Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. The Potential for Harm Score was determined in Step 1, and is 6. The Extent of Deviation is considered Major because Section 301 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. § 1311) (Clean Water Act) and Water Code Section 13376 prohibit the discharge of pollutants to waters of the United States except in compliance with a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. Furthermore, State Water Board Order No. 2006-0003-DWQ, which is not an NPDES permit and which prescribes statewide general waste discharge requirements for sanitary sewer collection systems, prohibits SSOs that result in a discharge of untreated wastewater to waters of the United States. The raw sewage discharge rendered the prohibitions on discharging pollutants to waters of the United States ineffective in their essential functions. The prohibitions would be effective only if no discharge had occurred. Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the Potential for Harm and Extent of Deviation. For this particular case, the factor is 0.22. A total discharge volume of 221,519 gallons was determined based on the reported release of 222,519 gallons of raw sewage directly into the sand wash tributaries of the Mojave River. The volume used for calculating the initial liability accounts for the amount discharged over the 1,000-gallon minimum volume for discharge amounts that are not cleaned up.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Lahontan Water Board is to 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. The Potential for Harm Score was determined in Step 1, and is 4. The Extent of Deviation is considered Major. Section 301 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. § 1311) (Clean Water Act) and Water Code Section 13376 prohibit the discharge of pollutants to waters of the United States except in compliance with a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit. Lahontan Water Board Order No. R6V-2008-004 prescribes waste discharge requirements and NPDES Permit requirements for VVWRA’s wastewater treatment plant facility. Discharge Prohibition III.A.4 of Order No. R6V-2008-004 prohibits the discharge of untreated sewage into surface waters. Discharge Prohibition III.A.5 of Order No. R6V-2008-004 prohibits the discharge of wastewater to the Mojave River except at authorized discharge points. Discharge Prohibition III.B of Order No. R6V-2008-004 prohibits the discharge, bypass, or diversion of raw or partially treated wastewater, wastewater biosolids, grease, or oils from the collection, transport, treatment, emergency storage, or disposal facilities to adjacent land areas or surface waters. The calculation methodology defines a major deviation as, The sludge supernatant discharge rendered the prohibition on discharging pollutants to waters of the United States in violation of the NPDES permit ineffective in its essential functions. The prohibition would be effective only if no discharge had occurred. Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the Potential for Harm and Extent of Deviation. For Violation No. 1, the factor is 0.025. A total discharge volume of 0 gallons was determined based on the reported release of 230 gallons of sludge supernatant to the wetlands within the flood plain area of the Mojave River. This volume is less than the 1,000 gallon minimum volume for assessing civil liability for discharge amounts that are not cleaned up.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. The Potential for Harm Score was determined in Step 1, and is 5. The Extent of Deviation is considered Moderate. This is based upon two conditions. First, the discharge location was approximately 20 feet upstream from VVWRA’s authorized discharge point for the Mojave River. Therefore, Prosecution Staff asserts that while Discharge Prohibitions III.A.5 and III.B were not met, the effectiveness of these requirements was only partially compromised, given the very close proximity of the discharge location to VVWRA’s authorized discharge point (approximately 20 feet). Second, the discharge was primarily fully-treated wastewater, except that it had not been dechlorinated. It is likely that the discharge’s quality would have complied with all NPDES Permit effluent limitations, except for chlorine residual concentration. The discharge’s chlorine residual would have come into compliance shortly after being released and mixing with VVWRA’s authorized discharge, which had a residual sodium biosulfate concentration capable of dechlorinating the discharge. Therefore, Prosecution Staff asserts that while Discharge Prohibition III.A.4 was not met, the requirement’s effectiveness was only partially compromised, given the significant amount of treatment that had occurred and the short distance and relatively small area where the discharge quality would have likely exceeded only a single NPDES Permit effluent limitation (chlorine residual). Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the Potential for Harm and Extent of Deviation. For this particular case, the factor is 0.1. A total discharge volume of 109,700 gallons was determined based on the reported release of 110,700 gallons of treated effluent with elevated concentrations of total chlorine residual directly into the Mojave River. The volume used for calculating the initial liability accounts for the amount discharged over the 1,000-gallon minimum volume for discharge amounts that are not cleaned up.