Latest news with #NationalPollutantDischargeEliminationSystem
Dominion Post
24-06-2025
- Health
- Dominion Post
FOG (fat, oil, grease) a constant threat to MUB's sanitary sewer system
MORGANTOWN — Much like a cardiologist, the Morgantown Utility Board is concerned with the intake of fat, oil and grease – and for similar reasons. They tend to gum up the works. As part of the utility board's NPDES, or National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, permitting process, MUB is taking a look at what General Manager Mike McNulty has identified as 'the number one issue' when it comes to backups in the sewer collection system. Collectively known as FOGs, McNulty said MUB is seeing an increase in the amount of fat, oil and grease being dumped directly into its system. While it's advised nobody knowingly pour grease or oil down the drain, the scale of the issue faced by MUB indicates it's originating at restaurants, which are required to have functional grease traps that are regularly checked and emptied. According to McNulty, MUB has started working with the Monongalia County Health Department. Through its environmental health program, MCHD conducts regular inspections of food service facilities within the county. 'We're just trying to start the process to make our customers that do have grease traps more aware of what their responsibilities are in keeping everything in good working order so those fats and oils don't overflow into the sewer collection system,' McNulty said. 'MUB staff will be visiting the different restaurants. I think we've identified about 241 locations with restaurants and cafeterias, and I think MUB and the health department will make those inspections, in some instances, together.' It was explained that restaurants typically contract with an outside service that pumps out the grease trap periodically. McNulty said checking manifests to verify regular servicing is part of the inspection process. McNulty indicated MUB already has a good idea where some of the issues are starting. 'Yes, we do have some of that data,' he said. 'We do some regular, routine flushing on some lines … and we do know where some of the problems originate from.' Dubbed 'fatbergs,' subterranean blockages made up of FOGs and other known culprits, like 'flushable' wipes, cause untold millions in property, infrastructure and environmental damage around the globe every year It's estimated that 50% of sewer blockages in the U.S. are FOG-related. On Monday, MUB dispatched a work crew with a vacuum truck to the Deckers Creek Rail Trail to clear a manhole that had become obstructed by grease. A small, local instance of what can become a very large problem. In one notable example from 2017, congealed grease restricted a midtown sewer main in Baltimore, pushing more than 1.2 million gallons of sewage into the Jones Falls River. The following year, workers in Macomb County, Michigan discovered an 11-foot wide, six-foot tall blockage that stretched for more than 100 feet. Small potatoes compared to the estimated 130-ton mass that plugged London's sewer system around that same time, requiring weeks of around-the-clock attention from specially-outfitted crews. A section of the 820-foot-long 'Whitechapel Fatberg' is on display at the London Museum.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Health
- Yahoo
Group claims wastewater permit would let Manchester dump PFAS into Merrimack River
The Conservation Law Foundation (CLF) is arguing that the state's approval of a permit allows the Manchester Wastewater Treatment Facility to discharge toxic chemicals into the Merrimack River. An appeal filed Thursday with the New Hampshire Water Council claims the New Hampshire Department of Environmental Services approved the Manchester facility's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit renewal on May 13 without evaluating or determining whether 'in light of discharges and emissions of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) from the Manchester WWTF' the treatment facility's permitted activities will comply with New Hampshire's water quality standard for toxic substances and the Merrimack River's designated use for fish consumption. Merrimack River The Merrimack River in Manchester 'People deserve safe, clean water, and state regulators have a critical role to ensure that's what we have in New Hampshire,' Tom Irwin, the Conservation Law Foundation (CLF)'s vice president for New Hampshire, said in statement. 'By failing to consider whether PFAS chemicals are violating important safeguards intended to protect water and people from toxic pollutants, regulators are putting our environment and health at risk.' A request for comment from Manchester officials was not immediately returned Thursday. PFAS chemicals, known as "forever chemicals" because they do not break down in the environment or in human bodies, have been linked to several health problems like cancer; fertility issues; child-development disorders; hormonal dysfunction; and damage to the thyroid, kidney and liver. CLF says the chemicals are found in wastewater from industrial users sent to Manchester's treatment facility, the largest such plant in northern New England and the only one in New Hampshire that incinerates its sewage sludge. CLF's appeal argues the state agency failed to evaluate whether releases of PFAS chemicals from the facility — both in wastewater discharged into the Merrimack River, and emitted into the air from the facility's sludge-burning incinerator — violate water quality standards, including regulations aimed at protecting people who consume fish. In its appeal, CLF claims that the WWTF discharges 'treated' wastewater into the Merrimack River but the WWTF's treatment process does not address or remove PFAS. Manchester wastewater treatment plant stack The air emissions pipe from the Manchester wastewater treatment plant, as seen from Gay Street. 