NC0023086_Fact Sheet_20230925

DocuSign Envelope ID: OE785D44-B3AO-4BC3-gCDO-35E54376335D
FACT SHEET FOR EXPEDITED PERMIT RENEWALS
This form must be completed by Permit Writers for all expedited permits which do not require
full Fact Sheets. Expedited permits are generally simple 100% domestics (e.g., schools, mobile
home parks, etc.) that can be administratively renewed with minor changes but can include
facilities with more complex issues (Special Conditions, 303(d) listed water, toxicity testing,
instream monitoring, compliance concerns).
Basic Information for Expedited Permit Renewals
Permit Writer/Date
Charles H. Weaver — 9/25/2023
Permit Number
NCO023086
Facility Name
Town of Fontana Dam WWTP
Basin Name/Sub-basin number
Little Tennessee / 04-04-02
Receiving Stream
Little Tennessee River
Stream Classification in Permit
C-Trout
Does permit need Daily MaxNH3 limits?
N/A due to massive dilution
Does permit need TRC limits/language?
No — already resent
Does permit have toxicity testing?
No
Does permit have Special Conditions?
No
Does permit have instream monitoring?
No
Is the stream impaired on 303 d list)?
No
Any obvious compliance concerns?
One enforcement, five NOVs, and one NOD during
this permit cycle.
Any permit mods since lastpermit?
No
New expiration date
8/31/2028
➢ Added instream temperature monitoring, as
well as effluent monitoring for turbidity and
Changes in Draft Permit?
dissolved oxygen (Trout stream)
➢ Updated eDMR text.
➢ Deleted MBAS monitoring due to lack of
detection, and for consistency with other
small municipalities.
➢ Added fecal coliform limit, as facility has
not been disinfecting its effluent for 20+
years. Fecal values are too high, even with
>500:1 dilution at the discharge point.
Dilution at the discharge point would not
Changes in final permit?
ordinarily trigger a fecal limit [see IWC
spreadsheet], and the limit could be
removed at the next renewal if the facility
gets its disinfection operations in order.
➢ SELC sent standard demand letter for
temperature limits. NPDES management
has decided that effluent from 100%
domestic WWTPs is not a "heated liquid" as
mentioned in the rule, so no limits were
added.

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IWC Calculations
Town of Fontana Dam WWTP
NCO023086
Prepared By: Charles Weaver
Enter Design Flow (MGD): 0.3
Enter s7Q10(cfs): 236
Enter w7Q10 (cfs): 272
Residual Chlorine
Ammonia (NH3 as N)
(summer)
7Q10 (cfs)
236
7Q10 (CFS)
236
DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.3
DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.3
DESIGN FLOW (cfs)
0.465
DESIGN FLOW (cfs)
0.465
STREAM STD (ug/L)
17.0
STREAM STD (mg/L)
1.0
UPS BACKGROUND LEVEL (l
0
UPS BACKGROUND LEVEL (mg/L)
0.22
IWC (%)
0.20
IWC (%)
0.20
Allowable Conc. (ug/1)
8645
Allowable Conc. (mg/1)
396.9
Ammonia (NH3 as N)
(winter)
7Q10 (CFS)
272
Fecal Limit
Not Required DESIGN FLOW (MGD)
0.3
(If DF >331; Monitor)
DESIGN FLOW (cfs)
0.465
(If DF <331; Limit)
STREAM STD (mg/L)
1.8
Dilution Factor (DF)
508.53 UPS BACKGROUND LEVEL (mg/L)
0.22
IWC (%)
0.17
Allowable Conc. (mg/1)
926.0
NPDES Servor/Current Versions/IWC
9/25/2023

DocuSign Envelope ID: OE785D44-B3AO-4BC3-9CDO-35E54376335D
NORTH CAROLINA
GRAHAM COUNTY
WASTEWATER PERMIT
NCO023086
AFFIDAVIT OF PUBLICATION
Before the undersigned, a Notary Public of Cherokee County and state, duly
commissioned, qualified, and authorized by law to administer oaths, personally
appeared David Brown, who being first duly sworn, deposes and says that he is
Publisher engaged in the publication of a newspaper known as the
THE GRAHAM STAR
published, issued, and entered as second class mail in the City of Robbinsville,
said County and State, that he is authorized to make this affidavit and sworn
statement, that the notice or other legal advertisement, a true copy of which is
attached hereto, was published in the THE GRAHAM STAR on the following dates:
08/10/2023
and that the said newspaper in which such notice, paper, document, or legal
advertisement was published was, at the time of each and every publication, a
newspaper meeting all the requirements and qualifications of Section I-597 of
the General Statues of North Carolina and was a qualified newspaper within the
meaning of the Section I-597 of the General Statues of North Carolina.
This 24th day of August, 2023
David Brown t
Sworn to and subscribed before me this 24th day of August, 2023.
Notary Public
Donna M Getch
My commission expires January 18, 2027
(SEAL) DONNA M. GETCH
Notary Public
North Carolina
Cherokee County

