090016_NOV-2019-DV-0417 Response_20200129

HAM RIGHT FARMS, LLC
PO BOX 2107
ELIZABETHTOWN, NC 28337
January 29, 2020
Mr. Trent Allen, Regional Supervisor
Division of Water Resources, Water Quality
Fayetteville Regional Office
225 Green St Suite 714
Fayetteville, NC 28301
Dear Mr. Allen,
In response t.- our'. otice of Violation/Notice of Intent (NOV-2019-DV-0417) of January 23, 2020 for
Bladen Twen. (9-16) ; e submit the following:
Violation 1: o prevent discharge of waste to surface waters or wetlands: Permit Condition
1.1.
The runoff in question from October 26th had not been seen by my farm staff. If any runoff had been
observed, the irrigation event would have been halted and it would have been reported. Evidently the
operator did not check all areas of the field as closely as needed since the ponded area was not noticed.
If he had seen that area, he would have stopped the irrigation event. We are watching field conditions
much closer during all irrigation events on our farms and checking tile drains if they are present. All staff
that are operating irrigation equipment have been through training and we are more closely monitoring all
application events. Six staff members are taking the initial waste operator class in Elizabethtown on
January 30th and 318t. This training will help them better understand how important it is to closely monitor
all irrigation events and what the detrimental effects could be for our environment if a discharge were to
occur. Some staff members will be relieved form irrigation duties.
After your staff departed on October 29th, we bermed up the ditch and placed a pump in the ditch leading
into the woods and pumped mixed water and wastewater back into the lagoon for approximately 9 hours
until the ditchwater looked clear.
We have discussed a possible containment area with Smithfield engineers to capture any wastewater
should an event like this occur in the future.
Violation 2: Failure to notify DWR within 24 hrs following first knowledge of the occurrence,
Permit Condition 111.13g.
As mentioned above, during the last irrigation event, staff did not observe the runoff from the field. We are
all more aware of the need to cease irrigation in the event of ponding or runoff and notify DWR
immediately. Our first knowledge of this runoff did not occur until notified by Mr. Steve Guyton. In the
future, we will be much more observant of all irrigation events and notify your office immediately of any
runoff. We did not notify your office because we were not aware of the runoff.
Violation #3: Land application rates resulting in excessive ponding or any runoff. Permit Condition
11.5.
As stated above, we will notify your staff if excessive ponding occurs and cease irrigation immediately.
Before irrigation events we are closely observing field conditions to make sure it is dry enough to apply
waste. It is important to do a thorough job of monitoring field conditions.
Violation #4: Failure of the OIC to inspect the land application site as often as necessary or no
more than every 120 minutes. Permit Condition 11.17.

You will see from the enclosed IRR-1 sheets that my employee did note his inspections were within the
120-minute time frame but they needed to be more thorough by observing all parts of the waste receiving
area.
As requested, we have explained what we know of how the violations occurred.
Staff will:
1. Walk fields prior to irrigation to determine suitability for application.
2. During irrigation we will visually observe all tile drains, reels and pivots, ditches and
drainageways and continue to document the inspections.
3. We are sending six (6) employees to the initial waste operator training class so they can
receive a certification for waste application. This will improve their knowledge base which will, in
turn, reduce the opportunities for a discharge or other violation to occur in the future.
We regret that this incident took place and we will be much more attentive to irrigation activities. As you
can see, we have spent funds to help alleviate any detrimental effects of this event. We hope that our
actions after finding the runoff will be considered when determining the need for fines. If you need further
information regarding this incident please call me at 910-862-4549. Thank you for your attention to this
matter.
Sincerely,
)12k
Dean Hilton
Brandon Norris

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