415 ILCS 5/21

(415 ILCS 5/21) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1021)

Sec. 21. Prohibited acts. No person shall:

(a) Cause or allow the open dumping of any waste.

(b) Abandon, dump, or deposit any waste upon the public highways or other public property, except in a sanitary landfill approved by the Agency pursuant to regulations adopted by the Board.

(c) Abandon any vehicle in violation of the "Abandoned Vehicles Amendment to the Illinois Vehicle Code", as enacted by the 76th General Assembly.

(d) Conduct any waste-storage, waste-treatment, or waste-disposal operation:

(1) without a permit granted by the Agency or in violation of any conditions imposed by such permit, including periodic reports and full access to adequate records and the inspection of facilities, as may be necessary to assure compliance with this Act and with regulations and standards adopted thereunder; provided, however, that, except for municipal solid waste landfill units that receive waste on or after October 9, 1993, and CCR surface impoundments, no permit shall be required for (i) any person conducting a waste-storage, waste-treatment, or waste-disposal operation for wastes generated by such person's own activities which are stored, treated, or disposed within the site where such wastes are generated, (ii) until one year after the effective date of rules adopted by the Board under subsection (n) of Section 22.38, a facility located in a county with a population over 700,000 as of January 1, 2000, operated and located in accordance with Section 22.38 of this Act, and used exclusively for the transfer, storage, or treatment of general construction or demolition debris, provided that the facility was receiving construction or demolition debris on August 24, 2009 (the effective date of Public Act 96-611), or (iii) any person conducting a waste transfer, storage, treatment, or disposal operation, including, but not limited to, a waste transfer or waste composting operation, under a mass animal mortality event plan created by the Department of Agriculture;

(2) in violation of any regulations or standards adopted by the Board under this Act;

(3) which receives waste after August 31, 1988, does not have a permit issued by the Agency, and is (i) a landfill used exclusively for the disposal of waste generated at the site, (ii) a surface impoundment receiving special waste not listed in an NPDES permit, (iii) a waste pile in which the total volume of waste is greater than 100 cubic yards or the waste is stored for over one year, or (iv) a land treatment facility receiving special waste generated at the site; without giving notice of the operation to the Agency by January 1, 1989, or 30 days after the date on which the operation commences, whichever is later, and every 3 years thereafter. The form for such notification shall be specified by the Agency, and shall be limited to information regarding: the name and address of the location of the operation; the type of operation; the types and amounts of waste stored, treated or disposed of on an annual basis; the remaining capacity of the operation; and the remaining expected life of the operation.

Item (3) of this subsection (d) shall not apply to any person engaged in agricultural activity who is disposing of a substance that constitutes solid waste, if the substance was acquired for use by that person on his own property, and the substance is disposed of on his own property in accordance with regulations or standards adopted by the Board.

This subsection (d) shall not apply to hazardous waste.

(e) Dispose, treat, store or abandon any waste, or transport any waste into this State for disposal, treatment, storage or abandonment, except at a site or facility which meets the requirements of this Act and of regulations and standards thereunder.

(f) Conduct any hazardous waste-storage, hazardous waste-treatment or hazardous waste-disposal operation:

(1) without a RCRA permit for the site issued by the Agency under subsection (d) of Section 39 of this Act, or in violation of any condition imposed by such permit, including periodic reports and full access to adequate records and the inspection of facilities, as may be necessary to assure compliance with this Act and with regulations and standards adopted thereunder; or

(2) in violation of any regulations or standards adopted by the Board under this Act; or

(3) in violation of any RCRA permit filing requirement established under standards adopted by the Board under this Act; or

(4) in violation of any order adopted by the Board under this Act.

Notwithstanding the above, no RCRA permit shall be required under this subsection or subsection (d) of Section 39 of this Act for any person engaged in agricultural activity who is disposing of a substance which has been identified as a hazardous waste, and which has been designated by Board regulations as being subject to this exception, if the substance was acquired for use by that person on his own property and the substance is disposed of on his own property in accordance with regulations or standards adopted by the Board.

