ILLINOIS

POLLUTION

CONTROL

BOARD

December

5,

1972

ENVIRONMENTAL

PROTECTION

AGENCY

)

v.

)

PCB

72-332

LEE

KIDD

INTERIM

OPINION

AND ORDER

OF

THE

BOARD

(by

Mr.

Dumelle)

An enforcement

action

against

Mr.

Lee

Kidd

was

filed

by the

Agency

on

August

8,

1972.

Hearing

was

held

in

Harrisburg,

Illinois

on

October

31,

1972.

Mr.

Kidd

is

charged

with

causing

or

allowing

the discharge

of

various

contaminants

of

a mine

waste

nature

(acid water,

coal

refuse

fines,

iron

compounds,

etc.

)

in violation

of various

water

pollution

regulations

of

the

Board.

Having

read

the record,

the

Board

looks

to the

parties

and

especially

the

Agency for

some

recommended

program

of

action

in this

matter.

Mr.

Kidd

owns

560 acres

(R. 52)

of which

about

100

acres

are

farm

land

(H. 53).

He has been

reclaiming

some

15, 000 tons

per

year

of

carbon

(coal)

in

1971

and

1972

(R. 59-60).

He

is

not

affluent

as

shown by

his

income

tax

returns

of 1970

and

1971

(B. 90) which

list

an

average

income

over

the two years

of

slightly

more

than

$4,175

per

year.

Mr.

Robert

R.

Gates,

an

Agency

engineer

experienced

in mining

matters,

testified

that

to

correct

the

pollution

problem

caused

by

Mr.

Kidd’s property

would

cost

from

$2, 000 to

$3, 500 per

acre

(R. 94).

Mr.

Kidd~sproperty,

less

the farm

land,

would total

460

acres

and the

cost

of

correction

would

then be

from

$920,

000 to

$1, 610,

000.

This

is

clearly

an

impossible

cost

for

the

Board

to

require

of

a

person

of

Mr.

Kidd~seconomic

status.

The

Board

has

been

sympathetic

to the

problems

of

mined

land

and

its

conversion

to

a

pollution-free

status

EPA

v.

Kienstra

Concrete,

72-72,

November

8,

1972.

The

Board

will

order

the

ça rties

to submit

within

60

days

their

recommendation

as

to

a

course

of action

for

the

Board

to

consider.

Counsel

for

the

Agency

during

the hearing

stated

that

there

was

no

recommendation

~!all least

for

the

present

time”

and that

“with

regard

to

penalties,

the

Agency

may submit

something

at a later

date.

..“

(H.

96).

A possible

course

of action

6

—

399

---

—9—

the

Agency

should

consider

is

a joining

of

the

prior

owners,

Blue

Bird

Coal

Company,

into

the

case.

OR DER

1.

The

parties

shall

no

later

than

February

3,

1q73

submit

recommendations

as

to

a

course

of

action

and/or

penalties

the

Board

should

consider

in

this

case.

2.

The

case

shall

remain

open

for

such

further

final

order

~ind

~pino

rc

that

the

Board

shall

enter.

I,

Christan

L.

Moffett,

Clerk

of the

Illinois

Poll u~in

(‘ccc

.1

ri,

hereby

certify

the

above

Opinion

and

Order

were

adopi ccl

cc!~

~

December,

1972

by

a

vote

of

4—b

Christan

L.

~loP

cli,

Ilinois

Pollution

(~cn1r~IPo:~rt

6—

400