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Home My WebLink About5602T_INSP_12072023FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 1 of 10 UNIT TYPE: Lined MSWLF LCID YW Transfer X Compost SLAS COUNTY: MCDOWELL Closed MSWLF HHW White goods X Incin T&P X FIRM PERMIT NO.: 5602T-TRANSFER-1995 CDLF Tire T&P / Collection X Tire Monofill Industrial Landfill DEMO SDTF FILE TYPE: COMPLIANCE Date of Site Inspection: 12/7/2023 Date of Last Inspection: 6/29/2022 FACILITY NAME AND ADDRESS: McDowell County Transfer Facility 3809 Highway 226 South Marion, NC 28752 GPS COORDINATES: Lat: 35.656311° Long: -81.957891° FACILITY CONTACT NAME AND PHONE NUMBER: Name: Dewayne Riddle, Public Services Director- McDowell County Public Services Telephone: (828) 652-1244 Email address: dewayne.riddle@mcdowellgov.com FACILITY CONTACT ADDRESS: Name: Ashley Wooten, McDowell County Manager – County Administration Building 60 East Court Street Marion, NC 28752 Email address: awooten@mcdowellgov.com PARTICIPANTS: Dewayne Riddle, Public Services Director- McDowell County Freddy Luyster- McDowell County Summer Justice, NCDEQ- Solid Waste Section STATUS OF PERMIT: Permit Approval to Operate 5602T-TRANSFER-1995 McDowell County Transfer Facility issued July 3, 2023 PURPOSE OF SITE VISIT: Comprehensive Inspection STATUS OF PAST NOTED VIOLATIONS: N/A OBSERVED VIOLATIONS: A. 15A North Carolina Administrative Code 13B .0101(69) defines yard waste as “land-clearing waste and yard trash”. • According to North Carolina General Statute Article 9, Chapter 130A-290(45) "Yard trash" means solid waste consisting solely of vegetative matter resulting from landscaping maintenance. • 15A North Carolina Administrative Code 13B .1402(a) states: “The provisions of this Rule shall apply to the following facilities: (1) facilities that produce compost or mulch from yard waste or from residues from agricultural products and processing”. During the inspection, leaves were observed being stockpiled in a ditch north of the transfer station building. Leaves FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 2 of 10 are considered yard trash and are therefore yard waste and must be composted in accordance with the operational requirements as set forth in 15A NCAC 13B .1406 before distribution to the public. Facility staff stated that the leaves, which are not being composted, are given to the public as mulch. Therefore, McDowell County is in violation of 15A NCAC 13B .1402(a). View of stockpiled leaves. View of stockpiled leaves. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 3 of 10 To achieve compliance, the facility should either remove the leaves from site to a facility permitted to receive that type of waste or compost the leaves accordance with the operational requirements as set forth in 15A NCAC 13B .1406. B. 15A NCAC 13B .0203(d) states: “By receiving solid waste at a permitted facility, the permittee shall be considered to have accepted the conditions of the permit and shall comply with the conditions of the permit.” • Permit to Operate 5602T-TRANSFER-1995, Attachment 3 Conditions of Permit Approval to Operate, Part VI: Transfer Station/Treatment & Processing Unit(s): 5602T-TRANSFER-1995, MCDOWELL CO TRANSFER FACILITY, #6(a) states that “Waste must only be deposited on a tipping floor or directly into a transfer container and removed from the tipping floor, the truck loading bays, and from behind push walls by the end of each day of operation.” During the inspection, residential waste was observed being tipped on an area adjacent to the tipping floor. Therefore, McDowell County is in violation of 15A NCAC 13B .0203(d) for depositing waste outside of the designated tipping floor area. View of waste outside of tipping floor. To achieve compliance, waste must only be deposited on a tipping floor or directly into a transfer container. If the facility wishes to make improvements to the current tipping floor design to incorporate a residential tipping area, please discuss options in advance with Solid Waste Permitting staff. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 4 of 10 C. 15A NCAC 13B .0403(b)(2) states that “Tipping floors shall be located within an enclosed building or covered area to prevent precipitation from coming into contact with waste, and all waste shall be managed on the tipping floors unless otherwise stated in the site permit. For the purpose of the rules of this Section, "tipping floor" means the area where waste is offloaded from residential or commercial vehicles, and staged and consolidated for transport to its intended disposal location.” During the inspection, residential waste was observed being tipped on an area adjacent to the tipping floor. Therefore, McDowell County is in violation of 15A NCAC 13B .0403(b)(2) for managing waste outside of the designated tipping floor area. To achieve compliance, waste must only be deposited on a tipping floor or directly into a transfer container. If the facility wishes to make improvements to the current tipping floor design to incorporate a residential tipping area, please discuss options in advance with Solid Waste Permitting staff. ADDITIONAL COMMENTS 1. All photographs were taken by Summer Justice during the inspection. 