NC0049867_NOV-2024-LV-0735_20240816

ROY COOPER
Governor
ELIZABETH S. BISER
Secretary
RICHARD E. ROGERS, JR.
Director
The Honorable Patrick Phifer, Mayor
Town of Cleveland
302 E Main St
Cleveland, NC 27013-8414
NORTH CAROLINA
Environmental Quality
August 16, 2024
SUBJECT: NOTICE OF VIOLATION & INTENT TO ASSESS CIVIL PENALTY
Tracking Number: NOV-2024-LV-0735
Permit No. NCO049867
Cleveland WWTP
Rowan County
Dear Mayor Phifer:
A review of the June 2024 Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) for the subject facility revealed the violation(s)
indicated below:
Limit Exceedance Violation(s):
Sample
Limit
Reported
Location
Parameter
Date
Value
Value
Type of Violation
001 Effluent
Coliform, Fecal MF, MFC Broth,
6/8/2024
400
460
Weekly Geometric Mean Exceeded
44.5 C (31616)
001 Effluent
BOD, 5-Day (20 Deg. C) -
6/22/2024
22.5
54
Weekly Average Exceeded
Concentration (C0310)
001 Effluent
BOD, 5-Day (20 Deg. C) -
6/30/2024
15
16.38
Monthly Average Exceeded
Concentration (C0310)
A Notice of Violation/Intent to Issue Civil Penalty is being issued for the noted violation of North Carolina General
Statute (G.S.) 143-215.1 and the facility's NPDES WW Permit. Pursuant to G.S. 143-215.6A, a civil penalty of
not more than twenty-five thousand dollars ($25,000.00) may be assessed against any person who violates or
fails to act in accordance with the terms, conditions, or requirements of any permit issued pursuant to G.S.
143-215.1.
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Mooresville Regional Office 1610 East Center Avenue, Suite 301 1 Mooresville, North Carolina 25115
704.663.1699

Remedial actions should have already been taken to correct this problem and prevent further occurrences in the
future. Please respond in writing within ten (10) business days after receipt of this Notice, stating whether the
violation(s) has been corrected, or if it is of an ongoing nature. If the violation(s) has been resolved, your
response should include a description of the actions that were taken to address the violation(s) and to prevent
their reoccurrence.
If the violations cited in this Notice are of a continuing nature, you must provide a report to DWR's Mooresville
Regional Office that includes the following information:
• Owner and Facility Name, and NPDES Permit Number.
• A list of violations that have occurred during the noncompliant episode.
• A statement summarizing the facility's investigation of the noncompliance, indicating its cause.
• The facility's corrective action plan or strategy to address the noncompliance.
• A statement describing the facility's implementation of its corrective action plan, including the date of an
anticipated return to consistent compliance.
Your response and/or report should be submitted to my attention to the address at the bottom of the first
page, or you may send it as an attachment to an email to [e-mail]. Either form of
reply should be submitted within ten (10) business days.
Furthermore, if you wish to provide any additional information regarding the noted violation(s)
that may affect the Division's enforcement response, please include that information as part of
your response. This information, along with statements provided on the submitted Monitoring
Report(s), will be evaluated in the consideration of any assessment of civil penalties related to the
violation(s).
If continuing violations are not related to operation and/or maintenance problems, and you anticipate remedial
construction activities, you may wish to consider applying for a Special Order by Consent (SOC). Please be aware
that it is a condition of your NPDES permit that you adequately address such violations (Part II, Section B. 2 -
the "Duty to Mitigate" condition). Violations of a continuing nature can justify the assessment of increased civil
penalty amounts to address the noncompliance.
If you have any questions concerning this matter, wish to request technical assistance, discuss overall
compliance, or explore the possibility of entering into a SOC, please contact Wes Bell of the Mooresville Regional
Office at 704-663-1699, or via email at [e-mail].g_ov.
Sincerely,
DocuSigned by:
F161F96gA2D84A3...
Andrew H. Pitner, P.G., Regional Supervisor
Water Quality Regional Operations Section
Mooresville Regional Office
Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ
Cc: Mayor Phifer, Town of Cleveland (via eCopy)
WQS Mooresville Regional Office - Enforcement File (Laserfiche)
NPDES Compliance/Enforcement Unit - Enforcement File (Laserfiche)
North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
Mooresville Regional Office 1 610 East Center Avenue, Suite 301 1 Mooresville, North Carolina 25115
704.6631699