(g) Conduct any hazardous waste-transportation operation:

(1) without registering with and obtaining a special waste hauling permit from the Agency in accordance with the regulations adopted by the Board under this Act; or

(2) in violation of any regulations or standards adopted by the Board under this Act.

(h) Conduct any hazardous waste-recycling or hazardous waste-reclamation or hazardous waste-reuse operation in violation of any regulations, standards or permit requirements adopted by the Board under this Act.

(i) Conduct any process or engage in any act which produces hazardous waste in violation of any regulations or standards adopted by the Board under subsections (a) and (c) of Section 22.4 of this Act.

(j) Conduct any special waste-transportation operation in violation of any regulations, standards or permit requirements adopted by the Board under this Act. However, sludge from a water or sewage treatment plant owned and operated by a unit of local government which (1) is subject to a sludge management plan approved by the Agency or a permit granted by the Agency, and (2) has been tested and determined not to be a hazardous waste as required by applicable State and federal laws and regulations, may be transported in this State without a special waste hauling permit, and the preparation and carrying of a manifest shall not be required for such sludge under the rules of the Pollution Control Board. The unit of local government which operates the treatment plant producing such sludge shall file an annual report with the Agency identifying the volume of such sludge transported during the reporting period, the hauler of the sludge, and the disposal sites to which it was transported. This subsection (j) shall not apply to hazardous waste.

(k) Fail or refuse to pay any fee imposed under this Act.

(l) Locate a hazardous waste disposal site above an active or inactive shaft or tunneled mine or within 2 miles of an active fault in the earth's crust. In counties of population less than 225,000 no hazardous waste disposal site shall be located (1) within 1 1/2 miles of the corporate limits as defined on June 30, 1978, of any municipality without the approval of the governing body of the municipality in an official action; or (2) within 1000 feet of an existing private well or the existing source of a public water supply measured from the boundary of the actual active permitted site and excluding existing private wells on the property of the permit applicant. The provisions of this subsection do not apply to publicly owned sewage works or the disposal or utilization of sludge from publicly owned sewage works.

(m) Transfer interest in any land which has been used as a hazardous waste disposal site without written notification to the Agency of the transfer and to the transferee of the conditions imposed by the Agency upon its use under subsection (g) of Section 39.

(n) Use any land which has been used as a hazardous waste disposal site except in compliance with conditions imposed by the Agency under subsection (g) of Section 39.

(o) Conduct a sanitary landfill operation which is required to have a permit under subsection (d) of this Section, in a manner which results in any of the following conditions:

(1) refuse in standing or flowing waters;

(2) leachate flows entering waters of the State;

(3) leachate flows exiting the landfill confines (as determined by the boundaries established for the landfill by a permit issued by the Agency);

(4) open burning of refuse in violation of Section 9 of this Act;

(5) uncovered refuse remaining from any previous operating day or at the conclusion of any operating day, unless authorized by permit;

(6) failure to provide final cover within time limits established by Board regulations;

(7) acceptance of wastes without necessary permits;

(8) scavenging as defined by Board regulations;

(9) deposition of refuse in any unpermitted portion of the landfill;

(10) acceptance of a special waste without a required manifest;

(11) failure to submit reports required by permits or Board regulations;

(12) failure to collect and contain litter from the site by the end of each operating day;

(13) failure to submit any cost estimate for the site or any performance bond or other security for the site as required by this Act or Board rules.

The prohibitions specified in this subsection (o) shall be enforceable by the Agency either by administrative citation under Section 31.1 of this Act or as otherwise provided by this Act. The specific prohibitions in this subsection do not limit the power of the Board to establish regulations or standards applicable to sanitary landfills.

(p) In violation of subdivision (a) of this Section, cause or allow the open dumping of any waste in a manner which results in any of the following occurrences at the dump site:

(1) litter;

(2) scavenging;

(3) open burning;

(4) deposition of waste in standing or flowing waters;

(5) proliferation of disease vectors;

(6) standing or flowing liquid discharge from the dump site;

(7) deposition of:

(i) general construction or demolition debris as defined in Section 3.160(a) of this Act; or

(ii) clean construction or demolition debris as defined in Section 3.160(b) of this Act.

