WQ0003299_PC-2019-0031 Civil Penalty Assesment_20190507

ROY COOPER
Governor
MICHAEL S.REGAN
Secretary
LINDA CULPEPPER NORTH CAROLINA
Director Environmental Quality
May 7,2019
CERTIFIED MAIL NO.7016 2140 0000 4368 5975
RETURN RECEIPT REQUESTED
GERALDINE LANGFORD-MAYOR
TOWN OF SEABOARD
P.O.Box 327
SEABOARD,NC27876
Subject: Assessment of Civil Penalties
for Violation of G.S. 143-215.1
and Permit No. W0003299
Enforcement Case File No.
PC-2019-0031
Northampton County
Dear Mayor Langford:
This letter provides notice of a civil penalty assessed against the Town of Seaboard in the amount of
$2,500.00 and$67.28 in investigative costs, for a total of$2,567.28. Attached is a copy of the assessment
document explaining this penalty.
This assessment has been taken under the authority of G.S. 143-215.6A and delegated from the Secretary
of the Department of Environmental Quality pursuant to G.S. 143-215.36(b)(7). Any continuing violations
shall be subject to new enforcement action, including additional civil penalties.
Within 30 days of receiving this notice,you shall do one of the following three options:
1. Submit civil penalty assessment payment:
Payment shall be made in the form of a check, money order,or electronic funds transfer made payable
to the North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality in the amount of$2,567.28. Payment
resolves this civil penalty; however, it does not prevent further enforcement actions for continuing or
new violations. Please submit payment to the following address:
Division of Water Resources
Non-Discharge Branch
ATTN: Ms. Sonia Graves
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh,NC 27699-1617
-OR-
D E QJ� North Carolina Department of Environmental Quality I Division of Water Resources
512 North Salisbury Street 1 1617 Mall Service Center I Raleigh,North Carolina 2 769 9-1617
=ww—. 919.707.9000

2. Submit a written remission request that includes a detailed justification:
Requesting remission of a civil penalty assessment is not for contesting whether the violations occurred
or the accuracy of the factual statements in the civil penalty assessment document. Since a remission
request eliminates the option of an administrative hearing,such requests shall include a Waiver of Right
to an Administrative Hearing and Stipulation of Facts form(enclosed).
Remission requests are limited to consideration of the five following factors as they relate to the
reasonableness of the assessed civil penalty:
a. Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors in subsection(b) of this section were
wrongly applied to the detriment of the petitioner;
b. Whether the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from the
violation;
c. Whether the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident;
d. Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations; or
e. Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary remedial
actions.
All evidence supporting your remission request shall be submitted in writing. The Division of Water
Resources will review your remission request and inform you of its decision. If the remission request
is denied or partially remitted, the Division of Water Resources will provide details regarding the case
status, directions for payment, and provisions for further appeal of the civil penalty assessment to the
Environmental Management Commission's Committee on Civil Penalty Remissions (Committee). Be
advised that the Committee cannot consider information that was not part of the original remission
request.
You may want to enter into a Special Order of Consent(SOC) with the Division of Water Resources
as a means of settling the civil penalty assessment. Please contact Rick Bolich at (919) 7914232 to
discuss this option.
The remission request and supporting evidence shall be accompanied with the enclosed "Request for
Remission of Civil Penalties, Waiver of right to Administrative Hearing, and Stipulation of Facts"and
the"Justification for Remission Request"forms. All documentation shall be submitted to:
Division of Water Resources
Non-Discharge Branch
ATTN: Ms. Sonia Graves
1617 Mail Service Center
Raleigh,NC 27699-1617
-OR-
Page 2 of 3

3. File a petition for an administrative hearing with the Office of Administrative Hearings:
If you contest any statement in the attached civil penalty assessment document,you may file a petition
for an administrative hearing. Petitions shall be filed with the Office of Administrative Hearings within
30 days of receipt of this notice and shall include the Enforcement Case File Number cited in the subject
of this notification. Petitions are considered filed when they are received in the Office of Administrative
Hearings during the office hours of 8:00 a.m.and 5:00 p.m.,Monday through Friday,excluding official
state holidays. The petition may be filed using electronic mail provided the signed original,one copy,
and a filing fee (if required pursuant to G.S. 150B-23.2) is received in the Office of Administrative
Hearings within seven business days of the electronic transmission. All questions regarding the filing
process shall be directed to the Office of Administrative Hearings at:
Office of Administrative Hearings
6714 Mail Service Center
Raleigh,NC 27699-6714
Telephone: [phone]
If a petition is filed,one copy shall be served as follows:
Bill Lane, General Counsel
Department of Environmental Quality
1601 Mail Service Center
Raleigh,NC 27699-1601
Failure to exercise one of the three provided options within 30 days of receipt of this notification shall result
in this matter being referred to the Attorney General's Office for collection of the penalty through civil
action.
Be advised that additional penalties may be assessed for violations that occur after the review period of this
assessment. If you have any questions, please contact Ms. Sonia Graves at 919-707-3657 or
[e-mail]. Thank you for your cooperation in this matter.
Sincerely,
Linder,Director
Division of Water Resources
Attachments(3)
cc: Raleigh Regional Office, Water Quality Regional Operations Section
Central Files
Page 3 of 3