'The WWTF has detected PFAS in its influent and 'treated' effluent (wastewater) on a monthly basis since at least 2019,' the appeal says. 'In addition to discharging PFAS into the Merrimack River through wastewater discharges, the WWTF releases PFAS into the air through sludge incineration, as confirmed by data published in a peer-reviewed study in 2023 (the Seay Study).' The Manchester facility receives wastewater from at least 88 industrial users, 14 of which (including the city's closed landfill) are classified as Significant Industrial Users under EPA and local rules, the appeal says. 'The City of Manchester applied for a new (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System) permit in 2019 and, in that application, did not disclose that its discharges contain PFAS,' the appeal says. When waste departs industrial sites in Manchester or surrounding communities like Bedford and Londonderry, it eventually winds up in the city's wastewater treatment facility, where a strainer removes debris. Solids settle at the bottom of a chamber until burned or put in a landfill, and bacteria eat any organic matter in the mix. The water is chlorinated, de-chlorinated, and put back into the Merrimack River. Leachate, a liquid found at landfill sites, is also handled at the Manchester facility. During the permit renewal process, CLF lawyers sent comments to the Department of Environmental Services in June 2024 that sources of PFAS — like wastewater treatment plants, landfills and manufacturing facilities — often disproportionately impact communities of color due to inequitable siting. 'Two U.S. Census Tracts that are located roughly two miles away from the WWTF and its incinerator are overburdened by environmental pollution,' the CLF wrote. 'One of these communities has a population that is 56 percent people of color, 62 percent low income ... another has a population that is 41 percent people of color, 43 percent low income. These two communities are located north and northeast of the facility, exposing them to health risks from breathing contaminated air when wind blows from the south. 'Manchester residents that fish near or downstream of the WWTF are also likely disproportionately impacted by the WWTF's PFAS pollution in water and air.' CLF lawyers claim PFAS pollution from the WWTF also threatens the health of residents in downstream communities that source their drinking water from the Merrimack River.
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Yahoo
Plant at center of McArthur chemical leak was site of 2009 fatal explosion, faced previous fines
MCARTHUR, Ohio (WCMH) — An explosives plant at the center of a chemical leak on Wednesday was previously fined for numerous Clean Water Act violations and was the site of a deadly explosion in 2009, according to federal records. The Austin Powder plant was fined $2.3 million in 2022 for a violation of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System, a part of the Clean Water Act that requires permits for anybody who discharges pollutants into 'water of the United States.' Between 2013 and 2022, the company had allegedly discharged hundreds of pollutants in violation of the effluent limitations stated in its permits, and didn't comply with an earlier EPA Administrative Order on Consent to resolve the concerns. More than 400,000 Ohioans see driver's license suspensions lifted under new law The company agreed to implement upgrades to the facility's wastewater treatment operations. 'This settlement will prevent tens of thousands of pounds of pollutants from entering Ohio streams and rivers each year,' an EPA official said in a 2022 news release announcing the settlement. Back in 2009, the plant was the site of an explosion that left one person dead and at least two others injured, according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. Three employees at the plant had to be flown to a hospital. One employee had burns over 90% of her body and had to have her left leg amputated. Records show the plant was cited for five 'serious' violations, resulting in a $22,750 fine. In 2023, the plant was fined $5,000 for failing to immediately notify authorities of 2,312 pounds of sulfuric acid. The plant was also fined $12,640 for not reporting a February 2017 release of 1,817 pounds of nitric acid and 1,335 pounds of sulfuric acid — both over the reportable threshold of 1,000 pounds, according to EPA records. In 2007, the plant was fined for violating the Toxic Substances Control Act, which requires companies that manufacture, process or distribute certain chemicals to report information on their activities. Multiple teenagers allegedly open fire at police officers near south Columbus park In 2015, there were two workplace accidents, according to OSHA. One resulted in an employee suffering a partial finger amputation while cleaning a machine drive belt and another involved an employee who was hit in the eye with a pressurized line. That employee was wearing safety glasses. And last year, the plant was cited for a 'serious' violation by the Occupational Health and Safety Administration. 'On or about June 5, 2024, periodic inspections of the energy control procedures for equipment, such as but not limited to the bucket elevator at the mixing plant, was not performed at least annually to ensure the procedures and requirements of the standard were being followed when employees were required to perform service and maintenance activities,' according to OSHA. In Wednesday's chemical leak, 3,000 gallons of chemicals were released out of a 5,000 gallon tank, according to a spokesperson with the Jackson County Emergency Management Agency. Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Yahoo
20-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
More than 150 acres timbered at King Coal site
