Illinois EPA grants Midwest Generation Crawford Station Provisional Variance from Discharge Requirements

Springfield—The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) has granted Midwest Generation a provisional variance from the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) water discharge permit limits for its Crawford Generating Station.  Midwest Generation requested the provisional variance so that they can remove water from the basements of its turbine room and crusher house that resulted from a recent severe storm.

 

Midwest Generation owns and operates Crawford Generating Station, a coal-fired steam electric generating facility located in Chicago.  On July 23 and July 24, the Chicago area was hit by a severe thunderstorm that resulted in over seven inches of rain in some areas.  This storm caused the basements of the turbine building and the crusher house at the Crawford Station to flood.  Midwest Generation estimates that approximately 3.5 million gallons of water are in the basements.  The existing treatment plant lacks the capacity to provide full treatment to the flood waters in the basements, and all storage capacity at the plant has been utilized. 

 

The provisional variance allows them to discharge this water back to the Chicago and Sanitary Canal without the water receiving full treatment.  The variance requested is only for Outfall CO1 (Recirculating Wastewater Treatment System Blowdown) and only for Total Suspended Solids and Oil and Grease. Midwest Generation must continue to meet all other effluent parameters of NPDES permit.

 

The IEPA has determined that the environmental impact from the variance would be minimal, no reasonable alternative appears to be available, no public water supplies will be affected, no federal regulations would prohibit granting the request, and the facility would face an arbitrary and unreasonable hardship if the IEPA did not grant the requested variance. 

 

Midwest Generation must ensure operation of its treatment plant to produce the best effluent possible at all times.  Any environmental impact from the requested relief will be closely monitored, and the Agency must be immediately notified of any adverse impacts. Midwest Generation must also monitor the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal and immediately notify the Agency of any adverse environmental impacts as a result of this discharge.

 

The provisional variance ends no later than August 10, 2010. All other NPDES permit requirements will remain in effect.