11-4-1520 Permit – Application.
   (A)   Application for a permit to operate an incinerator, liquid waste handling facility, resource recovery facility, sanitary landfill or transfer station, or any other facility which disposes, handles or treats waste shall demonstrate that the facility is designed, located and will be operated to protect the health, safety and welfare of the public, and shall be accompanied by the following:
      (1)   written consent of the owner of the property or his authorized agent;
      (2)   evidence of payment of real property taxes or evidence of exemption;
      (3)   evidence that the facility is located in a district for which a variation in the nature of a special use may be obtained from the zoning board of appeals pursuant to the Chicago Zoning Ordinance, Title 17;
      (4)   plot plan indicating the property boundaries; locations of buildings and ancillary structures; roads; boundaries of waste disposal, handling and storage areas; fences or other access control devices; location of fire protection facilities; and any other facilities/structures planned for site;
      (5)   general layout of the facility and equipment including plans, descriptions and specifications necessary to describe the physical operating characteristics of the facility;
      (6)   plat of survey prepared by a professional land surveyor registered by the State of Illinois;
      (7)   legal description of the property boundary and limits of waste disposal, handling and storage areas prepared by a professional land surveyor registered by the State of Illinois;
      (8)   location and available capacity of utilities and calculations of the facility's utility needs;
      (9)   type of waste handled, disposed of or treated;
      (10)   estimated quantity of each waste type received, treated and disposed of per day;
      (11)   water pumping equipment, including descriptions of specifications, pumping capacity, back- up capacity and location within the facility;
      (12)   fire prevention measures, including a comprehensive fire prevention and response plan;
      (13)   security equipment, including measures to restrict all unauthorized access to the site;
      (14)   emergency procedures in event of equipment failure and a demonstration that sufficient back-up and emergency operating capacity exists to adequately process one (1) day's waste flow into the facility;
      (15)   emergency communication system;
      (16)   first aid equipment;
      (17)   drawings and specifications for all structures and fixed equipment including all drawings, specifications, analysis and calculations demonstrating that the facility can be operated as proposed and in a safe manner;
      (18)   device, apparatus or process used in the facility, including a waste flow diagram and a demonstration that all equipment, processes and staffing are capable of safely handling the intended quantities of waste at all points in the facility;
      (19)   storage capacity, including detailed calculations of the total disposal capacity and the storage capacity of any storage area or tipping floor;
      (20)   water drainage, including a demonstration that adequate systems exist to handle stormwater and wastewater flows generated at the site;
      (21)   means of vehicle access to and egress from the facility, including a description of points of ingress and egress from the facility for all vehicles, a designation of roads to be used by traffic generated by the facility, and a demonstration that the impact of the site-generated traffic on existing traffic flows will be minimized;
      (22)   parking facilities, including a demonstration that adequate on-site parking exists for all vehicles entering the site;
      (23)   employee facilities;
      (24)   rodent control, including a plan which provides for regular inspection, prevention and elimination of rodents;
      (25)   method of screening or fencing the facility from surrounding area, including a demonstration that the method of screening or fencing will adequately control noise, dust, blowing litter and will limit access to authorized persons;
      (26)   method for treatment of odors, including a plan which provides for the prevention of odors and the prompt elimination of odors that do occur;
      (27)   closure plan, including a decommissioning plan to be implemented upon closure of the facility, calculation of closure costs and demonstration that financing for closure is available;
      (28)   proposed buffer zone including a description of the extent and effectiveness of such zones;
      (29)   environment assessment as provided in the Chicago Zoning Ordinance, Title 17;
      (30)   any other information relating to operations, safety, facility design, and environmental impacts deemed necessary by the commissioner to ensure that the facility can operate as proposed and that it can operate in compliance with the provisions of this Code and all other applicable local, state and federal laws and regulations.
   (B)   An application for a permit for a liquid waste handling facility shall be accompanied by the information required in section 11-4-1520(A), and, in addition, the following:
      (1)   monitoring well locations, including a demonstration that the monitoring wells are located and constructed so that contamination of groundwater can be detected prior to leaving the site;
      (2)   a plan for monitoring of constituents released from the facility, including maximum concentrations of constituents and frequency of monitoring; as well as a demonstration that the monitoring parameters are capable of detecting a release from the facility and a description of the statistical basis for the selected monitoring parameters;
      (3)   soil composition, including a hydroecological investigation of the site and the surrounding area;
      (4)   a description of all safety equipment and spill response procedures;
      (5)   plans for safety dikes, including a demonstration that sufficient secondary containment facilities exist for all lagoons, impoundments and tanks;
      (6)   composition and method of construction of pit liners, including a construction quality assurance plan that will provide sufficient data to demonstrate that the liner will prevent contamination of the surrounding environment.
