NC0026557_LV-2021-0128 Civil Penalty Remission Request_20210824

ROY COOPER
Governor
ELIZABETH S. BISER
Secretary
S. DANIEL SMITH NORTH CAROLINA
Director Environmental Quality
August 24, 2021
CERTIFIED MAIL ITEM 7018 1830 0001 8037 2162 - RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
Ms. Regina Mathis
Town Manager
P.O. Box 726
Bryson City, NC 28713
SUBJECT: CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION REQUEST
Bryson City WWTP
Permit NC0026557
Case LV-2021-0128
Swain County
Dear Ms. Mathis:
I have considered the information submitted by your municipality in support of a request for remission
in the subject case. The acquisition of >$8 million in funds for system upgrades was noted. Therefore,
in accordance with NCGS 143-215.6A (f), the civil penalty will be reduced by $300.00. Your
municipality is responsible is responsible for the remaining penalties and enforcement costs, which total
$1,324.43.
If you choose to pay the penalties, send payment to the letterhead address within thirty (30) days of
receipt of this letter. Please make the check payable to NC DEQ.
If payment is not received within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter, in accordance with NCGS §
143-215.6A (f), your requests for remission of the civil penalties (with supporting documents) and my
recommendation to deny the requests 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 requests for remission meet
one or more of the five statutory factors you were asked to address, you must complete and return the
attached forms within thirty (30) days of receipt of this letter. Please mail the completed forms to:
Mr. Charles H. Weaver
NC DEQ / DWR / NPDES
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
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
512 North Salisbury Street 11617 Mail Service Center 1 Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1617
919.707.9000 North Carolina

NC0026557 Remission Decision
Page 2 of 3
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
Mr. Weaver at [e-mail].
cc: NPDES file
Sincerely,
7,,a40/ vAinfq
for S. Daniel Smith
Director, Division of Water Resources
SENDER: COMPLETE THIS SECTION
• Complete items 1, 2, and 3.
■ Print your name and address on the reverse
so that we can return the card to you.
• Attach this card to the back of the mailpiece,
or on the front if space permits.
Town of Bryson City
Attn: Regina Mathis, Town Manger
PO Box 726
Bryson City, NC 28713
COMPLETE THIS SECTION ON DELIVERY
A. Signature
❑ Agent
' •rr,X."` .—• Addressee
B. Received by rinted Name) C. Date of Delivery
c%Lima.
D. Is delivery address different from item 1? ❑ Yes
If YES, enter delivery address below: El No
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I3. Service Type
(I I9I5,943I951 I810160 01971
107I CI Adult Signature
I El Adult Signature Restricted Delivery
Certified ed Ma
❑ Certified Mail Restricted Delivery
❑ Collect on Delivery
i Delivery Restricted Delivery
7018 1830 0001 8037 2162
PS Form 3811, July 2015 PSN 7530-02-000-9053
lail
_-..lail Restricted Delivery
1 (over$500)
❑ Priority Mail Express®
❑ Registered Mailm
❑ Registered Mail Restricted
Delivery
O Return Receipt for
Merchandise
❑ Signature Confirmationm
❑ Signature Confirmation
Restricted Delivery
Domestic Return Receipt

DocuSign Envelope ID: 4B94BD30-ED88-40CC-916F-2B1EA94CD55A
DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES
CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION FACTORS
Case Number: LV-2021-0128 Region: Asheville County: Swain
Assessed Entity: Bryson City WWTP Permit: NC0026557
❑ (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:
• (d) Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations:
(e) Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining
necessary remedial actions:
Permittee States: Town has paid >$4000 in civil penalties this year. Town has received $8.78 million
from USDA in grant funding to address I&I and upgrade the WWTP. Town believes penalties will
impact ability to resolve I&I and would not be the best use of available funds.
DWR Response: Town will shortly be under statutory moratorium, and potentially under SOC. Some
remission is warranted given their efforts to secure funding for system repairs & upgrades.
DECISION (Check One)
Request Denied ❑
Full Remission ❑ Retain Enforcement Costs? Yes ❑ No ❑
Original Penalty (without Enforcement Costs) $1,500.00
Partial Remission■ 20% or $300.00 (amount remitted)
Subtotal
Retaining Enforcement Costs
$1200.00
$124.43
Total Revised Assessment $1324.43
DocuSigned by:
?L"
8328B44CE9EB4A1--8/23/2021
-
S. Daniel Smith Date