2. The site was secured with a gate to prevent unauthorized access. 3. Durable, weather resistant signs that stated the name of the operator, operating hours, emergency contact, permit number, and that hazardous or liquid waste cannot be accepted were posted at the facility. 4. Traffic markers were posted around the site for traffic control. 5. Access roads at the facility were of all-weather construction, however, some potholes were observed. Records Review 6. Certified Transfer Station Operations Specialists: • Angi Greene (expires September 15, 2025) • Kelly Ledford (expires November 4, 2025) • Josanne Barrett (expires December 9, 2024) • Jessica Morgan (expires September 13, 2024) • David LaPlante (expires March 11, 2026) • Fredrick Luyster (expires March 13, 2024) • Tyler Sawyer (expires December 9, 2024) • Dan Johnson (expires August 5, 2025) 7. Tonnage records from the 2022-2023 Facility Annual Report showed that the facility received 41,994 tons of waste, for an average of 138 tons per operating day. Facility scale records reviewed after the date of inspection indicated that the facility received 18,132 tons of waste from July 2023-November 2023. 8. Waste screening reports were available for review for the period of December 2021-December 2023. The facility appeared to exceed the current minimum waste screening requirement. Continue waste screening efforts and ensure that the final disposition of unacceptable waste is included on the form. 9. Cleaning and maintenance records reviewed after the date of inspection indicated that the tipping floor was pressure washed most recently on November 30, 2023. Ensure that the tipping floor, push walls, and truck loading bay are cleaned with a pressure washer at least once per month. 10. The current Permit to Operate and approved operational plan were available for review. The item(s) listed above were observed by Section staff and require action on behalf of the facility in order to come into or maintain compliance with the Statutes, Rules, and/or other regulatory requirements applicable to this facility. Be advised that pursuant to N.C.G.S. 130A-22, an administrative penalty of up to $15,000 per day may be assessed for each violation of the Solid Waste Laws, Regulations, Conditions of a Permit, or Order under Article 9 of Chapter 130A of the N.C. General Statutes. Further, the facility and/or all responsible parties may also be subject to enforcement actions including penalties, injunction from operation of a solid waste management facility or a solid waste collection service and any such further relief as may be necessary to achieve compliance with the North Carolina Solid Waste Management Act and Rules. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 5 of 10 11. Records of annual staff training updates including review of the operations plan for the period of September 2022- July 2023 were available for review. Operations Inspection of the Transfer Station 5602T-TRANSFER-1995 12. Waste is deposited on the concrete tipping floor by residential and commercial customers. Facility staff have designated a separate area adjacent to the tipping floor for small residential loads. See Observed Violations. 13. Waste screening was observed being performed at the time of inspection. 14. As noted in previous facility inspection reports (Kris Riddle), the push walls, tipping floor, and truck loading bay walls are in poor condition. In addition, the sheet metal transfer station building walls have holes in several locations. Facility staff stated that the walls would be repaired along with the tipping floor repairs. Ensure that the transfer station building is maintained. 15. A few areas around the transfer station building showed accumulation of dust and waste including under the warped wooden planks serving to cover the area behind the push walls, and on and around the litter fence installed on the northern ledge of the truck loading bay. As discussed during the inspection, ensure that these areas are pressure washed once per month along with the rest of the tipping floor, push walls, and truck loading bay, and that all waste is removed from the tipping floor, behind push walls, and truck loading bay at the end of each day. 16. According to facility staff, waste from the transfer station is currently hauled by Endurance to Foothills Landfill in Caldwell County for disposal. 17. Water supply is provided to the tipping floor in the form of a water hose. In addition, the facility is equipped with fire extinguishers which were last serviced in November 2023. 18. The tipping floor is not equipped with floor drains as stated in the operations plan, however, the loading bay contains two floor drains that feed into an underground leachate collection tank. During the inspection, the two drains in the loading bay appeared to be functional. Facility staff stated that drains are cleaned weekly by the leachate pump and haul vendor. The Facility records reviewed after the date of inspection indicated that Burgin & Son pumped the subterranean leachate storage tank most recently on November 6, 2023. 