HomeMy Public PortalAbout090_012_WQ- City of Tybee Island CO- February revision (3) ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION DIVISON
DEPARTMENT OF NATURAL RESOURCES
STATE OF GEORGIA
CONSENT ORDER
RE: City of Tybee Island ORDER NO. EPD-WQ-
NPDES Permit GA0020061
Chatham County
DEFINITIONS APPLICABLE TO THE RESPONDENT
WHEREAS, the City of Tybee Island (hereinafter "Respondent") owns and
operates a Publicly Owned Treatment Works (hereinafter "POTW") located in Chatham
County, Georgia; and
AUTHORITY
WHEREAS, under the "Georgia Water Quality Control Act of 1964" as amended
O.C.G.A. § 12-5-20 et seq. (hereinafter "Act"), the General Assembly of Georgia designated
the Director of the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Environmental Protection
Division, (hereinafter "Director" and "Division") to administer the provisions of the Act;
and
WHEREAS, the Rules for Water Quality Control, Chapter 391-3-6, as amended,
(hereinafter "Rules") required under O.C.G.A. § 12-5-23 of the Act, were established and
became effective; and
WHEREAS, O.C.G.A. § 12-5-23 of the Act, assigns the Director the authority to
issue permits stipulating in each permit the conditions or limitations under which such
permit was issued and the authority to issue orders as may be necessary to enforce
compliance with the provisions of the Act and all rules and regulations promulgated
there under; and
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WHEREAS, on June 14, 2011 the Respondent was issued National Pollutant
Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit Number GA0020061 (hereinafter
"Permit") by the Director of the Division for the City of Tybee Island Water Pollution
Control Plant located in the Savannah River Basin; and
WHEREAS, Chapter 391-3-6-.05(2)(b) of the Rules defines a "major spill", in
part, as any discharge of raw sewage that is in excess of 10,000 gallons or results in
water quality violations in the waters of the State; and
WHEREAS, Georgia Rule 391-3-6-.05(3)(a) requires the owner of a POTW to
immediately notify the Division, in person or by telephone, when a spill or a major spill
occurs in the system; and
HISTORY
WHEREAS, the following major spills (hereinafter "Spills") occurred in the
Respondent's system:
Date of Spill Estimated Waterway Reported Cause
Spill Location Quantity of Impacted
Spill
(gallons)
Jones Marsh and Horse
6/30/2013 Avenue 90,677 Pen Creek Force main pipe break
Jones Marsh and Horse
7/13/2013 Avenue 73,545 Pen Creek Force main pipe break
WHEREAS, on July 1, 2013 the Respondent notified the health department of
the June 30, 2013 spill; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013 the Respondent posted signs at all public access
points after the June 30, 2013 spill to notify citizens who may come into contact with the
affected water; and
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WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013 the Respondent notified the Division of the June 30,
2013 spill by leaving a message on the Division's telephone message system; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013 the Respondent notified the local media of the June
30, 2013 spill; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 8 and 10, 2013, the Respondent notified the largest legal
organ of the County where the spill occurred (Savannah Morning News) of the June 30,
2013 spill. The notice was published in the Savannah Morning News on July 11, 2013;
and
WHEREAS, on July 13, 2013 the Respondent notified the Division of the July 13,
2013 spill via email; and
WHEREAS, on July 13, 2013 the Respondent posted signs at all public access
points to notify citizens who may come into contact with the affected water; and
WHEREAS, on July 15, 2013 the Respondent notified the local media of the July
13, 2013 spill; and
WHEREAS, on July 13, 2013 the Respondent notified the health department of
the July 13, 2013 spill; and
WHEREAS, on July 15, 2013 the Respondent published a notice of the July 13,
2013 spill in the largest legal organ of the County where the spill occurred; and
WHEREAS, on July 16, 2013 the Division received the Respondent's June 2013
Discharge Monitoring Report for the Facility which indicated violations of effluent
limitations for flow, ammonia and enterococci; and
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WHEREAS, on July 18, 2013, the Division sent a Notice of Violation letter to the
Respondent to notify the Respondent that the Spills are violations of the Permit, Act and
Rules and to request a meeting; and
WHEREAS, on July 19, 2013 the Division met with the Respondent to discuss
the cause of the Spills and the corrective actions taken to mitigate or reduce the
adverse effects of the Spills; and
WHEREAS, on August 16, 2013 the Division received the Respondent's July
2013 Discharge Monitoring Report for the Facility which indicated a violation of effluent
limitations for flow; and
WHEREAS, on September 26, 2013, the Respondent sent a copy to the Division
of its Sewage Spill Standard Operating Procedures (hereinafter "Sewage Spill SOP") for
responding to spills; and
