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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNC0043532_LV20160215 Remit Request Denied_20170105WaterResources ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY January 5, 2017 CERTIFIED MAIL 7009 2250 0000 8087 0828 RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED Ms. Donna L. Davis, Director Stanly County Utilities 1000 N. First Street, Suite 12 Albemarle, NC 28001 Dear Ms. Davis: ROY COOPER Governor S. JAY ZRVPVIERMAN Subject: Request to Remit Civil Penalties - Denied Decision in Case Number: LV -2016-0215 for West Stanly WWTP NPDES Permit NCO043532 Stanly County Director In accordance with North Carolina General Statute 143-215.6A(f), the North Carolina Division of Water Resources (the Division) has_ reviewed your request to remit civil penalties in the subject case. We regret to inform you that the Director has denied your request. Therefore, your outstanding balance ($626.34) is due and payable. Two options are available to you at this stage of the remission process: 1) You may pay this balance. If you decide to pay the penalty, please make your check payable to the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ). Send the payment, within thirty (30) calendar days of receiving this letter, to the attention of: Attn: Wren Thedford NC DEQ Division of Water Resources WQ Permitting Section - NPDES 1617 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617 OR State of North Carolina I Environmental Quality I Water Resources 1617 Mail Service Center I Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617 919-707-9000 2) You may request the Environmental Management Commission's (FMC's) Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions (the Committee) to make the final decision on your remission request considering your additional oral input, as warranted. If payment is not received within 30 calendar days from your receipt of this letter, your current request for remission and this letter of denial will be delivered to the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions for final agency decision. If you or your representative would like to speak before the Committee, you must complete and return the attached Request for Oral Presentation Form within thirty (30) calendar days of receiving this letter. Send completed form(s) to: Attn: Wren Thedford NC DEQ Division of Water Resources WQ Permitting Section - NPDES 1617 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617 If you make such a request, the EMC Chairman will review the supporting documents and your request for an oral presentation. If, in his/her judgment, the Chairman determines that there is compelling reason to require a presentation, you will be notified as to when and where you should appear. If your presentation is not required, the final decision will be based upon the written record.. Please be advised that the EMC's Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions will make its remission decision based on the original assessment amount. Therefore, the EMC may choose to uphold the original penalty and offer no remission, they may agree with the DWR Director's remission recommendation detailed above, or the penalty amount may be further remitted. If you have any questions about this matter, please contact me at (919) 807-6307 or via e-mail at derek.denard@ncdenr.gov. Sincerely, Derek C. Denard, Environmental Specialist Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ Attachments: Director's Decision; Request for Oral Presentation form Permittee's Request for Remission Waver of Rights to Administrative Hearing and Stipulation of Facts Permittee's Justification for Remission Request cc: DWR MRO files Enforcement• File Central Files DWR — CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION FACTORS Case Number: LV -2016-0215 Region: Mooresville County: Stanly Assessed Entity: Stanly County Permit No.: Assessment Factors NCO043532 ❑ (a) Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors were wrongly applied to the detriment of the petitioner: NOT ASSERTED. ❑ (b) Whether the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the violation: NOT ASSERTED. ® (c) Whether the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident: ❑ (d) Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations: NOT ASSERTED. ® (e) Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial actions: Permittee Assertion: Stanly County Utilities in operating the West Stanly WWTP is dealing with a facility in need of major overhaul and repair. As efforts are being made to obtain funding and design the rehabilitation project, operators have encountered issues that result in unintended violations. However, for each of the violations listed adjustments were immediately made to correct the excessive levels of chlorine, BOD and fecal coliform bacteria. This facility has been assessed other penalties this year related to similar issues. Unfortunately, these fines diminish the amount of money Stanley County is able to use toward remediating issues in the interim as they prepare for major renovation. DWR Notes: Stanly County attributes limit violations to the poor condition of the waste water treatment plant and two of the three secondary clarifiers are not functioning. A compliance inspection conducted by this Office, of the subject facility, on June 21, 2016 found the following conditions: "Large amounts of solids going over weirs of secondary clarifier, sludge balls floating on surface of clarifier. Two secondary clarifiers not in service are being used to hold waste from Enterprise Rendering. Solids were floating on surface of chlorine contact chamber. A sludge judge measurement of chlorine contact found 6-7 inches of sludge build up on bottom of chamber. The facility also has compliance issues with receiving wastewater from Enterprise Rendering Plant and by-passing the influent sampler." This inspection was issued as Notice of Violation & Intent to Assess Civil Penalty (NOV-2016-PC-0208). It .was also discovered during the subject inspection that this facility was regularly accepting waste from Enterprise Rendering that was high in BOD, TSS, and Anomia. Typical plant influent loading has been calculated to be BOD 300 mg/l, TSS 200 mg/l, NH3 30 mg/1. Analysis of waste from Enterprise Rendering found BOD @ 1200 mg/l, TSS @ 1200 mg/l, NH3 @ 200 mg/l. Waste hauling records from Enterprise Rendering were not available to review for the months of April and May 2016. It was noted that West Stanly WWTP received 46 loads of waste (294,357 gallons) from Enterprise Rendering during the month of March 2016. DECISION (Check One) Request Denied Full Remission ❑ Retain Enforcement Cost? Yes ❑ No ❑ Partial Remission $ (Enter Amount) 0111 69!