Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, an initial liability amount based on a per-gallon and/or a per-day basis is determined using the sum of the Potential for Harm scores from Step 1 and a determination of degree of Deviation from Requirement. The sum of the three factors from Step 1 is 5. The degree of Deviation for the violation is major, since the permit requirement violated was rendered ineffective. Discharge from the site violated section V.A.2 of the General Permit. The Discharger did not minimize or prevent pollutants in storm water discharges and authorized non-storm water discharges through the use of controls, structures, and management practices that achieve BAT for toxic and non-conventional pollutants and BCT for conventional pollutants. The measures in place were largely inadequate as detailed in the Notice of Violation. The inadequacies include about 17 acres of disturbed soil with inadequate erosion protection and a detention basin that was 75 percent filled in with sediment. Based on these, the permit requirement was rendered ineffective thus justifying a Deviation from Requirement of major. The Prosecution Staff used both per-gallon and per-day penalty factors as allowed by statute. The resulting per-gallon and per-day multiplier factor is 0.15, based the Potential for Harm score of 5 and a “major” Deviation from Requirement.
Assessments for Discharge Violations. The Enforcement Policy specifies that when there is a discharge, an initial liability amount based on a per-gallon and/or a per-day basis is determined using the sum of the Potential for Harm scores from Step 1 and a determination of Deviation from Requirement. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent to which a violation deviates from the specific requirement that was violated. Violations 1 through 8: The sum of the three factors from Step 1 is 5. The Deviation from Requirement for each of the Violations is major. A “major” Deviation from Requirement is one where “the requirement has been rendered ineffective….” The discharges violated the CDO interim effluent limits. An interim effluent limit is in essence a prohibition on any discharge that is not within the limit. Discharges not in compliance with an interim effluent limit render that limit ineffective. The resulting per-gallon multiplier factor is 0.150 from the matrix in Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy, based the Potential for Harm score and extent of Deviation from Requirement described above. The Prosecution Team used only per-gallon factors because using only per-day liabilities would result in an inappropriately low penalty given the volume of each of the discharges.
Assessments for Discharge Violations. This step is not applicable to Violations 1 – 8 because the violations are not discharge violations.
Assessments for Discharge Violations. This step addresses administrative civil liabilities for the discharge based on both a per- gallon and a per-day basis.
Assessments for Discharge Violations. According to Water Code section 13385, a Los Angeles Water Board may impose civil liability on a per day basis, a per gallon basis, or both. Where there is a discharge, the Water Boards shall determine an initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using the Potential for Harm score and the extent of Deviation from Requirement of the violation. These factors will be used in Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy to determine a Per Gallon Factor for the discharge. Per day assessments for discharge violations are determined based on the final Potential for Harm score and the extent of the Deviation from Requirement, which are used in Table 2 of the Enforcement Policy to determine the Per Day Factor. The Per Day Factor is multiplied by the Statutory Maximum Liability amount allowed under the Water Code (i.e. $10,000 per day).
Assessments for Discharge Violations. Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations The Enforcement Policy specifies that where there is a discharge, the Water Boards shall determine an initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using the Potential for Harm score from Step 1 and determining the extent of Deviation from Requirement as either minor, moderate, or major. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent the alleged violation deviated from the specific requirement at issue. The Potential for Harm score in Step 1 and the Deviation from Requirement determination in Step 2 are used to determine a Per Gallon Factor from Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy. The per gallon assessment is then determined by multiplying the Per Gallon Factor by the number of gallons subject to penalty and the maximum per gallon penalty amount allowed under the Water Code.
Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Regional Water Board determines an initial liability amount on a per-gallon or a per-day basis under Water Code section 13350 using the sum of the Potential for Harm scores from Step 1 and a determination of degree of Deviation from Requirement to calculate the per-gallon factor using Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy. The discharge was to groundwater not to surface water, so it is appropriate to seek penalties under Water Code section 13350, which allows either per-gallon penalties or per-day penalties, but not both. For this violation, the Regional Water Board Prosecution Staff used per-gallon factors because using only per-day liabilities would result in an inappropriately low penalty given the discharge was a significant volume of partially treated wastewater and the discharge harmed beneficial uses. For this violation, the sum of the three factors from Step 1 is 5, and the extent of Deviation for the violation is minor. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent to which the violation deviates from the specific requirement that was violated. Here, the requirement deviated from general permit specifications that “Neither the treatment nor the discharge of pollutants shall create pollution, contamination, or nuisance as defined by California Water Code Section 13050.” (Water Board Order R2-2010-0105, Attachment G – Regional Standard Provisions, and Monitoring and Reporting Requirements, Section I., I., 1., at page G-6). A minor deviation is appropriate where even though the requirement was not met the intended effectiveness of the requirement remains generally intact. While the City caused pollution and contamination, the standard requirement remained generally intact. The City planned to re-fill Pond 1A and place it back into service when the discharge occurred. The City inadvertently discharged partially treated wastewater to the subsurface. The City has never had an inadvertent discharge of this nature before. The City removed the biosolids from Pond 1A to retain the integrity of the pond for continued future use, which is consistent with retaining the integrity of the requirement to not create a condition of pollution, contamination, or nuisance. The City initially attributed the high percolation rates when refilling the pond to the clay liner and levee absorbing more water than anticipated due to drought and the long period of dormancy. (Comprehensive Report – Pond 1A Biosolids Removal, Oct. 20, 2014, pages 6-...
