Rep. Edward J. Acevedo

Filed: 11/7/2011

 

 


 

 


 
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1
AMENDMENT TO SENATE BILL 1617

2    AMENDMENT NO. ______. Amend Senate Bill 1617 by replacing
3everything after the enacting clause with the following:
 
4    "Section 1. Short title. This Act may be cited as the
5Chicago Clean Power Act.
 
6    Section 10. Findings. The General Assembly finds that:
7    (1) current State and federal air pollution regulations do
8not adequately address the impacts on human health of air
9pollution from the coal-fired power plants in Chicago;
10    (2) the State has a continuing interest in regulating, and
11the authority to regulate, air pollution emanating from sources
12located within Chicago if those sources threaten the health of
13persons residing within the city;
14    (3) 2 coal-fired power plants operate within the boundaries
15of Chicago (the "Fisk" and "Crawford" plants);
16    (4) combustion of coal emits particulate matter and carbon

 

 

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1dioxide;
2    (5) power plant emissions are one of the primary causes of
3particulate matter and fine particulate matter air pollution;
4    (6) emissions from the Fisk and Crawford plants are a
5source of particulate matter and carbon dioxide in Chicago's
6atmosphere;
7    (7) the total atmospheric emissions of particulate matter
8and carbon dioxide from the Fisk and Crawford plants
9substantially exceed the emissions from other stationary
10fossil fuel combustion sources in Chicago;
11    (8) air pollution, particularly particulate matter, from
12the Fisk and Crawford plants degrades the air quality of
13Chicago, impairs visibility, and adversely affects the public
14health of the residents of Chicago, contributing to lung
15cancer, premature deaths, acute and chronic bronchitis,
16emergency room visits, asthma and other respiratory illnesses,
17and respiratory and cardiovascular hospital admissions;
18    (9) these health effects cause lost days of work and
19school;
20    (10) particulate matter from coal-fired power plants
21located within densely populated urban areas, such as Chicago,
22causes more damage per unit of emissions due to the higher rate
23of human exposure to emissions;
24    (11) studies, such as "Particulate-Related Health Impacts
25of Emissions in 2001 from 41 Major US Power Plants" by Abt
26Associates in 2002 and "Extended Follow-Up and Spatial Analysis

 

 

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1of the American Cancer Society Study Linking Particulate Air
2Pollution and Mortality" by the Health Effects Institute in
32009, have shown that each 10 microgram per cubic meter
4increase in the long-term average ambient concentrations of
5PM2.5 is associated with a 4% increased risk of death and an 8%
6increased risk of lung cancer;
7    (12) studies, such as "Invited Commentary: Particulate
8Matter-Mortality Exposure-Response Relations and Threshold" by
9C. Arden Pope in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2000
10and "Fine-Particulate Air Pollution and Life Expectancy in the
11United States" by C. Arden Pope et al. in the New England
12Journal of Medicine in 2009, have shown that exposure to
13particulate matter (PM), especially PM2.5, contributes to
14cardiopulmonary disease mortality even at relatively low
15concentrations;
16    (13) studies, such as "Invited Commentary: Particulate
17Matter-Mortality Exposure-Response Relations and Threshold" by
18C. Arden Pope in the American Journal of Epidemiology in 2000,
19have shown that there is no safe threshold exposure level for
20PM or PM2.5 and that there are mortalities and health effects at
21every level of exposure to PM and PM2.5, that increase in direct
22relation to exposure levels;
23    (14) studies, such as "Fine-Particulate Air Pollution and
24Life Expectancy in the United States" by C. Arden Pope et al.
25in the New England Journal of Medicine in 2009, have shown that
26reducing the amount of PM and PM2.5 in the air increases life

 

 

