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Home My WebLink AboutNCG500666_CEI_20231012 SENT VIA ELECTRONIC MAIL ONLY: NO HARD COPY WILL BE MAILED October 12, 2023 Chris Sinclair Northbrook Carolina Hydro LLC Email: csinclair@nbenergy.com SUBJECT: Compliance Inspection Report Turner Shoals Hydro Facility NPDES WW Permit No. NCG500666/General Permit NCG500000 Polk County Dear Permittee: The North Carolina Division of Water Resources conducted an inspection of the Turner Shoals Hydro Facility on 9/29/2023. This inspection was conducted to verify that the facility is operating in compliance with the conditions and limitations specified in General NPDES Permit No. NCG500000. The findings and comments noted during this inspection are provided in the enclosed copy of the inspection report entitled "Compliance Inspection Report". There were no significant issues or findings noted during the inspection and therefore, a response to this inspection report is not required. If you should have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Melanie Kemp with the Water Quality Regional Operations Section in the Asheville Regional Office at 828-296-4500 or via email at melanie.kemp@deq.nc.gov. Sincerely, Melanie Kemp, Environmental Specialist Water Quality Regional Operations Section Asheville Regional Office Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ ATTACHMENTS: Compliance Evaluation Inspection Report Ec: LF Jeff McCraw (Hydro Operations Expert) EPA United States Environmental Protection Agency Washington, D.C. 20460 Water Compliance Inspection Report Form Approved. OMB No. 2040-0057 Approval expires 8-31-98 Section A: National Data System Coding (i.e., PCS) Transaction Code NPDES yr/mo/day Inspection Type Inspector Fac Type 1 N 52 NCG500666 23/09/29 C S31112171819 20 21 66 Inspection Work Days Facility Self-Monitoring Evaluation Rating B1 QA ----------------------Reserved------------------- 3 N67707172 73 74 75 80 Section B: Facility Data Name and Location of Facility Inspected (For Industrial Users discharging to POTW, also include POTW name and NPDES permit Number) Turner Shoals hydro facility NC Hwy 9 Mill Spring NC 28756 Entry Time/Date Permit Effective Date Exit Time/Date Permit Expiration Date 10:00AM 23/09/29 21/01/06 Name(s) of Onsite Representative(s)/Titles(s)/Phone and Fax Number(s) /// Other Facility Data 11:00AM 23/09/29 25/11/30 Name, Address of Responsible Official/Title/Phone and Fax Number Jeff McCraw,PO Box 35 Mill Spring NC 287560035//828-289-6675/8286250759 Contacted No Section C: Areas Evaluated During Inspection (Check only those areas evaluated) Permit Operations & Maintenance Records/Reports Self-Monitoring Program Effluent/Receiving Waters Other Section D: Summary of Finding/Comments (Attach additional sheets of narrative and checklists as necessary) (See attachment summary) Name(s) and Signature(s) of Inspector(s)Agency/Office/Phone and Fax Numbers Date Melanie Kemp DWR/ARO WQ/ - - / Signature of Management Q A Reviewer Agency/Office/Phone and Fax Numbers Date EPA Form 3560-3 (Rev 9-94) Previous editions are obsolete. Page#1 NPDES yr/mo/day 23/09/29 Inspection Type C3111218 1 Section D: Summary of Finding/Comments (Attach additional sheets of narrative and checklists as necessary) Inspector Melanie Kemp, with the Asheville Regional Office, conducted a Compliance Evaluation Inspection of the Turner Shoals Hydroelectric Facility operated by Northbrook Hydro on September 29, 2023. This inspection was conducted to determine if the system is being maintained and operated in compliance with General NPDES Permit No. NCG500000. Jeff McCraw (Hydro Operations Expert, Northbrook Hydro) was present and assisted with the inspection. Overall, the facility is being well maintained. Catch pans and absorbent pads are used near the generators to collect any excess oil. Oil is disposed of in drums contained onsite and hauled to the landfill when needed. No floor drains were observed in the main gallery that connects to the turbine room. The facility discharges water used to rotate the turbines through two draft tubes. Historically, there have been two sumps used to collect excess water from the turbines and discharge to the Green River. During the inspection, the sumps were offline. The facility plans on shutting down unit 1, repairing the flume line, and then installing a new sump (1 to