BEFORE THE
CONSUMERS ILLINOIS WATER
Petitioner,
V.
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION AGENCY,
Respondent.
)
)
)
)
)
CLERK’S
OFFICE
DEC
4
2O~3
STATE OF ILLINOIS
PCB 03
-
124
PollutIon
Con trol
Board
(Certification)
NOTICE
OF FILING
Carol Sudman, Hearing Officer
Illinois Pollution Control Board
600 South Second Street, Suite 402
Springfield, Illinois
62704
Lisa Moreno
Division of Legal Counsel
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
1021 North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box
19276
Springfield, IL 62794-9276
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE that I have today filed with the office ofthe Clerk ofthe
Pollution Control Board the Joint Statement ofStipulated Facts of Consumers Illinois Water
Company and the Illinois Environmental Protection Agency and the Appearance ofLaura M.
Earl, copies of which are hereby served upon you.
Date: December 4, 2003
Charles
T. Wehland
Laura M. Earl
Jones Day
77 West Wacker Drive
Chicago, Illinois
60601-1692
(312) 782-3939
)
)
)
CHI-1 389996v1
THIS PLEADING IS
SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
Laura M. Earl, an attorney, hereby certifies that she served a copy of the attached Joint
Statement of Stipulated Facts ofConsumers Illinois Water Company and the Illinois
Environmental Protection Agency and the Notice ofAppearance ofLaura M. Earl upon the
persons listed below via overnight delivery service on December 4, 2003.
Carol Sudman, Hearing Officer
Illinois Pollution Control Board
600
South Second Street, Suite 402
Springfield, Illinois
62704
Lisa Moreno
Division of Legal Counsel
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
1021 North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box
19276
Springfield, IL 62794-9276
~-
Laura M. Earl
Jones Day
77
West Wacker Drive
Chicago, Illinois
60601-1692
(312) 782-3939
THIS PLEADING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
CHI-1389996v1
BEFORE THE
CONSUMERS ILLINOIS WATER COMPANY,
Petitioner,
V.
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION AGENCY
Respondent.
)
)
CLERK’S
OFFrCE
DEC
4
2003
STATE OF ILLINOIS
Pollution
Control Board
PCB 03
-
124
)
(Contest-Tax Certification)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
)
APPEARANCE
Laura M. Earl of Jones Day hereby enters an appearance in this proceeding on behalf of
Consumers Illinois Water Company.
December 4, 2003
~ç~7
~
~-~Laura
M. Earl
Jones Day
77 West Wacker Drive
Chicago, Illinois
60601-1692
(312) 782-3939
CHI-1 389996v1
THIS PLEADING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
CLERK’S
OFF
BEFORE THE
DEC
4
2003
STATE OF ILLINOIS
CONSUMERS
ILLINOIS WATER COMPANY,
Pollution
Control
Board
Petitioner,
)
V.
)
PCB 03-124
)
(Contest-Tax Certification)
ILLINOIS ENVIRONMENTAL
)
PROTECTION AGENCY
)
)
Respondent.
)
JOINT STATEMENT OF STIPULATED FACTS
Consumers Illinois Water Company (“CIWC”) and the Illinois Environmental Protection
Agency (“IEPA”) submit the followingjoint statement ofstipulated facts:
The Nitrate Removal
Facility
1.
CIWC owns and operates a public
water supply treatment and distribution system in
Danville,
Illinois.
2.
CIWC’s Danville facility has the capacity to
treat
14 million gallons ofwater per day.
The
basic equipment to process this volume ofdrinking water was installed in
1991.
That
equipment remains in service and it is not part of the tax certification request by CIWC.
3.
The water that CIWC treats and distributes flows from the North Fork ofthe Vermilion River
(the
“River”) and is a part ofthe public water supply.
4.
CIWC’s public
utility service operates as follows:
water is drawn from
a channel dam on the
River, treated, and distributed to the public through direct connections.
5.
As a public water supplier, CIWC is subject to all
applicable regulations contained in the
Environmental Protection Act, the 1974 Safe Drinking Water Act, the
1996 amendments to
)
)
)
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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the Safe Drinking Water Act, and the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
(NPDES).
6.
The IEPA has determined that the nitrate level in water that CIWC extracts from the River,
treats and processes periodically exceeds the federal nitrate primary drinking water standards
of 10 mg/L.
As a result, IEPA required CIWC to implement measures to reduce nitrate
concentrations in the finished water supplied to customers.
7.
Human
activities are the source ofthe elevated nitrate concentrations in the water that is
extracted from the River.
