NC0025135_Comments_20221114

CATAWBA
RIVERKEEPEW
November l4th, 2022
NCDEQ/DWR/NPDES
Wastewater Permitting
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Dear Dr. Chernikov,
The Catawba Riverkeeper Foundation is a member -funded environmental nonprofit that educates and
advocates for the protection of the Catawba-Wateree River and all its tributaries. Our organization
represents over 6,000 active members who rely on the watershed for drinking water, recreation, and
electricity. Lake Hickory is a highly valued reservoir for drinking water, recreation, and its excellent aesthetic
quality. We appreciate the opportunity to comment on the Huffman Finishing Company WWTP NPDES
permit (NC0025135) and make the following recommendations:
Monitor and limit color of discharge to 50 PCU (Platinum -Cobalt units).
• We have received multiple complaints, confirmed via imagery, of the discharge intermittently
creating a black plume in the receiving water (Figure 1). When we reported this to DEQ on
4/02/2018, staff informed us that it was dye, there was no discharge limit for color, and
recommended we reengage during the renewal. The problem continues and appears in 5 of the 6
available satellite images from the last decade, including the most recent from 4/03/2022. This
violates section 15A NCAC 02B .0211 (12) "Oils, deleterious substances, colored, or other wastes: only
such amounts as shall not render the waters injurious to public health, secondary recreation, or to
aquatic life and wildlife, or adversely affect the palatability of fish, aesthetic quality, or impair the
waters for any designated uses."...
• On 4/16/2021, in response to the Blue Ridge Paper (NC0000272) renewal comments, NC DEQ
established that the qualitative aesthetic color standard would be numerically enforced as 50 PCU.
A mixing zone is not applicable due to the current outfall design.
Created a compliance schedule to remedy the following facility inspection deficiencies
• Repair and maintain access road to outfall - The 8/06/20 inspection did not include the outfall
due to a downed tree. The 1/10/22 inspection did not include the outfall due to a stream crossing
washout. We are unaware of any successful outfall inspections since the 2016 Issuance.
• Repair outfall and extend the discharge point — The 4/18/2016 Permit Issuance stated "DWR
would also encourage the facility to fix the outfall pipeline cracks and consider extending the
discharge pipeline in order to have better effluent mix." This would likely mitigate the aesthetic
impacts of discharged dye.
For the River,
Brandon Jones
Catawba Riverkeeper
A WATERKEEPER ALLIANCE® Member
102 Main St. Suite 100 McAdenville NC 28211
Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.catawbariverkeeper.org

Figure 1. Satellite Imagery of Discharge Plume. Google Earth
Huffman Finishing Discharge
10f 19/0010
Huffman Finishing Discharge
3.(1912017
Google Earth
300fl
N
A WATERKEEPER ALLIANCE® Member
102 Main St. Suite 100 McAdenville NC 28211
Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.catawbariverkeeper.org

Huffman Finishing Discharge
4(32022
A
Google Earth N
300E
A WATERKEEPER ALLIANCE® Member
102 Main St. Suite 100 McAdenville NC 28211
Phone: [phone] Fax: [phone]
www.catawbariverkeeper.org