ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
January
6,
1971
In the Matter
of:
R 70—17
DU PAGE COUNTY REGIONALIZATION
Opinion of the Board
(by Mr.
Kissel):
With
the adoption of regulations regarding DuPage County
Sewage Regionalization,
R 70—17,
the Board
takes
a most signi-
ficant step forward in the conversion of the resources
of the
State
-—
both natural and economic resources.
Natural resour-
ces, since
the efficient operation of
a series of strategically
located regional plants will greatly minimize the pollutional
load upon the DuPage County streams,
thereby enhancing the use
of
the water resources
in the County.
Economic resources,
since
over
the long—term period of years regional plants will result
in significant dollars saved, both
in construction
and operating
costs.
The adoption of this regulation insists that there be co-
operation between the various governmental entities
and private
utilities whose statutory function includes sewage treatment.
This cooperation will have to exist at the local
level
in order
that
a regional solution can be reached.
Finally,
this regulation
imposes
a time limit to reach
that solution.
As
sevei&al days
of hearings
in DuPage County made abundantly clear, sufficient
vacillation and position jockeying have occurred over the past
fifteen years
to demand that time limitations
be imposed.
Though
this regulation does not anticipate immediate implementation of the
Regional Program,
it does demand that compliance be obtained over
a reasonable period of time.
The hearing record in this regulatory matter demonstrates
that
the actual structuring of
a regional solution to the prolif-
eration of sewage treatment facilities
in DuPage County must
take place at the local level.
Though the hearings received
evidence
as to the
size, growth,
and operation of the various
treatment plants
in the County,
a much more localized hearing will
be necessary in order
to determine how each plant will fit into the
projected growth pattern of the region,
the suitability and pro-
jected physical
life of each plant, and
the geographic, political,
and
economic realities regarding the operation
of each plant.
To
this end,
the Board has incorporated into the regulation the DuPage
3—
385
County Wastewater Regions map adopted by
the Northeastern
Illinois
Planning Commission
(NIPC); hearings will be held in each NIPC
Region in order to determine that Region’s Regional Plan.
The
Board will designate
a Hearing Officer for each NIPC Region; he
will be empowered to hold hearings
on
a Regional Plan and make
recommendations
to the Board.
The Board shall then determine
a
Regional Program for each Region and give final approval to
a
Regional Wastewater Program for DuPage County.
THE
NEED FOR REGIONALIZATION
The multiplicity of overlapping local governmental units was
never better i~lustratedthan in the proliferation of entities
involved in the treatment of sewage in DuPage County.
DuPage has
sprouted an inordinate number of seperate sewage treatment plants
(81
in 1970,
R.
342), many of them small
indeed, and in many cases
quite close
to one another.
Recent urban expansion away from
Chicago has given DuPage
a high population density and a consider-
able
total population
--
factors which favor regionalization of
facilities, not fractionalization.
Further,
the topography of the
County
is such as
to allow, inexpensive transport of sewage to cen-
tral locations.
Testimony received at the hearings
in February and July,
1971,
established that unnecessarily small plants constitute
a threat of
pollution.
The Agency indicated that plants operating at larger
capacities can generally be staffed with more competent personnel
and
can provide 24—hour operator coverage to insure proper operation.
In its experience,
the Agency has found that lack of proper opera-
tion
is
one
of the largest single factors toward th~degradation
of water quality in Illinois streams
(R.
339).
Dr.
Pfeffer of the
Institute for Envrionmental Quality stressed that more competent
operators were necessary in order to install an activated sludge
sewage treatment plant; such
a facility is capable of producing
a
higher quality of effluent than the less effective trickling filter
operation
(R.
183).
The Board has recognized this fact by p~e-
scribing less stringent effluent standards for small plants
(e.g.
SWB-l2,
SWB-13,
as amended by #R 70-3, January,
1971).
Thus, when
an area
can
support
a larger sewage treatment facility,
this Board
must insist,
in the interest of maintaining water quality, that
this
higher degree of treatment be provided.
Dr. Pfeffer also noted the
probability that advanced waste treatment methods required
now
or
in the future will likewise be beyond the effective competence of
small plants and their operators.
