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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNC0059536_LV-2022-0062 Remission (Decision)_20220628DocuSign Envelope ID: CF7FEC7F-8713-47CB-B7C0-43BFAFBBFD65 SfAr, ROY COOPER Governor ELIZABETH BISER Secretary RICNARD E. ROGERS, JR. Director NORTH CAI -OUNA biwtrdnmentaJ Qualrty 6/23/2022 CERTIFIED MAIL # 7019-1120-0001-4877-5645 Tisha T. Tuttle, Owner Hilltop Living Center 1025 Lamb Rd Lexington, NC 2729 Subject: Partial Remission Civil Penalties for Case # LV-2022-0062 Hilltop Living Center WWTP, WPCS Grade-2 NPDES Permit NCO059536 212 Plemmons Drive, Linwood Davidson County Ms. Tuttle: The Division of Water Resources (DWR or the Division) has considered your information submitted in support of your request to remit civil penalties in the subject case totaling $$2,503.80 ($2,400.00 plus $103.80 enforcement costs). In accordance with NCGS 143-215.6A(f), DWR has decided to remit 50% of the initial penalties, retaining enforcement costs (see attached Remissions Summary). If you choose to pay the reduced penalties, the Hilltop Living Center (Hilltop) should send payment to the address provided below. Be sure to include the above case number on your check. Please make your check payable to NCDEQ. Your reduced payment of $1,355.70 must be submitted within thirty (30) days of this letter in accordance with NCGS § 143-215.6A (f). If not received, your request for penalty remission (with its supporting documents), together with DWR's recommendations will be delivered to the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission's (EMC's) Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions (the Committee) for final agency decision. If you desire to make an oral presentation to the Committee on why your request for remission meets one or more of the five statutory factors (see your original civil penalty assessment (CPA), you must complete and return the enclosed form within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter. Please mail your completed form to: Wren Thedford/ Bob Sledge Permitting and Compliance NC DEQ / DWR / NPDES 1617 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-1617 Your request for an oral presentation and supporting documents will be reviewed by the EMC Chairman and, if he/she determines that there is a compelling reason to require an oral presentation by you, the Commission will notify you by certified mail of the date, time, and place for your oral presentation. Otherwise, the final decision on your request for remission will be made by the Committee based on the written record. DocuSign Envelope ID: CF7FEC7F-8713-47CB-B7C0-43BFAFBBFD65 Thank you for your continued cooperation in this matter. If you have questions about this transmittal, please contact my staff member, Joe R. Corporon, P.G. Uoe.corporon@ncdenr.gov]. Sincerely, DocuSigned by: 8328B44CE9EB4A1... for Richard E. Rogers, Jr, Director Enclosed/attached: • Requests for Oral Presentation form • Civil Penalty Remission Review Summary — signed, Case Number LV-2020-0062 • Remission Factors form ec: Enforcement File Case Number LV-2020-0062 Winston - Salem Regional Office (WSRO) Laserfiche DocuSign Envelope ID: CF7FEC7F-8713-47CB-B7C0-43BFAFBBFD65 STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION COUNTY OF DAVIDSON ) DEQ Case Number LV-2020-0062 IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST: ) REQUEST FOR ORAL PRESENTATION Tisha T. Tuttle, Owner ) Hilltop Living Center, WWTP ) I hereby request to make an oral presentation before the Environmental Management Commission's Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions in the matter of the case noted above. In making this request, I assert that I understand all of the following statements: • This request will be reviewed by the Chairman of the Environmental Management Commission and may be either granted or denied. • Making a presentation will require the presence of myself and/or my representative during a committee meeting held in Raleigh, North Carolina. • My presentation will be limited to discussion of issues and information submitted in my original remission request, and because no factual issues are in dispute, my presentation will be limited to five (5) minutes in length. The North Carolina State Bar's Authorized Practice of Law Committee has ruled that the appearance in a representative capacity at quasi-judicial hearings or proceedings is limited to lawyers who are active members of the bar. Proceedings before the Committee on Remissions are quasi-judicial. You should consider how you intend to present your case to the Committee in light of the State Bar's opinion and whether anyone will be speaking in a representative capacity for you or a business or governmental entity. If you or your representative would like to speak before the Committee, you must complete and return this form within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter. Depending on your status as an individual, corporation, partnership or municipality, the State Bar's Opinion affects how you may proceed with your oral presentation. See www.ncbar.com/ethics, Authorized Practice Advisory Opinion 2006-1 and 2007 Formal Ethics Opinion 3. • If you are an individual or business owner and are granted an opportunity to make an oral presentation before the Committee, then you do not need legal representation before the Committee; however, if you intend on having another individual speak on your behalf regarding the factual situations, such as an expert, engineer or consultant, then you must also be present at the meeting in order to