WQCS00160_NOI_NOV2022DV0121_Response_20220513 (2)

TOWN OF SPARTA
P.O. BOX 99
SPARTA, NC 28675
NC Department of
Environmental Quality
Received
MAY 2 0 2022
Winston-Salem
Regional Office
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
TOWN COUNCIL MEMBERS: Wes Brinegar, Mayor
Mike Parlier, Mayor Pro Tern Ryan W lmoth, Town Manager
Cole Edwards Lloyd Terry, Chief of Police
John Brady Peggy Choate, Town Clerk
Terry McGrady Whitney Ivey, Town Attorney
Milly Richardson
To: Lon T. Snider, Regional Supervisor
Water Quality Regional Operations Section
Winston-Salem Regional Office
Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ
From: Ryan Wilmoth, Manager
Date: May 13, 2022
RE: Response to Notice of Violation & Intent to Assess Civil Penalty Letter
Mr. Snider,
The Town of Sparta is in receipt of the May 10, 2022 letter concerning the Notice of Violation
and Intent to Assess Civil Penalty from your office. We fully understand our responsibility for
operations of the collections system in compliance with permit conditions. In reviewing this
matter internally with our team, we identified some items of note that we felt contributed to this
situation that should be submitted for your consideration.
On or about March 15, 2022 our WWTP Operator noticed a substantial decrease in flow totals
coming into our facility. This decrease in flow total was of significance so our maintenance
division immediately began working to locate and identify any potential source of disruption in
our collections system, starting at the treatment facility working outward. A potential
obstruction, which was created by a property owner storing brush over a manhole on their
property, was identified on March 16, 2022 and removed the same day. Flow was noted to
increase through the area once the obstruction was removed, however, totals did not return to
normal levels and were actually noted to be reduced on March 17, 2022 when our WWTP
Operator reviewed flow data. The team resumed tracing of the collections system at which time
the area of active overflow was noted. Our maintenance team began immediate emergency repair
work to the disruption, which as detailed in our self -reporting was due to a collapsed outflow of a
manhole.
Of particular significance, the area of active spill for this NOV is included in the 2020
Earthquake Damage Sanitary Sewer Repair Project (Phase 2), Project ID: ALLEG-2022-002,
which the Town of Sparta is actively engaged in repairing suspected sewer line damage that

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resulted from the August 8, 2020 earthquake. The North Carolina Office of State Budget and
Management- Disaster Recovery, as the funding agency, The Lane Group, providing
engineering, and Locke -Lane Construction are also actively engaged with this project. Initial
permitting for repair work to this segment of line was submitted early August, 2021 but was not
authorized until December 30, 2021. Due to inclement weather in our mountainous area during
the months of January and February, coupled with supply chain shortages, construction to this
segment was not able to commence prior to the overflow. The contractor was able to mobilize to
the area of overflow immediately and has since been actively working to repair this and other
contiguous segments that are suspected to have earthquake damage.
In closing, the Town of Sparta works diligently to ensure our collections system practices align
with current standards and follows all applicable laws and regulations, which hopefully is
demonstrated by our history of infrequent violations. We have also been actively engaged in
earthquake recovery and repair work within our collections system over the last 21 months to
rebuild our infrastructure to levels that will serve our citizens in a manner that surpasses
permitting parameters. We appreciate your professional discretion in reviewing of our matter
and respect your ultimate decision. Should you have any additional questions or needs for the
Town of Sparta, please do not hesitate to contact me directly.
Respectively,
Ryan E. Wilmoth