Section 220.250  Operational Standards for Collection and Control Systems

Each owner or operator of an MSW landfill with a gas collection and control system shall:

a)         Operate the collection system such that gas is collected from each area, cell, or group of cells in the MSW landfill in which the initial solid waste has been in place for:

1)         5 years or more if active; or

2)         2 years or more if closed or at final grade.

b)         Operate the collection system with negative pressure at each wellhead except under the following conditions:

1)         A fire or increased well temperature.  The owner or operator shall record instances when positive pressure occurs in efforts to avoid a fire.  These records shall be submitted with the annual reports as provided in Section 220.280(e)(1) of this Subpart.

2)         Use of a geomembrane or synthetic cover.  The owner or operator shall develop pressure limits associated with such a cover that must be approved by the Agency.

3)         A decommissioned well. A well may experience a static positive pressure after shut down to accommodate for declining flows.  All design changes shall be approved by the Agency.

c)         Operate each interior wellhead in the collection system with a landfill gas temperature less than 55°C (131°F) and with either a nitrogen level less than 20 percent or an oxygen level less than 5 percent.  The owner or operator may establish a higher operating temperature, nitrogen, or oxygen value at a particular well.  A higher operating value demonstration that provides supporting data to show that the elevated parameter does not cause fires or significantly inhibit anaerobic decomposition by killing methagens must be approved by the Agency before such higher operating value may be used. Operating values shall be determined as follows:

1)         The nitrogen level shall be determined using Method 3C, Appendix A, 40 CFR 60, incorporated by reference in Section 220.130 of this Part.

2)         The oxygen level shall be determined by an oxygen meter using Method 3A, Appendix A, 40 CFR 60, incorporated by reference in Section 220.130 of this Part, except that:

A)        The span shall be set so that the regulatory limit is between 20 and 50 percent of the span;

B)        A data recorder is not required;

C)        Only two calibration gases are required, a zero and span, and ambient air may be used as the span;

D)        A calibration error check is not required; and

E)        The allowable sample bias, zero drift, and calibration drift are plus or minus 10 percent.

d)         Operate the collection system so that the methane concentration is less than 500 ppm above background at the surface of the landfill.  To determine if this level is exceeded, the owner or operator shall conduct surface testing around the perimeter of the collection area and along a pattern that traverses the landfill at 30-meter intervals and where visual observations indicate elevated concentrations of landfill gas, such as distressed vegetation and cracks or seeps in the cover.  An initial surface monitoring design plan shall be developed and included as part of the operating permit application (e.g., a CAAPP permit application) that includes a topographical map with the monitoring route and the rationale for any site-specific deviations from the 30-meter intervals.  Areas with steep slopes or other dangerous areas may be excluded from the surface testing.  The monitoring plan shall be updated as necessary. Updated copies must be sent to the Agency and kept on-site at the MSW landfill.

e)         Operate the gas collection and control system such that all collected gases are vented to a control system designed and operated in compliance with Sections 220.230, 220.250, and 220.270 of this Subpart.  In the event the collection or control system is inoperable, the gas mover system shall be shut down and all valves in the collection and control system contributing to venting of the gas to the atmosphere shall be closed within 1 hour.

f)         Operate the gas collection and control or treatment system at all times, except during shutdown or malfunction, provided that the duration of start-up, shutdown, or malfunction must not exceed 5 days for collection systems and must not exceed 1 hour for treatment or control devices.

g)         If monitoring demonstrates that the operational requirements in subsection (b), (c), or (d) of this Section are not met, take corrective action as specified in Section 220.240(a)(3), (a)(5), or (c)(4) of this Subpart.  If such corrective actions are taken as specified in Section 220.240(a)(3), (a)(5), or (c)(4) of this Subpart, the monitored exceedence is not a violation of the operational requirements in this Section.

h)         The collection and control system may be capped or removed provided:

1)         The landfill is no longer accepting solid waste;

2)         A system removal report has been submitted to the Agency, as provided in Section 220.280(d) of this Subpart;

3)         The collection and control system has been operating a minimum of 15 years;

4)         The calculated NMOC gas produced by the landfill is less than 50 Mg/yr on three successive test dates, pursuant to the procedures specified in Section 220.260(b) of this Subpart. The test dates shall be no less than 90 days apart, and no more than 180 days apart; and

5)         The system is not required to satisfy any applicable requirement of 35 Ill. Adm. Code.Subtitle G.