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Ad text Public Notice
North Carolina Environmental Management Commission/NPDES Unit
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Notice of Intent to Issue a NPDES Wastewater Permit NC0023086
Fontana Dam WWTP.The North Carolina Environmental Management
Commission proposes to issue a NPDES wastewater discharge
permit to the person(s) listed below. Written comments
regarding the proposed permit will be accepted until 30 days
after the publish date of this notice. The Director of the NC
Division of Water Resources (DWR) may hold a public hearing
should there be a significant degree of public interest.
Please mail comments and/or information requests to DWR at the
above address. Interested persons may visit the DWR at 512 N.
Salisbury Street, Raleigh, NC 27604 to review the information
on file. Additional information on NPDES permits and this
notice may be found on our website:
https://deq.nc.gov/public-notices-hearings,or by calling (919)
707-3601. The Town of Fontana Dam requested renewal of permit
NC0023086 for its WWTP (NC Hwy 28, near Fontana Village
Resort) in Graham County. This permitted facility discharges
treated domestic wastewater to the Little Tennessee River in
the Little Tennessee River Basin. Oil & grease and total
residual chlorine are water quality limited. This discharge
may affect future allocations in this portion of the Little
Tennessee River.
(774266)

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Weaver, Charles
From: Weaver, Charles
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2023 2:35 PM
To: 'Zelerie Rogers'
Cc: Boss, Daniel J; Armeni, Lauren E
Subject: RE: [External] Fontana Wastewater Permit - lack of disinfection
Attachments: 23086 DMR Parameter Values Export Fecal Coliform 2017-2023.xlsx
Ms. Rogers — the lack of disinfection by your facility has allowed excessive fecal coliform bacteria to enter the Little
Tennessee River. A database of your facility's fecal coliform data for the past several years is attached. Failure to
disinfect the effluent has resulted in many sample values being far in excess of the acceptable range for this parameter:
200 colonies / 100 mL (monthly average) and 400 colonies / 100 mL (weekly average).
Because of the failure to disinfect, and the unacceptably high levels of fecal coliform in the effluent, the final permit for
NCO023086 will include a fecal coliform limit of 200 colonies / 100 mL (monthly average) and 400 colonies / 100 mL
(weekly average). Total Residual Chlorine must be monitored, and monitoring will remain at 2/Week for this permit
cycle.
Your facility should begin disinfection of the effluent IMMEDIATELY so that compliance with these limits can be
attained. Contact Lauren Armeni or Daniel Boss in the Asheville Regional Office — both are copied on this email — if you
need to discuss how to begin the disinfection process.
Like you, I am surprised that this issue has not been raised before now. I'm also disappointed that the effluent has not
been disinfected. Luckily your facility's discharge benefits from considerable dilution at its entry point into the Little
Tennessee River.
Charles H. Weaver
Environmental Specialist II
Division of Water Resources
919-707-3616
charles.weaver@deg. nc. gov
(mailing address) 1617 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Benoit correspandence to and from this address is subjed to Me Nadh
CaroMa fiL6k Records Law and may be drscfoseal to thrrd parties,
From: Zelerie Rogers <[e-mail]>
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2023 12:04 PM
To: Weaver, Charles <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: [External] Fontana Wastewater Permit
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.

