REcEnj~~
CLERK’S OFRCE
BEFORE THE ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
DEC 2 1 2OO~
STATE
OF ILUNO~S
IN THE MATTER OF:
)
Poalution
Contro’ Board
)
INTERIM PHOSPHORUS EFFLUENT
)
R4-26
STANDARD, PROPOSED
35
ILL. ADM.
)
S
(Rulemaking
—
Water)
304.123 (G-K)
)
NOTICE
OF FILING
TO:
See Attached Certificate of Service
PLEASE TAKE NOTICE
that on Tuesday, December 21, 2004, we filed the attached
Comments of the Home Builders Association ofIllinois and Attainable Housing Alliance
with the Clerk
of
the Illinois Pollution Control Board,
a copy of
which is herewith served upon
you.
Respectfully submitted,
HOME BUILDERS ASSOCIATION OF ILLINOIS
and ATTAINABLE HOUSING ALLIANCE
BY:
___________
One ofIts Attorneys
Sheila H. Deely
GARDNER CARTON & DOUGLAS LLP
191 N. Wacker Drive
-
Suite 3700
Chicago, Illinois 60606-1698
(312) 569-1440
THIS FILING SUBMITTED ON RECYCLED PAPER
RECE~VED
CLERK’S OFFICE
BEFORE THE
ILLINOIS
POLLUTION CONTROL
BOARD
DEC 212004
STATE OF ILlINOIS
IN
THE MATTER
OF:
)
Pollution Contro’ Board
)
INTERIM PHOSPHORUS EFFLUENT
)
R4-26
STANDARD,
PROPOSED 35 ILL.
ADM.
)
(Rulemaking
—
Water)
304.123(G-K)
)
)
)
COMMENTS OF THE
HOME BUIILDERS ASSOCIATION OF ILLINOIS AND
ATTAINABLE HOUSING ALLIANCE
The Home Builders Association of Illinois (“HBAI”) and the Attainable Housing
Alliance (“AHA”) appreciate the opportunity to submit these comments on the rulemaking
proposal filed by Illinois EPA proposing an interim phosphorus effluent standard for new or
expanding wastewater treatment facilities. HBAI is comprised ofthousands ofmember finns
from local associations in every geographic region of the State, and is affiliated with the
National Association of Home Builders. Member firms of HBAI include homebuilders,
developers, remodelers, suppliers, subcontractors, and other affiliated businesses. HBAI
advocates the concept of attainable quality housing for all residents of the State of Illinois.
ABA presently represents over 800 members of the Northern Illinois Home Builders
Association, the Home Builders Association ofthe Greater Fox Valley and the Home Builders
Association of Greater Chicago. ABA was formed to provide a unified voice for the building
industry in the eight-county metro area, including Chicago. The goal ofABA is to represent
the housing industry on public policy issues that affect the attainability and ownership of
housing. AHA believes that the subject of this rulemaking is one such issue.
Standards such as the proposed effluent limitation frequently impose costs on home
builders in the form of impact fees. It is important that those entities that have to spend the
money to comply with standards at a cost to taxpayers and constituents should have
confidence that standards are necessary and properly promulgated. Because HBAI and ABA
do not have confidence in the scientific basis for the proposed rule, HBAI and ABA join those
members of the regulated community that have opposed this rule. HBAI and ABA believe
the rule to be insufficiently supported by scientific evidence.
HBAI and ABA understand that, as proponent of the proposal, the Illinois EPA is
required to provide an environmental, technical, and economic justification for the proposed
rule. See 35 Ii. Adm. Code 102.202. The Illinois EPA has not provided an adequate
environmental, technical or economic justification for a new statewide effluent limitation.
Illinois EPA has publicly stated that the proposed rule is intended to fulfill an election year
pledge by Governor Rod Blagojevich to address phosphorus in sewage plant discharges as
well as reduce the regulatory burden on Illinois EPA associated with the NPDES permit
program and objections to proposed permits by environmental groups for construction of new
or expanded wastewater treatment facilities. HBAI and ABA believe these objections during
the permit process are in many instances an abuse of the system and are not an appropriate
basis for a rulemaking with real world costs.
HBAI and ABA understand that the Illinois EPA has not disputed the lack ofscientific
evidence for this standard and has acknowledged that phosphorus is not a problem in some
streams that would be subject to a generally applicable standard such as the one proposed.
(Tr. at 108, lines 2 through 12). For streams where phosphorus can be shown to be impairing
a recognized stream use, regulations are in place to allow the Illinois EPA to address this. For
receiving streams where it cannot be determined that there will be a benefit from reductions in
phosphorus levels, however, the proposed interim limit would result in the installation and
operation oftreatment technology with no known benefit and an unknown cost.
2
FIBAI and ABA also understand that the entities that provide wastewater treatment
services believe the record in this case to be deficient on information concerning the cost of
this proposed regulation and has omitted important components ofthe cost. Home builders
are being asked to bear ever increasing costs associated with alleged environmental
degradation and impacts related to growth. These costs in turn have a direct bearing on the
cost of housing in Illinois and its affordability to Illinois citizens. In this particular case,
should this standard be adopted, it is expected that in many instances home builders that will
bear the upfront capital cost and operating costs if increased wastewater capacity is required.
While home builders are willing to pay their fair share, it is imperative that standards intended
to protect the environment should be based on sound science and not for the purposes of
slowing growth or on the basis of unsupported claims concerning environmental impacts.
And it is important to have a clear understanding of the cost of a regulation to all affected
parties.
BRAd and ABA is aware that the state is moving forward on developing nutrient
standards as part of a Illinois Nutrient Work Group approved by U.S. EPA. HBAI and ABA
support this process and anticipate that it will result in scientifically-based standards that the
regulated community can have confidence in and that meet the Board’s rules for adequate
support ofthe environmental, technical and economicjustification for each rule.
HBAI and ABA thank the Board for consideration of these comments.
CHO2/ 22355983.1
3
CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE
The undersigned certifies that a copy ofthe foregoing
Comments of the Home Builders
Association of Illinois and Attainable Housing Alliance
were filed by hand delivery with the
Clerk ofthe Illinois Pollution Control Board and served upon the parties to whom said Notice is directed
by first class mail, postage prepaid, by depositing in the U.S. Mail at 191 North Wacker Drive, Chicago,
Illinois on Tuesday, December 21, 2004.
Sanjay K. Sofat
Assistant Counsel
1021 North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, IL 62794-9276
Matthew J. Dunn, Chief
Office ofthe Attorney General
Environmental Bureau
100 West Randolph Street
11th
Floor
Chicago, IL 60601
Robert A. Messina
General Counsel
Environmental Law &
Policy Center
3150 Roland Avenue
Springfield, IL 62703
Albert F. Ettinger
Environmental Law &
Policy Center
35 East Wacker Drive
Suite 1330
Chicago, IL 60601
John McMahon
Wilkie & McMahon
8 East Main Street
Champaign, IL 61820
Jonathan Fun
Department ofNatural
Resources
One Natural Resources Way
Springfield, IL 62702-1271
Richard Lanyon
Director ofResearch
& Development
Michael G. Rosenberg
Metropolitan Water Reclamation
ofGreater Chicago
100 E.Erie
Chicago,
IL 60611
David Horn
Asst. Prof., Biology
Aurora University
347 Gladstone Avenue
Aurora, IL
60506
Darin Boyer
City ofPiano
17 E. Main Street
Piano,
IL 60545-1521
~‘heilaH.Deely
CHO1/ 12401662.1