According to an JEPA 2002
Source Water Assessment, two
identified sources ofthe elevated nitrates are application of nitrogen fertilizers to
agricultural
fields
and runoff from septic systems.
According to
this assessment, the Illinois side of the
Lake Vermilion Watershed uses between 20 and 25 tons of agricultural nitrogen per square
mile per year.
A true and correct copy ofthe IEPA’s
2002 Source Water Assessment for
CIWC’s water supply is attached as Exhibit
1.
8.
It is a violation ofthe National PrimaryDrinking Water Regulations for CIWC to
supply
drinkingwater with nitrate concentrations over 10 mg/L.
40 C.F.R.
§
141.62 (2002).
Under
the Public Health Service Act, JEPA
shall take action against entities that
are not in
compliance.
42 U.S.C.
§
300g-3 (2001).
9.
The TEPA has required CIWC
to take measures to address elevated nitrate levels in the public
water supply.
Initially, these requirements were embodied in the compliance commitment
agreements attached as Exhibits
2 and
3.
Despite implementation of the measures described
in the compliance commitment agreements, CIWC continued to provide finished waterwith
nitrates in excess of 10 mg/L
on occasion, and JEPA required CIWC to
install nitrate removal
equipment.
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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10.
Tn a Consent Order with the IEPA, filed in the Vermilion County Circuit Court on March 20,
2001, CIWC agreed to bring nitrate levels in the public water supply to levels that comply
with the primary drinking water standard.
A true and correct copy of the Consent Order is
attached as Exhibit 4.
11. Under the Consent Order, CIWC
agreed to install a nitrate removal facility on or before
January 2,
2001.
12.
In compliance with the Consent Order, CIWC installed a nitrate removal facility in
December 2000, consisting ofthe following equipment:
(1) four ion exchange
columns, (2)
an ion exchange wet well storage and equalizing basin, and (3) associated piping valves,
pumps and electrical, control and process equipment.
Since the installation ofthis
equipment, CIWC has complied with the requirement to supply drinking waterwith nitrate
concentrations less than
10 mg/L.
13.
CIWC’s nitrate removal facility, now operable, effectively reduces the
level of nitrates from
the public water supply to
comply with the federal nitrate primary drinking water standard.
14. The nitrate removal facility does not increase CIWC’s pre-existing water treatment capacity
of 14 million gallons per day.
The PowderedActivated Carbon
Unit
15.
In the early 1990’s, CIWC became
aware ofthe presence of various agrichemicals such as
atrazine, metolachlor and cyanazine in the River.
CIWC detected seasonal spikes for
herbicide levels in the public water supply during the agricultural
growing season.
16.
In 1992, CIWC began treating the rawwater extracted from the River with carbon to remove
these pollutants during the spring
and summer months, in order to remain in compliance with
federal primary drinking water standards.
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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17.
Agricultural activities in the Lake Vermilion watershed are the source ofthe herbicides and
pesticides in the water that is extracted from the River.
Atrazine is a widely used herbicide
for the control ofbroadleaf and grassy weeds in crops such as corn.
Metolachior is
also a
broadleaf herbicide that is frequently used in conjunction with atrazine.
Cyanazine is a
pesticide that was detectable in the River throughout the
1990’s, until the EPA banned its
distribution,
sale and use in late 1999.
18. The IEPA has measured atrazine levels in raw water from Lake Vermilion at .33 to
10 parts
per billion (“ppb”), and metolachior at 4.9 ppb.
(See Exhibit
1, p.3.)
IEPA estimates total
herbicide usage in the Lake Vermilion watershed at 750-1000 pounds per square mile.
(See
Exhibit
1,
p.15.)
19. The federal Maximum Contaminant Level (“MCL”) for atrazine in drinking water is .003
mg/L.
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations, 40 C.F.R.
§
141.61(a).
Metolachior
and cyanazine are included on the EPA’s Drinking
Water Contaminant Candidate List, but
are not yet subject to
National Primary Drinking Water Regulations.
20. In 2000,
CIWC upgraded its carbon treatment equipment, adding a bulk powdered activated
carbon unit to
its water treatment facility.
21. According to the National Primary Drinking Water Regulations, powdered activated carbon
treatment is a best available
technology to reduce atrazine, and various other synthetic
organic contaminant levels in water systems.
40 C.F.R.
§
141.61(b).
22. CIWC’s powdered activated carbon unit effectively reduces the level ofregulated
agrichemicals from the public water supply to comply with federal primary drinking water
standards, and removes other agrichemicals that are potentially dangerous to humans but are
not yet regulated by the EPA.