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1expectancy;
2    (15) the residents of Chicago who are most vulnerable to
3the harmful health effects of air pollution emanating from the
4Fisk and Crawford plants are among the most economically
5disadvantaged residents and those least able to pay for medical
6care;
7    (16) the harmful effects of air pollution from the Fisk and
8Crawford plants are pronounced in those residents of Chicago
9most vulnerable to air pollution, including children, senior
10citizens, and people suffering from lung disease, heart
11disease, and diabetes;
12    (17) State and federal regulations that control emissions
13from fossil fuel-fired power plants, as well as other
14stationary sources, are designed to achieve regional,
15interstate, and international air quality objectives, taking
16into account cost and other factors;
17    (18) State and federal regulations contain grandfathering
18provisions that exempt major sources of air pollution that were
19constructed prior to the effective date of the regulations from
20certain air pollution control requirements;
21    (19) the Fisk and Crawford plants have avoided the
22application of certain State and federal requirements due to
23the grandfathering provisions;
24    (20) due the age of the Fisk and Crawford plants and the
25application of the grandfathering provision, the pollution
26from these facilities is much higher than, and disproportionate

 

 

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1to, newer, more modern coal-fired power plants;
2    (21) the human-induced increase in atmospheric greenhouse
3gas concentrations, of which carbon dioxide is the most
4significant component, is causing harmful changes to the
5climate now and will cause significantly more harm in the
6future if greenhouse gas emissions are not reduced immediately;
7    (22) the United States Environmental Protection Agency in
8its Proposed Endangerment Findings on Greenhouse Gases, 74 Fed.
9Reg. 18886 (April 24, 2009), found that the negative effects
10from this human-induced elevation in the atmospheric
11concentration of greenhouse gases include:
12        (A) a warming world climate, with the United States
13    expected to warm more than the global average;
14        (B) more frequent, more intense heat waves;
15        (C) droughts;
16        (D) more intense precipitation, including flooding;
17        (E) more intense hurricanes and other storms;
18        (F) damage to water resources; and
19        (G) harm to ecosystems and wildlife;
20    (23) studies, such as "Confronting Climate Change in the
21U.S. Midwest: Illinois" by the Union of Concerned Scientists in
222009, have found that if current pollution trends continue,
23then greenhouse gas emissions will cause the following
24consequences for Chicago:
25        (A) hotter summers filled with regular heat waves;
26        (B) worse air and water quality;

 

 

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1        (C) heavier rains causing more frequent flash
2    flooding; and
3        (D) lower lake levels;
4    (24) the Fourth Assessment Report of the United Nations
5Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has established that
6hot temperatures and extreme weather will cause increased
7adverse health impacts from:
8        (A) heat-related mortality;
9        (B) worse air quality;
10        (C) storm-related fatalities and injuries; and
11        (D) infectious diseases;
12    (25) the State must take measures to avoid this irreparable
13harm to Chicago's environment and the health of its residents;
14    (26) electricity generation emits a greater share of carbon
15dioxide than any other sector of the United States economy, and
16the generation of electricity from coal emits the most carbon
17dioxide of any method of electricity generation;
18    (27) State and federal air pollution regulations currently
19do not adequately address local impacts on human health of
20particulate matter and carbon dioxide emissions from the Fisk
21and Crawford plants;
22    (28) reducing the emissions of particulate matter and
23carbon dioxide from the Fisk and Crawford plants will improve
24the health and quality of life of the residents of Chicago
25generally and those living in proximity to the Fisk and
26Crawford plants in particular;

 

 

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1    (29) demonstrated technology is available to significantly
2reduce emissions of particulate matter and carbon dioxide from
3coal or other high carbon content fuel combustion at power
4plants, including, but not limited to, the use of natural gas
5as the primary fuel; and
6    (30) to address impacts on human health and the environment
7of particulate matter and carbon dioxide emissions from the
8Fisk and Crawford plants, the State shall enact this Act, which
9is modeled after the Chicago Clean Power Ordinance introduced
10in the Chicago City Council in July 2011.
 
