NC0004308_Responce to Permit Renewal Application_20170713

SOUTHERN ENVIRONMENTAL LAW CENTER
Telephone [phone] WEST ROSEMARY STREET, SUITE 220 Facsimile 919-929-9421
CHAPEL HILL, NC 27516-2356
July 13, 2017
Assistant Secretary for Environment
Sheila Holman
State of North Carolina
Dept. of Environmental Quality
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1601
Sheila holman@ncdenr gov
Supervisor NPDES Complex Permitting
Julie Grzyb
Division of Water Resources
Water Quality Permitting Section - NPDES
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Julie Grzyb@ncdenr gov
Re: Aluminum Company of America NPDES Permit NC0004308
Dear Assistant Secretary Holman and Ms.Grzyb:
RECEIVEDINCDEQIDINR
JUL 17 2017
Water (duality
Permitting Section
On behalf of the Concerned Citizens of West Badin Community, I am writing to ask that
you issue, as soon as possible, Alcoa NPDES Permit NC0004308 with stringent conditions that
protect the environment and public health. This permit meets the criteria for expedited issuance
under the EPA Priority Permit Initiative. The Initiative is a program established under the
Permitting for Environmental Results Strategy, "a multi-year effort by EPA and the states to
improve the overall integrity and performance of the NPDES program,"' that requires states to
prioritize finalizing certain backlogged NPDES permits.
NPDES permits that have been expired for 180 days or more, like Alcoa Permit -
NC0004308, are considered "backlogged." The Priority Permit Initiative was introduced in 2004
in response to the large number of these permits across the country. It seeks to reduce the number
of backlogged permits by requiring states to select 20% of all candidate permits and, unless
otherwise approved by the Water Permits Division Director, commit to finalizing 80% of those
selected each year.z Though the Priority Permit Initiative is a federal program overseen by the
EPA, states are responsible for reviewing candidate permits and choosing which permits will
receive priority permit designation each fiscal year. In fiscal year 2016, North Carolina chose
` NPDES Program Management and Oversight, EPA, https //www epa gov/npdes/npdes-program-management-
and-oversight (last visited Jun 20, 2017).
2 Id
Charlottesville • Chapel Hill • Atlanta • Asheville • Birmingham • Charleston • Nashville • Richmond • Washington, DC

five candidate permits and committed to completing four. The state was successful in fulfilling
its commitment within the fiscal year.'
Candidate permits are individual permits which have been expired for two or more years at
the start of the fiscal year and are chosen for at least one environmentally significant reason.
Environmentally significant reasons include:
1. National program priority, Concentrated Animal Feeding Operation (CAFO)
2 Significant changes to facility's operations
3. National program priority, Combined Sewer Overflow (CSO)
4. Discharge to drinking water resources
5. Revised effluent limitations guidelines
6. Protection of an endangered species
7. Environmental justice
8. Facility located on priority watershed
9. Permit is more than 10 years expired
10. Discharge to an impaired water body (i.e., water body on 303(d) list)
11. Implementation of a waste load allocation (WLA) from a total maximum daily load
(TMDL)
12. Revised water quality standards
13. New significant discharger with environmental significance (must also select a reason
from the above list indicating such significance)
14. If "Other" is selected, an explanation/description must also be provided.'
The Alcoa permit, NC0004308, should be given priority permit status now. This permit
expired in February of 2013 and is currently one of the oldest expired permits in the state's
NPDES permit system. The Alcoa permit meets many of the environmentally significant criteria
listed above and would be eligible for priority status for any of these reasons individually.
Together, they demand the state's immediate attention and necessitate priority distinction. The
permit should be given priority status for the following reasons.
1. Alcoa's permit allows discharge into public drinking water sources.
Badin Lake must be protected from Alcoa's polluted stormwater discharge. The permit
under which Alcoa continues to operate allows the company to discharge contaminated
stormwater into Badin Lake, which is public drinking water supply for the City of Albemarle.'
Potable drinking water is an undeniable need, and discharge of contaminants into drinking water
sources at the rate and level which Alcoa is currently allowed under the outdated permit is a
danger that the State must make a priority for reevaluation immediately.
3 FY2016 Priority Permits Measure Results- EPA plus State -Issued Permits, EPA,
https //www epa gov/sites/producrion/files/2016-
12/documents/final eoy fy16 priority pen -nits repot for website pdf (last visited Jun 27, 2017)
4https //www epa gov/npdes/npdes-program-management-and-oversight#pnonty
'http //www albemarlenc gov/departments/public-utilities/water-treatment-services/highway-52-water-treatment-
plant
2