   (C)   An application for a permit for a sanitary landfill shall be accompanied by the information required in Section 11-4-1520(A) and, in addition, the following:
      (1)   monitoring well locations, including a demonstration that the monitoring wells are located and constructed such that contamination of groundwater can be detected prior to leaving the site;
      (2)   a plan for monitoring of constituents released from the landfill, including maximum concentrations of constituents and frequency of monitoring; as well as a demonstration that the monitoring parameters are capable of detecting a release from the facility and a description of the statistical basis for the selected monitoring parameters;
      (3)   soil composition, including a hydrogeological investigation of the site and the surrounding area;
      (4)   composition and method of construction of pit liners, including a construction quality assurance plan that will provide sufficient data to demonstrate that the liner will prevent contamination of the surrounding environment;
      (5)   type of cover, including the source, composition, and quantities available for daily, intermediate and final cover;
      (6)   fill direction, including a phasing plan and schedule for construction and waste disposal activities throughout the life of the facility;
      (7)   proposed grade of the landfill, including a topographic map of the final grades and a demonstration that the final grades of the landfill will have stable slopes and will prevent erosion of the final cover;
      (8)   leachate collection method and procedure, including a demonstration that the leachate collection system is capable of maintaining a maximum leachate head on the liner of one foot throughout the entire landfill and a plan for the storage and treatment of the leachate;
      (9)   methane recovery systems, including a demonstration that the system is capable of preventing the migration of methane to surrounding properties or to the atmosphere, and that the system is capable of collecting, storing and utilizing methane emissions in an environmentally sound manner;
      (10)   method of erosion control, including a demonstration that such methods are effective in preventing erosion at the site;
      (11)   closure plan, including a closure and long-term care plan which demonstrates that the facility will not contaminate the surrounding soil, air, and water and will not threaten public health and safety; a calculation of closure costs; and a demonstration that financing for closure of the site is available.
   (D)   An application for a permit for a transfer station shall be accompanied by the information required in Section 11-4-1520(A) and, in addition, the following:
      (1)   type of vehicles used;
      (2)   name and location of all solid waste disposal facilities to which waste from the station will be hauled, including the proposed routes and travel times to the solid waste disposal facility;
      (3)   method of volume reduction utilized, including specifications and operating procedures for any equipment used for volume reduction;
      (4)   method of curtailing windblown materials;
      (5)   daily cleanup procedures, including a plan for the facility which will minimize odors, bacteria, disease-bearing animals or insects and rodents;
      (6)   a plan that demonstrates that all waste will be removed from the facility at the end of each operating day.
   (E)   An application for a permit for an incinerator or resource recovery facility shall be accompanied by the information required in Section 11-4-1520(A) and, in addition, the following:
      (1)   air pollution control devices or measures;
      (2)   method of ash disposal;
      (3)   location of site for ash disposal;
      (4)   front end recycling plans for feasible and optimal recovery of materials.
   (F)   Prior to February 1, 2025, notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter: (1) no permit shall be issued nor modification of any permit allowed for the expansion of any existing sanitary landfill or liquid waste handling facility which utilizes deep well injection or landfill as a means of waste disposal, and (2) no permit shall be issued for the creation or operation of a new sanitary landfill site or liquid waste handling facility which utilizes deep well injection or landfill as a means of waste disposal. The commissioner shall not issue or modify any permit subject to the restrictions in Section 11-4-1520(F) to any person including any applicant whose application was pending prior to the passage of the ordinance.
   (G)   The commissioner shall render a decision concerning an application for a facility which handles, treats or disposes of waste pursuant to Sections 11-4-250, 11-4-1500 and 11-4-1520 within 180 days after a complete application, permit fee and security required by Section 11-4-370 have been filed with the commissioner's office, unless the commissioner makes a determination that additional information or additional time is needed to review the application. Provided, however, that the commissioner may not take more than 90 additional days to render a decision. Additional information that the commissioner may request includes, but is not limited to: technical and design documents; procedural plans; environmental assessments; information which relates to operations, safety, facility design and environmental impacts; and information which the commissioner deems necessary to ensure that the facility can operate as proposed and in compliance with the provisions of this code and all other applicable local, state and federal laws.
(Prior code § 17-6.4; Added Coun. J. 3-8-89, p. 25433; Amend Coun. J. 7-12-90, p. 18326; Amend Coun. J. 1-4-92, p. 11801; Amend Coun. J. 2-9-94, p. 45184; Amend Coun. J. 8-3-94, p. 55153; Amend Coun. J. 1-12-95, p. 65073; Amend Coun. J. 1-10-96, p. 14653; Amend Coun. J. 1-14-97, p. 37535; Amend Coun. J. 1-14-98, p. 59873; Amend Coun. J. 9-1-99, p. 10090, § 4; Amend Coun. J. 1-12-00, p. 23755, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 1-16-02, p. 77349, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 1-16-03, p. 101865, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 12-15-04, p. 40007, § 1; Amend Coun. J. 6-8-05, p. 49892, § 1)