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Regional Board shall determine an initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using the Potential for Harm Score and Deviation from Requirement. The Prosecution Team does not have enough information to determine the volume of the discharge and therefore, a per gallon assessment is not applicable for this violation.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Board may also determine an initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using on the Potential for Harm score and the extent of Deviation from Requirement of the violation. The Potential for Harm Score was determined above, and is 8. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent to which the violation deviates from the specific requirement (effluent limitation, prohibition, monitoring requirement, etc.) that was violated. For this discharge, as discussed above, the Deviation from Requirement is considered “major.” Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy (p. 14) is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the total score from Step 1 and the level of Deviation from Requirement. For this particular case, the factor is 0.6. This value is multiplied by the volume of discharge and the per gallon civil liability, as described below.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Central Valley Water Board is to determine the initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using the Potential for Harm score from Step 1 (a score of 6 was determined) and the extent of Deviation from Requirement of the violation. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent to which the violation deviates from the specific requirement (effluent limitation, prohibition, monitoring requirement, etc.) that was violated. For this discharge, the Deviation from Requirement is considered “Major” because the Discharger did not comply with the Water Code requirement to apply for a permit before discharging pollutants to waters of the U.S. Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy is used to determine the “per gallon factor” based on the total score from Step 1 and the Deviation from Requirement. For this case the factor is 0.22. This value is multiplied by the volume of discharge and the per gallon civil liability, as described below. In the Discharger’s 15 September 2016 Remediation Plan, the Discharger estimated that between 900 and 1,840 cubic yards of asphalt grindings were discharged off of the Sites #1-4 parking lot areas during the winter of 2015-2016 due to snow removal operations. The Discharger has not yet estimated the volume of asphalt grindings that were discharged off of Sites #5-8. The Discharger also estimated that approximately 970 cubic yards of asphalt grindings has been recovered from Sites #1-4. Water Code section 13385(c)(2) states that a maximum civil liability amount of $10 per gallon is to be based on the number of gallons discharged but not cleaned up, over 1,000 gallons for the discharge. Board staff assumed that at least 90 cubic yards (18,178 gallons) of asphalt discharged from the Site #1-4 parking lots and was not recovered. Therefore, 17,178 gallons of asphaltic grindings are subject to penalties under Water Code section 13385(c)(2). The Enforcement Policy allows reductions in the maximum per gallon liability based on the volume discharged and the material discharged. The Enforcement Policy recommends a maximum of $2 per gallon for very large sewage spills or municipal or construction storm water discharges. In addition, a maximum of $1 per gallon is recommended for discharges of recycled water. The material discharged does not meet the Enforcement Policy’s criteria for a high volume discharge subject to a reduced maximum per gallon liability. Therefore, the Prosecution team used the statutory maximum...
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 the extent of Deviation from Requirement of the violation. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent the violation deviated from the specific requirement at issue, and are categorized as either minor, moderate, or major. The Potential for Harm score from Step 1 and the Deviation from Requirement determination in Step 2 are used to determine a Per Gallon Factor by consulting 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 California Water Code. The Prosecution Team determines that the Deviation from Requirement for the alleged violation is Major. A score of Major is assigned because the Discharger intentionally discharged the drilling fluid into a catch basin within a parking lot that flowed into a storm drain without a permit. Clean Water Act section 301 prohibits any person to discharge any pollutant into waters of the United States without authorization. The unauthorized discharge rendered the requirement not to discharge pollutant to waters of the United States without a permit entirely ineffective in its essential function. Therefore, the violation was characterized as a Major deviation from the requirement. As determined in Step 1, the Potential for Harm factor for the alleged violation is 4. Therefore, the Prosecution Team determines that the Per Gallon Factor is 0.08 in accordance with Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy.
