ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY
OFFICE OF ENFORCEMENT
REMOTE SENSING STUDY
OF
THERMAL DISCHARGES
TO
LAKE MICHIGAN
ILLINOIS - INDIANA - MICHIGAN
National Field Investigations Center
Denver, Colorado
and
Region V
Chicago, Illinois
October 1972
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TABLE OF CONTENTS
Chapter Page
TABLE OF CONTENTS i
LIST OF FIGURES iii
I SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 1
II INTRODUCTION 3
III RESULTS OF THERMAL DATA ANALYSIS 7
17 OCTOBER 1972 FLIGHT 7
1. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Michigan City Power Plant 7
2. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Bailly Power Plant 7
3. Industrial Thermal Discharges 7
4. Industrial Thermal Discharges 8
5. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Mitchell Power Plant 8
6. Industrial Thermal Discharges 8
7. Commonwealth Edison Company -
State Line Power Plant 9
8. Industrial Thermal Discharges 9
9. Commonwealth Edison Company -
Waukegan Power Plant 9
19 OCTOBER 1972 FLIGHT 9
1. Michigan Consumers Power Company -
Palisades Power Plant 10
2. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Michigan City Power Plant 11
3. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Bailly Power Plant 11
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4. Industrial Thermal Discharges 12
5. Northern Indiana Public Service -
Mitchell Power Plant 12
6. Thermal Discharges -
Union Carbide and American Oil Companies . . 12
7. Thermal Discharges - Inland Steel and
Youngstown Sheet and Tube Companies .... 13
8. Commonwealth Edison -
State Line Power Plant 13
9. Industrial Thermal Discharges 13
10. Industrial Thermal Discharges 14
11. Commonwealth Edison -
Waukegan Power Plant 14
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LIST OF FIGURES
Following
Number Page
1 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Michigan City Power Plant 7
2 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Bailly Power Plant 7
3 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Mitchell Power Plant 8
4 Commonwealth Edison Company -
State Line Power Plant 8
5 Industrial Thermal Discharges 8
6 Industrial Thermal Discharges 9
7 Commonwealth Edison Company -
Waukegan Power Plant 9
8 Michigan Consumers Power Company -
Palisades Power Plant 10
9 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Michigan City Power Plant 11
10 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Bailly Power Plant 11
11 Northern Indiana Public Service -
Mitchell Power Plant 12
12 Industrial Thermal Discharges 13
13 Industrial Thermal Discharges 13
14 Industrial Thermal Discharges 13
15 Commonwealth Edison -
Waukegan Power Plant 14
16 Thermal Map Trace 14
m
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I. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION
An aerial reconnaissance study was conducted along the shoreline
of Lake Michigan from South Haven, Michigan in a clockwise manner
through Waukegan, Illinois. The flights were carried out during the
afternoon hours on 17 October 1972 and 19 October 1972.
A total of six power plants were in operation during the course
of this study. Thermal data, obtained at a distance of 1,000 feet
from the respective discharge position along shore, for the MCPC -
Palisades Power Plant and the CEC Waukegan Power Plant are presented
as follows:
Power Plant Surface Temperature Increase over
Lake Michigan Background at 1,000
feet from Discharge on 19 October
1972.
Palisades 14.3°F (12.2°F at 2,000 feet)
Waukegan 16.1°F (3.4°F at 2,000 feet)
The 1,000 feet value stems from the Recommendation No. 1 adopted
by the Third Session of the Lake Michigan Enforcement Conference.
This recommendation reads:
"Applicable to all waste heat discharges except as
noted above:(*) At any time, and at a maximum distance
of 1,000 feet from a fixed point adjacent to the
discharge, (agreed upon by the State and Federal
regulatory agencies), the receiving water temperature
shall not be more than 3°F above the existing natural
temperature nor shall the maximum temperature exceed those
listed below whichever is lower."
The maximum "surface to three-foot depth" temperature recommended for
October is 65°F. The Palisades Power Plant was also in violation
of this 65°F temperature value at the 1,000 feet point.
*Municipal waste and water treatment plants, and vessels.
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Violations could not be ascertained for the remaining four
power plants due to the lack of adequate surface water temperature
data. On 19 October 1972, the CEC State Line Power Plant was not
covered due to low level clouds in the immediate area.
Numerous violations of Recommendation No. 3 were recorded
(during both flights) in Gary/Calumet, Indiana, Calumet Harbor,
Illinois and Waukegan, Illinois areas. This recommendation reads as
"Discharge shall be such that geographic areas affected
by thermal plumes do not overlap or intersect. Plumes shall
not affect fish spawning and nursery areas nor touch the
lake bottom."
From the data given in this report, it must be concluded that
Recommendations No. 1 and No. 3 of the Lake Michigan Enforcement
Conference are not being fulfilled by many sources of thermal and
industrial discharges within the Conference area.