For example,
should some manner
of ammonia nitrogen removal be required,
(cf.
Institute proposal
of December
14,
1971),
increased sophistication of operation wou~Ld
be demanded in the plant management.
3— 38gb
The Agency also cited several other reasons
for arger,
more
efficient facilities when possible.
To operate the biological
processes
of a sewage treatment plant, accurate laboratory control
tests are required.
Such tests can only be made at plants properly
staffed with qualified chemists
CR.
339).
Only the larger plant
can maintain such facilities.
Plants with larger capacities
generally have three or more units designed for a function,
thereby permitting any unit to be taken out of service for re-
pairs, increasing the load to the other units by less than
50.
At smaller plants, generally only two units are provided for a
function;
these then become 100
overloaded when one unit is
removed from service.
Dr. Pfeffer gra~~hicallydescribed such
backup capacity:
“You have generally multiple units, which,
if
one of the particular units becomes inactivated for
some reason, you can increase the load slightly to
the remaining unit without markedly affecting the
efficiency.
If ydu are sitting here with
a small
plant that has one primary clarifier and you have
to shut that clarifier down
to replace the mechanism
then all that water is bypassed,
and in the past
it has been letting raw sewage into the stream
.
.
CR.
185)
In addition, plants at larger capacities are not as susceptible to
plant upset due to infiltration of storm water or inadvertent slugs
of industrial wastes, since the larger facility has an inherent
dilution capability.
Larger capacity plants serve larger areas
and,
as such,
the daily peak flows are a smaller percentage of the
design average flow; this results in better overall daily treatment
CR.
440).
The larger sewage treatment facility also incorporates
several financial economies of scale.
The Agency indicated that
larger capacity plants generally have lower capital costs and lower
operating and maintenance costs per million gallons.
Pfeffer’s
testimony established this in detail
(R. 176-82).
Op~ratingcosts
for a plant treating one million gallons per day are three times
those
of a plant treating 100 million gallons, on
a per—gallon
basis; construction costs are considerably higher as well.
A
study of the savings attained by regional sewage treatment was
made in the area comprising Albany County, New York.
For each of
the eight affected municipalities to treat its own sewage would
have cost $78.5 million, required 110 operating. personnel, and
cost $29.0 million for the first year.
A regional two-plant
system cost $53.1 million, required only
35 operators,
and
was
obtained at half the per capita cost.
—
3S7
The above evidence conclusively establishes the need for
a
Regional Sewage Treatment Program in DuPage County.
This Board’s
conviction that a Regional Program is necessary for DuPage is
supported by numerous groups within the County.
The County has
been pressing for regionalization since 1956
(R.
27).
In February,
1971,
the DuPage County Mayors and Managers Conference adopted
a plan for regional treatment
(R.
9).
The County Board subse-
quently went
on record as favoring the plan
(R.
473).
In 1968,
the DuPage County Association of Sanitary Distric-ts endorsed a
plan for regional treatment
(R.
20).
A regional solution, all the parties contend, awaits the
designation of a county-wide agency with exclusive authority to
construct and operate sewage treatment facilities throughout the
county,
and with adequate authority to raise money by appro-
priate means.
Several bills introduced in the most recent legisla-
tive session would establish various regional authorities with the
requisite financial powers, but all languished for lack of con-
sensus over who is to b~put in charge, who abolished and who
expanded.
(Cf. House Bills 1799, 2060, and 2613).
This Board
does not believe that it need await the establishment of
a
county-wide agency before
a regional progran~can be implemented.
By the use of the powers granted them under the existing
statutes,
the present governmental entities in DuPage County can
begin to move toward regionalization of sewage treatment facili-
ties.
The County, all municipalities, and all sanitary districts
have authority to construct, acquire, and operate sewage treatment
facilities
(Ill.
Rev. State, Ch.
24, Sec.
11—141—2
(municipalities);
Ch.
34,
Sec.
3111
(counties);
Ch.
42, Secs.
306,
306.1
(sanitary
districts)).
All have the power of condemnation without regard
for municipal or sanitary district boundaries.
(Ch.
24, Sec.
11—141—2;
Ch.