2. Alcoa has significantly exceeded the permit effluent standards for discharge of
cyanide since 2012, and changes have been made to the levels of cyanide considered
safe for human consumption through the EPA's 2015 Update of Human Health
Ambient Water Quality Criteria.
Aluminum smelting facilities must abide by the Nonferrous Metals Manufacturing Effluent
Guidelines issued by the EPA. These guidelines were originally issued in 1976 and were last
updated in 1990.6 Though these guidelines have not changed since Alcoa's permit was issued,
beginning in 2012, data from EPA's Discharge Monitoring Report Pollutant Loading Tool shows
that Alcoa began emitting enormous amounts of cyanide through one of Its outfalls' at rates
significantly higher than permitted under the effluent standards! While the EPA did issue an
Update of Human Health Ambient Water Quality Criteria in relation to cyanide in 2015, there is
no reason given for Alcoa's massive cyanide discharge increase, why It began three years before
these revised standards were issued, or an explanation provided as to why these monumental
levels of cyanide have persisted for the past five years, increasing each year but one. This is a
serious concern that warrants the State's priority attention.
3. Alcoa's permit allows contaminated waters to enter the Yadkin -Pee Dee River Basin
and poses a threat to endangered species in this watershed.
Within the Yadkin -Pee Dee River Basin are "several rare and endangered aquatic species[,]
such as mussels."' Two federally listed endangered species, the shortnose sturgeon and the
Carolina heelsplitter, were at one time known inhabitants of the Yadkin Pee -Dee River Basin,
though the shortnose sturgeon has not been confirmed in the basin for a number of years. 10 In
addition, five species of mollusks on the state endangered species list are found in this basin. The
presence of rare and endangered species in a watershed receiving large amounts of industrial
contamination is a problem the State must make a priority to address and minimize.
4. Alcoa's permit should be given priority status in the upcoming fiscal year to correct
the environmental injustice that has afflicted the Badin community for decades.
The undue burden of environmental harm placed on communities of color adjacent to the
former smelting facility requires immediate action by the state. West Badin, a community with
an over 90% minority population, which is significantly more than the rest of Stanly County, has
acutely felt the effects of the former smelter due to their proximity to the plant site. Title VI of
the Civil rights Act of 1964 states that "[n]o person in the United States shall, on the ground of
race, color or national origin, be excluded from participation in, be denied the benefits of, or be
subjected to discrimination under any program or activity receiving Federal financial
'Nonferrous Metals Manufacturing Effluent Guidelines, EPA, https //www epa cov/e2/nonferrous-metals-
manufacturmg-effluent-guidelines (last visited Jun 27, 2017)
7 Facility Information for Permit NC0004308, EPA,
https //cfpub epa gov/dmr/facility detail cfin9fac=NC0004308&yi=2012 (last visited Jun 28, 2017)
8 40 C F R 421 (1990)
9 Yadkin Raver Basin Documents, N.0 DEP'T of ENVTL QUALITY, https //deq nc cov/about/divisions/miticatlon-
services/dms-plammnc/watershed-planning-documents/yadkm-river-basin (last visited Jun 27, 2017)
"About the River, YADKIN RIVERKEEPFR, https //www yadkmriverkeeper org/about-river (last visited Jun 27,
2017)

