310475_Remission (Decision)_20230705

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Resources
512 North Salisbury Street 1636 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1636
919.707.9129

July 5, 2023

CERTIFIED MAIL - #7003 1010 0003 0390 4135
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
Rufus E. Rouse
Reedy Meadows Farms 1&2
1658 Pasture Branch Road
Beulaville, NC 28518

SUBJECT: Request for Remission of Civil Penalty
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. 143-215.6A(f)
Reedy Meadows Farms 1&2
Case Number PC-2022-0009
Permit No. AWS310475
Duplin County
Dear Rufus E. Rouse:

A final agency decision on your request for remission of the subject civil penalty will be made
by the Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions (Committee) of the Environmental Management
Commission (EMC) on Thursday, June 13, 2023.

You have communicated that you wish to make an oral presentation of your remission request
before the Committee. Please come prepared to present your remission request at this meeting.
You will be allowed approximately five (5) minutes to speak. Please be advised that the
Committee cannot consider any information other than that submitted in the original remission
request. Please note, the State Bar’s recent Opinion regarding the unauthorized practice of law
affects your method of presenting at the Committee.

If you are an individual or business owner and are granted an opportunity to make an oral
presentation before the Committee, then you do not need legal representation before the
Committee; however, if you intend on having another individual speak on your behalf regarding
the factual situations, such as an expert, engineer or consultant, then you must also be present at
the meeting in order to avoid violating the State Bar’s Opinion on the unauthorized practice of
law.
If you are a corporation, partnership or municipality and are granted an opportunity to make an
oral presentation before the Committee, then your representative must consider the recent State
Bar’s Opinion and could be considered practicing law without a license if he or she is not a
licensed attorney. Presentation of facts by non-lawyers is permissible. Also, be advised that the
Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions may choose not to proceed with the hearing of a case if
DocuSign Envelope ID: 6D25FC8D-25F0-4772-9D81-9FF287FC1E7A

North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality Division of Water Resources
512 North Salisbury Street 1636 Mail Service Center Raleigh, North Carolina 27699-1636
919.707.9129

the Committee is informed that a potential violation regarding the unauthorized practice of law
has occurred.

Time and Location of Meeting

The EMC will convene at 9:00 a.m. and the Remissions Committee will convene following the
closing of the regularly scheduled business meeting. The Committee meeting will be held in the
Department of Public Safety Conference Room (Room G24D), on the ground floor of the
Archdale Building, located at 512 North Salisbury Street in Raleigh, North Carolina (see
enclosed map).

Other Things to Know About The Meeting

The length of an EMC meeting is determined by its agenda of the day and the amount of
discussion given to each topic. You are advised to arrive for the Committee meeting no later
than 9:00 a.m. in order to ensure your opportunity to present your case before the Committee. If
the Commission meeting runs long and you need refreshment or food, Division of Water
Resources staff can direct you to local eateries.

If you have any questions concerning this matter, please call Miressa Garoma of the Animal
Feeding Operations Program at [phone].

Sincerely,

Michael Pjetraj, P.E.
Deputy Director
Division of Water Resources

enclosure
cc: Wilmington Regional Office
Enforcement File PC-2022-0009
Laserfiche File No: 310475

DocuSign Envelope ID: 6D25FC8D-25F0-4772-9D81-9FF287FC1E7A