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HomeMy WebLinkAboutWQCSD0267_NOV-2020-DV-0038 Response_20200219AQUA. February I9, 2020 Mr. Scott Vinson Regional Supervisor Public Wastewater Supply Section Raleigh Regional Office, NCDEQ 1628 Mail Service Center Raleigh, NC 27699-1628 Re: Notice of Violation Chapel Ridge WWTP Permit No. WQCSD0267 NOV-2020-DV-0038 Dear Mr. Vinson: NC Dept of Environmental Quality FEB 2 � 12M Raleigh Regional Office Aqua North Carolina, Inc. (Aqua) offers the following response to the above -referenced Notice of Violation, which was issued for a Sanitary Sewer Overflow. Aqua's Response: Incident number 201901928 that occurred on December 11, 2019 was a result of an electrical failure within the control panel. A control fuse upstream of the alarm system had failed and prevented the signal from the high water float from reaching the telemetry unit. The fuse issue was corrected on the same day, December 11, 2019. This alarm and telemetry system were installed and operated in accordance with state regulations; however, to reduce the risk of recurrence and to increase the resiliency of the system, the high water alarm was rewired to directly notify the telemetry unit without any intermediate devices. Normal operator work includes weekly testing of the high water alarm and telemetry, and records indicate the operator had tested the unit during the preceding week. As a new level of testing all Aqua NC wastewater pump stations were tested by first disconnecting all sources of power (line power and generator power) and then lifting the high water alarm. In this condition, telemetry systems were tested to ensure it indicated both the loss of power condition and the high water alarm condition. We found more than 60 pump stations where the simultaneous loss and power and high water alarm would not result in telemetry notification. Aqua is currently upgrading all of its pump stations to add this resiliency. This is above and beyond the normal testing of high water alarm telemetry systems, and NCDWR may wish to consider updating operator training to include this test condition or even an administrative code amendment. 202 MacKenan Court, Cary, NC 27511 - 919.467.8712 - AquaAmerica.com Page Two Mr. Scott Vinson February 19, 2020 With respect to the Sanitary Sewer Overflow, remediation was conducted onsite and residual standing wastewater was removed and pumped back into the Iift station for treatment. The rip rap near the creek was cleaned and the surrounding surfaces were raked and the area was limed. If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to contact me at (919) 653-6982. Sincerely, Robert Krueger Area Manager cc: Joseph Pearce Amanda Owens Shannon Becker 2