8401_IMAC_NORR

November 22, 2024

Sent via email – [e-mail]

Mr. Darren Preslar
Solid Waste Superintendent
City of Albemarle
P.O. Box 190
Albemarle, NC 28002

Re: NOTICE OF REGULATORY REQUIREMENTS (NORR) for Contaminant Assessment and Cleanup
City of Albemarle Landfill
Solid Waste Permit Number: 8401-MSWLF-1999/8401-CDLF-1997
FID 1913620

Dear Mr. Preslar:

Chapter 130, Article 9 of the North Carolina General Statutes, authorizes and directs the Division of Waste
Management (Division) to establish a statewide solid waste management program, and to provide oversight
of the activities and operations of permitted solid waste management facilities through the adoption and
enforcement of rules to implement said program. As the owner and operator of the City of Albemarle Landfill,
the City of Albemarle is required to comply with all aspects of the law and rules under which you are
permitted.

15A North Carolina Administrative Code 02L - Groundwater Classifications and Standards- requires
corrective action be taken by any person who has conducted or controlled an activity which has resulted in
a discharge of contamination and/or which has caused an exceedance of applicable groundwater standards.

15A NCAC 13B .0201(j) states in part that any solid waste facility permitted by the Division is subject to all
requirements of 15A NCAC 02L.

In the absence of another standard, any PFAS detection in groundwater at a landfill must not exceed the
Practical Quantitation Limit (PQL), where applicable. It should be noted that effective October 15, 2024,
eight PFAS substances have Interim Maximum Allowable Concentrations (IMACs) in North Carolina that are
the applicable standard for Class GA and GSA groundwaters as follows:

Substance Acronym Concentration (ng/L)
Perfluorooctane sulfonic acid PFOS 0.7*
Perfluorooctanoic acid PFOA 0.001*
Hexafluoropropylene oxide dimer acid HFPO-DA/GenX 10
Perfluorobutane sulfonic acid PFBS 2,000
Perfluorononanoic acid PFNA 10
Perfluorohexane sulfonic acid PFHxS 10
Perfluorobutanoic acid PFBA 7,000
Perfluorohexanoic acid PFHxA 4,000

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* The IMACs for PFOA and PFOS are below detection level or the PQL. A measurement at or above the current PQL of
4 ng/L for PFOA and PFOS as reported in EPA Test Method 1633 would constitute an exceedance of the proposed
IMAC for that chemical.
1 https://www.deq.nc.gov/public-memorandum-pfas-imacs-establishment-october-15-2024-
0/download?attachment?attachment

On March 13, 2023, the Division through its Solid Waste Section (Section) issued a memorandum entitled
“PFAS Monitoring Requirements for Solid Waste Sanitary Landfills” requiring that all groundwater, surface
water, and leachate samples collected at solid waste sanitary landfills after July 1, 2023, be analyzed for per-
and polyfluorinated substances (PFAS). The Section issued a clarification memo based on industry
questions on July 17, 2023.

Based upon a review of the August 2023 and the January 2024 PFAS analytical water quality monitoring
results, 2L IMAC groundwater standards have been exceeded at the City of Albemarle Landfill for the
following PFAS constituents: PFHxS, PFNA, PFOA, and PFOS. The two monitoring events confirm the
presence of PFAS in groundwater at levels above the 2L IMAC groundwater standards.

The City of Albemarle is required to protect human health and the environment through monitoring,
assessing, and taking effective, timely corrective action when evidence of potential contamination is found
at the facility. The City of Albemarle is also required to restore groundwater quality at and beyond the
relevant point of compliance, to effectively reduce the overall groundwater contamination at the facility, and
to control the migration of contaminated groundwater to prevent unacceptable off-site impacts.

Based on the above, the following actions are required to comply with North Carolina state statutes and
regulations:

Immediate action requirements:

• Pursuant to 15A NCAC O2L .0106(b), any person conducting or controlling an activity which results
in the discharge of a waste or hazardous substance to the groundwaters of the State, or in proximity thereto,
shall take immediate action to terminate and control the discharge, and mitigate any hazards resulting from
exposure to the pollutants. Accordingly, you must take immediate response actions to abate known or visible
releases of controlled substances and to identify and eliminate current exposure(s) to contamination as
required under 15A NCAC 02L .0106(b).

To ensure protection of human health and the environment, conduct and submit an updated receptor survey
within 30 days. Receptor surveys should include at a minimum, an inventory and map of all identifiable
drinking water wells (both public and private), irrigations wells, springs, and surface water waters (streams,
ponds, lakes), including public water supply surface waters used as sources of potable water and intake
locations within 1,500 feet of the property boundary. Also, identify potential users of private residential
drinking water wells where well records or visual indicators are not readily available. In some cases,
individual receptor survey coverage areas may need to be adjusted to better align with the facility’s waste
boundary location with respect to offsite receptors.
Site Assessment requirements:
• In addition to the initial response actions detailed above, pursuant to 15A NCAC O2L .0106(c), you
must: implement a monitoring program which complies with the requirements of 15A NCAC O2L .0110;

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submit a site assessment report to the Director in accordance with 15A NCAC O2L .0111; and, if required,
submit a corrective action plan for approval of the Secretary of NCDEQ in accordance with 15A NCAC O2L
.0111, and implement said plan upon receipt of approval.

Within 90 days, the City of Albemarle shall submit a PFAS Work Plan to include the following:
1. Groundwater investigation and monitoring,
2. Assessment of groundwater and surface waters to determine the nature and extent of the
contamination and to assess the potential or existence of offsite PFAS migration, either via
groundwater or surface water.
3. An anticipated schedule of activities moving forward to include any actions necessary to reduce the
direct discharge to the environment, if applicable.

Please provide a written response with accompanying work plans as noted above to the Section
hydrogeologist from the date of this letter within the timeframes listed above, unless otherwise approved by
the Section. Failure to take the initial abatement and assessment steps required in 15A NCAC O2L may
result in the initiation of enforcement action as authorized by law, including the initiation of an action for
injunctive relief to compel compliance with 15A NCAC O2L.

Prior to submittal of the workplan, please contact the assigned Section hydrogeologist, Ervin Lane, at
[e-mail] or 919-707-8288 for questions and assistance concerning the submittal of the
requested information and schedules. For any other questions concerning this request, please feel free to
contact me at [e-mail] or [phone]. The Section appreciates your attention and prompt
response in this matter.

Sincerely,

Perry Sugg
Environmental Compliance Branch Head
Solid Waste Section

cc: Jason Watkins, Section Chief, DWM – Solid Waste
Ervin Lane, Hydrogeologist, DWM – Solid Waste
Andy Alexander, P.G. – Bunnell Lammons Engineering