Section 365.520  Loan Applicant's Responsibilities During Facilities Planning

a)         The loan applicant shall provide facilities planning, which shall consist of plans and studies that are directly related to the construction of wastewater treatment works and/or other facilities that fulfill federal State Revolving Fund grant requirements for the green project reserve, to maintain compliance with applicable State and federal requirements as specified in 35 Ill. Adm. Code:  Subtitle C and the CWA, while recognizing social, environmental, and economic conditions.  The planning shall provide documentation on the need for the facilities for which loan assistance is being requested.

b)         If any information required to be furnished as part of a facilities plan has been developed separately, it shall be furnished and incorporated by reference in the facilities plan.  Planning previously or collaterally accomplished under local, State or federal programs may be utilized to the extent applicable.

c)         The facilities plan shall be submitted to the Agency for approval.  Where applicable, the applicant shall also submit drafts of any inter-governmental agreements or demonstrations of legal authority necessary to plan implementation.

d)         The facilities plan may include more than one construction project and provide the basis for several subsequent construction projects.  A facilities plan that has served as the basis for providing a loan for a construction project shall be reviewed prior to providing any loan for a subsequent project involving construction to determine if changes have occurred that require amendments to the facilities plan.  If substantial changes have occurred that warrant revision or amendment as specified in Section 365.530 of this Subpart, the plan shall be revised or amended and resubmitted for review and approval in accordance with the provisions of Section 365.530(a) and (b) of this Subpart.

e)         Facilities planning shall include the following elements in sufficient detail to, at minimum, comply with all applicable construction permit supporting data requirements of 35 Ill. Adm. Code 370.210:

1)         A complete description of the selected wastewater treatment system or other systems, identification of any existing violations of federal or State wastewater regulations and identification of the needs to be addressed by the proposed project.

2)         A discussion of the technical, financial, managerial, and environmental considerations that form the basis for the applicant's selection of the recommended project, including an evaluation regarding the elimination of infiltration and inflow where applicable.  When appropriate to the project scope, the following issues shall be addressed:

A)        The relationship of the nature, size and capacity of the selected alternative to the needs to be served, including reserve capacity;

B)        Identification of current and proposed effluent discharge limitations and water quality standards for the proposed wastewater treatment works or facilities, as required by Title IV of the CWA and 35 Ill. Adm. Code:  Subtitle C;

C)        A discussion of the operational requirements for the selected alternative and provisions for the ultimate disposal of sludge materials from the wastewater treatment process;

D)        An inventory of the relative environmental impacts of the selected alternative and a discussion of the measures that would be required during design and construction to mitigate or minimize negative environmental impacts; and

E)         Adequate basis of design information for the selected alternative to confirm the reasonability of cost estimates.

3)         A detailed description of the alternative selected for loan assistance, including preliminary engineering data, complete cost estimates for design and construction, one or more 8.5 by 11 inch site map or maps locating areas of construction and indirect impacts, and a projected schedule for completion.  The engineering data shall include, to the extent appropriate, flow diagrams, unit process descriptions, detention times, flow rates, unit capacities, etc., sufficient to demonstrate that the project proposed will be designed in accordance with 35 Ill. Adm. Code 370.

4)         Any required comments or approvals from relevant federal, State, interstate, regional or local agencies, including, at a minimum, comments from the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency and the Illinois Department of Natural Resources.

5)         An implementation plan for the proposed recommendations, including necessary financial arrangements for the operation and maintenance of the project and repayment of the proposed loan amount, as well as the impact of these costs on the system users.

6)         Information sufficient to support a determination as to whether the project may qualify as water efficiency, energy efficiency, green infrastructure or environmental innovation.

(Source:  Amended at 34 Ill. Reg. 17582, effective November 8, 2010)