Statutes > Illinois Statutes > CHAPTER 415 ENVIRONMENTAL SAFETY > 415 ILCS 5/ Environmental Protection Act. > Title I - General Provisions

Title I - General Provisions


      (415 ILCS 5/Tit. I heading)
TITLE I: GENERAL PROVISIONS

    (415 ILCS 5/1) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1001)
    Sec. 1. This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Environmental Protection Act".
(Source: P.A. 76‑2429.)

    (415 ILCS 5/2) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1002)
    Sec. 2. (a) The General Assembly finds:
    (i) that environmental damage seriously endangers the public health and welfare, as more specifically described in later sections of this Act;
    (ii) that because environmental damage does not respect political boundaries, it is necessary to establish a unified state‑wide program for environmental protection and to cooperate fully with other States and with the United States in protecting the environment;
    (iii) that air, water, and other resource pollution, public water supply, solid waste disposal, noise, and other environmental problems are closely interrelated and must be dealt with as a unified whole in order to safeguard the environment;
    (iv) that it is the obligation of the State Government to manage its own activities so as to minimize environmental damage; to encourage and assist local governments to adopt and implement environmental‑protection programs consistent with this Act; to promote the development of technology for environmental protection and conservation of natural resources; and in appropriate cases to afford financial assistance in preventing environmental damage;
    (v) that in order to alleviate the burden on enforcement agencies, to assure that all interests are given a full hearing, and to increase public participation in the task of protecting the environment, private as well as governmental remedies must be provided;
    (vi) that despite the existing laws and regulations concerning environmental damage there exist continuing destruction and damage to the environment and harm to the public health, safety and welfare of the people of this State, and that among the most significant sources of this destruction, damage, and harm are the improper and unsafe transportation, treatment, storage, disposal, and dumping of hazardous wastes;
    (vii) that it is necessary to supplement and strengthen existing criminal sanctions regarding environmental damage, by enacting specific penalties for injury to public health and welfare and the environment.
    (b) It is the purpose of this Act, as more specifically described in later sections, to establish a unified, state‑wide program supplemented by private remedies, to restore, protect and enhance the quality of the environment, and to assure that adverse effects upon the environment are fully considered and borne by those who cause them.
    (c) The terms and provisions of this Act shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the purposes of this Act as set forth in subsection (b) of this Section, but to the extent that this Act prescribes criminal penalties, it shall be construed in accordance with the "Criminal Code of 1961", as amended.
(Source: P.A. 83‑1101.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1003)
    Sec. 3. Definitions.
    (a) For the purposes of this Act, the words and terms defined in the Sections which follow this Section and precede Section 4 shall have the meaning therein given, unless the context otherwise clearly requires.
    (b) This amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly renumbers the definition Sections formerly included in this Act as Sections 3.01 through 3.94. The new numbering scheme is intended to alphabetize the defined terms and to leave room for additional terms to be added in alphabetical order in the future. It does not reuse any of the original numbers.
    In the bill for this amendatory Act, the renumbered Sections are shown in the manner commonly used to show renumbering in revisory bills. The Sections being renumbered are shown as existing (rather than new) text; only the changes being made to the existing text are shown with striking and underscoring. The original source lines have been retained.
    (c) In a statute, rule, permit, or other document in existence on the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 92nd General Assembly, a reference to one of the definition Sections renumbered by this amendatory Act shall be deemed to refer to the corresponding Section as renumbered by this amendatory Act.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/prec. Sec. 3.01 heading)