WHEREAS, on October 22, 2013, the Respondent submitted a written Corrective
Action Plan (hereinafter "CAP") to the Division identifying actions to be taken by the
Respondent to prevent sewage spills in the future; and
WHEREAS, on November 14, 2013 the Respondent submitted written
notification to the Division for the July 2013 effluent violations for enterococci and
ammonia; and
WHEREAS, on January 8, 2014, the Division met with the Respondent to
discuss the corrective actions taken and to be taken regarding the Spills; and
WHEREAS, on February 5, 2014, the Respondent submitted a revised CAP to
the Division that included a summary of work completed to date and a schedule for
completing additional improvements to the sewerage system; and
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Alleged Violations
WHEREAS, the Spills and Permit effluent violations in July and August 2013
violated § O.C.G.A. 12-5-29(a) which requires conformance with the Act, the Rules, and
the Permit; and
WHEREAS, the Respondent exceeded discharge limitations specified in the
Permit for flow, Ammonia, and Enterococcus in July 2013 and for flow in August 2013 in
violation of Part I.B. of the Permit and Section 391-3-6-.06(4)(a) of the Rules; and
WHEREAS, the Respondent did not provide oral and written report of the July
2013 and August 2013 effluent noncompliance in violation of Rule 391-3-6-.05(4) and
Part II.A.3. of the Permit; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013 and July 13, 2013, the Respondent notified the
Division of the Spills via the Division's telephone message system and via email,
respectively, but did not immediately notify the Division, in person or by telephone, of
the Spills in violation of Rule 391-3-6-.05(3)(a) and Part I I.A.11.a. of the Permit; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013, the Respondent posted signs at all public access
points to notify citizens who may come into contact with the affected water after the
June 30, 2013 spill but did not immediately post signs at public access points in
violation of Rule 391-3-6-.05(3)(g) and Part II.A.11 .c. of the Permit; and
WHEREAS, on July 1, 2013, the Respondent notified the health department of
the June 30, 2013 spill but did not immediately notify the health department of the spill
in violation of Rule 391-3-6-.05(3)(f) and Part II.A.11.b. of the Permit; and
WHEREAS, on July 2, 2013 and July 15, 2013, the Respondent notified the local
media of the Spills but did not notify the local media within 24 hours of becoming aware
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of the of the Spills in violation of Rule 391-3-6-.05(3)(e) and Part I I.A.11.d. of the Permit;
and
Civil Penalties
WHEREAS, Section 12-5-52(a) of the Act states that any person violating any
provision of the Code or any permit condition or limitation established pursuant to the
Code shall be liable to the State of Georgia for a civil penalty not to exceed $50,000 per
day for each day during which such violation continues; and
Conditions
WHEREAS, the Director has determined that it is in the public interest to resolve
all allegations raised above by entering into this Order without the necessity of litigation
and adjudication of the issues; and
NOW THEREFORE, by agreement of the parties, before the taking of any
testimony and without adjudicating the merits of the parties' positions in this matter, in
order to resolve the violations alleged herein, the Director hereby ORDERS and
Respondent CONSENTS to the following:
1. Within 10 days of the execution date of the Order, the Respondent agrees to
pay to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources the amount of five
thousand ($5,000.00) dollars in compromise and settlement of the identified
violations arising from the allegations referenced above. Payment in the form
of certified check or money order to the Georgia Department of Natural
Resources shall be delivered to the Department at 400 Commerce Center
Drive, Brunswick, GA 31523.
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2. Within 30 days of the execution of this Order, the Respondent shall submit to
the Division for review and approval a revised Sewage Spill SOP to ensure
compliance with Rule 391-3-6-.05 and Part II.A.11 of the Permit. The revised
Sewage Spill SOP shall include, but not be limited to, spill response personnel
structure; overflow response procedures; notification and reporting procedures
(including after-hours, weekends, and holidays); name and telephone numbers
for state and local agencies, local health department, local media, and the legal
organ of the County; provisions for posting signs; maps identifying points of
public access; and employee training. Should the initial submittal of the
Sewage Spill SOP not be approved by the Division, the Respondent shall have
30 days to submit an approvable Sewage Spill SOP once notified in writing by
the Division that the original Sewage Spill SOP has not been approved. The
Respondent shall implement the approved Sewage Spill SOP upon receipt of
the Division's approval, and within 10 days provide written confirmation that the
Sewage Spill SOP has been implemented as approved.
