WQCS00010_NOI_NOV2022DV0225_Response_#1_20220829

Public Services Department
Water & Sewer Mains Division
NORTH CAROLINA'S INIERNATIONALCrryn
August 29, 2022
Lon T. Snider
NCDENR
Winston-Salem Regional Office
450 West Hanes Mill Road, Suite 300
Winston-Salem, NC 27105
RE: Notice of Intent
Tracking No.: NOV-2022-DV-0225
Incident Number 202200964
6/21 /2022
Mr. Snider,
This letter is in response to the Notice of Intent, Tracking No.: NOV-2022-DV-0225, concerning the spill
that occurred on June 21, 2022, at the Rich Fork Creek crossing on the outfall on Old Plank Rd,
Guilford County, High Point, North Carolina.
The City of High Point requests remission of this civil penalty. As soon as the City of High Point was
notified of a sewer odor complaint in this area, City crews mobilized to find the cause of the odor. The
source of the odor was identified as a sanitary sewer overflow caused by a broken aerial pipe. There
had not been an issue in the past with this aerial, and crews had visually inspected the line just a few
months prior. Upon further investigation, we realized that after several dry months, the area had several
substantial rain events which eroded the banks of the creek and caused the creek to widen. As the
creek widened, the water washed the aerial pillars out of the bank which caused the pipe to break due
to lack of support.
Contractor crews began remediation of the SSO by installing a bypass pump to stop the flow and begin
repairs. During the night, their pump failed and caused the SSO to begin again. City of High Point
crews were on site with pumps and sandbags to keep the overflow out of the creek and localized while
the contractors retrieved another pump from the nearest location which was in Raleigh, NC.
Once the second bypass pump was set up, crews excavated the sides of the creek to replace the
broken pipe and build new pillars to stabilize the aerial. They also reconstructed the creek banks for
additional support of the pipe and concrete pillars. In addition to the repair of the aerial line, City of High
Point crews cleaned up solids, put out lime, flushed the creek, and vacuumed out remaining debris from
the creek.
City of High Point, P.O. 230, 211 South Hamilton Street, High Point, NC 27261 USA
Office: 336-883-3691 Fax: [phone] TDD 336.883.8517

2
We have not had any other related violations in this area since the aerial repair.
If you have any questions or require further information, please feel free to call me at [phone].
Sincerely,
Saud Feaa'j?2c4a
Sarah Beth McAvoy
ORC WWCS
cc: Robby Stone- Public Services Director, Derrick Boone -Assistant Public Services Director, Joseph
Holden- W/S Mains Superintendent, Carrie Hyler-Pretreatment Supervisor, File
City of High Point, P.O. 230, 211 South Hamilton Street, High Point, NC 27261 USA
Office: 336-883-3691 Fax: [phone] TDD 336.883.8517