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Oxford treatment plant fined $20K by Environmental Agency

Monday, April 2, 2012

The state’s environmental regulatory agency recently fined Oxford’s wastewater treatment plant more than $20,000 for discharging pollutants into a local creek.

But one local environmental group finds the penalty insufficient.

The Alabama Department of Environmental Management, or ADEM, levied $20,450 in civil penalties last month against the Oxford Water Works and Sewer Board. The fine covers discharges Oxford’s Tull C. Allen Wastewater Treatment Plant made into the Choccolocco Creek between March 2009 and December 2010. The board must pay the fine within 45 days after its issuance or face further fines.

ADEM proposed the fine in July, taking almost eight months to approve it after Coosa Riverkeeper requested the agency consider increasing penalties on the plant. Coosa Riverkeeper is a non-profit group focused on protecting and restoring the Coosa River and its tributaries in the state, such as Choccolocco Creek. Scott Hughes, spokesman for ADEM, said the agency eventually decided not to raise the penalty on the plant.

“This was the penalty that was proposed as part of the original order when it went out to public notice,” Hughes said. “We base the penalties on what is outlined in the Environmental Management Act and consider standard of care, efforts to mitigate, history of violations and ability to pay.”

Attempts to reach Oxford Water Works general manager Wayne Livingston Monday were unsuccessful.

Frank Chitwood, of Coosa Riverkeeper, said the fine was not high enough to truly penalize the plant. ADEM has the authority to levy up to $250,000 in civil penalties against a violator.

“The department is taking minimal action that favors industry and not citizens,” Chitwood said. “It’s not an amount of money to get them into compliance. Meanwhile it’s not safe to fish or swim in that section of Choccolocco Creek.”

According to the Alabama Department of Public Health 2011 fish consumption advisory, the creek is already contaminated with polychlorinated biphenyl or PCBs -– a problem that is not connected to the Oxford treatment plant. Residents are advised not to eat more than two fish a month from the creek.

The fine was levied based on an ADEM report that stated the plant discharged considerable amounts of ammonia nitrogen into the creek for several months. Fecal coliform and chlorine were also detected. The report also states ADEM inspectors performed random site visits on the plant and surrounding area, and observed a nearby manhole overflowing with foam and black sludge on the ground. A wastewater odor was noticed at the plant’s discharge site and the discharges themselves had a reddish brown color, according to ADEM report. The reddish discharges could be detected several hundred feet downstream from the site. A very thick layer of settable solids was noted on the bottom of Choccolocco Creek directly downstream from the discharge site, the report said.

In the report, Oxford treatment plant officials alleged formaldehyde from the Oxford company Kronospan had interfered with the plant’s system and caused the problems. Kronospan produces wood paneling.

Attempts to reach Kronospan Monday for comment were unsuccessful.

As part of ADEM’s fine, officials at Oxford’s plant must produce an engineering report that details the cause of the problems and summarizes an investigation of the changes needed to bring the facility back into compliance. The engineering report must also include an investigation of the necessary measures needed to prevent or minimize potential impacts to Choccolocco Creek.

“ADEM determines what is a sufficient penalty … not only a civil penalty for what has occurred, but make sure an engineering report is properly submitted and steps are taken so the problems can be corrected.”

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Keywords: Oxford treatment plant, Environmental Agency, pollutents, ADEM,

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