Town of Bryson City
Municipal Office
.P.O. Box 726
Bryson City, NC 28713
Telephone [phone]
Fax [phone]
May 27, 2021
Daniel Boss, Assistant Regional Supervisor
Wastewater Branch
Division of Water Resources
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699
RE: Remission NOV-2021-LV-0335
Case No: LV-2021-0128
To Whom It May Concern:
On behalf of the Town of Bryson City, I am requesting remission for the Civil Penalty associated with the
Notice of Violation NOV-2021-LV-0335/ Case No. LV-2021-0128. This request is based on the
following reasons.
At this time, the Town of Bryson City has been approved for $8,780,000 through United States
Department of Agriculture to begin Phase I of a project to replace outdated and insufficient lines to
correct the inflow and infiltration issues we are having in our system. Phase II will be to rehabilitate our
wastewater plant which is old and has a lot of unexpected annual repairs. The plant also has a hard time
operating efficiently due to the age of the plant and equipment.
We are working closely with McGill Associates and USDA to begin these projects as soon as possible.
These civil penalties are putting a hardship on the Town when we could use the money to pay for
continued repairs of our wastewater treatment facility and repairing lines in our collection system, as well
as, to meet our loan and match for the Phase I and Phase II projects through Appalachian Regional
Commission (ARC) funding and United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) funding.
Thank you in advance for your consideration in this matter.
Tanks again,
Re Mathis
To Manager
Mayor TamSutton Board ofAldermen Benjamin Ring, Janine Crisp, Heidi.Ramsey-Woodard & Chad Smith
Regina Mathis,TownManager FredMoody.Tr., Town Attorney CarlaPasmore, Tax Collector Lynn Thomas, Town Clerk
Tom Shook, Public Works Supervisor
In accordance with Federal law and U.S. Department ofAgriewlture policy, this institution is prohibitedfrom discriminating on the basis of race, color,
national origin, age, disability, religion, se:5 and familial status. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs). Tofile a complaint of discrimination, write
USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400IndependenceAvenue, S.W., Washington, D.0 20250-9410 or call [phone] (English) or (800)877-
8339(7DD) or [phone](English Federal-relay)or [phone] (Spanish -relay).

DocuSign Envelope ID: 907C32EC-2B84-452D-ADA42F8A7222C7AB
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
COUNTY OF SWAIN
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT
OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST
Town of Bryson City
Bryson City WWTP
PERMIT NO. NC0026557
WAIVER OF RIGHT TO AN
ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING AND
STIPULATION OF FACTS
CASE NO. LV-2021-0128
Having been assessed civil penalties totaling S 1.624.43 for violation(s) as set forth in the assessment document of the
Division of Water Resources dated May 17. 2021, the undersigned, desiring to seek remission of the civil penalty, does
hereby waive the right to an administrative hearing in the above -stated matter and does stipulate that the facts are as
alleged in the assessment document. The undersigned further understands that all evidence presented in support of
remission of this civil penalty must be submitted to the Director of the Division of Water Resources within thirty (30) days
of receipt of the notice of assessment. No new evidence in support of a remission request will be allowed after (30) days
from the receipt of the notice of assessment.
This the
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SIGNATURE
ADDRESS
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DocuSign Envelope ID: 907C32EC-21384-452D-ADA42F8A7222C7AB
JUSTIFICATION FOR REMISSION REQUEST
Case Number: LV-2021.-0128
Assessed Party: Town of Bryson City
Permit No.: NC0026557
County: Swain
Amount Assessed: S 1,624,43
Please use this form when requesting remission of this civil penalty. You must also complete the "Request For Remission,
Waiver of Right to an Administrative Hearing, and Stipulation of Facts" form to request remission of this civil penalty.
You should attach any documents that you believe support your request and are necessary for the Director to consider in
evaluating your request for remission. Please be aware that a request for remission is limited to consideration of the five
factors listed below as they may relate to the reasonableness of the amount of the civil penalty assessed. Requesting
remission is not the proper procedure for contesting whether the violation(s) occurred or the accuracy of any of the factual
statements contained in the civil penalty assessment document. Pursuant to N.C.G.S. § 143B-282.1(c), remission of a civil
penalty may be granted only when one or more of the following five factors apply. Please check each factor that you
believe applies to your case and provide a detailed explanation, including copies of supporting documents, as to why the
factor applies (attach additional pages as needed).
(a) one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors in N.C.G.S. 143B-282.1(b) were wrongfully applied to the
detriment of the petitioner (the assessment factors are listed in the civil penalty assessment document);
(b) the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the violation (i.e., explain the
steps that you took to correct the violation and prevent future occurrences);
(c) the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident (Le., explain why the violation was unavoidable or
something you could not prevent or prepare for);
(d) the violator had not been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations;
(e) payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial actions (i.e., explain
how payment of the civil penalty will prevent you from performing the activities necessary to achieve
compliance).
EXPLANATION:
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DocuSign Envelope ID: 907C32EC-2B84-452D ADA4-2F8A7229C7AB
ATTACHMENT A
Town of Bryson City
CASE NUMBER: LV-2021-0128
PERMIT: NC0026557
FACILITY: Bryson City WWTP
LIMIT VIOLATION(S)
REGION: Asheville
COUNTY: Swain
SAMPLE LOCATION: Outfall 001 - Effluent
Violation Report Unit of Limit Calculated % Over Violation Penalty
Date Month/Yr Parameter Frequency Measure Value Value Limit Type Amount
3/31/2021 3-2021 Flow, in conduit orthru Continuous mgd 0.60 0.68 13.7 Monthly $1,500.00
treatment plant Average
Exceeded