11    Section 15. Definitions. For the purposes of this Act:
12    "Agency" means the Illinois Environmental Protection
13Agency established under the Environmental Protection Act.
14    "Approved method" means the following:
15        (1) USEPA Method 202 for condensable PM; and
16        (2) The following methodologies for filterable PM2.5,
17    PM/PM10 and CO2:
18            (A) that methodology specified in an applicable
19        final air emission permit issued by the Agency for the
20        coal-fired power plant unit for measuring emissions of
21        filterable PM2.5, PM/PM10, or CO2; or
22            (B) in the event the Agency has not specified a
23        methodology for one or more of filterable PM2.5,
24        PM/PM10, or CO2, that methodology specified in an
25        applicable final air emission permit issued by the

 

 

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1        USEPA for the coal-fired power plant unit for measuring
2        those emissions of PM2.5, PM/ PM10, or CO2; or
3            (C) in the event neither the Agency nor the USEPA
4        has specified a methodology for one or more of
5        filterable PM2.5, PM/ PM10, or CO2 that methodology
6        shall be that specified in the "Compliance Assurance
7        Monitoring" standards promulgated by USEPA, 40 C.F.R.
8        § 64 or the "New Stationary Source" performance
9        standards for Electric Utility Steam Generating Units,
10        Subpart Da, also promulgated by USEPA, 40 C.F.R. §
11        60.47Da.
12    "BTU" means British thermal unit, that is, the amount of
13heat necessary to raise the temperature of one pound of water
14from 39°F to 40°F.
15    "CO2" means carbon dioxide.
16    "Coal-fired power plant" means a facility with one or more
17electric utility steam-generating units that burns coal, coal
18refuse, or a synthetic gas derived from coal, or any other high
19carbon content fuel, either exclusively, in any combination
20together, or in any combination with other fuels in any amount.
21Provided, neither the producer nor distributor of the electric
22power output need qualify as a "public utility" as that term is
23defined in the Public Utilities Act.
24    "Electric utility steam-generating unit" shall have the
25same meaning as defined at 40 C.F.R. §60.41Da, and is capable
26of combusting more than 73 megawatts (250 million BTU per hour)

 

 

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1heat input of fossil fuel (either alone or in combination with
2any other fuel), provided, neither the producer nor distributor
3of the electric power output need qualify as a "public utility"
4as that term is defined in Public Utilities Act.
5    "Emission factor" means the average emission rate of a
6pollutant (i.e., tons of CO2) per a unit of activity (i.e.,
7million BTU of fuel consumed). Emission factors include but are
8not limited to those set forth in Appendix H of the Energy
9Information Administration's Instructions for Form EIA-1605
10(Nov. 18, 2009) and those set forth in the International Panel
11on Climate Change's Emission Factor Database.
12    "Facility" means any commercial, industrial, or
13residential establishment which contains one or more regulated
14areas or units of regulated equipment. A facility may consist
15of more than one building or structure where all lots are
16contiguous and the parts of the facility are functionally
17related.
18    "High carbon content fuel" shall include any one or more of
19the following: (i) any fuel whose emission factor is greater
20than or equal to 135 pounds of CO2 per million BTU, (ii) any
21gaseous, liquid, or solid fuel derived from a fuel whose
22emission factor is greater than or equal to 135 pounds of CO2
23per million BTU, or (iii) both.
24    "Owner or operator" shall have the same meaning as defined
25at 40 C.F.R. § 60.2.
26    "Particulate matter" means any finely divided solid or

 

 

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1liquid material, or condensable substance, other than
2uncombined water, emitted to the ambient air.
3    "Person" means an individual, trust, firm, joint stock
4company, corporation, government corporation, limited
5liability company, partnership, association, State,
6municipality, commission, political subdivision of a State, or
7any interstate body and shall include each department, agency
8and instrumentality of the United States.
9    "PM" means particulate matter.
10    "PM2.5" means any particulate matter with an aerodynamic
11diameter less than or equal to a nominal two and one half
12micrometers.
13    "PM10" means any particulate matter with an aerodynamic
14diameter less than or equal to a nominal ten micrometers.
15    "Responsible official" shall have the same meaning as
16defined at 40 C.F.R. § 70.2.
17    "USEPA" means the United States Environmental Protection
18Agency.
 
