NC0025321_Remission Request (LV-2024-0084)_20240826

WAYNESVILLE
North Carolina
Gary Caldwell, Mayor Robert W. Hites,Jr. Town Manager
Chuck Dickson, Mayor Pro Tempore „� n Martha Bradley,Town Attorney
Jon Feichter,Councilmember I,ti-i
Anthony Sutton, Councilmember
Julia Freeman,Councilmember
8/20/2024 RECEIVED
Mr. Richard Rogers, Director
Division of Water Resources AUG 2 6 2024
Wastewater Branch
1617 Mail Service Center NCDEQin,R/NPDES
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Re: Request for remission or mitigation of fine-LV-2024-0084
Dear Mr. Rogers
We are respectfully requesting remission or mitigation of fines incurred in January 2024.
The Waynesville waste treatment plant is in a poor state of repair. In 2020, the Town and State entered
into a Special Order by Consent to provide a framework for operating the plant while it underwent a
complete renovation.The Town was granted $29 million in State Revolving Funds to finance the
renovation. Due to the poor condition of the wastewater treatment plant, we informed Western
Division of DEQ in 2019 that once several of the major treatment components of the plant were taken
out of service,the Town would not be able to meet the interim treatment limits imposed by the
proposed SOC.
The plant is in the final stages of renovation. Its primary and secondary clarifiers are offline until the
contractor can cut-in the new headworks and primary clarifiers. We have been delayed in bringing the
new headworks and primary clarifiers online due to a two-year production delay in delivery of the
custom-made electric switch box that connects all components of the plant with Duke Power's
transformer bank. The contractor is currently working on an experiment to use the backup generators
to provide power to the new headworks and primary clarifiers. Should we be able to operate those
components of the plant we should be able to provide a much higher level of treatment of the waste.
Our design engineers have warned us that we would face a period when we would not be able to meet
our limits but the staging of the renovations that the engineer, contractor and DEQ approved did not
provide an avenue for the Town to avoid such a downturn in treatment.
Please take our situation into account and understand that we are doing everything in our power to
treat the waste as effectively as possible.
Sincerely,
,.. 1"44‘7/1Z.;
Robert W. Hites Jr.
Town Manager
16 South Main Street •P.O. Box 100• Waynesville, NC 28786 Phone[phone] Fax[phone]
Web Address: www.waynesvillenc.gov

Docusign Envelope ID:BCA630A0-207B-4737-85C8-ACCB255DB25C
JUSTIFICATION FOR REMISSION REOUEST
Case Number: LV-2024-0084 County: Haywood
Assessed Party: Town of Waynesville
Permit No.: NC0025321 Amount Assessed: $13,135.15
Please use this form when requesting remission of this civil penalty. You must also complete the "Request For Remission,
Waiver of Right lo an Administrative Hearing, and Stipulation of Facts" form to request remission of this civil penalty.
You should attach any documents that you believe support your request and are necessary for the Director to consider in
evaluating your request for remission. Please be aware that a request for remission is limited to consideration of the five
factors listed below as they may relate to the reasonableness of the amount of the civil penalty assessed. Requesting
remission is not the proper procedure for contesting whether the violation(s) occurred or the accuracy of any of the factual
statements contained in the civil penalty assessment document. Pursuant to N.C.Q,S;, § 143D-282.1(c),remission of a civil
penalty may be granted only when one or more of the following five factors apply. Please check each factor that you
believe applies to your case and provide a detailed explanation, including copies of supporting documents, as to why the
factor applies(attach additional pages as needed).
(a) one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors in N.C.G.S. 143D-282.1(b) were wrongfully applied to the
detriment of the petitioner (the assessment factors are listed in the civil penalty assessment document);
(b) the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the violation(i.e., explain the
steps that you took lo correct the violation and prevent future occurrences);
X (c) the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident (i.e., explain why the violation was unavoidable or
something you could not prevent or prepare for);
(d) the violator had not been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations;
(e) payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial actions (i.e., explain
how payment of the civil penalty will prevent you from performing the activities necessary to achieve
compliance).
EXPLANATION:
The weekly average for BOD was exceeded on weeks 2,3,4,and 5. The monthly average was also exceeded for BOD. The
weekly average was exceeded for TSS on weeks 3 and 4. The monthly average was also exceeded for TSS. The Monthly
geometric mean for coliform was exceeded. The Daily minimum for Dissolved Oxygen was not met on 1/9/24. There are
several factors that caused the permit to be exceeded: 1)Heavy rain that caused flows to be higher than normal. 2) On
January 8th the press was shut down for rebuild. It has not been started back yet. We have not been able to remove solids
out of the plant. 3) On January 15ththe right-hand primary clarifier was shut down, and the contents were pumped to the
head of the plant. This was done to fix a bypass to get system ready to turn it into a secondary clarifier.4) On January 16,we
had a single phase in the plant for an hour.The generator would not crank because of a bad starter. Nothing worked in the
plant for that hour. 5)The outside secondary clarifier quit working on January 16th. This has caused solids to
collect in this clarifier and be washed out into the effluent. 6)January 31 st the middle primary clarifier effluent pump bcked
down. We were down to just two pumps for a week. We have it back working now.
Because of these issues the plant was washing out solids. This caused the TSS, BOD, and coliform violations. The Dissolvec
Oxygen not meeting minimum was due to high flows in the plant. The Pigeon River was backing outfall effluent back into the
chlorine basins. This caused a drop in dissolved oxygen.

Docusign Envelope ID:BCA630A0-207B-4737-B5C8-ACCB255DB25C
•
STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
COUNTY OF IIAYWOOD
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT ) WAIVER OF RIGHT TO AN
OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST ) ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING AND
STIPULATION OF FACTS
Town of Waynesville )
Waynesville WWTP )
)
PERMIT NO.NC0025321 ) CASE NO. LV-2024-0084
Having been assessed civil penalties totaling$13,135.15 for violation(s)as set forth in the assessment document of the
Division of Water Resources dated A.guest 6,2024,the undersigned,desiring to seek remission of the civil penalty, does
hereby waive the right to an administrative hearing in the above-stated matter and does stipulate that the facts are as
alleged in the assessment document. The undersigned further understands that all evidence presented in support of
remission of this civil penalty must be submitted to the Director of the Division of Water Resources within thirty(30)days
of receipt of the notice of assessment. No new evidence in support of a remission request will be allowed after(30)days
from the receipt of the notice of assessment.
•
This the 19 day of August ,20 24
•
RECEIVED
SIGNATURE
AUG 26 2024
ADDRESS
NCDEQ/DWRINPDES 16 South Main Street
Waynesville, NC 28786
TELEPHONE
• 828-452-2491