3. Within 60 days of the execution date of this Order, the Respondent shall submit
to the Division for review and approval a Routine Inspection and Maintenance
Plan (Plan) of the Respondent's wastewater collection system. The details of
the Plan shall include but not be limited to methods of assessment; frequency
of assessment; prioritization of areas of the system to be assessed; projected
annual budget for the implementation of the Plan; and how the Plan translates
into repairs, replacement, or maintenance. Should the initial submittal of the
Plan not be approved by the Division, the Respondent shall have 30 days to
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submit an approvable Plan once notified in writing by the Division that the
original Plan has not been approved. The Respondent shall implement the
approved Plan upon receipt of the Division's approval, and within 10 days
provide written confirmation that the Plan has been implemented as approved.
4. Within nine (9) months of the execution date of this Order, the Respondent shall
replace the existing #6 Force Main (approximately 6,300 linear feet) located
along Jones Avenue, Solomon Avenue and Polk Street on Tybee Island.
a.
5. Immediately upon execution of this Order the Respondent shall implement
procedures for ensuring that all Spills occurring after normal business hours are
immediately reported to the State Operations Center at 1-800-241-4113.
6. The Respondent shall obtain approval from the Division for any engineering
reports, plans and specifications related to modification of the sewerage system
in accordance with Rule 391-3-6-.02.
7. The Respondent shall submit to the Division progress reports for the actions
taken to complete Condition 4 of the Order. The progress reports shall be
submitted to the Division with the monthly DMR until Condition 4 is satisfied.
8. Within 10 days of completion of Condition 4 of the Order, the Respondent shall
submit to the Division a written certification that all actions identified in
Condition 4 have been completed.
9. Within 30 days of the execution date of this Order, the Respondent shall train
all personnel responsible for Permit compliance as to the Conditions in the
Permit, and will provide the Division written confirmation that the training is
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complete.
10. All plan(s), report(s), and schedule(s) required by the terms of this Order are,
upon approval by the Division, incorporated by reference into this Order.
Except as provided in the Order, any noncompliance with such approved
plan(s), report(s), and/or schedule(s) shall be termed noncompliance with this
Order.
11. If at any time the Division determines that any element of any approved plan or
report should be modified in order to meet the requirements established by the
Order, the Act, or the Rules, or any subsequent changes thereto, the Division
shall provide the Respondent with written notification of such determination,
specify the basis for making such determination and request modification and
resubmittal of a modified plan or report in accordance with a schedule specified
by the Division. If at any time the Respondent determines that any element of
any approved plan or report should be modified in order to meet the
requirements established by the Order, the Act, or the Rules, the Respondent
shall, within 30 days of making such determination, modify and submit the plan
or report to the Division. The Division may confer with the Respondent
regarding the modified plan or report in person, by telephone or in writing.
Modifications to the plan must receive written approval by the Division prior to
implementation.
This Order does not waive the Director's right to take further enforcement action
against Respondent, or imply that the Director will not take such action for violations
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alleged herein if Respondent fails to fully comply with the conditions of this Order.
Issuance of this Order does not waive the Director's right to use the violations alleged
herein, upon sufficient evidence, to show past violations in any subsequent
enforcement proceeding.
This Order is executed and entered solely for the purpose of resolving and
disposing of the alleged violations set forth herein and does not constitute a finding,
adjudication, or evidence of a violation of any law, rule, or regulation by Respondent, and,
by consenting to this Order, Respondent does not admit to any factual allegation
contained herein or to any violations of State laws. In addition, this Order is not intended
to create and it shall not be construed or otherwise deemed to recognize or create any
claim, right, liability, estoppel, or waiver of rights in favor of any third-party or parties.
By agreement of the parties, this Order shall have the same force and binding effect
as a Final Order of the Director, and shall become final and effective immediately upon its
execution by the Director. The parties further agree that this Order shall not be
appealable by Respondent, and Respondent hereby waives its right to initiate any
administrative or judicial hearing on the terms and conditions of this Order.
Unless modified or terminated by a subsequent order, or otherwise specified in writing
by the Director, this Order shall be deemed satisfied and terminated upon full,
complete, and timely performance of each and every condition set forth herein.
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IT is so ORDERED, CONSENTED, and AGREED TO this day of
, 2014.
FOR THE CITY OF TYBE ISLAND FOR THE DIVISION:
BY:
Judson H. Turner,
Director
TITLE:
DATE:
City of Tybee Island
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