The prohibitions specified in this subsection (p) shall be enforceable by the Agency either by administrative citation under Section 31.1 of this Act or as otherwise provided by this Act. The specific prohibitions in this subsection do not limit the power of the Board to establish regulations or standards applicable to open dumping.

(q) Conduct a landscape waste composting operation without an Agency permit, provided, however, that no permit shall be required for any person:

(1) conducting a landscape waste composting operation for landscape wastes generated by such person's own activities which are stored, treated, or disposed of within the site where such wastes are generated; or

(1.5) conducting a landscape waste composting operation that (i) has no more than 25 cubic yards of landscape waste, composting additives, composting material, or end-product compost on-site at any one time and (ii) is not engaging in commercial activity; or

(2) applying landscape waste or composted landscape waste at agronomic rates; or

(2.5) operating a landscape waste composting facility at a site having 10 or more occupied non-farm residences within 1/2 mile of its boundaries, if the facility meets all of the following criteria:

(A) the composting facility is operated by the farmer on property on which the composting material is utilized, and the composting facility constitutes no more than 2% of the site's total acreage;

(A-5) any composting additives that the composting facility accepts and uses at the facility are necessary to provide proper conditions for composting and do not exceed 10% of the total composting material at the facility at any one time;

(B) the property on which the composting facility is located, and any associated property on which the compost is used, is principally and diligently devoted to the production of agricultural crops and is not owned, leased, or otherwise controlled by any waste hauler or generator of nonagricultural compost materials, and the operator of the composting facility is not an employee, partner, shareholder, or in any way connected with or controlled by any such waste hauler or generator;

(C) all compost generated by the composting facility, except incidental sales of finished compost, is applied at agronomic rates and used as mulch, fertilizer, or soil conditioner on land actually farmed by the person operating the composting facility, and the finished compost is not stored at the composting site for a period longer than 18 months prior to its application as mulch, fertilizer, or soil conditioner;

(D) no fee is charged for the acceptance of materials to be composted at the facility; and

(E) the owner or operator, by January 1, 2014 (or the January 1 following commencement of operation, whichever is later) and January 1 of each year thereafter, registers the site with the Agency, (ii) reports to the Agency on the volume of composting material received and used at the site; (iii) certifies to the Agency that the site complies with the requirements set forth in subparagraphs (A), (A-5), (B), (C), and (D) of this paragraph (2.5); and (iv) certifies to the Agency that all composting material was placed more than 200 feet from the nearest potable water supply well, was placed outside the boundary of the 10-year floodplain or on a part of the site that is floodproofed, was placed at least 1/4 mile from the nearest residence (other than a residence located on the same property as the facility) or a lesser distance from the nearest residence (other than a residence located on the same property as the facility) if the municipality in which the facility is located has by ordinance approved a lesser distance than 1/4 mile, and was placed more than 5 feet above the water table; any ordinance approving a residential setback of less than 1/4 mile that is used to meet the requirements of this subparagraph (E) of paragraph (2.5) of this subsection must specifically reference this paragraph; or

(3) operating a landscape waste composting facility on a farm, if the facility meets all of the following criteria:

(A) the composting facility is operated by the farmer on property on which the composting material is utilized, and the composting facility constitutes no more than 2% of the property's total acreage, except that the Board may allow a higher percentage for individual sites where the owner or operator has demonstrated to the Board that the site's soil characteristics or crop needs require a higher rate;

(A-1) the composting facility accepts from other agricultural operations for composting with landscape waste no materials other than uncontaminated and source-separated (i) crop residue and other agricultural plant residue generated from the production and harvesting of crops and other customary farm practices, including, but not limited to, stalks, leaves, seed pods, husks, bagasse, and roots and (ii) plant-derived animal bedding, such as straw or sawdust, that is free of manure and was not made from painted or treated wood;