DocuSign Envelope ID: OE785D44-B3AO-4BC3-9CDO-35E54376335D
Good day Mr. Weaver, after checking with my ORC and the analysist for our plant, I was told we have never tested for
residual chlorine as we've never had a fecal limit. We did some upgrades to our wastewater plant a couple of years ago
and installed a chlorination/dichlori nation tablet system in anticipation of having to run this test for the new permit
cycle. But not once through multiple state inspections, and going back to the mailed eMors and operators long before
our current one, has anyone mentioned we needed to be feeding chlorine. At one time, the wastewater system was run
by the resort. There are no records of chlorine feeding through them either, nor any violations or notations. I'm thinking
there has never been chlorine fed through the plant, although my ORC says there is an old gas chlorination system at the
plant.
My thought process was, if we've never fed chlorine why would we have to do two tests a week unless we were above
acceptable limits. But I'm guessing you will be requiring it for the same reason to ensure we can stay within the
acceptable limits? I just know the $200 extra a month for the tests will be difficult for a town this small, but I, of course,
want to ensure we are not doing any harm to the river as well.
Thank you,
Zelerie Rogers
Town of Fontana Dam Administrator/Clerk
[e-mail]
828-498-2107 Office
828-735-2220 Cell
From: Weaver, Charles <[e-mail]>
Sent: Thursday, August 24, 2023 10:07 AM
To: Zelerie Rogers <[e-mail]>
Cc: Armeni, Lauren E <[e-mail]>; Boss, Daniel J <[e-mail]>
Subject: RE: [External] Fontana Wastewater Permit
Ms. Rogers — I believe we can remove MBAS monitoring from your permit. Your reported data supports the request to
remove this parameter.
Total Residual Chlorine is a problem, however. The minimum monitoring frequency for a Class WW-2 facility is 2/Week,
as per 15A NCAC 0213.0508. If the effluent data reported shows consistent compliance with the permit limit, we could
consider reducing monitoring as you requested.
Unfortunately, there is NO DATA for NCO023086 in the state database (BIMS). Due to a database error, no violations
were generated when your facility failed to report TRC data. Thus there is no TRC data for NCO023086 going back as far
as 1999.
If your facility operator has the TRC data available, they can send me a spreadsheet of values for the past 5 years (2019-
2023). 1 can then review the data and consider the monitoring reduction.
The database error has been corrected. TRC data must be reported each month to avoid a permit violation.
Please let me know if your operator has the data available.
Charles H. Weaver
Environmental Specialist II
Division of Water Resources
919-707-3616

DocuSign Envelope ID: OE785D44-B3AO-4BC3-9CDO-35E54376335D
charles.weaver(@_deg. nc. qov
(mailing address) 1617 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, INC 27699-1617
.0� 'qPa
Q7>
Pm& correspondence to and from this address is subyeel to The North
CaroO)a Public Records Law and may be tlrscbsed to lhrrd parties,
From: Zelerie Rogers <[e-mail]>
Sent: Wednesday, August 23, 2023 3:45 PM
To: Weaver, Charles <[e-mail]>
Subject: [External] Fontana Wastewater Permit
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.
Hello Mr. Weaver, I hope this email finds you well. My name is Zelerie Rogers and I am the town administrator for the
Town of Fontana Dam. I received your draft permit and would like to respectfully submit my comments based on the
expertise of our analysis company, Earth Environment Services. Our plant is very small and our operational costs are
paid by the only business within the town's limits, Fontana Village Resort. To this end we are asking if it would be
possible to check chlorine one day a week instead of two to help with the costs, and if it would be possible to remove
MBAS from our permit. We have been sampling 25 years and have had no indication of these types of pollutants in our
effluent.
Thank you for your consideration of these comments.
Zelerie Rogers
Town of Fontana Dam Administrator/Clerk
zelerie.roEersCcDfontanavillaee.com
828-498-2107 Office
828-735-2220 Cell
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.

