ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD

May

2,

1974

)

ILLINOIS POWER COMPANY

)

)

)

v.

)

PCB 74-10

)

)

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

)

)

OPINION AND ORDER OF

TFJE BOARD

(by Mr. Dumelle):

Petitioner filed

a Variance Petition on January

4,

1974

which sought

a variance from Rule 404(a) (1) and 405

of the Water

Pollution Regulations.

The Board ordered that Petitioner submit

additional information regarding the flow and environmental

impact of Petitioner’s discharge on January 10,

1974.

Petitioner

amended its original variance petition and submitted the additional

requested information on March

13,

1974.

The Agency

recommended

that the Board grant the variance on March

4,

1974.

Petitioner

again amended its variance petition on March

13,

1974 in response

to questions raised in the Agency’s Recommendation.

The Agency

filed

a supplement

to its original recommendation on April

18,

1974.

No hearing was held.

Petitioner operates the

Illinois Power Company’s Wood River

Station located in Madison County, near East Alton,

Illinois.

Sanitary waste generated at this station are treated by

a primary

treatment facility which has

an average’ flow of 4,500 gallons

per day.

Unchiorinated effluent

is discharged to the discharge

tunnel where

it mixes with cooling water

and other discharges

prior to being carried to the Mississippi River.

Agency grab

samples indicate

that the primary system effluent prior

to

mixture

in the tunnel discharge

is

70 mg/i BUD5 and 110 mg/i

suspended solids with

a fecal coliform count per 100 ml

of

over 2,000,000.

Agency grab samples

of the discharge

tunnel

effluent indicate that it contains

3 mg/l BUD

,

150 mg/l suspended

solids and

700 fecal coliform per 100 ml.

Both the Petitioner

and the Agency state that the discharge has

no noticeable

adverse environmental impact on the Mississippi River and that

there would be no possible public water supply hazard from this

discharge.

However, Petitioner’s primary plant effluent

is

in

violation of Rule

404(a) (1)

and 405.

12

—

199

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Petitioner has indicated and the Agency agrees that the

delay

in constructing the sanitary sewer extension which would

connect Petitioner’s facility with the Alton Sewage Treatment

Plant was caused by above

average rainfalls

and high water condi-

tions

in the Mississippi River.

This delay was beyond Petitioner’s

control.

Petitioner now estimates that by June

30,

1974 it

will

have diverted sanitary wastes

to the Alton Sewage Treatment

P1ant.

The Board agrees that the year and

a half delay was

beyond Petitioner’s control and that Petitioner has submitted

sufficient information

to warrant the grant of the requested

variance.

Because of the short period

of time until Petitioner

will have completed the sanitary sewer extension and the minimal

environmental impact, the Board has declined to require the posting

of

a bond or the submittal of monthly operating reports.

The

Agency states

that it has

no serious objection to

the granting

of the variance without

the customary bond or requirement for

reports.

This Opinion constitutes the Board’s findings of fact

and conclusions

of law.

ORDER

The Board hereby grants

Illinois Power Company

a variance

from Rules 404(a)(i)

and 405 of the Water

Pollution Regulations

until June

30,

1974 subject

to submitting monthly progress

reports

to the Agency on the

sewer extension project.

IT

IS SO ORDERED.

I,

Christan

L.

Moffett, Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control

Board, hereby certify the

above Opinion and Order were adopted on the

~11~

day of May,

1974 by

a vote of

‘Y—o

Illinois Polluti

~ntrol Board