replace the 2) by the end of 2023. It should be noted that once Northbrook Hydro installs a new sump, this will qualify as a 3rd outfall. Northbrook Hydro should contact the NPDES permitting division prior to installation of the new sump. Semi-annual sampling is being performed by Kace Environmental. Temperature and pH measurements are collected above the dam in Lake Adger (upstream), just below the two discharge pipes in the Green River (effluent), and below the Hwy. 9 bridge in the Green River (downstream). Copies of sampling results from 2022 and 2023 were available for review during the inspection and no permit violations were observed. Turner Shoals submits annual Water Use Reports to DWR, which includes monthly flow data. This meets the flow collection requirements under the general permit. Effluent Limitations B(3) apply to this facility. Chemical Oxygen Demand and Total Residual Chlorine monitoring are not applicable. Monitoring data is not required to be submitted under the General Permit; however, all sampling records are to be kept on file for review. NCG500666 17 (Cont.) Page#2 Permit:NCG500666 Inspection Date:09/29/2023 Owner - Facility: Inspection Type: Turner Shoals hydro facility Compliance Evaluation Permit Yes No NA NE (If the present permit expires in 6 months or less). Has the permittee submitted a new application? Is the facility as described in the permit? # Are there any special conditions for the permit? Is access to the plant site restricted to the general public? Is the inspector granted access to all areas for inspection? This is a general permit and monitoring applicable to hydroelectric facilities applies. Two draft tubes discaharge to the Green River. Typically, a sump also discharges but it was offline and under repair during the inspection. Comment: Operations & Maintenance Yes No NA NE Is the plant generally clean with acceptable housekeeping? Does the facility analyze process control parameters, for ex: MLSS, MCRT, Settleable Solids, pH, DO, Sludge Judge, and other that are applicable? Comment: Record Keeping Yes No NA NE Are records kept and maintained as required by the permit? Is all required information readily available, complete and current? Are all records maintained for 3 years (lab. reg. required 5 years)? Are analytical results consistent with data reported on DMRs? Is the chain-of-custody complete? Dates, times and location of sampling Name of individual performing the sampling Results of analysis and calibration Dates of analysis Name of person performing analyses Transported COCs Are DMRs complete: do they include all permit parameters? Has the facility submitted its annual compliance report to users and DWQ? (If the facility is = or > 5 MGD permitted flow) Do they operate 24/7 with a certified operator on each shift? Is the ORC visitation log available and current? Is the ORC certified at grade equal to or higher than the facility classification? Page#3 Permit:NCG500666 Inspection Date:09/29/2023 Owner - Facility: Inspection Type: Turner Shoals hydro facility Compliance Evaluation Record Keeping Yes No NA NE Is the backup operator certified at one grade less or greater than the facility classification? Is a copy of the current NPDES permit available on site? Facility has copy of previous year's Annual Report on file for review? Maintenance records and daily logs were on site. A copy of the permit was not availalable. Sampling results from 2022 and 2023 were available. Comment: Other Yes No NA NE Comment: Effluent Sampling Yes No NA NE Is composite sampling flow proportional? Is sample collected below all treatment units? Is proper volume collected? Is the tubing clean? # Is proper temperature set for sample storage (kept at less than or equal to 6.0 degrees Celsius)? Is the facility sampling performed as required by the permit (frequency, sampling type representative)? Effluent sampling results from 2022 and 2023 were available for temperature and pH. Effluent flow is not measured. Comment: Upstream / Downstream Sampling Yes No NA NE Is the facility sampling performed as required by the permit (frequency, sampling type, and sampling location)? Upstream and downstream sampling results from 2022 and 2023 were available for temperature and pH. Flow measurements are submitted on the annual Water Use Report, but were not on site during the inspection. Comment: Page#4