DocuSign Envelope ID: OE785D44-B3AO-4BC3-gCDO-35E54376335D
SOUTHERN
ENVIRONMENTAL
NVRONMENTAL
LAW
CENTER
Via Email
Charles Weaver and Siying Chen
N.C. Dept. of Environmental Quality
Division of Water Resources
Water Quality Permitting Section
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
[e-mail]
48 Patton Avenue, Suite 304
Asheville, NC 28801
August 17, 2022
Telephone [phone]
Facsimile 828-258-2024
Re: Application of the trout waters temperature standard in draft NPDES Permit
Nos. NC0078697, NC0070394, NC0084441, and NC0023086.
Dear Mr. Weaver and Ms. Chen:
Please accept the following comments submitted on behalf of MountainTrue, North
Carolina Trout Unlimited State Council, North Carolina Wildlife Federation, and the Southern
Environmental Law Center related to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality's
("DEQ") failure to apply the required trout waters temperature standard in four recently noticed
draft National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System ("NPDES") permits: Draft Permit Nos.
NCO078697 (Six Oaks Complex WWTP), NCO070394 (Willowbrook Park WWTP),
NCO084441 (Smoky Mountain Country Club WWTP), and NCO023086 (Fontana Dam WWTP).
These permits would all authorize discharges into designated trout waters.' Proper application of
the trout waters temperature standard is critical to protecting trout populations in North Carolina.
Unfortunately, all four draft permits leave the affected populations at risk by failing to ensure
trout streams remain sufficiently cool.
I. Trout require cold, clean water to survive.
Keeping water temperature in designated trout waters below certain thresholds is
critically important because North Carolina's three species of trout —brook trout, brown trout,
and rainbow trout —require cold, clean, oxygen -rich water to survive and thrive. Water
temperature for these trout generally needs to be kept below 20 °C (68 OF).2 Unfortunately, past
and ongoing land management practices threaten trout habitats, including by increasing stream
1 See NPDES Draft Permit Nos. NCO078697 (Six Oaks Complex WWTP) (July 25, 2023), at 2 (noting discharge
into Green River, a Class B trout water and HQW in the Broad River Basin); NCO070394 (Willowbrook Park
WWTP) (July 11, 2023), at 2 (noting discharge into Coweeta Creek, a Class B trout water in the Little Tennessee
River Basin); NCO084441 (Smoky Mountain Country Club WWTP) (July 11, 2023) (noting discharge into Conleys
Creek, a Class C trout water in the Little Tennessee River Basin); and NCO023086 (Fontana Dam WWTP) (Aug. 8,
2023), at 2 (noting discharge into the Little Tennessee River, a Class C trout water)-
2 Trout Species of North Carolina, Fly Fishing NC (accessed Dec. 16, 2022), https://www flyfishingnc.com/trout-
species-of-north-carolina.
Charlottesville Chapel Hill Atlanta Asheville Birmingham Charleston Nashville Richmond Washington, DC

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temperatures. As we explained in our comments on North Carolina's draft 2022 Clean Water Act
Section 303(d) list, numerous trout streams routinely exceed safe water temperatures for trout.3
Climate change is exacerbating this problem by placing additional thermal pressure on
water temperatures. By 2060, western North Carolina is predicted to see 10-20 more days each
year with air temperatures above 35 °C (95 °F), increasing the potential for water temperatures to
rise above 21.1 °C (70 'F)—levels that can be lethal to trout.4 This combination of past habitat
loss, ongoing poor land management practices, and climate change poses an existential threat to
many western North Carolina trout populations.
Declines in trout populations —driven by increasing stream temperatures or otherwise —
will hurt local economies. The total economic benefit of trout fishing in North Carolina is
estimated at $383.3 million annually, supporting nearly 3,600 jobs.5 If trout habitats are further
reduced, these economic benefits will be at risk. Overall, stream temperatures in North Carolina
are increasing, and this trajectory is predicted to continue under a changing climate. To protect
trout populations and the businesses that rely on them, North Carolina must take proactive steps
to ensure trout waters remain sufficiently cold.
IL North Carolina promulgated a temperature water quality standard to protect
trout.
Recognizing that trout require cold water, North Carolina exercised its authority under
the Clean Water Act to develop a temperature water quality standard designed to keep trout
streams cold. The Clean Water Act requires states to designate "uses" of waterbodies and
promulgate standards to protect those uses. See 33 U.S.C. § 1313; 40 C.F.R. § 131.10; N.C. Gen.
Stat. § 143-214.1. All waterbodies in North Carolina are subject to a temperature standard to
protect their associated designated use. 15A N.C. Admin. Code 2B.0211(18). Some North
Carolina waterbodies have been assigned a "trout waters" use. See 15A N.C. Admin. Code
2B.030 I (b)(3) (explaining trout waters classification); 40 C.F.R. § 131.10(c) ("States may adopt
sub -categories of a use and set the appropriate criteria to reflect varying needs of such sub-
categories of uses, for instance, to differentiate between cold water and warm water fisheries.").
The temperature standard —for both trout waters and non -trout watersprovides that water
temperature is:
not to exceed 2.8 degrees C (5.04 degrees F) above the natural water temperature,
and in no case to exceed 29 degrees C (84.2 degrees F) for mountain and upper
piedmont waters and 32 degrees C (89.6 degrees F) for lower piedmont and coastal
plain waters; the temperature for trout waters shall not be increased by more than
s S. Envtl. L. Ctr., Comments on North Carolina's Draft 2022 § 303(d) List (Feb. 28, 2022).
4 Emma Johnson, Climate Change Challenges Trout Industry in North Carolina, Carolina Public Press (Feb. 17,
2021), https:Hcarolinapublicpress.org/42527/climate-change-challenges-trout-industry-in-north-carolina/. See also
Kunkel, K.E., et al., North Carolina Climate Science Report (2020), available at
https://ncics. org/wpcontent/uploads/2020/ 10/NC_Climate_Science_Report_FullReport_Final_revised_September2O
20.pdf.
5 N.C. Wildlife Res. Comm'n, Mountain Trout Fishing: Economic Impacts on and Contributions to North Carolina's
Economy (2015), available at https://www ncwildlife.org/Portals/O/Fishing/documents/Economic-Impacts-Trout-
Fishing.pdf.