(A-2) any composting additives that the composting facility accepts and uses at the facility are necessary to provide proper conditions for composting and do not exceed 10% of the total composting material at the facility at any one time;

(B) the property on which the composting facility is located, and any associated property on which the compost is used, is principally and diligently devoted to the production of agricultural crops and is not owned, leased or otherwise controlled by any waste hauler or generator of nonagricultural compost materials, and the operator of the composting facility is not an employee, partner, shareholder, or in any way connected with or controlled by any such waste hauler or generator;

(C) all compost generated by the composting facility, except incidental sales of finished compost, is applied at agronomic rates and used as mulch, fertilizer or soil conditioner on land actually farmed by the person operating the composting facility, and the finished compost is not stored at the composting site for a period longer than 18 months prior to its application as mulch, fertilizer, or soil conditioner;

(D) the owner or operator, by January 1 of each year, (i) registers the site with the Agency, (ii) reports to the Agency on the volume of composting material received and used at the site and the volume of material comprising the incidental sale of finished compost under this subsection (q), (iii) certifies to the Agency that the site complies with the requirements set forth in subparagraphs (A), (A-1), (A-2), (B), and (C) of this paragraph (q)(3), and (iv) certifies to the Agency that all composting material:

(I) was placed more than 200 feet from the nearest potable water supply well;

(II) was placed outside the boundary of the 10-year floodplain or on a part of the site that is floodproofed;

(III) was placed either (aa) at least 1/4 mile from the nearest residence (other than a residence located on the same property as the facility) and there are not more than 10 occupied non-farm residences within 1/2 mile of the boundaries of the site on the date of application or (bb) a lesser distance from the nearest residence (other than a residence located on the same property as the facility) provided that the municipality or county in which the facility is located has by ordinance approved a lesser distance than 1/4 mile and there are not more than 10 occupied non-farm residences within 1/2 mile of the boundaries of the site on the date of application; and

(IV) was placed more than 5 feet above the water table.

Any ordinance approving a residential setback of less than 1/4 mile that is used to meet the requirements of this subparagraph (D) must specifically reference this subparagraph.

For the purposes of this subsection (q), "agronomic rates" means the application of not more than 20 tons per acre per year, except that the Board may allow a higher rate for individual sites where the owner or operator has demonstrated to the Board that the site's soil characteristics or crop needs require a higher rate.

For the purposes of this subsection (q), "incidental sale of finished compost" means the sale of finished compost that meets general use compost standards and is no more than 20% or 300 cubic yards, whichever is less, of the total compost created annually by a private landowner for the landowner's own use.

(r) Cause or allow the storage or disposal of coal combustion waste unless:

(1) such waste is stored or disposed of at a site or facility for which a permit has been obtained or is not otherwise required under subsection (d) of this Section; or

(2) such waste is stored or disposed of as a part of the design and reclamation of a site or facility which is an abandoned mine site in accordance with the Abandoned Mined Lands and Water Reclamation Act; or

(3) such waste is stored or disposed of at a site or facility which is operating under NPDES and Subtitle D permits issued by the Agency pursuant to regulations adopted by the Board for mine-related water pollution and permits issued pursuant to the federal Surface Mining Control and Reclamation Act of 1977 (P.L. 95-87) or the rules and regulations thereunder or any law or rule or regulation adopted by the State of Illinois pursuant thereto, and the owner or operator of the facility agrees to accept the waste; and either:

(i) such waste is stored or disposed of in accordance with requirements applicable to refuse disposal under regulations adopted by the Board for mine-related water pollution and pursuant to NPDES and Subtitle D permits issued by the Agency under such regulations; or

(ii) the owner or operator of the facility demonstrates all of the following to the Agency, and the facility is operated in accordance with the demonstration as approved by the Agency: (1) the disposal area will be covered in a manner that will support continuous vegetation, (2) the facility will be adequately protected from wind and water erosion, (3) the pH will be maintained so as to prevent excessive leaching of metal ions, and (4) adequate containment or other measures will be provided to protect surface water and groundwater from contamination at levels prohibited by this Act, the Illinois Groundwater Protection Act, or regulations adopted pursuant thereto.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Title, the disposal of coal combustion waste pursuant to item (2) or (3) of this subdivision (r) shall be exempt from the other provisions of this Title V, and notwithstanding the provisions of Title X of this Act, the Agency is authorized to grant experimental permits which include provision for the disposal of wastes from the combustion of coal and other materials pursuant to items (2) and (3) of this subdivision (r).