STATE,OF NORTH CAROLINA NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT
OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
COUNTY OF NORTHAMPTON
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT )
OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST )
TOWN OF SEABOARD ) FILE NO. PC-2019-0031
FINDINGS AND DECISION
AND ASSESSMENT OF
PERMIT NO. WQ0003299 ) CIVIL PENALTIES
Acting pursuant to North Carolina General Statutes (N.C.G.S.) 143-215.6(A) and the
delegation provided by the Secretary of the Department of Environmental Quality and the Director
of the Division of Water Resources, I, Rick Bolich, Assistant Regional Supervisor, Water Quality
Regional Operations Section, Raleigh Regional Office, make the following:
I. FINDINGS OF FACT:
A.Town of Seaboard owns and operates the Town of Seaboard wastewater treatment facility
in Northampton County.
B.Town of Seaboard operates a wastewater treatment and spray irrigation system at the Town
of Seaboard in Seaboard,North Carolina,Northampton County.
C.The Town of Seaboard operates a 134,000 gallon per day wastewater collection, treatment,
and irrigation facility consisting of 2,825 linear feet of 10-inch sewer line, a bar screen, a
flow meter,two 1.5 acre stabilization lagoons in series, chlorination facilities, a 1.5 million
gallon holding basin with two 200 gallon per minute vertical turbine transfer pumps, a
7.425 million gallon storage lagoon, an irrigation pumping system with 3 235 gallon per
minute centrifugal pumps, a 35.1 acre spray irrigation area with three fields and 91 nozzles
per field and all associated piping, valves, controls, and appurtenances.
D.Town of Seaboard was issued Permit No. WQ0003299 on July 28, 2017, which expires on
June 30, 2022.
E.Condition II.4 of permit WQ0003299 states, "The wastewater collection facilities be
properly maintained and operated."
F. Condition III.4 of permit WQ0003299 states, "Adequate measures shall be taken to prevent
effluent ponding in or runoff from the irrigation sites listed in Attachment B."

G.Condition IV.12 of permit WQ0003299 states "An annual soil analysis (i.e., Standard Soil
Fertility Analysis) shall be conducted on each irrigation site listed in Attachment B....."
H. On January 31, 2019, Division of Water Resources (DWR) staff inspected the Town of
Seaboard facility. Wastewater was observed to be ponding in the application fields during
this inspection, and there was no record of the required soil sample analyses for the past
three years.
I. On February 4, 2019, DWR issued a notice of Violation (NOV-2019-PC-0057) to Town of
Seaboard identifying violations of Permit No. WQ0003299 as listed above.
J. The NOV was sent by certified mail, return receipt requested and received by the Permittee
on February 8, 2019.
K.On March 1, 2019, DWR received a letter from Town of Seaboard in response to the
February 4, 2019 Notice of Violation. Additional information'was received on March 5,
2019.
L.On April 9, 2019, DWR mailed a Notice of Intent to Enforce NOV-2019-PC-0057 to the
Town of Seaboard.
M. The April 9, 2019 Notice of Intent to Enforce was received by the Town of Seaboard on
April 12, 2019.
N. Staff costs and expenses associated with detecting the violations, defining their nature and
extent, and bringing enforcement action totaled $67.28
Based upon the above Findings of Fact, I make the following:
II. CONCLUSIONS OF LAW:
A. Town of Seaboard is a"person" within the meaning of N.C.G.S. 143-215.6(A)pursuant
to N.C.G.S. 143-212(4).
B. Permit No. WQ0003299 is required by N.C.G.S. 143-215.1. This permit was issued to
Town of Seaboard originally on July 28, 2017 and expires on June 30, 2022.
C. Town of Seaboard violated Permit No. WQ0003299 during the inspection on January
31, 2019 to the manner and extent as described in Permit Condition,III 4 when the
Permittee failed to take adequate measures to prevent effluent ponding or runoff from
irrigation sites.
D. Town of Seaboard violated N.C.G.S. 143-215.1 and Permit No. WQ0003299 during
the inspection on January 31, 2019 to the manner and extent as described in Permit
Condition IV 12 when the Permittee failed to perform a representative soil analysis on
irrigation fields in at least three years.

