1808T-TRANSFER_INSP_20210409

FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT
Division of Waste Management
Solid Waste Section

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UNIT TYPE:
Lined
MSWLF LCID YW Transfer X Compost SLAS COUNTY: Catawba
Closed
MSWLF HHW White
goods Incin T&P FIRM PERMIT NO.: 1808T-TRANSFER-
CDLF Tire T&P / Collection Tire Monofill Industrial Landfill DEMO SDTF FILE TYPE: COMPLIANCE

Date of Site Inspection: April 9, 2021 Date of Last Inspection: November 20, 2019

FACILITY NAME AND ADDRESS:
City of Hickory Transfer Station
1050 1st Avenue Southwest
Hickory, North Carolina 28601

GPS COORDINATES (decimal degrees): Lat.: 35.73126 Long.: -81.35588

FACILITY CONTACT NAME AND PHONE NUMBER:
Name: Andrew Ballentine, Solid Waste Manager
Telephone: [phone]
Email address: [e-mail]

FACILITY CONTACT ADDRESS:
Post Office Box 398
Hickory, North Carolina 28603

PARTICIPANTS:
Lewis Berry, Solid Waste Supervisor – City of Hickory
Charles Gerstell, NCDEQ – Solid Waste Section

STATUS OF PERMIT:
A Permit to Operate 1808T-TRANSFER-, City of Hickory Transfer Station was issued to the City of Hickory on
February 22, 2016. The permit expired on February 19, 2020.

PURPOSE OF SITE VISIT:
Comprehensive Inspection

STATUS OF PAST NOTED VIOLATIONS:
N/A

OBSERVED VIOLATIONS:
15A North Carolina Administrative Code 13B .0201(c) states: “No solid waste management facility shall be
established, operated, maintained, constructed, expanded, or modified without a valid permit issued by the Division for
the specified type of activity. It is the responsibility of every owner or operator of a proposed solid waste management
facility to apply for a permit for the facility. The term "owner" shall include record owners of the land where the facility is
located or proposed to be located and holders of any leasehold interest, however denominated, in any part of the land or
structures where the facility is located or proposed to be located.”

The permit for the City of Hickory Transfer Station was issued on February 22, 2016 and expired on February 19, 2020.
At the time of the April 9, 2021 inspection, no permit renewal request or subsequent information had been submitted to
the Division. Therefore, the City of Hickory is in violation of 15A NCAC 13B.0201(c) for operating a solid waste
management facility without a current valid permit.

FACILITY COMPLIANCE INSPECTION REPORT
Division of Waste Management
Solid Waste Section

Page 2 of 3

To achieve compliance, within 30-days of receipt of the Notice of Violation, a complete permit renewal application to
include an updated site plan and operational plan must be submitted to the Solid Waste Section for review. All permit
requests and subsequent information must be submitted to:

Jordan Russ, Engineering Project Manager
1646 Mail Services Center
Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1646
[e-mail]

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

1. The facility consists of a Municipal Solid Waste Transfer Faculty having a service area of the City of Hickory
only.
2. The Permit and Operations Plan were verified. Both documents were current and available upon request.
3. Tonnage records were verified for January 2020 through February 2021. The facility received 26,558.67-tons of
waste during this time.
4. Waste screening reports were observed for February 1, 2021 through April 8, 2021. Screenings were performed
with adequate frequency and provided good documentation of observed unacceptable waste streams and final
disposition of those wastes.
5. Transfer Station Operations Specialist Certifications:
x Leopold Bodden
x Lewis Berry
x Randall Cline
x Justin Gross
x Michael Pisani
6. Gates were provided at the entrances to the facility to prevent unauthorized access.
7. Waste is offloaded directly into waste hoppers by city vehicles. As waste is offloaded, transfer stations attendants
view the waste being deposited into the hoppers through one of two windows in the operator room.
8. The tipping floor of the facility was well managed. The floor was free of residues and is regularly washed down
with hoses by facility staff.
9. No unacceptable waste streams were observed.
10. Leachate drains within the floor of the facility were free of obstructions and were operational.
11. Windblown waste was well managed at the time of inspection.
12. Bait boxes were provided around the exterior of the facility to assist in vector control.
13. Exterior drains within the paved and concrete areas on the south side of the facility deposit directly into the
sanitary sewer system.
x Staff have replaced a portion of the grates over the exterior drain closest to the stairway leading up the hill
adjacent to the transfer facility. The new grates are larger preventing them from being dislodged. Mr.
Berry stated that the remaining original grates will be replaced in the near future.
x The drains were free of obstructions at the time of inspection.
14. Per the Operations Plan, after each truck has unloaded and finished its route for the day, the trucks move from the
tipping floor to the area where the compaction trailers are located to remove any debris from their clean-outs. This
process is to be completed in an area that drains to the sanitary sewer system where it can be properly processed.
Any debris left on the ground is to be cleaned up immediately and placed in the dumpster and or rollout containers
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 3 of 3

provided in the designated area. The dumpster and rollout containers are to be emptied and deposited into the
transfer station at the end of the working day.
x Inspection of the aforementioned area was well managed at the time of inspection. The surface
surrounding the leachate drains at the trailer loading area was free of debris or residues.

Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns regarding this inspection report.

________________________________________ Phone: [phone]
Charles T. Gerstell
Environmental Senior Specialist
Regional Representative

Sent on: 4/14/21 Email Hand delivery X US Mail (w/
NOV)
Certified No.
[70180360000220966718 &
70180360000220966725 _]

Copies: Jason Watkins, Field Operations Branch Head
Deb Aja, Western District Supervisor
Chris Hollinger, Compliance Officer
Warren Wood, City Manager – City of Hickory via certified mail.
Jordan Russ, Engineering Project Manager
Digitally signed by Charles T. Gerstell
DN: cn=Charles T. Gerstell, o=Divsion of
Waste Management, ou=Solid Waste Section,
email=[e-mail], c=US
Date: 2021.04.14 08:48:33 -04'00'