HomeMy WebLinkAboutNC0026565_Remission (Justification for Request)_20210617Ramseur
Where Family and Friends Meet
TOWN OF RAMSEUR
724 Liberty Street, PO Box 545
Ramseur, North Carolina 27316
336-824-8530
Commissioners
Jim McIntosh, Mayor Pro Tem
JC Parrish
Tim Cranford
Tanya Kenyon
Joy Hooker
Attn: PERCS Branch
Division of Water Resources
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Lon T. Snider, Regional Supervisor
Water Quality Regional Operations Section
Winston-Salem Regional Office
Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ
450 West Hanes Mill Rd., Suite 300
Winston-Salem, NC 27105
Mr. Snider and PERCS Branch:
Mayor
Vicki Caudle
June 15, 2021
NC Department of
Environmental Quality
Received
JUN172021
Winston-Salem
Regional Office
Town Clerk/Finance Officer
Carol Akers
Deputy Town Clerk/Finance Officer
Adrienne Hagood
I would like to take this moment to submit the Justification for Remission Request. You may be
aware that on January 31st we had heavy rain accruing to 3.5 inches over a 6-day period, which resulted
in the overflow cited on the Notice dated May 12, 2021 and received in our office on May 19, 2021.
Additionally, over the last several years we have been under contract with a 3rd party contractor,
Suez. During the time Suez was responsible for the maintenance of our lines, there was very little pro-
active desire to repair or upgrade our system.
The Town of Ramseur no longer has a 3rd party contractor, the contract terminated September 301h
2020 and we have actively been researching and are in the beginning stages of developing a strategic plan
to upgrade not only our sewer system, but waster system as well. For the last 9 %2 months we have been
reacting to the history of the lack of maintenance, we have now made the commitment to repair or rebuild
our infrastructure.
We know it will be a slow process with the budget constraints, but we are following a plan to
continue to upgrade our lines and systems.
Please reconsider the civil penalty. We, as every small town, is on a conservative budget.
Respectfully,
Vicki Caudle, Mayor
Serving the Town of Ramseur
mayor@townoframseur.org
336-824-8530 — office
336-736-9015 - cell
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
COUNTY OF RANDOLPH
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT
OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST
Town of Ramseur
Ramseur Collection System
PERMIT NO. WQCS00195
WAIVER OF RIGHT TO AN
ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING AND
STIPULATION OF FACTS
CASE NO. DV-2021-0076
Having been assessed civil penalties totaling $1,139.11 for violation(s) as set forth in the assessment document of the
Division of Water Resources dated May 11 2021 the undersigned, desiring to seek remission of the civil penalty, does
hereby waive the right to an administrative hearing in the above -stated matter and does stipulate that the facts are as
alleged in the assessment document. The undersigned further understands that all evidence presented in support of
remission of this civil penalty must be submitted to the Director of the Division of Water Resources within thirty (30) days
of receipt of the notice of assessment. No new evidence in support of a remission request will be allowed after (30) days
from the receipt of the notice of assessment. This the \ 5 *in day of V -T U. L , 20 Zi
SIGNATURE
ADDRESS
lo-w/1 off' TaaaNtseA-W.
-Po ?v x 5 4 C
TELEPHONE
3?x,2T3Le Qoi
JUSTIFICATION FOR REMISSION REQUEST
Case Number: DV-2021-0076
Assessed Party: Town of Ramseur
Permit No.: WQCS00195
County: Randolph
Amount Assessed: $1,139.11
Please use this form when requesting remission of this civil penalty. You must also complete the "Request For Remission,
Waiver of Right to an Administrative Hearing, and Stipulation of Facts" form to request remission of this civil penalty.
You should attach any documents that you believe support your request and are necessary for the Director to consider in
evaluating your request for remission. Please be aware that a request for remission is limited to consideration of the five
factors listed below as they may relate to the reasonableness of the amount of the civil penalty assessed. Requesting
remission is not the proper procedure for contesting whether the violation(s) occurred or the accuracy of any of the factual
statements contained in the civil penalty assessment document. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. $ I43B-282.1(c), remission of a civil
penalty may be granted only when one or more of the following five factors apply. Please check each factor that you
believe applies to your case and provide a detailed explanation, including copies of supporting documents, as to why the
factor applies (attach additional pages as needed).
(a) one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors in N.C.G.S. 143B-282.1(b) were wrongfully applied to the
detriment of the petitioner the assessment factors are listed in the civil penalty assessment document);
(b) the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the violation (i.e., explain the
steps that you took to correct the violation and prevent future occurrences);
(c) the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident (i.e., explain why the violation was unavoidable or
something you could not prevent or prepare for);
(d) the violator had not been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations;
✓ (e) payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial actions (i.e., explain
how payment of the civil penalty will prevent you from performing the activities necessary to achieve
compliance).
