WQCS00048_NOV-2018-DV-0251_20181003

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ROY COOPER NORTH CAROLINA
Governor Environmental Quality
MICHAEL S.REGAN
Secretary REC �VED/DE'�DVv�n�
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LINDA CULPEPPER !�G
Interim Director October 3, 2018 OCT 0 8 2018
CERTIFIED MAIL 7017 2680 0000 2236 2134 Water i�esourc�s
RETURNED RECEIPT REQUIREDPermitting Section
Thomas S.Warren Jr.
Assistant City Manager
City of Roxboro
PO ',Lox 128
Roxboro,NC 27573
SUBJECT: Notice of Violation—Notice of Intent to Enforce
NOV—2018—DV-0251
City of Roxboro
Collection Permit No. WQCS00048
Person County
Dear Mr. Warren Jr:
On August 27,2018, the City of Roxboro reported a Sanitary Sewer Overflow (SSO) to the Raleigh
Regional Office.The 24-hour report(telephone call)indicated that an unknown amount of sewage spill was
occurring due to a collapse/failure of stomwater pipe located within Roxboro's sewer's easement. The
required 5-day report was submitted to Raleigh Regional Office, as required by Division reporting
procedures.This updated report indicated a 76,200-gallon quantity with all the wastewater reaching surface
waters.
On August 30. 2018, Gary Kreiser and Mitch Hayes of the Raleigh Regional Office of the Division of
Water Quality, conducted a site visit and observe the following:
o The SSO had impacted approximately 1,500 feet of an unnamed tributary to Tanyard Branch, a class
C water in the Roanoke River Basin;
O Repairs had been made to the ductile pipe and the SSO had been stopped;
® Downstream of the spill a temporary earthen dam had been placed and the surface water was being
pumped into the sewer collection system;
© The surface water was being flushed with water from a fire hydrant;_
o The dissolved oxygen reading at the temporary dam was below 5, and;
o Visible solids were still visible just upstream of the earthen dam.
To repair the broken pipe,the Town had to excavate a large hole that was approximately 30 feet deep and
50 feet wide. There were no sediment or erosion control measures put in place to prevent sediment from
reaching the surface waters. The Town had placed flagging around the work area, but there were no
measures to keep people out of the hole and raises public safety concerns. Additionally, the open hole
a y �NORTH CAROUNA
Dep
UepuMcnt at Environmental Quality
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Raleigh Regional Office 13800 Barrett Drive I Raleigh,North Carolina 27609 '
919.791.4200

presents an ongoing and continued risk to the sewer line to still be undermined causing the ductile iron to
be broken again.
These field observations, sample results,, and file review revealed the following violations of the North
Carolina General Statutes(NCGS), surface water standards, and collection system permit conditions:
NCGS 143-215.1 (a) (1)
"Activities for Which Permits Required.—No person shall do any of the following things or carry out any
of the following activities unless that person has received a permit from the Commission and has complied
with all conditions set forth in that permit.
(1) Make any outlet into the Waters of the State."--
System-Wide
tate."System-Wide Collection System Permit Violations
I.PERFORMANCE STANDARDS
1. The sewage and wastewater collected by this system shall be treated in the properly permitted
Wastewater Treatment Facility identified in the permit application and documented in the Division's
database. [15A NCAC 02T .0108 (b)]
2. The wastewater collection system shall be effectively managed, maintained and operated at all times
to prevent discharge to land or surface waters, and to prevent any contravention of groundwater
standards or surface water standards.In the event that the wastewater collection system fails to perform
satisfactorily,including the creation of nuisance conditions,the Permittee shall take immediate actions
as per the Response Action Plan(Condition 11(9)), as well as any actions that may be required by the
Division of Water Resources (Division), such as the construction of additional or replacement sewer
lines and/or equipment. [15A NCAC 02T .0108 (b)]
II.OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE REQUIREMENTS
7. Rights-of-way and/or easements shall be properly maintained to allow accessibility to the wastewater
-collection system unless the Permittee can demonstrate the ability to gain temporary access in an
emergency situation where existing land-use conditions do not allow the establishment and
maintenance of permanent access. In this case, the Permittee shall continue to observe the lines
visually,utilize remote inspection methods(e.g. CCTV)and use the opportunity of drier conditions to
perform further inspections and necessary maintenance. [15A NCAC 02T .0108 (b)]
V.INSPECTIONS
1. The Permittee or the Permittee's designee shall inspect the wastewater collection system regularly to
reduce the risk of malfunctions and deterioration, operator errors, and other issues that may cause or
lead to the release of wastes to the environment,threaten human health or create nuisance conditions.
The Permittee shall keep an inspection log or summary including, at a minimum, the date and time
of inspection, observations made, and any maintenance, repairs, or corrective actions taken by the
Permittee. [15A NCAC 02T .0108 (b)].
By copy of this letter, you are requested to respond to the following items in writing within 30 days of
•recept of this letter:
1. Explain in writing your monitoring and maintenance efforts for the subject sewer lines that runs
through 225 S. Madison Blvd for the last three years. Specifically explain who conducted
•
NORTH CAROLWA
Department al Environmental Oualry
rjed
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Raleigh Regional Office 13800 Barrett Drive I Raleigh,North Carolina 27609
919 791.4200

inspection, what they found, how they accessed the utility line (did they walk on top of
line/easement, etc), and how the inspections were conducted.
2. Please explain when your inspections revealed issues with the sewer line easement and what
corrective actions were taken.
3. Please clearly explain/provide a schedule with dates indicating when the following items were
completed:
a) Explain when and how the sewer line was fully repaired;
b) Detailed how the sewage spill was stopped;
c) Explain what measures were used to recover the sewage from the stream;
d) Detail when the stormwater pipe was repaired;
e) Explain in writing how the City of Roxboro will prevent future storm event flows from
resulting in erosion/structural undermining of the utility easement and sewer line, and;
f) Specifically, detail when the excavated easement "repair pit" is backfilled so that site
conditions are safe for the public and protective of the respective infrastructure.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. This office requires that the violations, as described above,be
properly resolved. These violations and any future violations are subject to a civil penalty assessment of
up to $25,000.00 per day for each violation. Your above-mentioned response to this correspondence will
be considered in this process. Environmental damage and/or failure to secure proper authorizations have
been documented on the subject tract as stated above. Your efforts to undertake activities to bring the
subject site back into compliance is not an admission, rather it is an action that must be taken to begin to
solve ongoing environmental issues. Should you have any questions regarding these matters,please contact
Mitch Hayes or myself at(919)791-4200. •
Sincerely,
-/AP 7,
S. Daniel Smith
Surface Water Protection Supervisor
Raleigh Regional Office
Cc: Pretreatment Emergency Response and Collection Systems Unit
(Attention Christyn Fertenbaugh)
Central Files
RRO-SWP File Copy
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NORTH CAROUNA
Department at¢nrAnnimnmantal DuaI11Y
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Raleigh Regional Office 13800 Barrett Drive I Raleigh,North Carolina 27609
919 791.4200