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II. INTRODUCTION
An aerial remote sensing study of the thermal discharges to Lake
Michigan was conducted on the following dates:
1) 17 October 1972, 1400-1530 hours CDT
2) 19 October 1972, 1500-1630 hours CDT
This effort was requested by the Enforcement Division, Region V,
EPA. The study area included waters affected by discharges from
electric power plants and industrial sites from South Haven, Michigan
to Waukegan, Illinois. The power plants covered were
..Michigan Consumers Power Company - Palisades Power Plant
..Northern Indiana Public Service - Michigan City Power Plant
..Northern Indiana Public Service - Mitchell Power Plant
..Commonwealth Edison - State Line Power Plant
..Commonwealth Edison - Waukegan Power Plant
The location of each power station is shown on the map which appears
at the back of this report. Each industrial discharge will be
identified herein by company to the extent possible and geographical
location.
The thermal data were recorded by an infrared line scanner (IRLS)
on board a USAF RF-4C (Phantom) aircraft. Two such aircraft were
utilized during this study. The temperature resolution of this scanner
is 0.1° Centigrade.
The IRLS will record only surface temperatures in water. Water
is opaque to this region of the intermediate infrared band. The
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maximum depth penetration in either fresh or salt water is 0.01 cm.
Therefore, a submerged thermal discharge can be detected from an
aircraft with an infrared line scanner only if all or part of the
warm wastewater reaches the surface of the receiving body of water.
The thermal data were recorded on 5-inch film in the form of a
thermal map. At the time of flight, ground truth, in the form of
surface water temperatures, was obtained for each power station
location. The cooling water discharge temperatures and, in some
cases, background water surface temperatures of Lake Michigan,
were provided by EPA, Region V. These temperature values served as
an absolute reference for the calibration, and subsequent analysis
of the airborne thermal data, especially for the surface waters 1,000
feet distant from the respective points of thermal discharges. The
accuracy placed upon these temperatures values as given in this
report, is +l°Fahrenheit. Once the calibration described above
has been effected, this accuracy becomes a relative number which
is not dependent upon or a function of any particular temperature
value within the established temperature limits. This accuracy
does not include the respective accuracies of the terrestrial
instrumentation used by the ground truth personnel to obtain the
Lake Michigan surface water and discharge temperatures. These
values would, to a good approximation, add to the +_ 1°F given above
to form a total accuracy for a given temperature value presented.
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The approximate scale of the thermal maps is as follows:
1) 17 October 1972 flight - 1:32,435
2) 19 October 1972 flight - 1:29,600
These values were obtained from the original negatives.
The first EPA flight, carried out in Lake Michigan, occurred on
14 September 1972. The results of that study were presented at the
Fourth Session of the Lake Michigan Enforcement Conference held in
late September 1972. The purpose of the September Study was to docu-
ment the extent of the thermal discharges from electric power plants
into Lake Michigan from Muskegon, Michigan along shore in a clockwise
direction to Twin Creeks, Wisconsin. The study revealed violations of
Recommendations No. 1 and No. 3 adopted by the Third Session of the
aforementioned Conference. These recommendations read as follows:
Recommendation No. 1
"Applicable to all waste heat discharges except as noted above: (*)
At any time, and at a maximum distance of 1,000 feet from a fixed
point adjacent to the discharge, (agreed upon by the State and
Federal regulatory agencies), the receiving water temperature
shall not be more than 3°F above the existing natural temperature
nor shall the maximum temperature exceed those listed below which-
ever is lower."
The maximum "surface to three-foot depth" temperature recommended for
September is 80°F.
Recommendation No. 3
"Discharge shall be such that geographic areas affected by
thermal plumes do not overlap or intersect. Plumes shall
not affect fish spawning and nursery areas nor touch the
lake bottom."
*Municipal waste and water treatment plants, and vessels.
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The purpose of the October study, which is the contents of this
report, was to further document the violations of the above-mentioned
recommendations by thermal discharges in the area from South Haven,
Michigan (Palisades Power Plant) along shore clockwise to Waukegan,
Illinois (Waukegan Power Plant). For the month of October, the
maximum "surface to three-feet-depth" temperature, of Recommendation
No. 1, is 65°F.
It is worthy to note that the accuracy of the instrumentation used
to measure the surface water temperatures in Lake Michigan, by ground
personnel, has been given as 0.1°Centigrade.
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III. RESULTS OF THERMAL DATA ANALYSIS
All data interpretations and analyses were carried out on the
original negative from the infrared line scanner. Results of the
thermal analyses for each respective thermal discharge are presented
as follows:
A. 17 OCTOBER 1972 FLIGHT
No ground truth was obtained for this flight. The U. S. Weather
Service at Chicago O'Hare Field stated that the wind velocity at the
time of flight was from the northwest at 8 to 10 mph. Each of the
industrial or power plant discharges are discussed qualitatively
only, due to the lack of surface water temperatures.
