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Home My WebLink AboutWA-92968_96721_G_NORR_20220614_LSA RQST ROY COOPER Governor ELIZABETH S. BISER Secretary MICHAEL SCOTT Director North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality | Division of Waste Management | UST Section Washington Regional Office | 943 Washington Square Mall | Washington, NC 27889 | (252) 946-6481 June 6, 2022 Mr. Mark Liffers SHM Outer Banks, LLC 708 Harbor Road Wanchese, NC 27981 Re: Notice of Regulatory Requirements 15A NCAC 2L .0505 - Risk-based Assessment and Corrective Action for Petroleum Releases from Aboveground Storage Tanks and Sources Outer Banks Marina 712 Harbor Road, Wanchese, NC Dare County Incident Number: 96721 Risk Classification: Unknown Dear Mr. Liffers: The Underground Storage Tank (UST) Section, Division of Waste Management, Department of Environmental Quality (Department) has received your 24-Hour Notification of Discharge Form (UST-62), dated May 23, 2022. This submittal includes supplemental information describing limited soil and groundwater sampling efforts on March 28, 2022 as part of a Phase II Site Investigation. For soil, the presence of petroleum was detected at each location, but no concentrations were reported above the applicable gasoline or diesel range organics screening levels that would require additional soil abatement at those locations. However, for groundwater, the sample collected at location B5-GW demonstrated concentrations of benzene (160 micrograms per liter, or ug/L) that exceeded the groundwater quality standard (1 ug/L) as defined in Title 15A of the North Carolina Administrative Code (NCAC) Subchapter 2L .0202. Accordingly, the UST Section hereby confirms that you must comply with the assessment and reporting requirements of Title 15A NCAC 2L .0505 – Requirements for Limited Site Assessment (LSA), within the timeframes specified in that rule. This includes the preparation and submittal of a LSA Report within 120 days of date of discovery of the release on March 31, 2022 (i.e., by July 29, 2022). Additional information on the LSA scope with an example template for the LSA Report are presented in the UST Section Assessment Guidelines and the comprehensive tables and appendices for all corrective action guidelines, available online at https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/waste- management/underground-storage-tanks-section/ust-guidance-documents. As the Phase II Site Investigation obtained groundwater sampling data from multiple locations, the groundwater sampling requirements of Title 15A NCAC 2L .0505(6)(A) arguably have been met. However, resampling may be conducted following the installation of a properly constructed and developed permanent monitoring well network if you wish to reevaluate the subsurface conditions onsite. Due to the potential for tidal influence on groundwater flow at this facility, the potentiometric surface determination required by Title 15A NCAC 2L .0505(6)(B) is not requested at this time, but also may be evaluated if a permanent well network is installed for resampling, with the tops of casing accurately marked and surveyed prior to obtaining depth to water data. The Phase II Site Investigation soil sample locations were depicted on the provided map as bounding an area labeled “Reported Area of Diesel Spill.” In subsequent correspondence, the Department was informed that the volume and age of the reported spill are unknown but reportedly occurred prior to your ownership of the facility, with no apparent abatement efforts taken in response to the spill. To properly evaluate the potential that a residual secondary source of soil contamination remains in this spill area as a threat to groundwater, the soil sampling requirements of the LSA should be completed through the collection of one or more soil samples where contamination is likely to be present in the reported spill area, analyzed for high boiling point fuels per Title 15A NCAC 2L .0412(b)(2) and (5), as referenced by Title 15A NCAC 2L .0512. Because a release or discharge has been confirmed, a Licensed Geologist or a Professional Engineer, certified by the State of North Carolina, is required to prepare and certify all reports submitted to the Department in accordance with Title 15A NCAC 2L .0103(e) and 2L .0111(e). Please note that before a property that has not been remediated to below both soil and groundwater “unrestricted use” standards can be sold, transferred, or otherwise conveyed, or before a request for a “No Further Action” determination can be approved under risk-based closure allowances, a Notice of Residual Petroleum ("Notice") must be filed with the Register of Deeds in the county where the property is located, per North Carolina General Statutes (G.S.) §143B-279.9 and §143B-279.11). Failure to comply with the State's rules in the manner and time specified may result in the assessment of civil penalties and/or the use of other enforcement mechanisms. If you have any questions regarding the actions that must be taken or the rules mentioned in this letter, please contact me at the address or telephone number listed below. Sincerely, Jared M. Edwards Environmental Program Consultant - Washington Region UST Section, Division of Waste Management, NCDEQ (252) 948-3949 / jared.edwards@ncdenr.gov Encl: Title 15A NCAC 2L .0505 – Requirements for Limited Site Assessment cc: Partner Engineering and Science – Mr. Alex Smith (electronic copy) Washington Regional Office | 943 Washington Square Mall | Washington, NC 27889 | (252) 946-6481 15A NCAC 02L .0505 REQUIREMENTS FOR LIMITED SITE ASSESSMENT (a) If the required showing cannot be made by the responsible party under Rule .0504 of this Section, the responsible party shall submit within 120 days of the discovery of the discharge or release, a report as required in Rule .0504 of this Section, containing information needed by the Department to