STATE OF INDIANA ) BEFORE THE INDIANA DEPARTMENT

) SS: OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT

COUNTY OF MARION )

COMMISSIONER OF THE DEPARTMENT )
OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT, )
)

Complainant, )

)

v. ) Case No. 2003-12783-W
)
DAWN LAKES REGIONAL SEWER DISTRICT, )
)

Respondent. )

The Complainant and the Respondent desire to settle and compromise this action without hearing or adjudication of any issue of fact or law, and consent to the entry of the following Findings of Fact and Order.

1. Complainant is the Commissioner (AComplainant@) of the Indiana Department of Environmental Management, a department of the State of Indiana created by IC 13-13-1-1.

2. Respondent is the Dawn Lakes Regional Sewer District (ARespondent@), which owns and operates a wastewater collection system and a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) located north of County Road 900 North and west of County Road 300 West approximately 5 miles north of Huntington, in Huntington County, Indiana. The Respondent is authorized by National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) Permit No. IN 0051187 (the "Permit") to discharge treated wastewater from the WWTP to Clear Creek.

3. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management (AIDEM@) has jurisdiction over the parties and the subject matter of this action.

4. Pursuant to IC 13-30-3-3, on May 2, 2003, IDEM issued a Notice of Violation via Certified Mail to:

Michael Stabb, President
Dawn Lakes Regional Sewer District
9075 N. 306 West
Huntington, Indiana 46750
5. Pursuant to 327 IAC 5-2-8(1) and Part II.A.1 of the Permit, the Respondent is required to comply with all terms and conditions of the Permit. Any permit noncompliance constitutes a violation of the Clean Water Act (CWA) and IC 13 and is grounds for enforcement action.

Pursuant to 327 IAC 5-2-8(8) and Part II.B.1 of the Permit, the Respondent is required to maintain in good working order and efficiently operate all waste collection, control, treatment, and disposal facilities.

A. IDEM records, which include Discharge Monitoring Reports and Monthly Reports of Operation submitted by the Respondent for 2001 and 2002, indicate that, during wet weather, the wastewater treatment plant receives flows in excess of its design capacity, which indicates that excessive inflow and infiltration is entering the wastewater collection system. The presence of excessive inflow and infiltration in the wastewater collection system indicates a failure by the Respondent to maintain its wastewater collection system in good working order, in violation of 327 IAC 5-2-8(1), Part II.A.1 of the Permit, 327 IAC 5-2-8(8), and Part II.B.1 of the Permit.

B. IDEM inspections conducted on March 21, 2002, August 15, 2002, and January 30, 2003 revealed that the WWTP was in poor condition. Specific deficiencies noted during one or more of the above noted inspections included the following: the comminutor was inoperable and a wall of the aerobic digester had rotted through. Further, an engineering report dated October 25, 2002, prepared by McMahon Associates, Inc. for the Respondent, noted the following: the existing condition of the WWTP was extremely poor; structural failure was occurring; various pieces of equipment, such as the comminutor and one of the blowers, were inoperable; and the WWTP could not be reasonably repaired and was beyond its useful life. The Respondent's failure to maintain its WWTP in good working order is in violation of 327 IAC 5-2-8(1), Part II.A.1 of the Permit, 327 IAC 5-2-8(8), and Part II.B.1 of the Permit.

6. Pursuant to IC 13-30-2-1, a person may not discharge, emit, cause, allow, or threaten to discharge, emit, cause, or allow any contaminant or waste, including any noxious odor either alone or in combination with contaminants from other sources, into the environment in any form that causes or would cause pollution that violates or would violate rules, standards, or discharge or emission requirements adopted by the appropriate board under the environmental management laws.

The poor condition of the waste collection, control, treatment, and/or disposal facilities (as described in Finding of Fact Paragraph 5 above) poses the threat of a discharge into the environment in a form that would cause pollution that would violate rules, standards, or discharge requirements adopted by the water pollution control board, and is therefore in violation of IC 13-30-2-1.

7. The engineering report dated October 25, 2002 (also referenced in Finding of Fact Paragraph 5 above), prepared for the Respondent by McMahon Associates, Inc., included an evaluation of alternatives for correcting the deficiencies in the Respondent's wastewater collection system and WWTP. On June 3, 2003, the Respondent submitted an outline of corrective actions being taken by the Respondent, including the following:

A. The Respondent has obtained legal counsel to assure that its current ordinances are correct, legal, and enforceable.

B. The Respondent is seeking engineering reports to aid the Respondent is deciding how to correct the deficiencies in its wastewater collection system and WWTP.

C. The Respondent has installed a second flow meter to assure accurate 24 hr. flow totals.

D. The Respondent jet cleaned and removed all roots from 600 feet of discharge line, and replaced 20 feet of line due to root damage.

E. The Respondent is reinforcing various treatment units at its WWTP with new metal and bracing, including the sand filter, the chlorine contact tank, the dechlorination tank, and the post aeration tank.

F. The Respondent is continuing its efforts to identify and remove inflow and infiltration sources.

G. The Respondent is continuing to implement its biosolids removal and operations programs.

8. In recognition of the settlement reached, Respondent waives any right to administrative and judicial review of this Agreed Order.

