415 ILCS 5/14.4

(415 ILCS 5/14.4) (from Ch. 111 1/2, par. 1014.4)

Sec. 14.4. Groundwater rules.

(a) No later than January 1, 1989, the Agency, after consultation with the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Groundwater and the Groundwater Advisory Council, shall propose regulations to the Board prescribing standards and requirements for the following activities:

(1) landfilling, land treating, surface impounding or piling of special waste and other wastes which could cause contamination of groundwater and which are generated on the site, other than hazardous, livestock and landscape waste, and construction and demolition debris;

(2) storage of special waste in an underground storage tank for which federal regulatory requirements for the protection of groundwater are not applicable;

(3) storage and related handling of pesticides and fertilizers at a facility for the purpose of commercial application;

(4) storage and related handling of road oils and de-icing agents at a central location; and

(5) storage and related handling of pesticides and fertilizers at a central location for the purpose of distribution to retail sales outlets.

In preparing such regulation, the Agency shall provide as it deems necessary for more stringent provisions for those activities enumerated in this subsection which are not already in existence. Any activity for which such standards and requirements are proposed may be referred to as a new activity. For the purposes of this Section, the term "commercial application" shall not include the use of pesticides or fertilizers in a manner incidental to the primary business activity.

(b) No later than October 1, 1993, the Board shall promulgate appropriate regulations for existing activities. In promulgating these regulations, the Board shall, in addition to the factors set forth in Title VII of this Act, consider the following:

(1) appropriate programs for water quality monitoring;

(2) reporting, recordkeeping and remedial response measures;

(3) appropriate technology-based measures for pollution control; and

(4) requirements for closure or discontinuance of operations.

Such regulations as are promulgated pursuant to this subsection shall be for the express purpose of protecting groundwaters. The applicability of such regulations shall be limited to any existing activity which is located:

(A) within a setback zone regulated by this Act, other than an activity located on the same site as a non-community water system well and for which the owner is the same for both the activity and the well; or

(B) within a regulated recharge area as delineated by Board regulation, provided that:

(i) the boundary of the lateral area of influence of a community water supply well located within the recharge area includes such activity therein;

(ii) the distance from the wellhead of the community water supply to the activity does not exceed 2500 feet; and

(iii) the community water supply well was in existence prior to January 1, 1988.

In addition, the Board shall ensure that the promulgated regulations are consistent with and not pre-emptive of the certification system provided by Section 14.5. The Board shall modify the regulations adopted under this subsection to provide an exception for existing activities subject to Section 14.6.

(c) Concurrently with the action mandated by subsection (a), the Agency shall evaluate, with respect to the protection of groundwater, the adequacy of existing federal and State regulations regarding the disposal of hazardous waste and the offsite disposal of special and municipal wastes. The Agency shall then propose, as it deems necessary, additional regulations for such new disposal activities as may be necessary to achieve a level of groundwater protection that is consistent with the regulations proposed under subsection (a) of this Section.

(d) Following receipt of proposed regulations submitted by the Agency pursuant to subsection (a) of this Section, the Board shall promulgate appropriate regulations for new activities. In promulgating these regulations, the Board shall, in addition to the factors set forth in Title VII of this Act, consider the following:

(1) appropriate programs for water quality monitoring, including, where appropriate, notification limitations to trigger preventive response activities;

(2) design practices and technology-based measures appropriate for minimizing the potential for groundwater contamination;

(3) reporting, recordkeeping and remedial response measures; and

(4) requirements for closure or discontinuance of operations.

Such regulations as are promulgated pursuant to this subsection shall be for the express purpose of protecting groundwaters. The applicability of such regulations shall be limited to any new activity which is to be located within a setback zone regulated by this Act, or which is to be located within a regulated recharge area as delineated by Board regulation. In addition, the Board shall ensure that the promulgated regulations are consistent with and not pre-emptive of the certification system provided by Section 14.5. The Board shall modify the regulations adopted under this subsection to provide an exception for new activities subject to Section 14.6.

(e) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as prohibiting any person for whom regulations are promulgated by the Board pursuant to subsection (b) or (c) of this Section, from proposing and obtaining, concurrently with the regulations proposed by the Agency pursuant to subsection (a) of this Section, a rule specific to individual persons or sites pursuant to Title VII of this Act which codifies alternative groundwater protection methods that provide substantially equivalent protection for community water supplies.

(f) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as limiting the power of any county or municipality to adopt ordinances, which are consistent with but not more stringent than the regulations adopted by the Board pursuant to this Section, for application of standards and requirements within such setback zones as are provided by this Act.

(g) The Agency shall prepare a groundwater protection regulatory agenda for submittal to the Interagency Coordinating Committee on Groundwater and the Groundwater Advisory Council. In preparing this agenda, the Agency shall consider situations where gaps may exist in federal or State regulatory protection for groundwater, or where further refinements could be necessary to achieve adequate protection of groundwater.

(h) Nothing in this Section shall be construed as limiting the general authority of the Board to promulgate regulations pursuant to Title VII of this Act.

(i) The Board's rulemaking with respect to subsection (a)(3) of this Section shall take into account the relevant aspects of the Department of Agriculture's Part 255 regulations which specify containment rules for agrichemical facilities.

(Source: P.A. 92-574, eff. 6-26-02.)