classify the level of risk to human health and the environment posed by a discharge or release under Rule .0506 of this Section. (b) The responsible party may submit a written request an extension to the 120 day deadline set forth in Paragraph (a) of this Rule to the Department for the Department's consideration prior to the deadline. The request for deadline extension by the responsible party shall demonstrate that the extension, if granted by the Department, would not increase the risk posed by the release. When considering a request from a responsible party for additional time to submit the report, the Department shall consider the following: (1) the extent to which the request for additional time is due to factors outside of the control of the responsible party; (2) the previous history of the person submitting the report in complying with deadlines established under the Commission's rules; (3) the technical complications associated with assessing the extent of contamination at the site or identifying potential receptors; and (4) the necessity for action to eliminate an imminent threat to public health or the environment. (c) The report shall include: (1) a location map, based on a USGS topographic map, showing the radius of 1500 feet from the source area of a confirmed release or discharge and depicting all water supply wells, surface waters, and designated "wellhead protection areas" as defined in 42 U.S.C. 300h-7(e) within the 1500-foot radius. 42 U.S.C. 300h-7(e), is incorporated by reference including subsequent amendments and editions. Copies may be obtained at no cost from the U.S. Government Bookstore's website at http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/USCODE-2010-title42/html/USCODE- 2010-title42-chap6A-subchapXII-partC-sec300h-7.htm. The material is available for inspection at the Department of Environmental Quality, UST Section, 217 West Jones Street, Raleigh, NC 27603. For purposes of this Section, "source area" means point of release or discharge from the non-UST petroleum source, or if the point of release cannot be determined precisely, "source area" means the area of highest contaminant concentrations; (2) a determination of whether the source area of the discharge or release is within a designated "wellhead protection area" as defined in 42 U.S.C. 300h-7(e); (3) if the discharge or release is in the Coastal Plain physiographic region as designated on a map entitled "Geology of North Carolina" published by the Department in 1985, incorporated by reference including subsequent amendments or editions and may be obtained electronically free of charge from the Department's website at https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/energy-mineral-land- resources/north-carolina-geological-survey/ncgs-maps/1985-geologic-map-of-nc, a determination of whether the source area of the discharge or release is located in an area in which there is recharge to an unconfined or semi-confined deeper aquifer that is being used or may be used as a source of drinking water; (4) a determination of whether vapors from the discharge or release pose a threat of explosion due to the accumulation of vapors in a confined space; pose a risk to public health from exposure; or pose any other threat to public health, public safety, or the environment; (5) scaled site maps showing the location of the following that are on or adjacent to the property where the source is located: (A) site boundaries; (B) roads; (C) buildings; (D) basements; (E) floor and storm drains; (F) subsurface utilities; (G) septic tanks and leach fields; (H) underground and aboveground storage tank systems; (I) monitoring wells; (J) water supply wells; (K) surface water bodies and other drainage features; (L) borings; and (M) the sampling points; (6) the results from a limited site assessment that shall include the following actions: (A) determine the presence, the lateral and vertical extent, and the maximum concentration levels of soil and, if possible, groundwater contamination and free product accumulations; (B) install monitoring wells constructed in accordance with 15A NCAC 02C .0108 within the area of maximum soil or groundwater contamination to determine the groundwater flow direction and maximum concentrations of dissolved groundwater contaminants or accumulations of free product. During well construction, the responsible party shall collect and analyze soil samples that represent the suspected highest contaminant-level locations by exhibiting visible contamination or elevated levels of volatile organic compounds from successive locations at five-foot depth intervals in the boreholes of each monitoring well within the unsaturated zone; collect potentiometric data from each monitoring well; and collect and analyze groundwater or measure the amount of free product, if present, in each monitoring well; (7) the availability of public water supplies and the identification of properties served by the public water supplies within 1500 feet of the source area of a confirmed discharge or release; (8) the land use, including zoning if applicable, within 1500 feet of the source area of a confirmed discharge or release; (9) a discussion of site-specific conditions or possible actions that may result in lowering the risk classification assigned to the release. Such discussion shall be based on information known or required to be obtained under this Item; and (10) names and current addresses of all responsible parties for all petroleum sources for which a discharge or release is confirmed, the owners of the land upon which such petroleum sources are located, and all potentially affected real property owners. Documentation of ownership of ASTs or other sources and of the property upon which a source is located shall be provided. History Note: Authority G.S. 143-215.3(a)(1); 143-215.84; 143-215.104AA; 143B-282; Eff. March 1, 2016; Readopted Eff. June 1, 2019.