1. Northern Indiana Public Service - Michigan City Power Plant
a) The plant's discharge and the resultant thermal plume are
shown in the center of Figure 1. The plume measured 2,850
feet in length along shoreline to the west and 1,230
feet in width with respect to the shoreline. It was
dispersing in a westerly direction.
2. Northern Indiana Public Service - Bailly Power Plant
a) The plant's thermal discharge and resultant plume are shown
in Figure 2. The length and width of the plume were 4,050 feet
and 1,000 feet respectively. The plume was dispersing along
the breakwater to the west of the discharge.
3. Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) In the eastern-most rectangular slip, as indicated in the
center of Figure 2, a large thermal discharge was recorded.
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It is seen that the hot water filled most of the area
behind the breakwater. The identity of the company producing
the discharge is unknown.
b) Three thermal discharges are indicated in the canal located
to the west of the rectangular slips in Figure 2. The identity
of the company producing the discharge is unknown.
4. Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) A total of five thermal discharges, from industrial sources,
are shown in Figure 3. The eastern-most three and western-most
two reportedly originate from within the facilities of the
U.S. Steel Corporation. The western-most thermal plumes
do intersect each other which is in violation of Recommendation 3
adopted by the Third Session of the Lake Michigan Enforcement
Conference.
5. Northern Indiana Public Service - Mitchell Power Plant
a) The plant's thermal .discharge and resultant plume are indicated
in Figure 3. The length of the plume measured approximately
3,370 feet and extended 1,070 from shore into Lake Michigan.
The plume was dispersing in an easterly direction along shore.
6- Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) The thermal discharges from
0 Inland Steel Company
0 Union Carbide Company
0 Youngstown Sheet and Tube Company
0 American Oil Company
are indicated in Figures 4 and 5. The respective thermal
plumes were overlapping each other. The overlap is also
indicated in the aforementioned figures.
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7. Commonwealth Edison Company - State Line Power Plant
a) The thermal discharge and the resultant thermal plume from the
State Line Power Plant are shown in Figures 4 and 6. The plume
measured 10,900 feet in length and 1,550 feet from the discharges
into Lake Michigan. This plume was being perturbed at the
point, in Figures 4 and 6, indicated by the question mark.
The cause is unknown.
8. Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) A total of four thermal discharges, reportedly from industrial
sources, are shown in Figure 6. The resultant thermal plumes
did overlap again in violation of the aforementioned
Recommendation 3.
b) Three industrial thermal discharges are also depicted in the
left center of Figure 7. These plumes were not overlapping
each other.
9. Commonwealth Edison Company - Waukegan Power Plant
a) The thermal discharge and resultant thermal plume from the
Waukegan Power Plant are shown in Figure 7. The plume
measured approximately 11,740 feet in length and extended
2,370 feet from shore into Lake Michigan. It was dispersing
along shore in a southerly direction.
B. 19 OCTOBER 1972 FLIGHT
During this flight, a limited amount of ground truth, in the
form of surface water temperatures in the background waters of
Lake Michigan and within the surface area of the respective thermal
plumes, was obtained by EPA, Region V. Quantitative thermal data
will be given in this section to the extent practicable. The
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thermal discharges recorded during this flight are presented in
the following sections:
1. Michigan Consumers Power Company - Palisades Power Plant
a) The temperature of the discharge water was 67.6°F as provided
by ground truth.
b) The surface temperature of the background waters of Lake Michigan
was 51.3°F as provided by ground truth. This temperature was
obtained 3,830 feet north of the discharge and 400 feet, 1,000
feet, 2,000 feet into the Lake from shore.
c) The thermal plume is shown in Figure 8. The surface tempera-
ture of the plume, at the 1,000 feet and 2,000 feet points
shown in Figure 8, was 65.6°F and 63.5°F respectively at the
time of flight. The temperature increase of the water within
the plume, at the above mentioned points, was 14.3°F and 12.2°F
respectively.
d) The plant's discharge flow rate was 406,000 gallons per
minute (gpm) at the time of flight.
e) The wind velocity was from the west northwest at 8 mph.
f) The ambient surface current, measured 1,000 feet into the
Lake from the discharge was 0.1 meters/sec.
g) The accuracy of the ground equipment used to measure the
surface water temperatures, was 0.1°C.
h) The plume could be easily traced 3 miles from the discharge.
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2. Northern Indiana Public Service - Michigan City Power Plant
a) The ground truth was obtained approximately 1 hour 50 minutes
before the aircraft recorded the plant's thermal discharge.