34,
Sec.
311&;
Ch.
42, Sec.
307).
Municipalities and
sanitary districts may accept and treat sewage from outside their
boundaries
(Ch.
24, Sec.
11—146—1; Ch.
42, Sec.
316); may contract
with one another, if adjacent for the common construction or use
of facilities
(Ch.
24,
Sec.
11—147—1);
and may contract for the
county to provide sewage treatment, with the local government
paying its share of costs
(Ch.
24,
Sec.
11—147—5; Ch.
34,
Sec.
3131)
All these governmental bodies have authority to raise funds by
revenue and general obligation bonds, by user and connection
charges, by general taxation, and by special assessment under the
new Constitution effective last July 1
(R. 168).
Under the hear-
ings
to be held under this regulation, it is the Board’s intent
that the full use of such statutory authority be explored.
3
—
388
EXPLANATION
OF THE REGULATION
In summary,
the following steps would take place under the
regulation.
The Board will appoint a Hearing Officer for each of
the nine regions.
He will convene the various Parties in that
region.
The Parties shall then submit a Regional Plan to the
Hearing Officer, who shall conduct hearings of these submissions
and make recommendations
to the Board.
The Board shall then
determine a Regional Program for each region and, after notice and
publication,
give its final approval to a Regional Wastewater
Treatment Program for DuPage County.
It
is anticipated that all
of the above steps will occur within approximately ten months of
the adoption of this regulation.
The nine regions which the Board has designated are those
which were approved by the Northeastern Illinois Planning Commission
October 21,
1971.
A DuPage County map designating those regions
was prepared for the Board by NIPC and was made a part of this
Chapter.
For the purposes of the hearings under this regulation,
those areas marked for the National Accelerator Laboratory and
for the Bartlett—Hanover Park Wastewater Sector shall be considered
as part of the northwest region on the map.
Since the Proposed
Final Draft of this Part was published for purposes of public
comment November 23,
1971,
the Board has received several comments
from various municipalities and sanitary districts expressing
particular reservations about one or another boundary line of a
particular region.
With adoption today, we do not change any of
those boundaries originally proposed.
Such minor changes as were
suggested can be worked out by the various Hearing Officers and
the Parties upon a proper showing in the course of the hearings.
The County of DuPage,
all municipalities,
sanitary districts,
and public utilities presently having responsibility for the treat-
ment of sewage in DuPage County shall be Parties in these pro-
ceedings.
Since the Board’s original proposal June
9,
1971, public
utilities have been added as Parties.
Such addition is principally
due to the Agency’s testimony that utility sewage treatment
facilities have not been responsive to the pollution control pro-
grams of the State
(R.
344).
A Regional Program would then
dictate that such facilities be phased out in favor of goverment-
operated facilities capable of exercising bonding power and re-
ceiving State and Federal financial grants.
The Board shall designate a Hearing Officer for each of the
nine regions.
His initial responsibility will be to bring all the
Parties within a particular region together.
Working through the
Board, his activities
in
a particular region shall be coordinated
wit.h that of Hearing Officers in neighboring regions.
Once the
Hearings Officer convenes the Parties, he shall direct their efforts
to the preparation of a Regional Plan.
He can schedule such
public hearings, meetings, or pre-hearing conferences as he deems
necessary.
In any case, by April
1,
1972,
all the Parties within
a particular region shall submit a “Regional Plan” to the Hearing
Officer and to the Agency.
This Regional
Plan may be submitted
either jointly or individually by the Parties.
This Plan should
be structured in substantial accordance with the Regional Waste—
water Plan approved by NIPC October
21,
1971.
Rule 1106 of this Part sets forth in ample detail the contents
of the Regional Plan.
Of particular note is
a “phase—in, phase-out”
schedule for each of the affected or proposed plants or plant ex-
pansions.
The Plan must also contain a commitment as
to which
governmental entity will operate the plants and how such operation
and expansion will be financed.
Since the construction and main-
tenance of interceptor sewers is an integral part of the operation
of
a sewage treatment plant,
a commitment is also demanded in
this regard.
Further, the Plan must be consonant with County and
regional comprehensive growth and land—use planning.