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.5 degrees C (0.9 degrees F) due to the discharge of heated liquids, but in no case
to exceed 20 degrees C (68 degrees F).
15A N.C. Admin. Code 02B .0211(18).
The standard has two parts —a delta limit and an absolute limit. In non -trout waters, the
delta limit prohibits an increase attributable to a discharger of more than 2.8 °C above the natural
water temperature. The absolute limit provides that temperature shall "in no case" exceed 29 °C
in mountain and upper piedmont waters and 32 °C in lower piedmont and coastal plain waters
regardless of the presence of permitted dischargers.
The trout waters standard follows this same structure: Stream temperature may not be
increased "by more than .5 degrees C ... due to the discharge of heated liquids" but "in no case"
shall stream temperature exceed 20 °C. This makes sense because keeping trout waters below
20 °C—regardless of the presence of permitted dischargers —is critical to sustaining healthy trout
populations.
North Carolina's temperature standard, including for trout waters, is implemented in part
through NPDES permits that regulate point source discharges by setting limits and monitoring
requirements for a variety of water quality characteristics. 33 U.S.C. § 1342(a). State agencies
with delegated authority to administer the NPDES program, such as DEQ, are responsible for
ensuring NPDES permits identify and apply the correct water quality limits for the waterbody
into which the permittee will be discharging effluent.
In issuing a recent NPDES permit for a discharge into a designated trout water without
the required temperature standards, DEQ explained it had concluded that "effluent from 100%
domestic WWTPs [is] not a `heated liquid' as reference[d] in the rule" and, presumably, that the
trout waters temperature standard therefore did not apply.6 This conclusion is unsupported by the
text and the purpose of the rule; it is also irrelevant to the absolute limit set by the standard:
Temperature in trout waters shall "in no case ... exceed 20 degrees C." 15A N.C. Admin. Code
2B.0211(18) (emphasis added). DEQ must include limitations in permits to ensure that
discharges do not cause or contribute to an exceedance of the 20 °C standard, even if that
discharge is not a "heated liquid."
III. DEQ must ensure all four draft NPDES permits comply with the trout waters
temperature standard.
To comply with the Clean Water Act and state water quality standards, DEQ must ensure
all four draft NPDES permits facilitate compliance with the temperature limits necessary to
protect trout waters. The draft permits out for comment currently contain no language to prevent
exceedances of those standards, despite in three cases (Willowbrook Park, Fontana Dam, and Six
Oaks) newly including in -stream monitoring requirements for temperature. We applaud DEQ
for taking notice of the importance of monitoring water temperature for the protection of trout
6 Fact Sheet for NPDES Permit No. NCO067318 (Jan. 13, 2023).
7 The third draft permit (for Smoky Mountain Country Club WWTP) continues to include temperature monitoring
standards imposed in prior permitting cycles.

