NCG021001_Return Letter (Signed)_20221006

ROY COOPER
Governor
ELIZABETH S. BISER
Secretary
BRIAN WRENN
Director
Wayne J. Smith
20 Thomasboro Road SW
Calabash, NC 28467
Dear Wayne J. Smith:
NORTH CAROLINA
Environmental Quality
October 6, 2022
Subject: NOI Application NCGO21001
Royal Oak Mine
Return #1339
Brunswick County
We received your application for an NPDES discharge permit on March 17, 2022. On June 1, 2022,
Brian Lambe with the Wilmington Regional Office conducted a site visit to determine whether the
facility was compliant with coverage under Stormwater General Permit NCG020000.
The review of the application revealed some issues and discrepancies between the mining permit
and the NPDES application. The proposed dewatering basin is absent from the mining permit. You
specified that wetlands were not less than 400 feet from the perimeter when mine maps show them
to be 40 feet away. The application is missing various required calculations, specifications, and
measures to prevent erosion and flooding. Wilmington Regional staff found the Pumping Operation
and Monitoring Plan also be lacking information.
We recommend you modify your NCG02 application and/or your mining permit so they may align.
We cannot issue coverage under NCG02 while the application and mining permit are incongruent
For changes to your mining permit, please reach out to Adam Parr with the Mining Program at 919-
707-9207. For assistance in drafting a new NCG02 application, please reach out to Brittany Carson
with the Stormwater Program at 919-707-3648.
With this letter, your application is being returned to you. Please be advised that if the State
determines that discharges from this site contribute to a water quality standard violation or are a
significant contributor of pollutants to waters of the U.S., the Department of Environmental Quality
(DEQ) is authorized to require a discharge permit.
If operations at our facility change such as that an NPDES stormwater discharge permit is required,
then you must submit an application and receive permit coverage prior to any discharge. The
return of this application does not affect the legal requirements to obtain other permits which may
be required by the Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources, or permits required by the
Division of Water Resources, Coastal Area Management Act, or any other federal or local
government permit or approval that may be required.
DE QJ� North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Energy, Mineral and Land Resources
_ 512 North Salisbury Street 1 1612 Mall Service Center I Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1612
�� /'� 919.707.9200

If you have any questions concerning this permit, please contact Brittany Carson at [phone]
or by email at brittany.carson0ricdenngov.
Sincerely, P�)j
for Brian Wrenn, Director
Division of Energy, Mineral, and Land Resources
cc: Wilmington Regional Office / B. Lambe
Mining Program / A. Parr
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Energy, Mineral and Land Resources
512 North Salisbury Street 1 1612 Mall Service Center I Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1612
�\ 919.707.9200