ILLINOIS POLLUTION CONTROL BOARD
    March 6, 2008
    PEOPLE OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS,
    Complainant,
    v.
    RANCHO AMIGO, LLC, an Illinois limited
    liability company,
    Respondent.
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    PCB 08-46
    (Enforcement - Water)
    ORDER OF THE BOARD (by G.T. Girard):
    On February 19, 2008, the Office of the Attorney General, on behalf of the People of the
    State of Illinois (People), filed a one-count complaint against Rancho Amigo, LLC, an Illinois
    limited liability company (Rancho Amigo). The complaint concerns Rancho Amigo’s
    construction of an off-road vehicle riding facility in Pleasant Valley Township, rural Jo Daviess
    County. The parties now seek to settle without a hearing. For the reasons below, the Board
    accepts the complaint as meeting the content requirements of the Board’s procedural rules.
    See
    35 Ill. Adm. Code 103.204(c), (f). The Board further directs the Clerk to provide public notice
    of the parties’ stipulation, proposed settlement, and request for relief from the hearing
    requirement.
    Under the Environmental Protection Act (Act) (415 ILCS 5 (2006)), the Attorney
    General and the State’s Attorneys may bring actions before the Board to enforce Illinois’
    environmental requirements on behalf of the People.
    See
    415 ILCS 5/31 (2006); 35 Ill. Adm.
    Code 103. In this case, the People allege that Rancho Amigo violated Sections 12(a), (d), and (f)
    of the Act (415 ILCS 5/12(a), (d), (f), (2006)) and Section 309.102(a) of the Board’s water
    pollution regulations (35 Ill. Adm. Code 309.102(a)). The People allege that Rancho Amigo
    violated these provisions by threatening the discharge of a contaminant in a manner that would
    tend to cause water pollution; by depositing a contaminant on the land so as to create a water
    pollution hazard; and by threatening the discharge of a contaminant into the waters of the State
    without a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. The Board accepts
    the complaint.
    See
    35 Ill. Adm. Code 103.204.
    On February 19, 2008, the People and Rancho Amigo also filed a stipulation and
    proposed settlement, accompanied by a request for relief from the hearing requirement of Section
    31(c)(1) of the Act (415 ILCS 5/31(c)(1) (2006)). This filing is authorized by Section 31(c)(2)
    of the Act (415 ILCS 5/31(c)(2) (2006)), which requires that the public have an opportunity to
    request a hearing whenever the State and a respondent propose settling an enforcement action
    without a public hearing.
    See
    35 Ill. Adm. Code 103.300(a). Under the proposed stipulation,
    Rancho Amigo admits the alleged violations and agrees to pay a civil penalty of $5,000.
    2
    Unless the Board determines that a hearing is needed, the Board must cause notice of the
    stipulation, proposed settlement, and request for relief from the hearing requirement. Any person
    may file a written demand for hearing within 21 days after receiving the notice. If anyone timely
    files a written demand for hearing, the Board will deny the parties’ request for relief and hold a
    hearing.
    See
    415 ILCS 5/31(c)(2) (2006); 35 Ill. Adm. Code 103.300(b), (c). The Board directs
    the Clerk to provide the required notice.
    IT IS SO ORDERED.
    I, John Therriault, Assistant Clerk of the Illinois Pollution Control Board, certify that the
    Board adopted the above order on March 6, 2008, by a vote of 4-0.
    ___________________________________
    John Therriault, Assistant Clerk
    Illinois Pollution Control Board

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