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Illinois EPA grants Exelon Quad Cities Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements
Springfield— The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the Exelon Generation’s Quad Cities Station a provisional variance from the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permitted temperature limits, due to recent unseasonably warm weather conditions . Quad Cities Station is a nuclear-fueled steam electric generating facility located on the Mississippi River near Cordova. Circulating water used to cool and condense steam from the generating process is ultimately discharged into the river. It does not come into contact with any radioactive components and does not have any impact on radiation risk. Exelon’s NPDES permit places limits the temperature of the effluent versus the temperature of the river water during a given season, and gives Quad Cities an allowance of excursion hours it can use if its discharge exceeds the temperature. Because of recent record breaking warm weather, Quad Cities exhausted the excursion hours in the early morning of March 21. Quad Cities has already shut down Unit 2 for a refueling outage. If Quad Cities has to shut down Unit 1, this will affect the margin of safety for both of these units. During the variance period, Quad Cities Station must continuously monitor both discharge and receiving water temperatures and must visually inspect all discharge areas at least three times each day to assess the impact on aquatic life. It must also notify the Illinois EPA and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources if aquatic life is shown to be affected.
Illinois EPA grants Exelon LaSalle Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements
Springfield— The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the Exelon Generation’s LaSalle County Power Station a provisional variance from the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permitted temperature limits, due to recent unseasonably warm weather conditions . LaSalle Station is an electric generating facility located in southeastern LaSalle County, six miles southeast of Marseilles. Circulating water used to cool and condense steam from the generating process is discharged into the Illinois River. LaSalle Station’s NPDES permit places limits on the temperature of the effluent versus the temperature of the river water during a given season, and gives the facility an allowance of excursion hours it can use if its discharge exceeds the temperature. Because of recent record breaking warm weather, the river temperature at the intake has already exceeded the maximum temperature standard. Without this provisional variance, LaSalle Station will be forced to stop the blow down of water from its cooling pond which, in turn, may compromise the integrity of the pond’s exterior dikes.
Illinois EPA grants Ameren Edwards Power Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements
Springfield— The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the Ameren Edwards Power Station a provisional variance from the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permitted temperature limits, due to recent unseasonably warm weather conditions . Edwards Station is a coal-fired electric generating facility located in Bartonville, Peoria County, on the west side of the Illinois River. Circulating water used to cool and condense steam from the generating process is discharged into the Illinois River. Ameren’s NPDES permit places limits onthe temperature of the effluent based on ambient river temperatures during a given season, and gives the Edwards Station an allowance of excursion hours it can use if its discharge exceeds the temperature. Because of recent record breaking warm weather, the river temperature at the intake has exceeded temperature standards; therefore the capacity of the river to dissipate heat has been reduced, causing the facility to exhaust the permitted excursion hours. In order to comply with the permit without a variance, Ameren Edwards would have to significantly cut back operation. Even if the Ameren Edwards plant would completely shut down, discharges at Outfall 002 would exceed the permitted values. During the variance period, Edwards Station must continuously monitor both discharge and receiving water temperatures and must visually inspect all discharge areas at least four times each day to assess the impact on aquatic life. It must also notify the Illinois EPA and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources if aquatic life is shown to be affected.
Illinois EPA grants Exelon Dresden Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements
Springfield—The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the Exelon Generation’s Dresden Station a provisional variance from certain temperature limits under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit issued to the facility, due to recent unseasonably warm weather conditions. Dresden Station is a nuclear-fueled steam electric generating facility located at the confluence of the DesPlaines and Kankakee Rivers near Morris.