At 1335 CDT the temperature of the discharge water was
measured to be 56.3°F. The surface temperature of the water
in the Trail Creek Channel which is 1,500 feet east of the
discharge near the end of the western-most breakwater, was
54.5°F. The thermal discharge is found in Figure 9.
b) If the respective temperatures at the time of flight were
identical to those measured 1 hour 50 minutes before then the
surface temperatures of the 1,000 feet and 2,000 feet points
would be 55.6°F and 56.1°F. No ground truth temperatures
were obtained from the background waters of Lake Michigan.
Therefore, the temperature differences between the afore-
mentioned points within the plume and the background waters
cannot be provided.
c) The plume measured 4,680 feet in the east-west direction and
1,980 feet into Lake Michigan from the point of discharge.
d) The wind was from the west northwest at 3 to 8 mph.
3. Northern Indiana Public Service - Bai11y Power Plant
a) No ground truth was obtained for this respective thermal
plume. No quantitative temperature data can be provided.
b) The plant's thermal plume is shown at the left end of Figure 10.
It measured 2,490 feet into the Lake from shore and 3,250 feet
in width (east-west).
c) There was a discontinuity recorded in the thermal plume,
as indicated by the question mark in Figure 10. This point
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appeared at the same location, within the plume, in the thermal
data from both aircraft.
d) The wind was from the west northwest at 3 to 8 mph.
4. Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) A total of three thermal discharges, reportedly from industrial
sources, are indicated in the center of Figure 10. The two
western-most thermal plumes, in the small canal, were over-
lapping at the time of flight.
b) A total of six thermal discharges, reportedly from industrial
sources, are shown at the left and right ends of Figure 11.
The three eastern-most discharges of the four identified on
the left side, are from the facilities of the U. S. Steel
Corporation. The source of the fourth is unknown. The
source(s) of the two discharges, indicated on the right
side of Figure 11, are unknown. In this immediate area, the
two resultant plumes did overlap. Wind was from the west
northwest at 3 to 8 mph.
5. Northern Indiana Public Service - Mitchell Power Plant
a) The thermal discharge and the resultant thermal plume are shown
in Figure 11. The plume measured 3,700 feet in length and
1,330 feet in width from the point of discharge out into
Lake Michigan. The plume was dispersing in an easterly
direction. Wind was from the west northwest at 3 to 8 mph.
6- Thermal Discharges - Union Carbide and American Oil Companies
a) The thermal discharges and the resultant thermal plumes, from
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the facilities of the above-mentioned companies, are shown
in Figure 12. The plumes were overlapping significantly
in the area indicated. Wind was from the west northwest
at 3 to 8 mph.
7> Thermal Discharges - Inland Steel and Youngstown Sheet and
Tube Companies
a) A total of five thermal discharges, which originated within the
facilities of the above-mentioned companies, are shown in
Figure 13. This is the Indiana Harbor area. As shown in
Figure 13, there was significant plume overlapping in the
lower reaches of the Harbor. Wind was from the west northwest
at 3 to 8 mph.
b) Along the far right edge of Figure 14, the warm water, seen
flowing in an easterly direction, was from the combined
thermal plumes [Figures 13 and 14] entering Lake Michigan.
8. Commonwealth Edison - State Line Power Plant
This discharge was not recorded due to cloud cover in the area.
9- Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) A total of five thermal discharges were recorded in the area
depicted in Figure 14. There are two small discharges
indicated by the long arrow in the 8 o'clock position. The
areas of thermal plume overlapping are also indicated.
The combined plumes were dispersing in an easterly direction.
The wind was from the west northwest at 3 to 8 mph.
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10. Industrial Thermal Discharges
a) Three industrial thermal discharges and the resultant thermal
plumes are shown in the left center of Figure 15. There was
no apparent surface plume overlapping in this area. The
plumes were dispersing in a southerly direction. Wind was
from the west northwest at 3 to 8 mph. The northern most
discharge, of the three, reportedly originates within the
U. S. Steel Corp., Waukegan Plant.
11. Commonwealth Edison - Waukegan Power Plant
a) The temperature of the discharge water, at the mouth of the
plant's canal, was 64.4°F as provided by ground truth.
b) The surface temperature of the background waters of Lake
Michigan was 46.4°F as provided by ground truth. This value
was measured at a point approximately 1,400 feet north of
the canal and 400 feet into the water from shore.
c) The thermal plume is shown in Figure 15. The surface tempera-
ture of the plume, at the 1,000 feet and 2,000 feet points
shown in Figure 15, was 62.5°F and 49.8°F respectively.
The temperature increase of the surface water within the plume,
at the above mentioned paints, was 16.1°F and 3.4°F respectively.
d) The wind was from the west northwest at 5 mph.
e) There was a thermal discharge located approximately 4,140 feet
south along shore from the power plant discharge as indicated
in Figure 15. The identity of the source of the thermal
discharge is unknown. There was significant overlapping
of this plume with the power plant's plume as indicated.
NOTE: The respective locations of the industrial thermal maps are
given in Figure 16.
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