EXPLANATION:
DWR
Division of Water Resources
NC Department
of..
of Environmentaluai
ty
JUN 17 2021
State of North Carolina
Department of Environment and Natural Resources
Division of Water Resources
Collection System Sanitary Sewer Overflow Reporting Form
Form CS-SSO
PART I: Winston-Salem
Regional Office
This form shall be submitted to the appropriate DWQ Regional Office within five business days of the first knowledge of the
sanitary sewer overflow (SSO).
Permit Number WQCS00195 (WQCS# if active, otherwise use WQCSD#)
Facility: Ramseur Collection System
Owner: Town of Ramseur
Incident #: 202100370
City: Ramseur
Source of SSO (check applicable):
County: Randolph Region: Winston-Salem
❑ Sanitary Sewer 0 Pump Station / Lift Station
SPECIFIC location of the SSO (be consistent in description from past reports or documentation - i.e. Pump Station 6,
Manhole at Westall & Bragg Street, etc): 1341 West Ridge Street
Manhole #:
Latitude (Decimal Degrees): Longitude (Decimal Degrees):
Incident Started Dt: 01/31/2021 Time: 10:30 am Incident End Dt: 01/31/2021 Time
(mm-dd-yyyy) (hh:mmAM/PM) (mm-dd-yyyy)
Estimated Volume of the SSO: 1 '. gallons Estimated Duration (Round to nearest hour):
Describe how the volume was determined: Wastewater Treatment Plant Flows
Weather conditions during the SSO event:
03:00 pm
(hh:mm AM/PM)
4:30 hours
Heavy Rain 1.1" - 3.5" in last 6 days
Did SSO reach surface waters? 2 Yes ❑ No ❑ Unknown Volume reaching surface waters (gals): 4000
Surface water name: DEEP RIVER
Did the SSO result in a fish kill? ❑ Yes Q No ❑ Unknown If Yes, what is the estimated number of fish killed? 0
SPECIFIC cause(s) of the SSO:
[J1 Severe Natural Conc
24 hour verbal notification (name of person contacted ): Marianne Nicolaysen
❑ DWR 21 Emergency Mgmt Date (mm-dd-yyy): 01/31/2021 Time (hh:mmAM/PM): 10:55:00 am
If an SSO is ongoing, please notify the appropriate Regional Office on a daily basis until SSO can be stopped.
Per G.S. 143-215.1 C(b), the responsible party of a discharge of 1,000 or more of untreated wastewater to surface waters
shall issue a press release within 24-hours of first knowledge to all print and electronic news media providing general
coverage in the county where the discharge occurred. When 15,000 gallons or more of untreated wastewater enters surface
waters, a public notice shall be published within 10 days and proof of publication shall be provided to the Division within 30
days. Refer to the reference statute for further detail.
The Director, Division of Water Resources, may take enforcement action for SSOs that are required to be reported to
Division unless it is demonstrated that:
1) the discharge was cause by sever natural conditions and there were no feasible alternative to the discharge; or
2) the discharge was exceptional, unintentional, temporary and caused by factors beyond the reasonable control of the
Permittee and/or owner, and the discharge could not have been prevented by the exercise of reasonable control.
Part II must be completed to provide a justification claim for either of the above situations. This information will be the basis
WHETHER OR NOT PART III IS COMPLETED, A SIGNATURE IS REQUIRED AT THE END OF THIS FORM
CS-SSO Form
Page: 1
PART II:
ANSWER THE FOLLOWING QUESTIONS FOR EACH RELATED CAUSE CHECKED IN PART I OF THIS FORM AND
INCLUDE THE APPROPRIATE DOCUMENTATION AS REQUIRED OR DESIRED
COMPLETE ONLY THOSE SECTONS PERTAINING TO THE CAUSE OF THE SSO AS CHECKED IN PART I
(In the check boxes below, NA = Not Applicable and NE = Not Evaluated)
A HARDCOPY OF THIS FORM SHOULD BE SUBMITTED TO THE APPROPRIATE DWR REGIONAL OFFICE UNLESS IS
Severe Natural Condition
Describe the "severe natural condition" in detail?
Heavy Rainfall 1.1", 3.5" last 6 days
How much advance warning did you have and what actions were taken in preparatio
for the event?
Not much, just weather report
Comments:
System Visitation
ORC
Backup
Name:
Thomas "Jim" McIntosh III
Cert#
28031
Date visited:
01/31/2021
Time visited:
10:00 AM-03:00 PM-05:20 PM
How was the SSO remediated (i.e. Stopped and cleaned up)?
Rain Subsided
• Yes
® Yes
As a representative for the responsible party, I certify that the information contained in this report is true and accurate to the
best of my knowledge.
Person submitting claim: Thomas James McIntosh Date: 02/01/21 08:30 am
Signature:
Telephone Number:
'7'E2cr
Title: C-O MS7 411 n't i D4»
Any addition information desired to be submitted should be sent to the appropriate Division Regional Office within five days of i
knowledge of the SSO with reference to the incident number (the incident number is only generated when electronic entry of th
form is completed, if used).
CS-SSO Form Page: 2