�� 2y6 /- -!9.'Jay Zimmerman, Director Date Kbi STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA COUNTY OF STANLY IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST: STANLY COUNTY UTILITIES WEST STANLY WWTP ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION DWR Case Number LV -2016-0215 REQUEST FOR ORAL PRESENTATION 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 Forma] 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 potential violation of the statute concerning the authorized practice of law has occurred. This the day of , 20 SIGNATURE TITLE (President, Owner, etc.) ADDRESS TELEPHONE STANLY COUNTY NORTH CAROLINA Alh&- A/. AIR/ If4recare Wastewater Branch Division of Water Resources 1617 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617 Dear Compliance Officer: November 22, 2016 Subject: Remission Request West Stanly WWTP Permit No: NC0043532 Stanly County Case No. LV -2016-0215 RECEIVED1,V100'E iVpV 22 QIDWR 201 Water Q 6 . erml&;; 8664 o7 The West Stanly WWTP (Stanly County Utilities) would like to request remission of the civil penalty assessed related to LV LV -2016-0215 based on the temporary •nature of the violation and it relation to attempts to improve the operations of the plant. 2 violations related to discharging wastewater into the waters of the state in violation of the Permit weekly and monthly average for BOD Stanly County Utilities in operating the West Stanly wwtp is dealing with a facility in need of major overhaul and repair. As efforts are being made to obtain funding and design the rehabilitation project, operators have encountered issues that result in unintended violations. However, for both of the violations listed adjustments were immediately made to correct the excessive levels of BOD. This facility has been assessed other penalties this year related to similar issues. Unfortunately, these fines diminish the amount of money Stanly County is able to use toward remediating issues in the interim as we prepare for a major renovation. Over the past two and a half years while working through the funding and regulatory process, Stanly County Utilities has spent more than $120,000 in immediate and in some cases temporary repair to the facility just to keep it functioning at reasonable level until the major rehabilitation is performed. Stanly County is requesting a moderate amount of time and assistance from NC DEQ to complete the modifications and to restore the plant to an acceptable level of efficiency and effectiveness in the treatment process. The West Stanly WWTP plant was purchased by Stanly County Utilities from the Town of Oakboro in May 2014. This plant has a difficult history under its previous owner, the Town of Oakboro as well during the course of the past 30 months in which Stanly County has owned and operated the plant. This plant has over the years experienced a great deal of deferred maintenance and is currently functioning well below its optimized capability. In the assessment performed before purchase Stanly County was made aware of the major deficiencies at the treatment plant. PI 704.986.3686 These included severe operational and F1 704.986.3711 www.stanl3LcoilnWc.gov Stanly County Utilities 1000 N. First Street, Suite 12, Albemarle, NC 28001 i' W - Case Number: LV -2016-0215 Assessed Party: Stanly County Permit No.: NCO043532 JUSTIFICATION FOR REAUSSION REQUEST County: Stanly. Amount Assessed: $626.34 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 remision. 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. § 143B -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 (Le., 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; J(e) payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessaryremedial actions (i.e., explain how payment of the civil penalty will prevent you from performing the activities necessary to achieve compliance). EXPLANATION: Stanly County Utilities in operating the West Stanly wwtp is dealing with a facility in need of major overhaul and repair. As efforts are being made to obtain funding and design the rehabilitation project, operators have encountered issues that result in unintended violations. However, for both of the violations listed adjustments were immediately made to correct the excessive levels of BOD. This facility has been assessed other penalties this year related to similar issues. Unfortunately, these fines diminish the amount of money Stanly County is able to use toward remediating issues in the interim as we prepare for a major renovation. C. STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY COUNTY OF STANLY IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT ) WAIVER OF RIGHT TO AN OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST ) ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING AND STIPULATION OF FACTS Stanly County ) West Stanly WWTP ) PERMIT NO. NC0043532 ) CASE NO. LV -2016-0215 Having been assessed civil penalties totaling $626.34 for violation(s) as set forth in the assessment document of the Division of Water Resources dated October 27, 2016, 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 (3 0) 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 ��o� day of ✓vD llu,i ZVA .20—& ADDRESS IDOa N Is} �i�e,� AI6emurI,e_ . Nc- gyoo1 TELEPHONE ,loq-afro-3�,�� ATTACHMENT A Stanly County CASE NUMBER: LV -2016-0215 PERMIT: NCO043632 FACILITY: West Stanly WWTP LIMIT VIOLATION(S) SAMPLE LOCATION: Outfall 002 - Effluent REGION: Mooresville COUNTY: Stanly Violation Date Report MonthNr Parameter Unit of Frequency Measure Limit Value Calculated Value % Over Limit Violation Type Penalty Amount 5/21/2016 5-2016 BOD, 5 -Day (20 Deg. 3 X week mg/I 13.50 18.90 40.2 Weekly $150.00 C) - Concentration Average Exceeded 5/31/2016 5-2016 BOD, 5 -Day (20 Deg. 3 X week mg/I 9 11.10 23.4 Monthly $375.00 C) - Concentration Average Exceeded