Public Act 0573 101ST GENERAL ASSEMBLY

SB2027 Enrolled LRB101 10220 CPF 55324 b

Public Act 101-0573

AN ACT concerning safety.

Be it enacted by the People of the State of Illinois, represented in the General Assembly:

Section 5. The Environmental Protection Act is amended by adding Sections 13.9 and 21.7 as follows:

(415 ILCS 5/13.9 new)

Sec. 13.9. Mahomet Aquifer natural gas storage study.

(a) Subject to appropriation, the Prairie Research Institute shall:

(1) use remote sensing technologies, such as helicopter-based time domain electromagnetics, post-processing methods, and geologic modeling software, to examine, characterize, and prepare three-dimensional models of the unconsolidated geologic materials overlying any underground natural gas storage facility located within the boundaries of the Mahomet Aquifer; and

(2) to the extent possible, identify within those unconsolidated geologic materials potential structures and migration pathways for natural gas that may be released from the underground natural gas storage facility.

(b) For purposes of this Section, "underground natural gas storage facility" has the meaning provided in Section 5 of the Illinois Underground Natural Gas Storage Safety Act.

(415 ILCS 5/21.7 new)

Sec. 21.7. Landfills.

(a) The purpose of this Section is to enact legislative recommendations provided by the Mahomet Aquifer Task Force, established under Public Act 100-403. The Task Force identified capped but unregulated or underregulated landfills that overlie the Mahomet Aquifer as potentially hazardous to valuable groundwater resources. These unregulated or underregulated landfills generally began accepting waste for disposal sometime prior to 1973.

(b) The Agency shall prioritize unregulated or underregulated landfills that overlie the Mahomet Aquifer for inspection. The following factors shall be considered:

(1) the presence of, and depth to, any aquifer with potential potable use;

(2) whether the landfill has an engineered liner system;

(3) whether the landfill has an active groundwater monitoring system;

(4) whether waste disposal occurred within the 100-year floodplain; and

(5) landfills within the setback zone of any potable water supply well.

(c) Subject to appropriation, the Agency shall use existing information available from State and federal agencies, such as the Prairie Research Institute, the Department of Natural Resources, the Illinois Emergency Management Agency, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, and the Natural Resources Conservation Service, to identify unknown, unregulated, or underregulated waste disposal sites that overlie the Mahomet Aquifer that may pose a threat to surface water or groundwater resources.

(d) Subject to appropriation, for those landfills prioritized for response action following inspection and investigation, the Agency shall use its own data, along with data from municipalities, counties, solid waste management associations, companies, corporations, and individuals, to archive information about the landfills, including their ownership, operational details, and waste disposal history.

Section 10. The Illinois Groundwater Protection Act is amended by adding Section 10 as follows:

(415 ILCS 55/10 new)

Sec. 10. Pekin Metro Landfill; pilot projects.

(a) Subject to appropriation, the Agency shall design and implement up to 2 pilot studies of landfills that overlie the Mahomet Aquifer to identify threats to surface and groundwater resources that are posed by the landfills. One of the pilot projects shall be conducted at the Pekin Metro Landfill in Tazewell County. In conducting the pilot projects, the Agency shall:

(1) inspect and identify potential and current contamination threats to the water quality of aquifers in the same watershed as the landfill (for the Pekin Metro Landfill, the Mahomet Aquifer);

(2) use geographic information systems and remote sensing technology to track defects, structures, appliances, and wells for routine inspection and sustainable management;

(3) install or repair groundwater monitoring mechanisms necessary to identify whether contaminants from the landfill are affecting water quality in the Mahomet Aquifer; and

(4) identify and provide cost estimates for any additional response actions necessary or appropriate to reduce or minimize potential threats to human health and the environment resulting from current landfill conditions.

(b) Following the completion of the pilot project response actions, the Agency shall:

(1) evaluate, in consultation with the Prairie Research Institute, the use of aerial photography and other remote sensing technologies, such as Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR), to identify land erosion, landslides, barren areas, leachate seeps, vegetation, and other relevant surface and subsurface features of landfills to aid in the inspection and investigation of landfills; and

(2) identify additional procedures, requirements, or authorities that may be appropriate or necessary to address threats to human health and the environment from other unregulated or underregulated landfills throughout the State.

Effective Date: 1/1/2020