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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23. CIWC’s powdered activated carbon unit does not increase CIWC’s pre-existing water
treatment capacity of 14 million gallons per day.
The Residuals
Treatment Equipment
24. Liquid waste is created in processing the raw River water fordistribution to customers.
This
waste contains a high percentage ofcalcium and magnesium solids generated from the lime
additive CIWC uses in its water treatment process, as well as powdered activated carbon with
absorbed organic pollutants, metal salt coagulant residuals, silt and other inorganic materials.
25.
The liquid waste can be returned to
the River only in compliance with the terms ofthe
NPDBS permit issued to CIWC on April 21,
1999 (“the NPDES permit”).
A true and correct
copy ofthe NPDES permit is
in the Record at pp. 20-25.
26. Under the terms of the NPDES permit, CIWC must treat the liquid waste in order to remove
solids.
Only the supernatant clear water that exists after solids have settled can be discharged
to the River in compliance with the NPDES permit limits.
27. To remove solids from the liquid waste created in processing the raw River water, CIWC has
installed three three-million gallon sludge lagoons and one four-million gallon backwash
waste settling basin at its water treatment facility.
28.
All three lagoons contain sludge and allow it to settle, separating clear water from the water
treatment residue, thereby preventing extracted pollutants from flowing back into the River.
29. The backwash waste settling basin collects materials that have been filtered from the River’s
water during the treatment process, such as algae, protozoa, bacteria, viruses, and leaves, as
well as iron salt residue from CIWC’s water clarification process.
Materials collected in this
basin are also pumped to the sludge lagoons.
30.
The residue or sludge that remains afterthe supernatant waterhas been skimmed may be
applied to
agricultural land, according to the terms ofCIWC’s Water Pollution Control
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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Permit, issued by the IEPA on February 11,
1999 (“the WPC permit”).
A true and
correct
copy ofthe WPC permit is in the Record at pp.
15-19.
31.
CIWC applies the combined sludge from the lagoons to
agricultural fields, in accordance
with TEPA guidelines set forth in the WPC permit.
32. As a result ofthe installation and use ofthe equipment identified in paragraph
18, CIWC
complies with the limitations
in the WPC and NPDES permits.
Untreated effluent does not
comply with the limitations in the WPC and NPDES permits.
33. Liquid waste is also created in maintaining the nitrate removal facility.
The
liquid waste
contains nitrates removed from the water supply in a brine solution.
34. OnFebruary 7, 2000, IEPA denied CIWC’s request for modification to
its NPDES permit to
allow CIWC to either pump the liquid waste from its nitrate removal facility into an old
settling lagoon or into the existing sludge lagoons.
A true and correct copy ofthe IEPA letter
denying
CIWC’s NPDES permit modification request is attached as Exhibit
5.
35. In denying CIWC’s request, IEPA said that discharging the waste from the nitrate removal
facility into either the old settling lagoons
or into the existing sludge lagoons would violate
General Use Water Quality Standards
(35
Iii. Admin. Code
304) for total dissolved solids,
sulfate, nitrate and chloride.
36. The only remaining alternative addressed by IEPA was for CIWC to collect the nitrate- and
brine-laden waste and pump it to the Danville Sanitary District.
IEPA stated that a discharge
in this
manner could be approved through the issuance ofa construction permit.
(See
Exhibit
5.)
37. The Danville Sanitary District
is unable to take in the waste from the nitrate removal facility
at the same rate that CIWC
generates the waste.
CIWC is therefore unable to
pump this
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
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waste directly to the Danville Sanitary District.
A true and correct copy ofa letter from the
Danville SanitaryDistrict to this effect is attached as Exhibit
6.
38. To
comply with the IEPA’s instruction and the terms ofits NPDES permit,
CIWC has
installed a wet well/storage and
equalizing basin for ion exchange backwash.
39. This basin collects the waste from the nitrate removal system.
The liquid waste is generated
at a variable, occasionally high rate.
The basin allows it to
be pumped at a constant, slower
rate to the Danville Sanitary District.
Respectfully submitted,
Dated:
November 20, 2003
CONS1
Charles T.
Wehiand
Laura M. Earl
Jones Day
77 W. Wacker, Suite 3500
Chicago, Illinois 60601-1692
(312) 782-3939
ILLINOIS ENVIR~
AGENCY
By:
Lisa Moreno
Assistant Counsel
Division ofLegal Counsel
Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
1021
North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, Illinois
62794-9276
(217) 782-5544
CHI-1356399v2
By~
THIS FILING IS SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
Due
t.o
the
volume
of this
pleading,
please
contact
the
Clerk’s
Office
at
312/814—3629
to
view
this
file.