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Central Valley Water Board is to 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. The Potential for Harm Score was determined in Step 1 and is 7. The Statewide General Waste Discharge Requirements for Sanitary Sewer System (SSS General Order) No. 2006-0003-DWQ prohibits any sanitary sewer overflow (SSO) that results in discharge of untreated wastewater to waters of the United States. Similarly, the Clean Water Act prohibits the discharge of a pollutant from a point source to waters of the United States without first having obtained an NPDES permit. In this case, the discharge of untreated sewage is a major deviation from these required standards. Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy (p. 14) is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the total score from Step 1 and the level of Deviation from Requirement. For this particular case, the factor is 0.41. This value of 0.41 is multiplied by the volume of discharge and the days of discharge, as described below. The Enforcement Policy allows for a reduction in the maximum penalty amount of $10 per gallon for high volume discharges between 100,000 gallons and 2,000,000 gallons for each discharge event. The City of Xxxxxxx estimated that a total of 81,012 gallons spilled during the incident and that 12,100 gallons was recovered during the cleanup with a vacuum truck, resulting in 68,912 gallons reaching Jackson Creek. CCFG disputed the City’s discharge volume estimate. After conducting an independent review of the available evidence, including the dimensions of the excavation and backfill volume using photographs of the excavation, the SSO technical report, site plans and aerial imagery to determine the approximate residual wastewater that may have been contained in the backfill and not recovered or discharged, as well as the volume of unrecovered wastewater saturating the undisturbed subsurface of the excavation cavity using regional soil data and the period of the SSO release, the Prosecution Team estimates that an additional 12,000 gallons was not recovered by the vacuum truck and did not discharge, resulting in an estimated 57,000 gallons of raw sewage flowing into Jackson Creek. Since the spill is reported to be 81,012 gallons and approximately 57,000 gallons reached surface waters, the 1 and 2 February 2018 spill incident is not considered to be “high volume” based o...
Per Gallon Assessments for Discharge Violations. When there is a discharge, the Board is to determine an initial liability amount on a per gallon basis using on the Potential for Harm score and the extent of Deviation from Requirement of the violation. The Potential for Harm Score was determined above, and is 10. The Deviation from Requirement reflects the extent to which the violation deviates from the specific requirement (effluent limitation, prohibition, monitoring requirement, etc.) that was violated. For this discharge, the Deviation from Requirement is considered “moderate” because the Discharger did not comply with the Water Code requirement to apply for a permit before discharging pollutants to waters of the U.S. Table 1 of the Enforcement Policy (p. 14) is used to determine a “per gallon factor” based on the total score from Step 1 and the level of Deviation from Requirement. For this particular case, the factor is 0.5. This value is multiplied by the volume of discharge and the per gallon civil liability, as described below. The Discharger estimated that 54,580,000 gallons of water discharged from the reservoir during the period in question, of which 6,700,000 gallons contained sediment from the bottom of the reservoir. Because the volume of the discharge is so great, it is considered a “high volume discharge” under the Enforcement Policy. For high volume discharges, the Enforcement Policy allows a value of either $2/gallon (for sewage or storm water) or $1/gallon (for recycled water) instead of the maximum civil liability of $10/gallon allowed under Water Code section 13385. In this case, it is appropriate to use the $2/gallon civil liability for storm water because the pollutants from the reservoir were turbidity and sediment. Water Code section 13385(c)(2) states that the civil liability amount is to be based on the number of gallons discharged but not cleaned up, over 1,000 gallons for each spill event. There was one discharge event, which continued for a period of five days. Therefore, of the 6,700,000 gallons discharged containing sediment, a total of 6,699,000 gallons were discharged in excess of 1,000 gallons during the reservoir draw down. The Per Gallon Assessment is calculated as (0.5 factor from Table 1) x (6,699,000 gallons) x ($2 per gallon). The value is $6,699,000.
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.