assistance."" The North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality receives federal funds,
making it and all its subdivisions, including the Department of Water Resources, subject to Title
VI requirements. The Department of Environmental Quality permitting decisions have had a
discriminatory effect on communities of color near Badin Lake and Little Mountain Creek, in
violation of Title VI. The State should elevate this permit to priority status because of this
environmental injustice.
S. Alcoa's permit allows discharge of ground and storm water into impaired water
bodies.
The Clean Water Act requires states to submit a 303(d) list of all Category 5 water bodies to
the EPA annually. Category 5 waters are those which require a Total Maximum Daily Load
(TMDL) or TMDL alternative. 12 "The Total Maximum Daily Load (TMDL) Program is a
Federal program authorized under the Clean Water Act to address waters that are not meeting
water quality standards."13 Badin Lake and Little Mountain Creek are both listed on North
Carolina's most recent 303(d) list of impaired water bodies.14 Continuing to allow polluted water
discharge at the levels Alcoa is currently permitted will further degrade the water quality of the
lake and stream and must be reevaluated by the State through the priority permit process.
6. Other reasons Alcoa's permit should be prioritized now include: public health
concerns related to dangerously high PCB levels impacting aquatic life and,
relatedly, the consumption of poisoned fish in Badin Lake; loss of community
recreation opportunities; the current water level problems occurring in Badin Lake
subsequent to Cube Hydro's purchase of the Yadkin Project dams; and alignment
with EPA's National Enforcement Initiatives.
Warnings have been posted around Badin Lake since 2009 explaining the health risks of
consuming fish caught in this lake.15 Alcoa's permit allows the continued, excessive pollutant
discharge of cyanide, fluoride, and TCE. Alcoa's contamination has led to reduced fish
populations, and those that remain have unhealthy levels of PCBs. This type of pollution harms
the fish and those who depend on fishing in Badin Lake to meet their nutritional needs. This
should be considered a priority concern of the State.
Alcoa's pollution has also degraded the quality of life in communities near the former
smelting facility by diminishing the opportunity for citizens to engage in recreational activities
many have enjoyed all their lives, such as fishing in Badin Lake. Because there are fewer fish,
" 42 U S C § 2000d (2012)
iz 303(d), N C DEP'T OF ENVTL QUALITY, https //deq nc aov/about/divisions/water-
resources/plammnQ/classification-standards/303d (last visited Jun 27, 2017)/
" TMDLs, N C DEP'T OF ENVTL QUALITY, https //deg nc Qov/about/divisions/water-resources/plannmg/modehng
assessment/tmdls (last visited Jun 27, 2017).
14 Draft 2016 Category 5 Assessments EPA Submittal — 303(d) List, pp 191,205,
https //ncdenr s3 amazonaws com/s3fs-
pubhc/Water%200uality/Planning/TMDL/303d/2016/NC 2016 Cateeoiy 5 20160606 pdf (last visited July 13,
2017)
1s Fish Consumption Advisories, N C HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES,
http //epi publichealth nc Qov/oee/fish/advisories html#B (last visited Jun 27, 2017)
.19

there are in turn, fewer opportunities for recreational fishing. This recreational opportunity loss
provides a basis for reconsideration of Alcoa's continued pollutant discharge.
Earlier this year, Cube Hydro acquired the Yadkin hydroelectric Project.16 Since the
acquisition, there have been numerous citizen complaints regarding the low water levels in Badin
Lake, and Cube Hydro acknowledges that the water levels have been significantly lower than
previous years' averages." The timeliness of this problem should be considered by the State as
added reason to reevaluate Alcoa's permit.
Finally, one of the EPA's National Enforcement Initiatives for FYI 7-19 includes "keeping
industrial pollutants out of the nation's waters."18 Realizing that "[c]ertain facilities in industrial
sectors like chemical and metal manufacturing, mining[,] and food processing are responsible for
nutrient and metal pollution in lakes, rivers[,] and streams, and can degrade water quality and
threaten drinking water sources," 19 EPA has made it a priority in the upcoming fiscal years to
focus efforts on curtailing pollution created by these industries. Alcoa is a former aluminum
smelting site that continues to leach industrial pollutants into the waterways near the Badin
community, detrimentally impacting the lives of the town's residents. Choosing Alcoa's permit
for priority designation would support this EPA enforcement initiative.
While the State need only find one environmentally significant reason for choosing a permit
for priority status, the Alcoa permit could be selected for any of above listed concerns. When
considered in the aggregate, this is a clear indication that the Alcoa permit is priority status
eligible now. We urge you to take action, prioritize the Alcoa permit, and issue a stringent permit
that is protective of the environment and public health.
Thank you for your time and consideration of this important matter.
Sincerely,
i !:
Chandra T. Taylor
Senior Attorney
cc:
Michael Regan, michael re an e,ncdenr g_v
Teresa Rodriguez, Teresa Rodriguez
@ncdenr go_v
Jackie Clark, U.S.E.P.A. Office of Wastewater Management, clarkjackie@epa gov
Mr. Macy Hinson, Concerned Citizens of West Badin, macyhinson@aol com
16 Cube Hydro Carolinas, an affiliate of Cube Hydro Partners, acquires four hydroelectric power plants in North
Carolina, CUBE HYDRO (Feb 2, 2107), http //cubecarolinas com/2017/02/cube-hydro-carolinas-an-afliate-of-cube-
hydro-partners-acquires-four-hydro electric-power-plants-in-north-carolina/
17 As Drought Conditions Persist, New Yadkin FERC License Governs Lake Levels, CUBE HYDRO (Mar 28, 2017),
http //cubecarolmas com/2017/03/as-drought-conditions-persist-new-yadkln-ferc-license-governs-lake-levels/
" National Enforcement Initiative Keeping Industrial Pollutants Out of the Nation's Waters (Fiscal Years 2017-
19), EPA, https //www epa gov/enforcement/national-enforcement-initiative-keeping-industrial-pollutants-out-
nations-waters-fiscal (last visited Jun 27, 2017)
19 Id
5