Section 724.297  Closure and Post-Closure Care

a)         At closure of a tank system, the owner or operator must remove or decontaminate all waste residues, contaminated containment system components (liners, etc.), contaminated soils and structures and equipment contaminated with waste, and manage them as hazardous waste, unless 35 Ill. Adm. Code 721.103(d) applies.  The closure plan, closure activities, cost estimates for closure and financial responsibility for tank systems must meet all of the requirements specified in Subparts G and H.

b)         If the owner or operator demonstrates to the Agency by way of permit application that not all contaminated soils can be practicably removed or decontaminated, as required in subsection (a), then the owner or operator must close the tank system and perform post-closure care in accordance with the closure and post-closure care requirements that apply to landfills (Section 724.410).  In addition, for the purposes of closure, post-closure and financial responsibility, such a tank system is then considered to be a landfill, and the owner or operator must meet all of the requirements for landfills specified in Subparts G and H.

c)         If an owner or operator has a tank system that does not have secondary containment which meets the requirements of Section 724.193(b) through (f), and the owner and operator has not been granted alternative design and operating practices for secondary containment requirements in accordance with Section 724.293(g), then the following apply:

1)         The closure plan for the tank system must include both a plan for complying with subsection (a) and a contingent plan for complying with subsection (b).

2)         A contingent post-closure plan for complying with subsection (b) must be prepared and submitted as part of the permit application.

3)         The cost estimates calculated for closure and post-closure care must reflect the costs of complying with the contingent closure plan and the contingent post-closure plan if those costs are greater than the costs of complying with the closure plan prepared for the expected closure under subsection (a).

4)         Financial assurance must be based on the cost estimates in subsection (c)(3).

5)         For the purposes of the contingent closure and post-closure plans, such a tank system is considered to be a landfill, and the contingent plans must meet all of the closure, post-closure, and financial responsibility requirements for landfills under Subparts G and H.

(Source:  Amended at 42 Ill. Reg. 22614, effective November 19, 2018)