NC0066991_factsheet_20230815

FACT SHEET
EXPEDITED - PERMIT RENEWAL
NCO066991— Class 2
Basic Information for Expedited Permit Renewals
Permit Writer/Date
Andrew Friedman -Herring / NPDES / August 8th, 2023
Permit Number - Class
NC0066991— Class 2
Flow
0.0065 MGD
Owner
Watauga County Schools/Board of Education
Facility Name
Bethel Elementary School WWTP
Type of Waste
100 % domestic
Basin Name/Sub-basin number
Watauga River Basin / 04-02-01
Receiving Stream
Rube Creek [segment 8-19-3]
Stream Classification in Permit
C
Does permit need Daily Max NH3 limits?
Not required due to massive dilution
Does permit need TRC limits/language?
Already Present
Does permit have toxicity testing?
No
Does permit have Special Conditions?
No
Does permit have instream monitoring?
Yes (Temperature)
Is the stream impaired (on 303(d) list)?
No
Any obvious compliance concerns?
No
Any permit MODS since last permit?
No
New expiration date
September 30, 2027
Changes to current permit?
The receiving water was incorrectly identified as Beaverdam
Creek and not Rube Creek in the original permit issuance. I
confirmed the location of the outfall on Rube Creek
(correspondence attached) and changed the name on all
documents. New flow data was obtained from USGS to
recalculate wasteload allocation. No changes to permit were
needed.
Data Review -- Reviewed BIMS data from 2017 through present. One limit violation of Coliform measurement
in 2019, but no enforcements. 6 monitoring frequency violations, all BPJ'ed.
Frequency is 2x per month, not weekly due to a request from the permitee in 1997.

IWC Calculations
Facility: Bethel Elementary School
Permit No.: NC0066991
Prepared By: Andrew Friedman -Herring
Enter Design Flow (MGD): 0.0065 0.0065 <= Permitted Flow if Different from Design
Enter s7Q10 (cfs): 1.1
Enter w7Q10 (cfs): 1.5
Total Residual Chlorine (TRC)
Ammonia (Summer)
Daily Maximum Limit (ug/1)
Monthly Average Limit (mg NH3-N/1)
Design
Permitted
Design
Permitted
s7Q10 (CFS)
1.1
1.1
s7Q10 (CFS)
1.1
1.1
DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.0065
0.0065
DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.0065
0.0065
DESIGN FLOW (CFS)
0.010075
0.010075
DESIGN FLOW (CFS)
0.01008
0.010075
STREAM STD (UG/L)
17.0
17
STREAM STD (MG/L)
1.0
1
Upstream Bkgd (ug/I)
0
0
Upstream Bkgd (mg/1)
0.22
0.22
IWC (%)
0.91
0.91
IWC (%)
0.91
0.9075963
Allowable Conc. (ug/1)
1873
1873
Allowable Conc. (mg/1)
86.2
86.2
Ammonia (Winter)
Monthly Average Limit (mg NH3-N/1)
Design
Permitted
Design
Permitted
Fecal Coliform
w7Q10 (CFS)
1.5
1.5
Monthly Average Limit:
200/100m1
200/100ml
DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.0065
0.0065
(If DF >331; Monitor)
DESIGN FLOW (CFS)
0.01008
0.010075
(If DF<331; Limit)
STREAM STD (MG/L)
1.8
1.8
Dilution Factor (DF)
110.18
110.18
Upstream Bkgd (mg/1)
0.22
0.22
IWC (%)
0.67
0.67
Allowable Conc. (mg/1)
237.0 :
237.0
*213 .0404 (c) Applies
Total Residual Chlorine
1. Cap Daily Max limit at 28 ug/I to protect for acute toxicity
Ammonia (as NH3-N)
1. If Allowable Conc > 35 mg/l, Monitor Only
2. Monthly Avg limit x 3 = Weekly Avg limit (Municipals)
3. Monthly Avg limit x 5 = Daily Max limit (Non-Munis)
If the allowable ammonia concentration is > 35 mg/L, no limit shall be imposed
* By Policy dischargers < 1 MGD get limits no lower than 2 & 4 due to BAT
* From 2B .0404(c) - Winter Limits can be no less stringent than 2 times the summer limits
Fecal Coliform
1. Monthly Avg limit x 2 = 400/100 ml = Weekly Avg limit (Municipals) = Daily Max limit (Non -Muni)

