820083_PC-2021-0032 Remission (Request)_20220405

SCOTT MCLAMB
RRM FARMS
4212 HOWARD RD
AUTRYVILLE, NC 28318
April 1, 2022 .
Mr. Miressa D. Garoma
Animal Feeding Operations Program
North Carolina Division of Water Resources
1636 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1636
Dear Mr. Garoma,
In response to your ASSESSMENT OF CIVIL PENALTIES, ENFORCEMENT FILE #PC-2021-
0032 dated February 24, 2022 and received by me.on March 7, 2022.for Scott McLamb 1&2and Robert
McLamb Farm (82-83) I submit ttie following:
At the time of the violation, I was the owner of the farm but the farm was being managed and operated by
my estranged wife, Christine McLanib. 1 was not involved with the day-to-day management and operation
of the farm however I did make -inspections after waste application; as required' by the permit. This
inspection did not include checking the hog houses and lagoon. Unbeknownst to me, the discharge pipes
had been dug up during the grow -out of what proved to be the last hogs placed on that farm. At the time
of the DWR inspection, the farm was empty and had been for some time, and remained so until after I
regained full control and ownership of the farm. I received no income -from the farm while Christine
managed it but I am the one that must pay the fines for her actions. I have made many improvements to
the farm as I will detail and feel 1 should not be punished because I am the farm owner. While 1 agree that
the farm operator had not received proper design paperwork for the attempted repair of the discharge
pipes, I am asking for remission due to the fact there was no discharge of waste to the environment nor
associated harm from the pipes being dug up. 'I understand that the attempted repairs looked very bad
but again there was no harm to the environment. We also were experiencing chronic rainfall at the time
which did cause the lagoon to back up into the channels where the discharge pipes were located. It was
stated in your letter that no attempt to repair the pipes had been made before your January 6, 2021
follow-up visit. Fill dirt was placed it the channels at the lagoon to keep waste from backflowing out of the
lagoon so some effort had been made to correct the violation. Again, I remind you there were no hogs at
the farm so new waste was being introduced to the system. Smithfield would not place animals back on
the farm until work was done to improve the farm. I was able to regain full ownership of the farm in 2021. I
have spent the following amounts to bring the farm back into production:
$34,500 to replace the discharge lines from all houses and repair lagoon dams
$8,000 grading around the houses to divert surface water from the lagoons
$115,000 boniplete new feed system
$9,500 for new load -out facilities
$18,200 new slats
$12,000 new electrical
$4,500 new curtains
$52,000 building repairs and roofs
$21,000 new irrigation pumps
$4,500 farm road repair
$24,000 new drinking water system to reduce water wastage into the lagoon -
$14,300 upgrade and repair irrigation system

As you can see, I have spent over $313,000 to upgrade and repair this farm so that it will be operable and
environmentally compliant. An additional $6,000 fine is onerous considering there was no damage to the
environment.
I enclose the following:
1. Waiver of Right to an Administrative Hearing and Stipulation of Facts:
2. Justification of Remission Request:
This Justification of Remission Request is based on the following:
(1 or a). Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors were wrongfully
applied to the detriment of the violator: See the comments above concerning the incident
and the fact there was no environmental damage.
(2 or b). The violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from
the violation.
There were no hogs at the time of all of the inspections as the farm had been empty for some
time due to the discharge pipe issue. Corrections were made immediately so that the lagoon
could not backflow into the channels. Heavy rains forced me to make this repair twice until the
lagoon level could be lowered through irrigation. No lagoon water backflowed again after the
second repair. The discharge lines were replaced and necessary repairs were made to the
lagoon dams in a timely manner and before hogs could be placed back onto the farm. This farm
sat empty for almost 18 months before all repairs were completed. This obviously resulted in no
income during this period which makes paying fines more difficult. Again, no environmental
damage as there was no discharge.
(4 or d). the violator had not been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations.
This is the first incident that has occurred at Scott McLamb and Robert McLamb Farms.
There were no detrimental impacts on the environment from this incident. Therefore, I request
that there be remission of the penalty. I have spent much money to correct this problem and
penalties would be punitive considering the fact that there were no detrimental effects to the
environment from the incident. I know that it is important to be a good neighbor, a good operator
and a good steward of our natural resources and I will do all things possible to operate this farm
correctly in the future. This type incident will not occur as I will be the sole operator of my farm.
If you need further information regarding this, please call me at 910-385-6822. Thank you for
your attention to this matter.
Sincerely,
/27/-/
Scott McLamb