EPA Region 5 will enter into an Administrative Consent Order (ACO) with Wedron Silica, LLC, Wedron, Illinois to address violations of conditions of its construction permits issued pursuant to the Illinois State Implementation Plan.
Specifically, Wedron Silica failed to follow good air pollution control practices for minimizing emissions at its silica sand mining and processing facility, which is in violation of several construction permits IEPA issued to the owners/operators of the facility from 2005 through 2017. We discovered these violations during an inspection on July 1, 2021, when inspectors observed fugitive particulate matter from truck and rail loading operations, conveyers, sand piles, and roadways. The facility also has an extensive history of community complaints.
This ACO requires Wedron Silica to implement several capital improvement projects at its facility which will reduce the instances of fugitive particulate matter emissions. Wedron Silica will also develop and implement a Preventative Maintenance, Inspection, and Repair Program to conduct preventative maintenance and timely identify and fix any equipment that is contributing to or which may contribute to fugitive particulate matter emissions. These corrective actions will address the violations set forth in the Notice of Violation issued to Wedron Silica on February 8, 2022.