NC0020800_Issuance of Settlement Agreement_20171127

Water Resources
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
ROY COOPER
Govenot
MICHAEL S. REGAN
Seci elar),
LINDA CULPEPPER
Intel un Dn ecloi
November 27, 2017
Mayor Nancey Curtis
Town of Andrews
P.O. Box 1210
Andrews, NC 28901-1210
Subject: Issuance of Settlement Agreement C17-001
Andrews WWTP
Cherokee County
Dear Mayor Curtis:
Division personnel have reviewed and approved the request for penalty settlement.
Thank you for the payment of $4,500.00, which has been used to settle the open
enforcement cases for the subject facility. Accordingly, we are forwarding the signed
Compliance Agreement, which shall remain in effect until March 31, 2018. A copy of the
signed agreement is enclosed.
Please note that this agreement cannot be extended or modified unless the conditions in
section 8. are met. Contact the Asheville Regional Office (ARO) if you believe an
extension or modification of the agreement is necessary,
If you have any questions concerning this permit, please contact Charles H. Weaver at
telephone number [phone], or via email [[e-mail]].
S' c rely,
Linda Culpepper, Interim Director
Division of Water Resources
cc: Central Files
Asheville Regional Office / Tim Heim
NPDES files
State of North Carolina I Environmental Quality I Water Resources
1617 Mail Service Center I Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
919 807 6300 919-807-6389 FAX
https //deq ne.gov/about/divisions/water-resources/water-resources-permits/wastewater-branch/npdes-wastewater-permits

NORTH CAROLINA
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT COMMISSION
COUNTY OF CHEROKEE
IN THE MATTER OF )
NORTH CAROLINA ) SETTLEMENT AGREEMENT
NPDES PERMIT NCO020800 ) C17-001
HELD BY THE TOWN OF ANDREWS )
Pursuant to provisions of North Carolina General Statute § 143-215 3(a)(6), this Settlement Agreement
is entered into by the Town of Andrews, herein referred to as the Town, and the North Carolina
Environmental Management Commission, an agency of the State of North Carolina created by N C
General Statute § 14313-282, and hereinafter referred to as the Commission.
The Town and the Commission hereby agree to the following findings:
(a.) The Town holds North Carolina NPDES permit NCO020800 for operation of the Town of
Andrews wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) and for making an outlet therefrom for the
discharge of treated wastewater to the Valley River, currently classified C waters of this State
in the Hiwassee River Basin.
(b.) Effluent limits included as terms of NPDES permit NCO020800 have been established as
those concentrations of pollutants that may be discharged into the receiving stream without
causing applicable water quality standards to be contravened.
(c.) The Town of Andrews WWTP has been noncompliant with the effluent limits contained in
NPDES permit NCO020800 in the manner and to the extent described in Attachment A to this
Agreement. Reported violations of effluent limits have persisted from June 2015 through the
date of this agreement Further noncompliance with permit limits is anticipated in the future
unless additional action is taken to enhance or upgrade treatment processes
(d.) The Town has been assessed penalties totaling $15,117 37 for effluent limit violations that
occurred from June 2015 through December 2016 Of that total, $2,062.50 has been remitted
(reducedhemoved), and $7,379 82 has been paid, leaving an outstanding assessed civil
penalties balance of $5,675.72.
(e ) Per application of current Division of Water Resources (Division) enforcement guidance, the
Town is potentially liable for the assessment of additional civil penalties for effluent limit
violations that occurred from January — August 2017.