avoid violating the State Bar's Opinion on the unauthorized practice of law. • If you are a corporation, partnership or municipality and are granted an opportunity to make an oral presentation before the Committee, then your representative must consider the recent State Bar's Opinion and could be considered practicing law without a license if he or she is not a licensed attorney. Presentation of facts by non -lawyers is permissible. If you choose to request an oral presentation, please make sure that signatures on the previously submitted Remission Request form and this Oral Presentation Request form are: 1) for individuals and business owners, your own signature and 2) for corporations, partnerships, and municipalities, signed by individuals who would not violate the State Bar's Opinion on the unauthorized practice of law. Also, be advised that the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions may choose not to proceed with hearing your case if the Committee is informed that a violation of the State Bar occurs. This the day of , 20 SIGNATURE Printed with TITLE (President, Owner, etc.) ADDRESS TELEPHONE DocuSign Envelope ID: CF7FEC7F-8713-47CB-B7C0-43BFAFBBFD65 DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION FACTORS — Summary and Signature Case Number: LV-2022-0062 Region: Winston-Salem County: Davidson Assessed Entity: Tisha T. Tuttle Permit: NC0059536 Facility: Hilltop Living Center WWTP ❑ (a) Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors were wrongly applied to the detriment of the petitioner: Not Asserted: X (b) Whether the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the violation: Permittee Asserts: After April 2021, the pump vendor lost his CDL driver and was not able to pump tanks. I finally secured a new vendor who pumped the tanks in October 2021. DWR Response: The permittee has communicated these problems with the Regional Office. X (c) Whether the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident: Permittee Asserts [paraphrased by DWR]: My previous operator of 20 years handled things poorly for months and had to be replaced. I am now learning operations myself and breaking in a new operator. Because my new operator was unfamiliar with the system, he mis-communicated our needed repairs to the repair vendor. Subsequently, the vendor suffered delays receiving parts [likely COVID- related]. The lab also communicated its delays in providing results. DWR Response: Ms. Tuttle has stated that poor performance and neglect by her previous ORC carried on for months. However, the permittee worked to improve the performance of the plant throughout 2021. X (d) Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations: Not Asserted: DWR Response: Exceedances of several hundred percent (and even one thousand percent) above permit allowances occurred for the parameters fecal coliforms, BOD, and nitrogen. This assessment is only part of a long-term issue of permit non-compliance X (e) Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial actions: The Permittee asserts: "I was able to pay the previous penalties because the company had the money to pay, but Hilltop is an assisted living [facility] and the fines are now causing a financial hardship. In 2021 we had Covid outbreaks in January, February, March also in November, December, January 2022." DWR Response: Because the permittee was directly impacted and has endured considerable hardship related directly to the COVID Pandemic, and because of continuing efforts to mitigate non- compliance, the Division recommends 50% remission of civil penalties. NOTE: Blue X indicates remission factors addressed by the DWR based on the Permittee's Request for Remission, but the Permittee did not formally consider penalty Factors. The Permittee states this request addresses both LV-2022-0061 and -0062. 1 of 2 DocuSign Envelope ID: CF7FEC7F-8713-47CB-B7C0-43BFAFBBFD65 Total Enforcement: $2,400.00 plus $103.80 costs = $2,503.80 DECISION (Check One) Request Denied ❑ Full Remission ❑ Retain Enforcement Costs? 0 No[--] Partial Remission X Original Penalty (without Enforcement Costs) $2,400.00 Remit 50% or--$1,251.90 Subtotal $ 1,251.90 Retaining Enforcement Costs + $103.80 Total Penalty $1,355.70 D Signed by: 6/23/2022 8328B44CE9EB4A1... for Richard E. Rogers, Jr. Date CPA Summary (LV-2022-0062) DWR hereby makes the following Civil Penalty Assessment (CPA) against Hilltop Living Center: 450.00 2 of 2 violations of G.S. 143-215.1(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Daily Maximum for BOD, 5-Day (20 Deg. C) - Concentration S225.00 1 of 1 violations of G.S. 143-215. l(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Daily Maximum for Coliform, Fecal MF, MFC Broth, 44.5 C $525.00 2 of 2 violations of G.S. 143-215.1(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Daily Maximum for Nitrogen, Ammonia Total (as N) - Concentration $150.00 1 of 1 violations of G.S. 143-215.1(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Daily Maximum for Surfactants (MBAS) $450.00 1 of 1 violations of G.S. 143-215. l(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Monthly Average for BOD, 5-Day (20 Deg. C) - Concentration S600.00 1 of 1 violations of G.S. 143-215.1(a)(6) and Permit No. NC0059536, by discharging wastewater into the waters of the State in violation of the Permit Monthly Average for Nitrogen, Ammonia Total (as N) - Concentration ILU For 0 of 1 failures to submit monitoring reports or portions of monitoring reports in violation of Permit No. NC0059536. 2 4� 00.00 TOTAL CIVIL PENALTY 1� 03.80 Enforcement Costs $2.503,80 TOTAL AMOUNT DUE 2 of 2