WQCS00203_Remission (Decision)_20200914

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ROY COOPER ry "VAN-` :
Governor ‘,0 do L, ' '
MICHAEL S.REGAN +7 _ `. a:
Secretary S.DANIEL SMITH NORTH CAROLINA
Director Environmental Quality
September 14, 2020
CERTIFIED MAIL #7018 1830 0001 8037 0533
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
Gordon Hargrove, Town Manager
Town of lake Waccamaw
205 Flemington Drive
Lake Waccamaw, NC 28450
SUBJECT: CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION REQUEST
Lake Waccamaw Collection System
Permit WQCS00203
Case no. PC-2020-0003
Columbus County
Dear Mr. Hargrove:
The Division has considered the information submitted in support of your request for remission in the
subject cases. In accordance with NCGS 143-215.6A(f), the Division has found no cause to remit the
original civil penalty assessment of$2,436.75.
If you choose to pay the penalty; send payment to the letterhead address within thirty(30) days of
receipt of this letter. Please make the check payable to NC Department of Environmental Quality.
If payment is not received within thirty(30) days of receipt of this letter, in accordance with NCGS
§ 143-215.6A (f), your request for remission of the civil penalty(with supporting documents) and my
recommendation to deny the request will be delivered to the North Carolina Environmental Management
Commission's (EMC) Committee On Civil Penalty Remissions (Committee) for final agency decision.
If you desire to make an oral presentation to the Committee on why your request for remission meets
one or more of the five statutory factors you were asked to address, you must complete and return the
attached form within thirty(30) days of receipt of this letter. Please mail the completed form to:
Ms. Celeste Sugg
NC DEQ/DWR
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh,NC 27699-1617
Your request for an oral presentation and the documents in this matter will be reviewed by the EMC
Chairman and, if it is determined that there is a compelling reason to require an oral presentation from
you, you will be notified by certified mail of the date, time, and place that your oral presentation can be
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Permit no.WQCS00203
made. Otherwise, the final decision on your request for remission will be made by the Committee based
on the written record.
Thank you for your cooperation in this matter. If you have any questions about this letter,please contact
Celeste Sugg at(919) 707-3628 or [e-mail].
Sincerely,
IS Q.QJ. r
Daniel Smith
Director, Division of Water Resources
cc: Enforcement File—PC-2020-0003
Wilmington Regional Office
Central Office

Permit no.WQCS00203
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION
COUNTY OF Columbus DWQ Case Number PC-2020-0003
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT OF )
CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST: ) REQUEST FOR ORAL PRESENTATION
Town of Lake Waccamaw )
I hereby request to make an oral presentation before the Environmental Management Commission's
Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions in the matter of the case noted above. In making this request, I
assert that I understand all of the following statements:
• This request will be reviewed by the Chairman of the Environmental Management Commission and
may be either granted or denied.
• Making a presentation will require the presence of myself and/or my representative during a
Committee meeting held in Raleigh, North Carolina.
• My presentation will be limited to discussion of issues and information submitted in my original
remission request, and because no factual issues are in dispute, my presentation will be limited to five
(5) minutes in length.
The North Carolina State Bar's Authorized Practice of Law Committee has ruled that the appearance in a
representative capacity at quasi-judicial hearings or proceedings is limited to lawyers who are active
members of the bar. Proceedings before the Committee on Remissions are quasi-judicial.You should
consider how you intend to present your case to the Committee in light of the State Bar's opinion and
whether anyone will be speaking in a representative capacity for you or a business or governmental entity. If
you or your representative would like to speak before the Committee, you must complete and return this
form within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter.
Depending on your status as an individual, corporation,partnership or municipality, the State Bar's Opinion affects how
you may proceed with your oral presentation. See www.ncbar.com/ethics,Authorized Practice Advisory Opinion 2006-1
and 2007 Formal Ethics Opinion 3.
• If you are an individual or business owner and are granted an opportunity to make an oral presentation before
the Committee,then you do not need legal representation before the Committee;however, if you intend on
having another individual speak on your behalf regarding the factual situations, such as an expert, engineer or
consultant,then you must also be present at the meeting in order to avoid violating the State Bar's Opinion on
the unauthorized practice of law.
• If you are a corporation,partnership or municipality and are granted an opportunity to make an oral
presentation before the Committee,then your representative must consider the recent State Bar's Opinion and
could be considered practicing law without a license if he or she is not a licensed attorney.Presentation of facts
by non-lawyers is permissible.
If you choose to request an oral presentation,please make sure that signatures on the previously submitted Remission
Request form and this Oral Presentation Request form are: 1)for individuals and business owners,your own signature
and 2)for corporations,partnerships and municipalities, signed by individuals who would not violate the State Bar's
Opinion on the unauthorized practice of law.
Also,be advised that the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions may choose not to proceed with hearing your case if the
Committee is informed that a violation of the State Bar occurs.
This the day of , 20
SIGNATURE TITLE (President, Owner, etc.)
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE ( )

DocuSign Envelope ID:BFFDFBFB-C6DF-419A-9E6A-19E5955F1F21
DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES
CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION FACTORS
Case Number: PC-2020-0003 Region: Wilmington County: Columbus
Assessed Entity: Lake Wacccamaw Permit: WQCS00203
❑ (a) Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors were wrongly applied to
the detriment of the petitioner:
❑ (b) Whether the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting
from the violation:
❑ (c) Whether the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident:
DWR Response:The Town hasn't owned the necessary equipment in the past and has relied on
counting line cleaned by contractors prior to I&I reduction projects. It seems that the Town
purchased in June 2019 some sort of equipment to do so moving forward. Assuming a conservative
value of$0.50/foot cost to hire out cleaning,the Town saved at least$9,000 over the last 3 years.The
assessment will be based on$0.15/foot saved. Not having its own equipment or hiring a contractor to
do the cleaning appears to have been a conscious decision since it has been a requirement since its
first permit became effective in July 2005.
The Permittee failed to meet its minimum 10%cleaning requirement of 6,340 feet for the period
2017-2019. Only cleaned about 2107: 43%,2018:0%, and 2019: 15%.
❑ (d) Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations:
Permittee States: The Town of Lake Waccamaw has been assessed one previous collection system
penalty on 01/22/2015 and 36 past violations since 1994.
DWR Response:The Town has been issued at least 7 NOVs since 2005 for SSOs and assessed once
for several that occurred in 2014. Town also operates a WWTP that has had issues at times,but
hasn't been assessed since violations in late 2017.
❑ (e) Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining
necessary remedial actions:
DECISION (Check One)
Request Denied II
Full Remission ❑ Retain Enforcement Costs? Yes❑ No❑
Original Penalty(without Enforcement Costs) $ (enter amount)
Partial Remission ❑ % or$ (amount remitted)
Subtotal $
Retaining Enforcement Costs $
Total Revised Assessment $
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DoeuSlgned by:
POVI90- 9/13/2020
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S.Dame Smith Date