19    Section 20. Emissions Limits.
20    (a) A coal-fired power plant located within a municipality
21with a population of 1,000,000 or more inhabitants shall not
22emit pollutants into the atmosphere in excess of any of the
23following levels:
24        (1) Within one year after the effective date of this
25    Act, emissions of particulate matter shall not exceed:

 

 

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1            (A) an emission rate for total PM/PM10 of 0.015
2        pounds per million BTU of actual heat input in any one
3        hour period as measured by an approved method; and
4            (B) an emission rate for PM2.5, including
5        filterable and condensable, of 0.010 pounds per
6        million BTU of actual heat input in any one-hour period
7        as measured by an approved method.
8        (2) Within 3 years after the effective date of this
9    Act, emissions of CO2 shall not exceed an emission rate of
10    120.36 pounds per million BTU of actual heat input
11    calculated over a 30-day period.
12    (b) An owner of 2 or more electric utility steam-generating
13units at the same coal-fired power plant within a municipality
14with a population of 1,000,000 or more inhabitants shall have
15one additional year to meet the emissions limits contained in
16subsection (a) of this Section.
17    (c) All coal-fired power plants located within a
18municipality with a population of 1,000,000 or more inhabitants
19are prohibited from complying with the emissions limits
20contained in this Section by converting from coal as their
21primary fuel to another high carbon content fossil fuel.
 
22    Section 25. Compliance plan. Each person who owns or
23operates a coal-fired power plant within a municipality with a
24population of 1,000,000 or more inhabitants shall submit to the
25Agency an initial compliance plan by January 1, 2013 and an

 

 

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1updated compliance plan by January 1, 2014 and every January 1
2thereafter until January 1, 2017. "Compliance plan", as used in
3this Section, means a written plan that identifies milestone
4tasks necessary for the coal-fired power plant to achieve
5compliance with the emission limitations set forth in Section
620 of this Act and contains, at a minimum, dates for completion
7of preliminary and final designs, awarding contracts and
8completion of construction, and installation of pollution
9control equipment necessary to achieve compliance and plans to
10assure retention or retraining of any employee whose job may be
11affected by such compliance.
 
12    Section 30. Reporting.
13    (a) Each owner or operator of a coal-fired power plant
14located within a municipality with a population of 1,000,000 or
15more inhabitants shall submit the following to the Agency:
16        (1) By February 1 of each year, a written report
17    identifying the name, address, and telephone number of each
18    person who owns or operates the coal-fired power plant and,
19    if such a person is a corporation, its state of
20    incorporation and registered agent;
21        (2) By February 1 of each year, a written report which
22    calculates, using an approved method, the emissions of
23    PM2.5, PM/PM10, and CO2 from that electric utility
24    steam-generating unit at that coal-fired power plant,
25    measured in pounds per million BTU heat input, for the

 

 

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1    months of January through December of the preceding year,
2    recalculated monthly;
3        (3) By the 15th of each month, or, should the 15th fall
4    on a holiday or weekend day, the next business day
5    thereafter, a written report which calculates, using an
6    approved method, the emissions of PM2.5, PM/PM10, and CO2
7    from that electric utility steam-generating unit at each
8    coal-fired power plant, measured in pounds per million BTU
9    heat input, for the preceding month.
10        (4) Within 10 business days after its submission to
11    USEPA, any report or data pertaining to emissions of PM2.5,
12    PM/PM10, and CO2 from the coal-fired power plant, including
13    the results of any stack test, submitted in the same form
14    as submitted to USEPA.
15    (b) Each of the reports required under subsection (a) of
16this Section must be signed by a responsible official of the
17coal-fired power plant and contain a certification by such
18official, under penalty of law, as to each report's truth,
19accuracy, and completeness.
20    (c) All reports calculating emissions of PM2.5 and PM/PM10,
21to be submitted under subsection (a) of this Section shall
22document downtime or calibration failure of any continuous
23emission monitoring equipment required to be installed,
24operated, calibrated and maintained by Subpart L (Continuous
25Monitoring) of Agency Air Pollution Regulations, 35 Ill. Adm.
26Code Part 201.

 

 

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1    (d) All reports of emissions required to be submitted under
2this Section shall report emissions as measured by an approved
3method.
4    (e) Emission reporting requirements under subsection (a)
5of this Section may be satisfied, in whole or in part, by
6providing the Agency with an emission report submitted to the
7Agency or USEPA provided that the submitted report is
8supplemented as necessary to fully comply with the emission
9reporting requirements of subsection (a) of this Section.
10    (f) Any coal-fired power plant that has met the emissions
11limits of Section 20 of this Act or avoided the applicability
12of Section 20 of this Act by substituting fuels must submit a
13written report to the Agency within 30 days after the
14substitution verifying that the substitute fuel is not a high
15carbon content fuel. Such a report must be signed by a
16responsible official of the coal-fired power plant and contain
17a certification by the official, under penalty of law, as to
18the report's truth, accuracy and completeness.
 
