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Wastewater Compliance and Enforcement

The compliance strategy is to pursue sustained compliance and promote pollution prevention by appropriate state actions which address adequate operation and maintenance of facilities, sound local fiscal and timely comprehensive planning for future facilities. The achievement and maintenance of compliance is supported by a response process that provides for timely and appropriate follow-up to violations in relation to the nature and severity of the violation and the overall degree of non-compliance.

Reporting to the public on compliance with environmental requirements is not only necessary to maintain credibility with the public but also is important in maintenance of sustained compliance from the regulated facilities.

Compliance maintenance is promoted using several program elements that encourage and assist facility operators and officials to plan for preventative and corrective actions on a timely basis. Key program elements include a facility self monitoring system, other systems for early identification of potential compliance problems, and the initiation of actions to achieve or sustain compliance. Self-monitoring is required under the conditions of facility discharge permits that set limits on pollutants and stipulate the frequency and type of sampling requirements as well as flow monitoring, analytical, and data reporting requirements. The information obtained by the permittee's self-monitoring program is required to be reported to the Illinois EPA through the submission of a discharge monitoring report. An objective of the self-monitoring and reporting requirements is to produce the data necessary for the Illinois EPA to determine facility compliance with permit effluent limitations. Compliance monitoring is conducted in accordance with U.S. EPA technical review criteria for the determination of significant noncompliance and includes the preparation of Quarterly Noncompliance Reports.

DWPC Compliance Contact

Illinois Environmental Protection Agency
Bureau of Water
DWPC Compliance Section #19
1021 North Grand Avenue East
P.O. Box 19276
Springfield, Illinois 62794-9274
Telephone: 217-782-9720
Fax: 217-782-9891