E. N.C.G.S. 143-215.6A(a)(2) provides that a civil penalty of not more than $25,000.00
may be assessed against a person who fails to apply for or to secure a permit required
by N.C.G.S. 143-215.1, or who violates or fails to act in accordance with the terms,
conditions, or requirements of a permit required by N.C.G.S. 143-215.1.
F. N.C.G.S. 143-215.6A (b) provides that if any failure to act as required by the rules is
continuous, a civil penalty of not more than $25,000.00 per violation may be assessed
for each day the violation continues.
G. N.C.G.S. 143-215.3(a)(9) provides that the reasonable costs of any investigation,
inspection or monitoring survey may be assessed against a person who violates any
regulations, standards, or limitations adopted by the Environmental Management
Commission or violates any terms or conditions of any permit issued pursuant to
N.C.G.S. 143-215.1, or special order or other document issued pursuant to N.C.G.S.
143-215.2.
Based upon the above Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law, I make the following:
III. DECISIONS
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. 143-215.6A in determining the amount of the penalty, I have taken
into account the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and considered all the factors listed in
N.C.G.S. 143B-282.1.
Accordingly, Town of Seaboard shall be, and hereby is, assessed a civil penalty of:
$ I,imp for I violation of Permit No. WQ0003299 Permit Condition III.4
T� when the Permittee failed to take adequate measures to prevent
effluent ponding or runoff from irrigation sites.
$ UU for 3 violation(s) of Permit No. WQ0003299 Permit Condition IV.
12 when the Permittee failed to perform a representative soil
analysis on irrigation fields for the past three years.
$ TOTAL CIVIL PENALTY
$ 67.288 Investigation costs accrued.
$ J TOTAL AMOUNT DUE
Pursuant to N.C.G.S. 143-215.6A(c), in determining the amount of the penalty I have taken into
account the Findings of Fact and Conclusions of Law and the factors set forth at N.C.G.S. 143B-
282.1(b), which are:

(1) The degree and extent of harm to the natural resources of the State, to the public
health, or to private property resulting from the violation;
(2) The duration and gravity of the violation;
(3) The effect on ground or surface water quantity or quality or on air quality;
(4) The cost of rectifying the damage;
(5) The amount of money saved by noncompliance;
(6) Whether the violation was committed willfully or intentionally;
(7) The prior record of the violator in complying or failing to comply with programs
over which the Environmental Management Commission has regulatory authority;
and
(8) The cost to the State of the enforcement procedures.
IV. NOTICE:
I reserve the right to assess civil penalties and investigative costs for any continuing
violations occurring after the assessment period indicated above. Each day of a continuing
violation maybe considered a separate violation subject to a maximum$25,000.00 per day penalty.
Civil penalties and investigative cost may be assessed for any other rules and statutes for which
penalties have not yet been assessed.
V. TRANSMITTAL:
These Findings of Fact, Conclusions of Law and Decision shall be transmitted to Town of
Seaboard in accordance with N.C.G.S. 143-215.6(A)(d).
�4 ? d 6
ll
Dat Rick Bo ich, L.G., Assistant Regional Supervisor,
Water Quality Permitting Section

JUSTIFICATION FOR REMISSION REQUEST
APS Case Number: PC-2019-0031 County: Northampton
Assessed Party: Town of Seaboard
Permit No.: WO0003299 Amount assessed:
Please use this form when requesting remission of this civil penalty. You must also complete the "Request
For Remission, Waiver of to 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 determining 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. By law [NCGS 133-215.6A(f)] remission of a civil
penalty may be granted when one or more of the following five factors applies. 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 NCGS 143B-282.1(b) were
wrongfully applied to the detriment of the petitioner (the assessment factors are included
in the attached penalty matrix and/or 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 to correct the violation and prevent future
occurrences);
(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./or);
(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 it-ill prevent you from performing the
activities necessary to achieve compliance).
EXPLANATION:

STATE OF NORTH CAROLINA NORTH CAROLINA DEPARTMENT OF
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
COUNTY OF NORTHAMPTON
IN THE MATTER OF ASSESSMENT ) WAIVER OF RIGHT TO AN
OF CIVIL PENALTIES AGAINST ) ADMINISTRATIVE HEARING AND
STIPULATION OF FACTS
TOWN OF SEABOARD )
PERMIT NO. WQ0003299 ) FILE NO. PC-2019-0031
Having been assessed civil penalties totalin - for violation(s) as set forth in the
assessment document of the Division of Water Resour es dated, May 7, 2019, 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 thirty
(30)days from the receipt of the notice of assessment.
This the day of 12019.
Signature
ADDRESS
TELEPHONE

DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES
CIVIL PENALTY REMISSION FACTORS
Case Number: PC-2019-0031 Region: Raleigh County: Northampton
Assessed Entity: Town of Seaboard Permit: WQ0003299
❑ (a) Whether one or more of the civil penalty assessment factors were wrongly applied to the
detriment of the petitioner:
❑ (b) Whether the violator promptly abated continuing environmental damage resulting from
the violation:
❑ (c) Whether the violation was inadvertent or a result of an accident:
❑ (d) Whether the violator had been assessed civil penalties for any previous violations:
❑ (e) Whether payment of the civil penalty will prevent payment for the remaining necessary
remedial actions:
DECISION (Check One)
Request Denied❑
Full Remission❑ Retain Enforcement Costs? Yet 1*0
Partial Remission❑$ (Enter Amount)
Date