Friedman -Herring, Andrew
From: Eric Bolick <[e-mail]>
Sent: Friday, June 30, 2023 11:09 AM
To: Friedman -Herring, Andrew
Subject: Re: [External] Re: NPDES Permit NCO066991
CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless verified. Report suspicious emails with the Report Message
button located on your Outlook menu bar on the Home tab.
Sounds good, thank you. I hope you have a great weekend and a good fourth.
On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 11:02 AM Friedman -Herring, Andrew <[e-mail]> wrote:
Great, thanks for clearing that confusion up. I'll make a note of the new coordinates for the outfall. Since Rube Creek is
the outfall and not Beaverdam Creek like listed on the application I may need you to fill out a correction on the
application. I'll ask my supervisor what needs to be done and reach back out to you. Everything else looks to be in order
on your application and it should be officially processed soon.
Andrew Friedman -Herring (he/him)
Environmental Specialist II
Division of Water Resources
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality
[e-mail]
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Email correspondence to and from this address rs subject to the North
Carolina Public Records Lava and may be disclosed to third parties.
From: Eric Bolick <[e-mail]>
Sent: Friday, June 30, 2023 10:56 AM

To: Friedman -Herring, Andrew <[e-mail]>
Subject: Re: [External] Re: NPDES Permit NCO066991
CAUTION: External email. Do not click links or open attachments unless verified. Report suspicious emails with the Report Message
button located on your Outlook menu bar on the Home tab.
Looking at the map where the green dot is that says community center. The discharge line is in Rube creek straight
across from the driveway beside the community center. I didn't have any way to market but that's where it is. If you
need anything else just let me know. I'm sorry for the delay on this.
On Fri, Jun 30, 2023 at 10:53 AM Friedman -Herring, Andrew <[e-mail]> wrote:
I've attached the official map to this email. The arrow seems to be pointing to Rube Creek, rather than Beaverdam
creek listed on the application.
The coordinates we have in our database for the outfall point is in a slightly different spot between the two creeks, as
seen in this image below I took from google maps.

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Friedman -Herring, Andrew
From: Weaver, John C <[e-mail]>
Sent: Friday, July 28, 2023 5:40 AM
To: Friedman -Herring, Andrew
Cc: Kebede, Adugna; Montebello, Michael J; Dowden, Doug; Litzenberger, Kristin S; Denard,
Derek; Albertin, Klaus P; Weaver, John C
Subject: USGS response to DWR USGS Low Flows request # 2023-275 (dated 2023/07/05) for
Rube Creek Watauga County ... RE: [EXTERNAL] Low -flow request approval
Follow Up Flag: Flag for follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
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Andrew,
In response to your inquiry about the low -flow characteristics for a location on Rube Creek immediately downstream
from the intersection of Bethel Road (NC Secondary Road 1201) and Rush Branch Road (NC Secondary Road 1209) at
Bethel in northwest Watauga County, the following information is provided:
A check of the low -flow files here at the USGS South Atlantic Water Science Center (Raleigh office) does not indicate a
previous low -flow determination for the specific point of interest, identified by the lat/long coordinates (36.295000, -
81.850000) provided via email dated 07/05/2023 from the DWR USGS Low Flows portal following your request
submission. However, the low -flow files do indicate previous low -flow determinations for locations on nearby
Beaverdam Creek (downstream from Rube Creek). Completed on various dates, the low -flow characteristics were
determined by transfer of flow characteristics from nearby index sites.
In the absence of site -specific discharge records sufficient for a low -flow analysis, estimates of low -flow characteristics at
ungaged locations are determined by assessing a range in the low -flow yields (expressed as flow per square mile
drainage area, or cfsm) at nearby sites where estimates have previously been determined.
A basin delineation completed using the online USGS StreamStats application for North Carolina
(https://streamstats.usgs.gov/ss/) indicates the drainage area for the point of interest (StreamStats adjusted
coordinates 36.29498,-81.84993 NAD83) is 4.69 sgmi, which is practically identical to the drainage area (4.7 sgmi)
submitted as part of the request information.
For streams in Watauga County, low -flow characteristics published by the USGS are provided in the following reports:
(1) The first is a statewide report completed in the early 1990's. It is USGS Water -Supply Paper 2403, "Low -flow
characteristics of streams in North Carolina" (Giese and Mason, 1993). An online version of the report is available at
https://pubs.usgs.gov/wsp/2403/report.pdf. The report provides the low -flow characteristics (based on data through
1988) via regional relations and at -site values for sites with drainage basins between 1 and 400 sgmi and not considered
or known to be affected by regulation and/or diversions.
(2) The second is a statewide report published in March 2015. It is USGS Scientific Investigations Report 2015-5001,
"Low -flow characteristics and flow -duration statistics for selected USGS continuous -record streamgaging stations in
North Carolina through 2012" (Weaver, 2015). The report is available online at