Illinois EPA grants Exelon Braidwood Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements
Springfield— The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the Exelon Generation’s Braidwood Station a provisional variance from the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permitted temperature limits, due to recent unseasonably warm weather conditions . Braidwood Station is a nuclear-fueled steam electric generating facility located approximately five miles from the Kankakee River at Braceville . Circulating water used to cool and condense steam from the generating process is ultimately discharged into a cooling pond, then to the Kankakee River. It does not come into contact with any radioactive components and does not have any impact on radiation risk. Exelon’s NPDES permit places limits the temperature of the effluent versus the temperature of the river water during a given season, and gives Braidwood an allowance of excursion hours it can use if its discharge exceeds the temperature. Because of recent record breaking warm weather, the river temperature at the intake has exceeded temperature standards; therefore the capacity of the river to dissipate heat has been reduced, causing the facility to exhaust the permitted excursion hours. During the variance period, Braidwood Station must continuously monitor both discharge and receiving water temperatures and must visually inspect all discharge areas at least three times each day to assess the impact on aquatic life. It must also notify the Illinois EPA and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources if aquatic life is shown to be affected.
Illinois EPA grants DeKalb Sanitary District Provisional Variance from Permit Requirements
Springfield— The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted the DeKalb Sanitary District a provisional variance from certain National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permit conditions, in order to complete necessary repairs to the rotary distributor of the #2 trickling filter. The DeKalb Sanitary District requested the variance in order to rebuild the rotary distributor, including bearings and seals.
Illinois EPA grants Provisional Variance to West End Disposal Landfill in Saline County – Variance is needed for disposal of debris from Feb. 29 Harrisburg Tornado
[unable to retrieve full-text content]SPRINGFIELD —The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (Illinois EPA) today granted West End Disposal Landfill in Thompsonville (Saline County) a provisional variance from a state regulation for 45 days so it can accept materials in a new cell, particularly debris from the extensive property damage from the Feb. 29 tornado in nearby Harrisburg
Illinois EPA Approves Schedule to Move Superfund Cleanup Forward
SPRINGFIELD – The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency has approved the revised schedule for the cleanup of contamination at the former New Jersey Zinc/Mobil Chemical Superfund site. The schedule was submitted by the DePue Group, which consists of CBS Corporation and the ExxonMobil Corporation, the parties responsible under Superfund and a State Interim Consent Order for cleaning up the site. The schedule requires work at the Superfund site to move forward in a timely manner with enforceable deadlines.
Illinois EPA Designates 15 Chicago Area “Green Fleets”
Oak Park— The Illinois EPA, in coordination with the Chicago Area Clean Cities coalition, designated 15 new Chicago area Green Fleets at an event held today in Oak Park. The Illinois Green Fleets program provides for “Green Environment, Green Energy, & Green Economics for a Green Illinois,” through the use of clean alternate fuels, such as natural gas, biodiesel, ethanol, propane and electricity in their fleet vehicles, as well as retrofiting existing diesel trucks with clean technology options to reduce diesel particulates. Information regarding the program can be found at http://www.illinoisgreenfleets.org/ . “These are family-owned and larger businesses, as well as public bodies, that have seen the value in supporting clean air, energy independence, jobs and providing insurance against the concern about high prices for gasoline and diesel,” said Interim Illinois EPA Director John Kim. “These new Green Fleets join an elite fraternity of over 100 designated fleets throughout the state. We see more and more family-owned small businesses that are taking the initiative to purchase and convert their vehicles and equipment to run on a clean American fuel,” said Darwin Burkhart, program manager for the Illinois EPA and Chairman of Chicago Area Clean Cities.
Illinois EPA to Clean Up Tarkowski Property
SPRINGFIELD – An Illinois Environmental Protection Agency contractor today is beginning cleanup of a dump site that has plagued the Lake Barrington – Wauconda area for decades. The cleanup is expected to take four to six weeks, weather permitting. The Agency is working with the Village of Lake Barrington through an intergovernmental agreement to complete cleanup of the 16-acre John Tarkowski property located in unincorporated Lake County. Tarkowski had been illegally receiving waste material on his property since the late 1960s, according to public records. “The Agency is pleased that we can finish cleanup of this environmental and safety hazard thanks to the efforts of the Village and their representatives in the General Assembly. The neighbors and the community have endured this mess too long,” said Illinois EPA Interim Director John Kim. This last phase of the cleanup is being funded through a $430,000 state grant supported by Sen.