                     OBSOLETE DEFINITIONS
(Sections 3.01 through 3.94 were renumbered
by Public Act 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑2002.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.102)
    Sec. 3.102. 100‑year flood. "100‑year flood" means a flood that has a 1% or greater chance of recurring in any given year or a flood of a magnitude equaled or exceeded once in 100 years on the average over a significantly longer period.
(Source: P.A. 96‑1395, eff. 7‑29‑10.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.103)
    Sec. 3.103. 100‑year floodplain. "100‑year floodplain" means the lowland and relatively flat areas adjoining inland and coastal waters, including flood‑prone areas of offshore islands, that are inundated by a 100‑year flood. For the purposes of this Act, including for the purposes of granting permit and license applications filed or pending prior to the effective date of this amendatory Act of the 96th General Assembly, an area shall be deemed by operation of law not to be within the 100‑year floodplain if the area lies within an area protected by a federal levee and is located in a flood prevention district established in accordance with the Flood Prevention District Act; provided, however, that an area that lies within a flood prevention district established in accordance with the Flood Prevention District Act shall be deemed by operation of law to be within the 100‑year floodplain if, according to the currently adopted federal flood insurance rate map, the area is subject to inundation by a 100‑year flood from bodies of water other than the Mississippi River.
(Source: P.A. 96‑1395, eff. 7‑29‑10.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.105) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.01)
    Sec. 3.105. Agency. "Agency" is the Environmental Protection Agency established by this Act.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.110) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.77)
    Sec. 3.110. Agrichemical facility. "Agrichemical facility" means a site used for commercial purposes, where bulk pesticides are stored in a single container in excess of 300 gallons of liquid pesticide or 300 pounds of dry pesticide for more than 30 days per year or where more than 300 gallons of liquid pesticide or 300 pounds of dry pesticide are being mixed, repackaged or transferred from one container to another within a 30 day period or a site where bulk fertilizers are stored, mixed, repackaged or transferred from one container to another.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.115) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.02)
    Sec. 3.115. Air pollution. "Air pollution" is the presence in the atmosphere of one or more contaminants in sufficient quantities and of such characteristics and duration as to be injurious to human, plant, or animal life, to health, or to property, or to unreasonably interfere with the enjoyment of life or property.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.120) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.03)
    Sec. 3.120. Air pollution control equipment. "Air pollution control equipment" means any equipment or facility of a type intended to eliminate, prevent, reduce or control the emission of specified air contaminants to the atmosphere. Air pollution control equipment includes, but is not limited to, landfill gas recovery facilities.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.125) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.68)
    Sec. 3.125. Biodeterioration; biodegradation.
    (a) "Biodeterioration", when used in connection with recycling or composting, means the biologically mediated loss of utilitarian or physical characteristics of a plastic or hybrid material containing plastic as a major component.
    (b) "Biodegradation", when used in connection with recycling, means the conversion of all constituents of a plastic or hybrid material containing plastic as a major component to carbon dioxide, inorganic salts, microbial cellular components and miscellaneous by‑products characteristically formed from the breakdown of natural materials such as corn starch.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.130) (was 415 ILCS 5/3.04)
    Sec. 3.130. Board. "Board" is the Pollution Control Board established by this Act.
(Source: P.A. 92‑574, eff. 6‑26‑02.)