bluefield — A massive timbering project at the site of the King Coal Highway project in Bluefield has concluded. Approximately 150 acres of timber was cut to make way for the next phase of the new interstate project in Mercer County, according to Rusty Marks with the public relations office for the West Virginia Department of Transportation. While much of that timbering wasn't visible to motorists traveling along the new four-lane corridor, the timbered trees are visible from the distance near the 'road closed' sign where the King Coal Highway currently connects with the existing Airport Road. That's where the next section of the interstate corridor will begin. The new $58 million contract will take the King Coal Highway another 2.5 miles from Airport Road to Littlesburg Road, near Route 20 and the Bluewell community. However, earth-moving work on that project can't begin until two permits are received by the DOH, according to Mark. Those permits may not be received until late summer. 'The contractor, Kanawha Stone, is securing a 404 permit as well as an NPDES (National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit),' Marks said in an email response to questions by the Daily Telegraph. 'If these permits are obtained prior to August, then construction work can resume. August is simply the date in which these permits are assumed to be in place so that work can begin.' A 404 permit falls under the Clean Waters Act and regulates the discharge of dredged or fill material into waters of the United States, including wetlands. A groundbreaking ceremony on the Littlesburg Road section of the King Coal Highway was held last November, but no actual work on the highway project was completed at that time due to the pending arrival of winter. A third Mercer County contract is still in the planning stages. Once it is approved, that project will extend the King Coal Highway another five miles from the Littlesburg Road area toward the Montcalm community. The Littlesburg Road to Montcalm section of the King Coal Highway is still under environmental review. A contract award date for that stretch of the roadway has not yet been announced. The King Coal Highway is West Virginia's local corridor of the future Interstate 73/74/75 routing. In West Virginia, the King Coal Highway will ultimately extend 95 miles through Mercer, McDowell, Mingo, Wyoming and Wayne counties along or near currently existing U.S. 52 from U.S. 119 near Williamson to Interstate 77 in Bluefield. In the bigger picture, the final Interstate 73/74/75 routing will extend from Detroit, Michigan to Myrtle Beach, S.C, opening up a large swath of Southern West Virginia to interstate access. According to the National I-73/74/75 Corridor Association, the project will bring growth along the interstate within six states: Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina and South Carolina. Sections of the interstate corridor are already open in other states, including North Carolina and South Carolina. Contact Charles Owens at cowens@
Chicago Tribune
15-05-2025
- Business
- Chicago Tribune
NWI environment advocates worry about BP permit application
Local community and environmental groups are worried about a proposed water pollution control permit for the BP Whiting refinery. Permit comments filed by the Environmental Law and Policy Center and Environmental Integrity Project say the permit will allow the facility to dump 'unhealthy levels of pollutants,' including mercury, into Lake Michigan, according to a news release. In a statement to the Post-Tribune, a spokesman for BP said a draft of the permit is available for public comment, but it has yet to be issued. The corporation's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit is subject to renewal every five years. The Indiana Department of Environmental Management held an April 22 public hearing as part of the renewal process, according to BP. '(BP) is committed to safe and compliant operations at the Whiting Refinery and across our global operations,' the company's statement said. 'We will continue working every day to keep this commitment and to ensure the refinery remains an important part of the Northwest Indiana economy for years to come.' Activists are asking IDEM to revise a draft permit for the plant to include stronger pollution limits for mercury, PFAs and other toxins, including arsenic, benzene and lead, according to the news release. Mercury is harmful to people of all ages, according to the news release, and it can cause brain damage to infants and poisons fish. PFAs are dangerous in very small 'parts per trillion' amounts and don't easily break down in the environment. 'The permit demonstrates BP's and the state of Indiana's disregard for the health of the people of Northwest Indiana and the Chicago area,' Kerri Gefeke, associate attorney at the Environmental Law and Policy Center, said in the news release. 'It's particularly egregious for the state to allow BP to discharge elevated levels of mercury, unknown amounts of 'forever chemicals' like PFAs, and numerous other chemicals into Lake Michigan mere feet from the beaches where people swim and fish, and a short distance from where the City of Hammond withdraws its drinking water.' Meg Parish, senior attorney at the Environmental Integrity Project, agreed with Gefeke, saying the state of Indiana shouldn't allow the permit. Various organizations sent a letter to IDEM asking the department to not renew the permit at the Whiting refinery. Carolyn McCrady, member of Gary Advocates for Responsible Development, said IDEM works for people and asked the agency to do a 'real analysis' before allowing the permit. Lisa Vallee, organizing director for Just Transition Northwest Indiana and a Whiting resident, said she was dumbfounded by the permit renewal application. The new permit contains more lax regulations, neglects to address more than 20 toxic chemicals and concerns about forever chemicals, Vallee said in a statement. 'We are not fools,' Vallee said. 'We know because we live here; every day, we smell it, see it and become ill. We will never stop fighting for the clean water, air and land we deserve.'