19    Section 35. Enforcement.
20    (a) The Agency shall have the authority to investigate
21alleged violations of this Act and refer violations to the
22Attorney General or the State's Attorney of the county in which
23the violation occurred. Prior to referring the violation to the
24Attorney General or the State's Attorney of the county in which
25the violation occurred, the Agency shall serve upon that

 

 

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1person, either in person or by certified mail, return receipt
2requested, a written notice informing that person of any one or
3more of the following:
4        (1) the nature and location of the alleged violation of
5    the emissions limits established by Section 20 of this Act,
6    the period over which the calculation of emissions was
7    performed, and the intention to commence an action;
8        (2) the failure to submit a compliance plan as required
9    by Section 25 of this Act, the date the compliance plan was
10    due, the specific deficiencies with the compliance plans
11    submitted, if any, and the intention to commence an action;
12    or
13        (3) the failure to submit a report as required by
14    Section 30 of this Act, the date the report was due, the
15    specific deficiencies with the report submitted, if any,
16    and the intention to commence an action.
17    (b) After receiving notice of a violation from the Agency
18under subsection (a) of this Section, the Attorney General, or
19the State's Attorney in the county in which the violation
20occurred, at the request of the Agency, or on his or her own
21motion, may bring an action in the name of the People of the
22State of Illinois to restrain conduct that violates Sections
2320, 25, or 30 of this Act, to compel abatement of a violation
24of Section 20 of this Act, to compel submission of a compliance
25plan as required under Section 25 of this Act, to compel
26submission of a report as required by Section 30 of this Act or

 

 

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1to take such other action as may be necessary, including the
2recovery of any applicable penalties and costs.
3    (c) If the court finds a person liable for a violation of
4this Act, then the court may award the Attorney General, or the
5State's Attorney in the county in which the violation occurred,
6costs of litigation, including reasonable attorney and expert
7witness fees and costs. This allowance shall be a part of the
8costs of the litigation assessed against the defendant, and may
9be recovered as such.
 
10    Section 40. Violation of emission limits.
11    (a) A violation of any of the provisions of Section 20 of
12this Act is considered to be a public nuisance.
13    (b) Each instance in which a coal-fired power plant emits
14PM, PM2.5, PM10, or CO2 into the atmosphere in excess of the
15limits in Section 20 of this Act is a violation of this Act.
16Each one-hour period in which the PM, PM10, or PM2.5 limits of
17Section 20 of this Act are exceeded is a separate and distinct
18violation. Each one-day period in which the CO2 limits of
19Section 20 of this Act are exceeded is a separate and distinct
20violation.
21    (c) Any person found to have violated any of the provisions
22of Section 20 of this Act shall be liable for a civil penalty
23of not less than $5,000 and not more than $10,000 for each
24violation.
 

 

 

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1    Section 45. Applicability. Emissions from a coal-fired
2power plant which occur prior to the effective date of this
3amendatory Act of the 97th General Assembly shall not render a
4person liable under this Act.
 
5    Section 50. Conflicts with other laws. If there is any
6conflict between the provisions of this Act and the provisions
7of any other State or local statute, rule, regulation, or
8ordinance, the provisions of this Act shall control.
 
9    Section 55. Existing remedies. This Act does not abrogate
10or waive any statutory or common law cause of action,
11administrative remedy, or defense otherwise available to the
12State and existing before the effective date of this amendatory
13Act of the 97th General Assembly.
 
14    Section 60. Rulemaking. The Illinois Environmental
15Protection Agency may adopt rules necessary to implement this
16Act.
 
17    Section 97. Severability. The provisions of this Act are
18severable under Section 1.31 of the Statute on Statutes.
 
19    Section 99. Effective date. This Act takes effect June 1,
202012.".