19. Some windblown waste was observed in the grassed area adjacent to the truck loading bay exit. As discussed during the inspection, ensure that windblown waste is picked up and properly disposed of at the end of each operating day. 20. Full, tarped trailers are staged in the area adjacent to the scale house. One filled trailer was present in the staging area at the time of inspection. The trailer appeared to be leak resistant. The trailer staging area is unpaved. If a leak is present, facility staff place buckets under the leaking area to collect leachate. 21. Empty trailers were staged in areas north and west of the transfer station building. Many of these trailers, including but not limited to those with ID numbers 1020, T562, and T472, contained holes. 15A NCAC 13B .0105(c) states in part: “Vehicles or containers used for the collection of solid waste, and transportation by whatever means, including highway, rail, and navigable waterway, shall be constructed, operated, and maintained to be leak resistant in order to prevent the creation of a nuisance to public health from the escape of solid, semi-solid, or liquid waste.” Ensure that holes are repaired, and necessary maintenance is performed on trailers before they are used to transport waste. Operations Inspection of Miscellaneous Collection Areas 22. The facility contracts with US Tire Recycling LP for tire removal. Scrap tires are accepted at the facility in concrete bins and two trailers in a designated area southeast of the transfer station. The tires in the concrete bins are uncovered, however, facility staff stated that the tire vendor collects the tires weekly. 23. Household recyclables, electronics, and compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs) are accepted in a designated area southeast of the transfer station. The electronics are palletized and then removed by Powerhouse Recycling, Inc. CFLs are kept in a sheltered area in boxes. These recycling collection areas appeared to be very well managed. 24. White goods and scrap metal are accepted at the facility in a designated area located southwest of the transfer station. The facility utilizes a private contractor for refrigerant and scrap metal removal. Facility records reviewed after the date of inspection indicated that scrap metal was removed most recently on November 29, FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 6 of 10 2023 by My County Metal Inc. 25. The facility accepts inert debris for fill in an area north of the transfer station building. Minimal unacceptable waste was observed in this area, including a piece of concrete with vinyl attached, and some pieces of painted concrete. According to 15A NCAC 13B .0101(28), inert debris is defined as debris that consists solely of asphalt, cured concrete, brick, concrete block, gravel, and rock. Inert debris waste shall not contain chemical adhesives or sealants, or lead-based paint. In addition, this activity is not addressed in the operational plan for the site. When making updates to the operational plan, please ensure that this activity is addressed. In addition, ensure that any unacceptable waste is removed from the inert debris pile. Operations Inspection of the Treatment and Processing Area 26. The facility is permitted to receive land clearing debris, yard waste, and clean, unpainted wood waste. According to facility staff, Farmer’s Mulch and Rock of Dobson is the vendor contracted to grind material on site and haul product. Facility staff stated that the material was most recently ground and removed in October 2023. The pallet and land clearing debris stockpiles appeared to be well maintained. 27. The facility is permitted to operate a Small Type One Composting Unit. Composting is not currently being performed, however, the facility has stockpiled leaves generated from off site in a ditch north of the transfer station building. Facility staff stated that these leaves are given to the public as mulch. See Observed Violations section. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding this inspection report. Phone: 828-296-4705 Sent on: December 20, 2023 to Ashley Wooten via: X Email Hand delivery US Mail Certified No. [ _] Copies: Deb Aja, Western District Supervisor - Solid Waste Section Dewayne Riddle, Public Services Director- McDowell County Public Services Allen Gaither, NCDEQ- Solid Waste Section ___________________________ Summer Justice Environmental Senior Specialist Regional Representative FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 7 of 10 Photo depicts both waste screening activities and condition of push walls. Condition of tipping floor. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 8 of 10 Condition of litter fence from outside of the loading bay. Condition of litter fence from inside the loading bay. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 9 of 10 Windblown waste in the grassed area adjacent to the truck loading bay exit. Example of a hole observed in a transfer trailer. FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT Division of Waste Management Solid Waste Section Page 10 of 10 Accumulation of dust and waste under the wooden planks covering the area behind the push walls.