In other
words,
the sewage treatment facility must constitute an adequate
service facility for the area which it serves and intends to serve.
The regulation also marks the first time that the Board has
sought a recommendation from its Hearing Officers.
Upon receipt
of the Regional Plan, the Hearing Officer shall hold such further
hearings as may be necessary in order for him to formulate recom-
mendations to the Board by July
1,
1972.
Rule 1107(b)
indicates
the contents of such a recommendation to the Board.
Basically,
the Rule seeks a “physical” layout from the Hearing Officer
as to
phasing out of plants, designation of new, interim or remote
facilities, and construction of interceptors to accomodate new or
expanded facilities.
The Hearing Officer~mustalso designate the
governmental agency or agencies which will assume responsibility
for treatment of sewage within his particular region.
In making
his recommendations to the Board, Rule 1107(c) proposes several
considerations
to the Hearing Officer.
Two are of especially great
importance.
Provision may be made
in the Regional Plan for con-
tinued service by smaller plants in areas remote from regional
treatment facilities.
Such a provision only underscores the Board’s
insistence that the Plan be technically and economically reasonable.
Further, the Hearing Officer must take into account the service
needed in areas presently unsewered.
Rule 1111 provides that these
areas md~th&~ethei~interests fully considered in these proceed-
ings and places such burdé~riThponthe Hearing Officer and the Agency.
This concern over presently unserviced areas was one of the reasons
3
—
390
for the Board’s hesitation to adopt a county-wide regional plan
based upon the hearings already held in 1971.
Before
a Regional
Program can be approved,
the Board must be assured that such un—
serviced areas
are guaranteed service on a reasonable cost basis
and only on reasonable conditions.
The Board views sewage treat-
ment facilities
as a public service commodity which
is to be
provided in anticipation of and in response to the needs of the
community.
Planning for sewage treatment services and facilities
is
a vital part of community growth.
Rule 1108 indicates the contents of
a Regional Program to
be issued by
the Board.
Again, the Regional Program must establish
the physical pattern of “phase-in, phase-out”
of treatment plant
and transport system expansion,
and of new plant construction.
Such
should be
in accordance with economic and technical feasibility and
should take into account the predicted regional growth in the
County.
Most importantly, the Program must designate the govern-
mental agency or agencies which will be responsible for sewage
treatment within each of the nine regions.
The Environmental Protection Agency will participate in each
of the proceedings in each region.
It will also file a stated
written recommendation for each region and for each treatment
plant.
The Agency shall also air in the enforcement of this Part
by denying permits for any facility which does not conform with
the Regional Program.
Rule 1113 proposes only two exceptions to
such a policy:
for interim facilities in the event of a demon-
strated emergency;
for facilities of such small capacity as to
create only an insignificant risk of inadequate treatment.
Overriding all other considerations under this Part, of course,
is the Board’s insistence that this regulation in no way relieves
any person from the obligation
to comply in all respects with exist-
ing and future regulations, both as
to water quality standards and
as to the implementation plan for DuPage County streams.
In promulgating this regulation,
the Board shifts the onus
of determining the manner of regionalization back to where it be-
longs
--
the people and governmental bodies of DuPage County.
By
localizing the political traumas and governmental rivalries, we
anticipate that a solution may become more easily available.
We
do not withdraw from the problems however, but merely await a
sifting out of the facts and the formulation of
a Regional Plan.
Then the case returns
to the Board, for the institution of
a
Regional Program.
It
is our earnest hope that th9 Plan presented
by the Parties constitutes a detailed, viable solution such that
the Regional Program approved by the Board need only be a stamp of
approval.
3
—
391
The Board hopes that this regulation will provide an impetus
and perhaps a model to other similarly urbanized counties through-
out Illinois.
Lake, McHenry,
Kane, Will, Madison, and St. Clair
Counties are only a step away from the sewage treatment problems
which engulf DuPage County.
I, Christan L. Moffett, Clerk of the Pollution Control Board,
certify that the Board adopted the above Opinion this
~
~“
day of
January, 1972, by a vote of
~
Christan L.
Moff~et~’1
Clerk of the Board
3— 392