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waters. That said, Willowbrook Park's draft permit (and prior permit) require daily monitoring of
effluent temperature,$ while Fontana Dam's, Six Oaks", and Smoky Mountain Country Club's
draft permits only require weekly effluent temperature monitoring.10 All four permits should
require daily effluent monitoring for temperature. But most importantly, the final documents
must include permit limits to prevent violations of water quality standards, including the trout
waters temperature standard.
The draft permit for the Smoky Mountain Country Club WWTP exemplifies why permit
limits for temperature are necessary. Smoky Mountain's application materials indicate an
estimated summer maximum effluent temperature of 27 °C, far exceeding the 20-degree
maximum set for trout waters." In fact, the discharge's average summer effluent temperature is
22.3 °C.12 These concerns are magnified by the draft permit's inclusion of provisional
authorization to double the facility's design flow of 60,000 gallons per day to 120,000 gallons
per day. 13 Similarly, Willowbrook Park's permit materials indicate an average summer
temperature of 19.9 °C and a maximum summer temperature of 25 °C.14 There is therefore a
substantial risk that both dischargers will violate both the delta and absolute temperature limits
applicable to discharges to trout waters.
To be clear, DEQ has no authority to issue NPDES permits that do not ensure compliance
with water quality standards, including the trout waters temperature standard. See 33 U.S.C. §
1311(b)(1)(C) (requiring NPDES permits to include limitations "necessary to meet water quality
standards"); 40 C.F.R. § 122.44(d)(1). Where draft permits fail to ensure compliance, those
permits must be revised.
Incorporating the trout waters temperature standard into permits is also important because
DEQ has failed to correctly apply this standard when preparing its Clean Water Act Section
303(d) list. Section 303(d) requires states to identify waterbodies that are not meeting water
quality standards, investigate the reasons for noncompliance, and develop a plan to remediate
those problems. For several years, DEQ has wrongly applied in the Section 303(d) context the
water quality temperature standard for mountain waters (29 °C) to designated trout waters
protected by the 20 °C standard.15 The 2022 303(d) Integrated Report does not disclose which
8 See Draft NPDES Permit No. NCO070394 (July 11, 2023), at 3 (requiring "daily" monitoring frequency for
effluent testing and weekly monitoring of temperature upstream and downstream of the discharge).
9 Six Oak's permit application should be denied outright. This facility has not been constructed despite receiving an
Authorization to Construct in 1995. The permit application does not include information sufficient for DEQ to
comply with requirements under 15A N.C. Admin. Code 2H.0107, and whatever information was provided in 1995
is now stale. The applicant can apply for a new NPDES permit when they are prepared to move forward with their
project.
10 Draft NPDES Permit No. NCO084441, at 3; Draft NPDES Permit No. NC078697, at 3 (setting "weekly"
frequency for both effluent and in -stream temperature monitoring)
11 Renewal Application for NPDES Permit No. NCO084441 (Smoky Park Country Club WWTP) (Mar. 21, 2023), at
13.
12 Id.
" See Draft NPDES Permit No. NC0084441, at 2 (authorizing the permittee to "construct the necessary components
to expand total treatment capacity to 0.12 MGD" pending a construction permit from the agency).
14 Renewal Application for NPDES Permit No. NCO070394 (Willowbrook Park WWTP) (Mar. 20, 2023), at 13.
15 See supra note 3.
al

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standard DEQ applied to other receiving waters at issue in the draft NPDES permits. But the
combination of these two errors —failure to include temperature standards in NPDES permits and
failure to assess compliance with the correct temperature standard in the Section 303(d)
context —generally risks jeopardizing trout populations.
In summary, before finalizing any of these four permits, DEQ must ensure they facilitate
compliance with the water quality temperature standard for trout waters. The most
straightforward and thorough approach is to include language DEQ has already properly applied
to other trout water discharge permits:
"The instream temperature shall not be increased by more than 0.5 degrees C (0.9
degrees F) due to the discharge of heated liquids, but in no case to exceed 20
degrees C (68 degrees F). If the stream temperature exceeds 20 degrees C due to
natural background conditions, the effluent cannot cause any increase in instream
water temperature."
This expression of the temperature standard, found in the most recent draft NPDES
permit for the Buffalo Meadows WWTP, NPDES Permit No. NCO030325 (and others), correctly
requires permittees to cause no further increase in temperature when stream temperature already
exceeds trout water standards.
IV. Conclusion
North Carolina has some of the best and most at -risk trout habitat in the eastern United
States. Ensuring viable trout populations persist in the future requires keeping trout streams clean
and cold. To that end, DEQ must forthrightly apply the trout waters temperature standard in the
final versions of NPDES Permit Nos. NC0078697, NC0070394, NC0084441, and NC0020386.
Please notify Henry Gargan at hgargannselcnc.org or 828-258-2023 when DEQ issues
final versions of these NPDES permits. We remain available as always to discuss our concerns.
Sincerely,
Henry Gargan
Associate Attorney
Southern Environmental Law Center
hgargangselcnc.org
Patrick Hunter
Managing Attorney
Southern Environmental Law Center
5