    (415 ILCS 5/3.135)(was 415 ILCS 5/3.94)
    Sec. 3.135. Coal combustion by‑product; CCB.
    (a) "Coal combustion by‑product" (CCB) means coal combustion waste when used beneficially in any of the following ways:
        (1) The extraction or recovery of material compounds
     contained within CCB.
        (2) The use of CCB as a raw ingredient or mineral
     filler in the manufacture of the following commercial products: cement; concrete and concrete mortars; cementious products including block, pipe and precast/prestressed components; asphalt or cementious roofing products; plastic products including pipes and fittings; paints and metal alloys; kiln fired products including bricks, blocks, and tiles; abrasive media; gypsum wallboard; asphaltic concrete, or asphalt based paving material.
        (3) CCB used (A) in accordance with the Illinois
     Department of Transportation ("IDOT") standard specifications and subsection (a‑5) of this Section or (B) under the approval of the Department of Transportation for IDOT projects.
        (4) Bottom ash used as antiskid material, athletic
     tracks, or foot paths.
        (5) Use in the stabilization or modification of
     soils providing the CCB meets the IDOT specifications for soil modifiers.
        (6) CCB used as a functionally equivalent substitute
     for agricultural lime as a soil conditioner.
        (7) Bottom ash used in non‑IDOT pavement sub‑base or
     base, pipe bedding, or foundation backfill.
        (8) Structural fill, when used in an engineered
     application or combined with cement, sand, or water to produce a controlled strength fill material and covered with 12 inches of soil unless infiltration is prevented by the material itself or other cover material.
        (9) Mine subsidence, mine fire control, mine sealing,
     and mine reclamation.
    (a‑5) Except to the extent that the uses are otherwise
     authorized by law without such restrictions, the uses specified in items (a)(3)(A) and (a)(7) through (9) shall be subject to the following conditions:
        (A) CCB shall not have been mixed with hazardous
     waste prior to use.
        (B) CCB shall not exceed Class I Groundwater
     Standards for metals when tested utilizing test method ASTM D3987‑85. The sample or samples tested shall be representative of the CCB being considered for use.
        (C) Unless otherwise exempted, users of CCB for the
     purposes described in items (a)(3)(A) and (a)(7) through (9) of this Section shall provide notification to the Agency for each project utilizing CCB documenting the quantity of CCB utilized and certification of compliance with conditions (A) and (B) of this subsection. Notification shall not be required for users of CCB for purposes described in items (a)(1), (a)(2), (a)(3)(B), (a)(4), (a)(5) and (a)(6) of this Section, or as required specifically under a beneficial use determination as provided under this Section, or pavement base, parking lot base, or building base projects utilizing less than 10,000 tons, flowable fill/grout projects utilizing less than 1,000 cubic yards or other applications utilizing less than 100 tons.
        (D) Fly ash shall be managed in a manner that
     minimizes the generation of airborne particles and dust using techniques such as moisture conditioning, granulating, inground application, or other demonstrated method.
        (E) CCB is not to be accumulated speculatively. CCB
     is not accumulated speculatively if during the calendar year, the CCB used is equal to 75% of the CCB by weight or volume accumulated at the beginning of the period.
        (F) CCB shall include any prescribed mixture of fly
     ash, bottom ash, boiler slag, flue gas desulfurization scrubber sludge, fluidized bed combustion ash, and stoker boiler ash and shall be tested as intended for use.
    (b) To encourage and promote the utilization of CCB in productive and beneficial applications, upon request by the applicant, the Agency shall make a written beneficial use determination that coal‑combustion waste is CCB when used in a manner other than those uses specified in subsection (a) of this Section if the applicant demonstrates that use of the coal‑combustion waste satisfies all of the following criteria: the use will not cause, threaten, or allow the discharge of any contaminant into the environment; the use will otherwise protect human health and safety and the environment; and the use constitutes a legitimate use of the coal‑combustion waste as an ingredient or raw material that is an effective substitute for an analogous ingredient or raw material.
    The Agency's beneficial use determinations may allow the uses set forth in items (a)(3)(A) and (a)(7) through (9) of this Section without the CCB being subject to the restrictions set forth in subdivisions (a‑5)(B) and (a‑5)(E) of this Section.
    Within 90 days after the receipt of an application for a beneficial use determination under this subsection (b), the Agency shall, in writing, approve, disapprove, or approve with conditions the beneficial use. Any disapproval or approval with conditions shall include the Agency's reasons for the disapproval or conditions. Failure of the Agency to issue a decision within 90 days shall constitute disapproval of the beneficial use request. These beneficial use determinations are subject to review under Section 40 of this Act.
    Any approval of a beneficial use under this subsection (b) shall become effective upon the date of the Agency's written decision and remain in effect for a period of 5 years. If an applicant desires to continue a beneficial use after the expiration of the 5‑year period, the applicant must submit an application for renewal no later than 90 days prior to the expiration. The beneficial use approval shall be automatically extended unless denied by the Agency in writing with the Agency's reasons for disapproval, or unless the Agency has requested an extension for review, in which case the use will continue to be allowed until an Agency determination is made.
    Coal‑combustion waste for which a beneficial use is approved pursuant to this subsection (b) shall be considered CCB during the effective period of the approval, as long as it is used in accordance with the approval and any conditions.
    Notwithstanding the other provisions of this subsection (b), written beneficial use determination applications for the use of CCB at sites governed by the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (P.L. 95‑87) or the rules and regulations thereunder, or by any law or rule or regulation adopted by the State of Illinois pursuant thereto, shall be reviewed and approved by the Office of Mines and Minerals within the Department of Natural Resources pursuant to 62 Ill. Adm. Code