https://pubs.usgs.gov/sir/2015/SO01/. The report provides updated low -flow characteristics and flow -duration statistics
for 266 active (as of 2012 water year) and discontinued streamgages across the state where a minimum of 10 climatic
years discharge records were available for flow analyses.
Low -flow characteristics estimated for point of interest:
Inspection of the reports indicates the presence of four (4) nearby selected USGS partial -record sites (1) and continuous -
record streamgages (3) across western Watauga County and northern Avery County in the general vicinity of the point of
interest where low -flow characteristics were published. Among these 4 index sites, the low -flow discharge yields for the
indicated flow statistics are as follows:
Annual 7Q10 low -flow yields =_> from 0.21 to 0.31 cfsm (average about 0.24 cfsm, median about 0.22 cfsm)
Annual 30Q2 low -flow yields =_> from 0.47 to 0.62 cfsm (average about 0.51 cfsm, median about 0.48 cfsm)
Winter 7Q10 low -flow yields =_> from 0.31 to 0.39 cfsm (average about 0.33 cfsm, median about 0.31 cfsm)
Annual 7Q2 low -flow yields ==> from 0.37 to 0.46 cfsm (average about 0.41 cfsm, median about 0.4 cfsm)
Average annual discharge yields ==> from 1.9 to 2.4 cfsm (average about 2 cfsm, median about 1.9 cfsm)
Application of the above range in yields to the drainage area (4.69 sgmi) for the point of interest results in the following
estimated low -flow discharges:
Annual 7Q10 low -flow discharges =_> from 0.98 to 1.5 cfs (average about 1.1 cfs, median about 1 cfs)
Annual 30Q2 low -flow discharges =_> from 2.2 to 2.9 cfs (average about 2.4 cfs, median about 2.3 cfs)
Winter 7Q10 low -flow discharges =_> from 1.5 to 1.8 cfs (both average and median about 1.5 cfs)
Annual 7Q2 low -flow discharges ==> from 1.7 to 2.2 cfs (both average and median about 1.9 cfs)
Average annual discharge discharges ==> from 8.9 to 11.3 cfs (average about 9.4 cfs, median about 8.9 cfs)
Please note:
(1) The estimated flows are provided in units of cubic feet per second (cfs).
(2) The low -flow yields provided above are rounded to 2 significant figures. Estimated low -flow discharges less than 1
cfs are rounded to 2 significant figures. If between 1 and 100 cfs, then rounded to 1 decimal place; if greater than 100,
then rounded to the nearest whole number (zero decimal places).
(3) The information provided in this message is based on a preliminary assessment and considered provisional, subject
to revision pending collection of future data and further analyses.
These provisional streamflow statistics are provided via the DWR USGS Low Flows cooperative agreement between
the USGS and the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, Division of Water Resources.
Hope this information is helpful.
Thank you.
Curtis Weaver
J. Curtis Weaver, PE
Assistant Director for Data - North Carolina
USGS South Atlantic Water Science Center (GA -SC -NC)
3916 Sunset Ridge Road I Raleigh, NC 27607

Mobile: [phone]
From: Albertin, Klaus P <[e-mail]>
Sent: Wednesday, July 5, 2023 9:23 AM
To: Friedman -Herring, Andrew <[e-mail]>
Cc: Albertin, Klaus P <[e-mail]>; Kebede, Adugna <[e-mail]>; Weaver, John C
<[e-mail]>; Montebello, Michael J<Michael.Montebello @deq.nc.gov>; Dowden, Doug
<[e-mail]>; Litzenberger, Kristin S <[e-mail]>; Denard, Derek
<[e-mail]>
Subject: [EXTERNAL] Low -flow request approval
This email has been received from outside of DOI - Use caution before clicking on links, opening attachments, or responding.
Your request has been approved and will be forwarded to USGS. A response from USGS usually takes 7 -10 business
days.
Request Flow Statistic Approval
Request ID: 275
Requestor: Andrew Friedman -Herring
Requestor e-mail: [e-mail]
Requestor Phone: [phone]
Local Government:
Public Water Supply:
Consultant:
Contact:
Reason: Permit
River/Stream: Rube Creek
Drainage Area (sq. mi.): 4.7
Latitude: 36.295000
Longitude:-81.850000
3

Other Information:
Statististics: ["7Q10","7Q10 - Winter","30Q2","Average Annual"]
Approved by: Albertin, Klaus P
Email correspondence to and from this address may be subject to the North Carolina Public Records Law and may be disclosed to third parties by an authorized
state official.