Town of Andrews Settlement Agreement C17-001
NCO020800
(f.) On September 12, 2016, The Town received Authorization to Construct from the Division for
modifications to the Andrews W-WTP. The modifications include:
i. Installation of a new 3.75 MGD mechanical bar screen and replacement of an existing
manual bar screen,
ii. Rehabilitation of the existing North trickling filter by replacing media and
rehabilitation of distributor rotating mechanism;
iii Rehabilitation of the South trickling filter rotating mechanism, repair of the South
secondary clarifier (solids removal system, clarifier drive);
iv. Installation of a chlorination/dechlorination integrated automatic feed controller
system; installation of a new chlorine residual analyzer;
V. Replacement of aerobic digester aeration system consisting of three (3) 725 SCFM
blowers, air piping and diffusers;
The Town believes this work will have a positive impact on effluent concentrations of 5 -day
Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and ammonia nitrogen.
2. Based upon the above findings, the Town and the Commission agree to the implementation of the
following schedule -
(a) The Town executed construction zontracts on May 8, 2017, a Notice to Proceed was issued on
June 1, 2017.
(b.) The Town shall provide quarterly reports to the NC DEQ Asheville Regional Office (ARO)
documenting progress made toward completion of construction activities noted in 1 (f )(i. —
v.) above, including evaluations of the effectiveness of efforts that have been completed
Additionally, the reports shall address any hindrances the Town has experienced in the
completion of construction activities. Reports are to be submitted no later than the 151h day of
February, May, August and November, as long as this Agreement is in effect. Reports shall
be submitted to ARO Regional Engineer Tim Heim via email (tim heimC ncdenr.gov).
(c ) Return to consistent compliance o_ enter into a Special Order by Consent within 90 days of
completion of all items included in the modifications contained in the Authorization to
Construct "Consistent compliance" as stated above is defined as being compliant with terms
and conditions of NPDES permit NC0020800, as primarily evidenced by data submitted on
Discharge Monitoring Reports (DiVIRs), for (3) three consecutive months after completion of
all construction activities noted in 1.(f )(i — v.) above (construction is currently anticipated to
be complete by January 31, 2018).
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r
Town of Andrews Settlement Agreement C17-001
NCO020800
In order to facilitate resolution of the matters of outstanding civil penalties and unaddressed
violations documented in paragraphs 1.(d.) and 1.(e.) above, the Commission and the Town agree to
settle the above described penalties and violations for the total amount of $4,500.00. Payment shall
be made by check made payable to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality within
15 days of the execution of this Agreement, and sent to the following address:
Attn: John Hennessy, Supervisor
Compliance & Expedited Permitting Branch
NC Division of Water Resources
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-1617
Full payment of the settlement amount shall constitute complete satisfaction of all outstanding civil
penalties assessed prior to the execution of this Agreement and resolve all unaddressed violations
occurring prior to the execution of this Agreement.
4 Nothing in this Agreement relieves the Town of its duty to abide by the terms of NPDES permit
NC0020800. Noncompliance with the terms of the NPDES may subject the Town to the
assessment of additional civil penalties during the time this Agreement is in effect. However, the
Division will use discretion in its consideration of civil penalty assessments for violations of
permit limits that occur during the life of the Agreement.
5. Failure to comply with the terms of this Agreement may subject the Town to the assessment of
additional civil penalties pursuant to Part II, Section B (2.) (the "Duty to Mitigate" condition) of
NPDES permit NC0020800.
6. Requests, actions and or reports required by the terms of paragraph 2 above shall be deemed
overdue if they are not made, completed or submitted by the dates specified. The burden for
providing sufficient documentation of the satisfaction of the terms of this Agreement is held
entirely by the Town.
7 Because this is an Agreement between the Commission and the Town, neither party will file a
petition for a contested case or for judicial review concerning its terms.
8. The Town may request an extension/modification to this Agreement. Such request must be made
in writing to both the ARO and the Division's Central Office. The request must include reasons
for the extension/modification and state when compliance with the NPDES permit will be
achieved Any extension/modification must be approved in writing by the Director of the Division
or his designee in order to be effective
Page 3 of 4

This Agreement shall expire March 31, 2018.
For the Town of Andrews
erim Town -Administrator-;,
Nancey Cis
Mayor
Town of Andrews Settlement Agreement C17-001
NC0020800
Date /b v 3 /— / %
Date
For the North Carolina Environmental Management Commission
Date VI 1/1 l
f4Ifrey O. Poupart
Section Chief
Water Quality Permitting Section
North Carolina Division of Water Resourc;,s
for the Chair of the Commission
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