[Federal Register Volume 83, Number 79 (Tuesday, April 24, 2018)]
[Notices]
[Pages 17852-17853]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2018-08452]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE
Notice of Lodging of Proposed Amendment To Consent Judgment Under
the Safe Drinking Water Act
On April 17, 2018, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed
amendment to the 2016 Consent Judgment (``the Consent Judgment'') with
the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York
in the lawsuit entitled United States v. State of New York et al.,
Civil Action No. 2:16-6989.
In that action, a Consent Judgment settled the United States'
claims for civil penalties and injunctive relief that arose out of
Defendants' operation of Large Capacity Cesspools (``LCCs'') in
violation of the Safe Drinking Water Act (``SDWA''), 42 U.S.C. 300h,
underground injection control (``UIC'') program, specifically the
program's Class V UIC regulations found at 40 CFR 144.80 to 144.89. The
Consent Judgment required Defendants to (1) close the prohibited LCCs,
(2) pay of a civil penalty of $150,000, and (3) perform eight
Supplement Environmental Projects (``SEPs'') in seven state parks. The
SEPs include various nitrogen reducing projects and have an estimated
value of $1,020,000.
The Amendment to Consent Judgment (``the Amendment'') proposes to
modify a constructed wetland SEP that Defendants agreed to perform at
Captree State Park, in Suffolk County, New York. The wetland would have
primarily provided for treatment of wastewater discharges from the main
comfort station and restaurant. Defendants reported that installing the
constructed wetland SEP at Captree State Park (``Captree'') would be
unworkable. Defendants report that their data collection at Captree,
including delineation of the existing sanitary system, flood hazard
areas, environmentally sensitive areas, and available space, indicates
that the site cannot accommodate a wetland large enough to treat the
waste flow.
Under the Amendment, Defendants would install and operate an
alternative waste treatment technology--a NitrexTM System
with requirement for a smaller area in which to operate. Further, the
Nitrex\TM\ system SEP at Captree would operate at the same location,
and would
[[Page 17853]]
treat the same sanitary waste streams--those emanating from the main
comfort station and a restaurant. It is estimated that the Nitrex\TM\
system SEP will reduce discharges at Captree by approximately 378
pounds per year, which is 40 additional pounds of nitrogen reduction
compared with the estimated reduction from the constructed wetland SEP.
The Nitrex\TM\ system SEP also will disturb less of an adjacent
shoreline. Additionally, under the Amendment, the SEP offers a public
educational component to demonstrate the nitrogen cycle and
environmental benefits of nitrogen removal.
The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on
the Consent Judgment. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant
Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, and
should refer to United States v. State of New York, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-
1-1-11400. All comments must be submitted no later than thirty (30)
days after the publication date of this notice. Comments may be
submitted either by email or by mail:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
To submit comments: Send them to:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
By e-mail........................... [email protected].
By mail............................. Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
Washington, D.C. 20044-7611.
------------------------------------------------------------------------
During the public comment period, the Consent Judgment may be
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department website: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of
the Consent Judgment upon written request and payment of reproduction
costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library,
U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611.
Please enclose a check or money order for $18.00 (25 cents per page
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury. For a paper
copy without the exhibits and signature pages, the cost is $10.25.
Robert Maher,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2018-08452 Filed 4-23-18; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P