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1. This Agreed Order shall be effective ("Effective Date") when it is approved by the Complainant or her delegate, and has been received by the Respondent. This Agreed Order shall have no force or effect until the Effective Date.

2. Respondent shall comply with 327 IAC 5-2-8(1), Part II.A.1 of the Permit, 327 IAC 5-2-8(8), Part II.B.1 of the Permit, and IC 13-30-2-1.

3. Beginning on the Effective Date of this Agreed Order and continuing until the completion of the Compliance Plan required pursuant to Order Paragraph 4 below, the Respondent shall, at all times, operate its existing wastewater collection system and WWTP as efficiently and effectively as possible.

4. Within 30 days of the Effective Date of this Agreed Order, the Respondent shall develop, and submit to IDEM for approval, a "Compliance Plan" that identifies the actions that the Respondent will take to achieve and maintain compliance with the Permit, specifically including the actions the Respondent will take to: 1) ensure that its wastewater collection system and WWTP are placed and maintained in good working order and are efficiently operated; and 2) ensure that the effluent limitations contained in the Permit are continuously met.

The Compliance Plan shall include an implementation and completion schedule, including, but not necessarily limited to, specific milestone dates for the Respondent to:

A) Decide whether and how it will: upgrade and rehabilitate its existing WWTP, construct a new WWTP, or connect to another WWTP;

B) Eliminate any remaining excessive I&I into its wastewater collection system;

C) Apply for funding to finance implementation of the Compliance Plan;

D) Decide on a means of financing implementation of the Compliance Plan;

E) Initiate construction of: 1) wastewater collection system improvements, and 2) upgrade/rehabilitation of its existing WWTP, new WWTP, or facilities needed to connect to another WWTP.

F) Complete construction of: 1) wastewater collection system improvements, and 2) upgrade/rehabilitation of its existing, new WWTP, or facilities needed to connect to another WWTP.

5. In the event that the Compliance Plan, as approved by IDEM in accordance with Order Paragraph 8 below, provides for connection to another WWTP, the Respondent shall properly close its existing WWTP, including removing and properly disposing of all remaining solids, within 6 months of connection to the other WWTP.

6. In the event that the Compliance Plan, as approved by IDEM in accordance with Order Paragraph 8 below, provides for upgrade/rehabilitation of the existing WWTP or construction of a new WWTP, the Respondent shall, upon completion of the Compliance Plan, be subject to the stipulated penalties provided in Paragraph 12 below for the failure to comply with any effluent limitation contained in the Permit.

7. In the event that the Compliance Plan, as approved by IDEM in accordance with Order Paragraph 8 below, provides for upgrade/rehabilitation of the existing WWTP or construction of a new WWTP, the Respondent shall, within 6 months of completion of the Compliance Plan ("Performance Period"), demonstrate 5 consecutive months of compliance with the effluent limitations contained in the Permit ("Compliance Demonstration"). In the event that the Respondent fails to make the Compliance Demonstration, the Respondent shall, within 60 days of becoming aware that the Compliance Demonstration cannot be achieved, develop and submit to IDEM, for approval, a plan ("Action Plan") that identifies the additional actions that the Respondent will take to achieve and maintain consistent compliance with the effluent limitations contained in the Permit. The Action Plan shall include an implementation and completion schedule, including specific milestone dates.

8. The Compliance Plan required pursuant to Order Paragraph 4 above and the Action Plan required pursuant to Order Paragraph 7 above shall be subject to the approval of IDEM. If IDEM deems a plan to be inadequate, a revised plan shall be submitted within 15 days of receipt of notice from IDEM of the inadequacies thereof. If, after submission of the first revised plan, IDEM still finds the plan to be inadequate, then IDEM will request further modification of the plan as necessary to meet IDEM's requirements, and require re-submittal of the plan by a specific date. If the subsequently submitted second revised plan does not meet IDEM's approval, IDEM will suggest specific modifications to be made to the plan and require re-submittal by a specific date. If, by the specified date, the Respondent does not submit a third revised plan that incorporates the IDEM-suggested modifications or submit an alternative adequate plan (as determined by IDEM), the IDEM-suggested modifications will be deemed incorporated into the plan.

9. The Compliance Plan and the Action Plan shall, upon approval by IDEM, be incorporated into the Agreed Order and shall be deemed an enforceable part thereof. The Respondent, upon receipt of written approval from IDEM, shall immediately implement the approved plan and adhere to the milestone dates contained therein. Failure to achieve compliance at the conclusion of work under the Action Plan will subject Respondent to additional enforcement action.

10. The Respondent shall notify IDEM, in writing, within 10 days of completion of each action contained in any approved plan. The notification shall include a description of the action completed and the date it was completed.

11. All submittals required by this Agreed Order, unless notified otherwise in writing, shall be sent to:

Terry Ressler, Enforcement Case Manager
Office of Enforcement, Room 1315, IGCS
Indiana Department of Environmental Management
100 N. Senate Avenue
P. O. Box 6015
Indianapolis, IN 46206-6015

12. In the event the terms and conditions of the following paragraphs are violated, the Complainant may assess and the Respondent shall pay a stipulated penalty in the following amount:
 

_Signed 3/24/04___

Felicia A. Robinson
Deputy Commissioner
for Legal Affairs