(s) After April 1, 1989, offer for transportation, transport, deliver, receive or accept special waste for which a manifest is required, unless the manifest indicates that the fee required under Section 22.8 of this Act has been paid.

(t) Cause or allow a lateral expansion of a municipal solid waste landfill unit on or after October 9, 1993, without a permit modification, granted by the Agency, that authorizes the lateral expansion.

(u) Conduct any vegetable by-product treatment, storage, disposal or transportation operation in violation of any regulation, standards or permit requirements adopted by the Board under this Act. However, no permit shall be required under this Title V for the land application of vegetable by-products conducted pursuant to Agency permit issued under Title III of this Act to the generator of the vegetable by-products. In addition, vegetable by-products may be transported in this State without a special waste hauling permit, and without the preparation and carrying of a manifest.

(v) (Blank).

(w) Conduct any generation, transportation, or recycling of construction or demolition debris, clean or general, or uncontaminated soil generated during construction, remodeling, repair, and demolition of utilities, structures, and roads that is not commingled with any waste, without the maintenance of documentation identifying the hauler, generator, place of origin of the debris or soil, the weight or volume of the debris or soil, and the location, owner, and operator of the facility where the debris or soil was transferred, disposed, recycled, or treated. This documentation must be maintained by the generator, transporter, or recycler for 3 years. This subsection (w) shall not apply to (1) a permitted pollution control facility that transfers or accepts construction or demolition debris, clean or general, or uncontaminated soil for final disposal, recycling, or treatment, (2) a public utility (as that term is defined in the Public Utilities Act) or a municipal utility, (3) the Illinois Department of Transportation, or (4) a municipality or a county highway department, with the exception of any municipality or county highway department located within a county having a population of over 3,000,000 inhabitants or located in a county that is contiguous to a county having a population of over 3,000,000 inhabitants; but it shall apply to an entity that contracts with a public utility, a municipal utility, the Illinois Department of Transportation, or a municipality or a county highway department. The terms "generation" and "recycling", as used in this subsection, do not apply to clean construction or demolition debris when (i) used as fill material below grade outside of a setback zone if covered by sufficient uncontaminated soil to support vegetation within 30 days of the completion of filling or if covered by a road or structure, (ii) solely broken concrete without protruding metal bars is used for erosion control, or (iii) milled asphalt or crushed concrete is used as aggregate in construction of the shoulder of a roadway. The terms "generation" and "recycling", as used in this subsection, do not apply to uncontaminated soil that is not commingled with any waste when (i) used as fill material below grade or contoured to grade, or (ii) used at the site of generation.

(y) Inject any carbon dioxide stream produced by a carbon dioxide capture project into a Class II well, as defined by the Board under this Act, or a Class VI well converted from a Class II well, for purposes of enhanced oil or gas recovery, including, but not limited to, the facilitation of enhanced oil or gas recovery from another well.

(z) Sell or transport concentrated carbon dioxide stream produced by a carbon dioxide capture project for use in enhanced oil or gas recovery.

(aa) Operate a carbon sequestration activity in a manner that causes, threatens, or allows the release of carbon dioxide so as to tend to cause water pollution in this State.

(Source: P.A. 102-216, eff. 1-1-22; 102-310, eff. 8-6-21; 102-558, eff. 8-20-21; 102-813, eff. 5-13-22; 103-342, eff. 1-1-24; 103-651, eff. 7-18-24.)