The petition seeks a variance for GE~s

plating

operation from Rule

204(f)

(2)

Sulfuric Acid Mist

Standards and Limitations of Chapter

2;

Air

Pollution

of

the

Pollution Control Board’s Rules and Regulations;

and,

in

addition, seeks a variance from the operating permit requirement.

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency

(Agency)

recommendation,

dated December 16,

1974, recommends that

a

variance from Rule 204(f) (2) he granted and that GE be

required to

apply

for an operating permit for the plating

operation

According to GE, the amount of sulfuric acid used in

four tanks

in the plating department

is 290 pounds annually,

which when divided by 4160 hours

of

operation annually~

which means a sulfuric acid usage rate of 0,0697 lb/hr,

lost

through evaporation and dragout.

GE estimates the total

emission rate of acid mist

from

the plating operation to be

0.00348

lb/hr. The Agency calculates that this emission rate

is in excess of the emission limitation

of Rule 204(f)

(2)

said limitation being 0.15 lb/ton acid used.

GE would need

control equipment of 99,9

efficiency in order to comply

with tne current Rule 204(f) (2)

limit according to our

calculation.

Pending

before

the

Board

is

a

regulatory

proceeding

R73—17,

that,

if adopted, would revise the emission limit

for sulfuric acid mist applicable

to GE’s plating operation

to 0.10 lb/hr.

This proceeding was initiated

by

the

Agency

in

order to reduce the problems small users of sulfuric

acid

have in complying

with

the present regulation.

it is expected

that Rule 204 (f)

(2)

will be amended by the Board in

the

near

future, and it is likely

thai.

‘~

will

then be in compliance

15—315

---

with the amended Rule 204(f) (2) based on their current

emission level.

We believe that GE’s emissions,

although in excess of

the present Rule 204(f) (2)

limit,

are not significant and

that no useful purpose would be served by requiring them to

comply with this rule since this rule is presently under

review by the Board.

We therefore will grant this variance

for a period of one year or until the Board adopts amendments

to Rule 204(f) (2); which ever occurs earlier.

Regarding the operating permit for the plating department,

we will require petitioner to apply for such permit, and we

expect the Agency will consider the permit application in

light of the pending amendment of Rule 204 (f) (2).

ORDER

I.

The petition of General Electric’s plating department

for variance from Rule 204(f) (2)

of Chapter

2 is hereby

granted for either a period of one year from the effective

date of this

order or until the

Board’s pending amendment

of Rule 204(f) (2)

is

completed,

whichever occurs earlier.

2.

General Electric shall apply to the Agency for operating

permits required for their plating department equipment.

IT IS SO ORDERED.

I,

Christan

L.

Moffett,

Clerk

of the Illinois

Pollution

~dop1~don

the ~~~day

of January,

1975 by a vote of

C

ristan

L,

Moffett,

Clerk

Illinois

Pollution

.C~trolBoard