20061647 Ver 1_Notice of Violation_20071114

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Michael F. Easley, Governor
William G. Ross Jr., Secretary
North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources
November 14, 2007
CERTIFIED MAIL # 7007 0220 0003 1484 7494
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
Jerry Jennings, P.E.
Division Engineer '
NC DOT Division One
113 Airport Drive Suite 100 .
Edenton, NC 27932
Dear Mr. Jennings:
Alan W. Klimek, P.E. Director
Division of Water Quality
Subject: Notice of Violation
SR 1402 road widening project
_ Gates County
State Project Number 1C.0037039
DWQ Project No. 20061647
Incident No. 200703280
NOV-2007-WQ-0119
On October 9, 2007, Mr. Garcy Ward with the NC DWQ Washington Regional O�ce received a call from Clay
Willis with NC DOT regarding possible violations at the Gates County SR 1402 road widening and paving
project. Mr. Ward inspected the site on October 12, 2007 and found unauthorized impacts to an unnamed
tributary to Bennett's Creek (Class C; NSW Waters of the State). Only 5 ft of stream impacts were authorized by
the 401 Water Quality Certification for the installation of the new pipe. Immediately upstream of the crossing, an
additional 180 ft of stream was impacted beyond what was authorized by excavation of the channel and banks and
the clearing of riparian vegetation. In addition to the stream impacts, proper sediment and erosion control
measures were not in place prior to the start of construction activities.
As a result of the site inspection, the following violations were documented:
• Violation of Condition 9 of the 40fl Water Quality Certifacation which reads as follows:
The dimension, pattern, and profile of the stream above and below the crossing should not be modified.
Disturbed floodplains and streams should be restored to natural geomorphic conditions.
• Violation of Condition 11 of the 401 Water Quality Certification which reads as follows:
Erosion and sediment control practices must be in full compliance with all specifications governing the
proper design, installation, operation and maintenance of such Best Management Practices in order to
protect surface waters standards:
a. The erosion and sediment control measures for the project must be designed, installed, operated, and
maintained in accordance with the most recent version of the North Carolina Sediment and Erosion
' Control Planning and Design Manual.
b. The design, installation, operation, and maintenance of the sediment and erosion control measures
must be such that they equal, or exceed, the requirements specified in the moat recent version of the
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N. C. Division of Water Quality 943 Washington Square Mail Washirigtor�,-fV.C: P7889 - -�elephone [phone] Qt1lC
FAX [phone] . Internet: vwvw.ncwaterquality.org
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c.
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North Carolina Sediment and Erosion Control Manual. The devices shall be maintained on all
construction sites, borrow sites, and waste pile (spoil) projects, including contractor-owned or leased
borrow pits associated with the project.
For borrow pit sites, the erosion and sediment control measures must be designed, installed, operated,
and maintained in accordance with the most recent version of the North Carolina Surface Mining
Manual.
The reclamation measures and implementation rnust comply with the reclamation in accordance with
the requirements of the Sedimentation Pollution Control Act.
Removal of Best Usage (Stream Excavation)
The unauthorized excavation of the stream channel constitutes a violation of North Carolina
Administration Code 15A NCAC 02B .0211 (2) which states: The waters shall be suitable for aquatic life
propagation and maintenance of biological integrity, wildlife, secondary recreation, and agriculture;
sources of water pollution which preclude any of these uses on either a short-term or long-term basis shall
be considered to be violating a water quality standard.
Thank you for your attention to this matter. Please respond, in writing, within twenty (20) days following the
receipt of this notice. In your response, please include the following items:
1. Documentation of all jurisdictional water features, describing and quantifying the impacts to these
features.
2. An explanation of the efforts that have been taken to abate and repair the unauthorized impacts to the
stream.
3. Replanting of the riparian zone will be required. Please include detailed riparian planting plans.
4. A detailed schedule with dates explaining when the restoration will be accomplished. Please include
monitoring plans and timelines as well.
5. An explanation of why these unauthorized impacts occurred.
6. Please explain what measures will be taken to prevent a similar situation from occurring in the future.
This office appreciates being notified of the events in this matter and the prompt actions taken by DOT to restore
the impacted portion of the stream. These facts along with your response to this letter will be considered in
further regulatory decision making regarding these matters. These violations and any future violations are
subject to a civil penalty assessment of up to $25,000.00 per day for each violation. If you have any
questions, please contact Mr. Garcy Ward or me at [phone].
cc: US Army Corps of Engineers, Washington Field Office
DWQ, NPS Assistance and Compliance Oversight Unit, Attention: Shelton Sullivan
DWQ, Wetlands Unit, Transportation Permitting Group, Attention: John Hennessy
Division of Land Resources, Washington Regional O�ce
Division of Land Resources, Central Office, Attention: Gray Hauser
DWQ Central Files
WaRO Files
Mr. Don Lee, P.E., NC DOT Roadside Environmental Unit
1557 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1557
Mr. Ted Sherrod, P.E., NC DOT Roadside Environmental Unit
1557 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1557
Mr. Clay Willis, Division Environmental Officer, NC DOT Division 1
Mr. Andy Blankenship, P.E., NC DOT Division 1
Sinc y,
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Surface ater Protection
Regional Supervisor