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HomeMy WebLinkAboutNC0021369_NOV and Intent to Assess_20181113 (2) North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality  Division of Water Resources 2090 US 70 Highway, Swannanoa, NC 28778 828.296.4500 CERTIFIED MAIL #: 7017 2620 0000 9759 6418 RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED November 13, 2018 Tim Barth, Town Manager Town of Columbus PO Box 146 Columbus, NC 28722 SUBJECT: NOTICE OF VIOLATION & INTENT TO ISSUE CIVIL PENALTY Tracking Number: NOV-2018-PC-0422 Upset Permit No. NC0021369 County: Polk Dear Mr. Barth: A review has been conducted of the self-reported Upset 5-Day Report submitted by Trevor McMinn on October 31, 2018. The Division’s Asheville Regional Office concludes that the Town of Columbus violated the Permit Requirement under Part I.A(1) There shall be no discharge of floating solids or visible foam in other than trace amounts. Specific incident cited in the violation includes the following: Loss of solids from the Town of Columbus’ WWTP to Whiteoak Creek occurred for approximately 2 hours on October 26, 2018. This Notice of Violation/Notice of Intent to Enforce (NOV/NOI) is being issued for the noted violation of North Carolina General Statute (G.S.) 143-215.1 and the facility’s NPDES Permit. Pursuant to G.S. 143- 215.6A, a civil penalty of not more than $25,000.00 may be assessed against any person who violates or fails to act in accordance with terms, conditions or requirements of any permit issued pursuant to G.S. 143- 215.1. Please note an Upset is defined as “an incident beyond the reasonable control of the Permittee causing unintentional and temporary noncompliance with permit effluent limitations and/or monitoring requirements”. To prove an upset occurred, the permittee is required to demonstrate Section C.5 (Upsets) parts b and c of the Standard Conditions for NPDES Permits are applicable to the incident. DocuSign Envelope ID: BEF0ACDB-4528-4B3E-882E-9183DB592ED6 Remedial actions, if not already implemented, should be taken to correct the above noncompliance. Please submit a written response to this Notice of Violation. Your response is to be received by the regional office within 10 business days following receipt of this violation. Please include any additional documentation you believe supports classifying this incident as an upset. The response should also include specific corrective actions being taken by the town to prevent a recurrence. The submittal will be considered in determining whether the Division will assess a civil penalty for the cited violations. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Mikal Willmer with the Water Quality Section in the Asheville Regional Office at (828) 296-4686 or via email at mikal.willmer@ncdenr.gov. Sincerely, G. Landon Davidson, P.G., Regional Supervisor Water Quality Regional Operations Section Asheville Regional Office Division of Water Resources, NCDEQ EC: WQS-ARO Server LF G:\WR\WQ\Polk\Wastewater\Municipal\Columbus WWTP 21369\Bypasses, Upsets & Spills\201803275\20181113_NC0021369_NOVNOI2018PC0422 DocuSign Envelope ID: BEF0ACDB-4528-4B3E-882E-9183DB592ED6