On June 25, 2014 I sent the following e-mail to Wes Hare of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources in Wilmington, North Carolina. You see, I was hoping to get an opinion from someone who might not be connected to Greensboro. Unknown to Mr Hare, the situation I'm describing is in-fact fiction based on the events that have taken place here locally:
"Dear Mr Hare,
I have a neighbor I'll call Fred who recently opened a landfill across the road from my home. A number of dump trucks have been coming there each day and when they finish dumping they fill out a ticket and drop it in a box so that Fred can pick it up later as Fred is away at work all day.
I overheard Fred talking with another man at the restaurant the other morning saying he is making lots of money. When the man asked him about permits Fred said he didn't need permits but when I went online to look up the rules it appears that Fred is wrong: http://ncrules.state.nc.us/ncac/title%2015a%20-%20environment%20and%20natural%20resources/chapter%2013%20-%20solid%20waste%20management/subchapter%20b/subchapter%20b%20rules.html
"15A NCAC 13B .0201 PERMIT REQUIRED
(a) No person shall treat, process, store, or dispose of solid waste or arrange for the treatment, processing, storage or disposal of solid waste except at a solid waste management facility permitted by the Division for such activity, except as provided in G.S. 130A-294(b).
(b) No person shall cause, suffer, allow, or permit the treatment, storage, or processing of solid waste upon any real or personal property owned, operated, leased, or in any way controlled by that person without first obtaining a permit for a solid waste management facility from the Division authorizing such activity, except as provided in G.S. 130A-294(b).
(c) No solid waste management facility shall be established, operated, maintained, constructed, expanded or modified without an appropriate and currently valid permit issued by the Division. It is the responsibility of every owner and operator of a proposed solid waste management facility to apply for a permit for the facility. The term "owner" shall include record owners of the land where the facility is located or proposed to be located and holders of any leasehold interest, however denominated, in any part of the land or structures where the facility is located or proposed to be located.
(d) The solid waste management facility permit, except for land clearing and inert debris permits, shall have two parts, as follows:
(1) A permit to construct a solid waste management facility shall be issued by the Division after site and construction plans have been approved and it has been determined that the facility can be operated in accordance with Article 9 of Chapter 130A and the applicable rules set forth in this Subchapter, and other applicable state, federal and local laws. An applicant shall not clear or grade land or commence construction for a solid waste management facility until a construction permit has been issued.
(2) A permit to operate a solid waste management facility may not be issued unless it has been determined that the facility has been constructed in accordance with the construction permit, that any pre-operative conditions of the construction permit have been met, and that the construction permit has been recorded, if applicable, in accordance with Rule .0204 of this Section.
(e) Land clearing and inert debris facilities may be issued a combined permit to construct and operate the facility.
(f) Land clearing and inert debris facilities subject to Rule .0563 Item (1) may construct and operate after notification as provided for under Rule .0563 Item (2).
(g) Permits, including those issued prior to the effective date of this Rule, shall be reviewed every five years. Modifications, where necessary, shall be made in accordance with rules in effect at the time of review for those areas of a permitted sanitary landfill site which have not previously received solid waste.
(h) All solid waste management facilities shall be operated in conformity with these Rules and in such a manner as to prevent the creation of a nuisance, unsanitary conditions, or potential public health hazard."
Am I reading the rules incorrectly? Can Fred legally operate a landfill without any permits? If Fred doesn't need permits then why are we paying you? What if something gets dumped there that contaminates my well? With Fred gone all day how would anyone know it was there until it was too late?
Thanks -Billy Jones"
Mr Hare's first reply on June 26:
"Mr. Jones,
Depending on the type of waste involved, landfilling in NC does require a permit. If you give me the location, I will gladly look into it."
I write back to Mr Hare:
"But Mr Hare, It reads:
"15A NCAC 13B .0201 PERMIT REQUIRED
(a) No person shall treat, process, store, or dispose of solid waste or arrange for the treatment, processing, storage or disposal of solid waste except at a solid waste management facility permitted by the Division for such activity, except as provided in G.S. 130A-294(b).
(b) No person shall cause, suffer, allow, or permit the treatment, storage, or processing of solid waste upon any real or personal property owned, operated, leased, or in any way controlled by that person without first obtaining a permit for a solid waste management facility from the Division authorizing such activity, except as provided in G.S. 130A-294(b)."
But according to § 130A-294. Solid waste management program.G.S. 130A-294(b): http://www.ncleg.net/gascripts/statutes/statutelookup.pl?statute=130A-294
"b. Repealed by Session Laws 2007-550, s. 1(a), effective August 1, 2007."
Are you certain of your decision?
Also, how will you be able to determine what kinds of materials are already buried under the ground? Do you have some sort of technology that allows you to do chemical analysis without digging up Fred's dump? I'm hesitant to send you out there to cause my neighbor a lot of problems if there is nothing there to find but I also fear not having safe water. And remember: he lives just across the road from me.
Thanks
-Billy"
Mr Hare answers, still June 26:
"Mr. Jones,
You have not specified the type of waste being hauled to the site. In lieu of “permits” we issue “notifications” for certain types of waste/operations. Other materials, such as clean concrete, brick, block, asphalt, etc. can be used as beneficial fill. Therefore, I stand by my original statement of it depending on the type of waste involved.
15A NCAC 13B .0562 BENEFICIAL FILL
A permit is not required for beneficial fill activity that meets all of the following conditions:
(1) The fill material consists only of inert debris strictly limited to concrete, brick, concrete block, uncontaminated soil, rock, and gravel.
(2) The fill activity involves no excavation.
(3) The purpose of the fill activity is to improve land use potential or other approved beneficial reuses.
(4) The fill activity is not exempt from, and must comply with, all other applicable Federal, State, and Local laws, ordinances, rules, and regulations, including but not limited to zoning restrictions, flood plain restrictions, wetland restrictions, mining regulations, sedimentation and erosion control regulations. Fill activity shall not contravene groundwater standards.
History Note: Authority G.S. 130A-294;
Eff. January 4, 1993.
15A NCAC 13B .0563 APPLICABILITY REQ. FOR LAND CLEARING/INERT DEBRIS (LCID) LANDFILLS
Management of land clearing and inert debris shall be in accordance with the State hierarchy for managing solid waste as provided for under G.S. 130A-309.04(a). Disposal in a landfill is considered to be the least desirable method of managing land clearing and inert debris. Where landfilling is necessary, the requirements of this Rule apply.
(1) An individual permit from the Division of Solid Waste Management is not required for Land Clearing and Inert Debris (LCID) landfills that meet all of the following conditions:………..
15A NCAC 13B .1402 GENERAL PROVISIONS FOR SOLID WASTE COMPOST FACILITIES
(g) A permit is not required for the following operations:
(1) Backyard composting.
(2) Farming operations and silvicultural operations where the compost is produced
from materials grown on the owner' s land and re-used on the owner' s land or
in his associated farming operations and not offered to the public.
(3) Small Type 1 Facilities meeting the following conditions:
(A) Notification of the Solid Waste Section prior to operation and
on an annual basis as to:
(i) Facility location;
(ii) Name, address and phone number of owner and
operator;
(iii) Type and amount of wastes received;
(iv) Composting process to be used; and
(v) Intended distribution of the finished product.
(B) Agreement to operate in accordance with operational
requirements as set forth in Rule.1406 and the setbacks in Rule
.1404(a)(1) - (10) of this Section.
(C) Facility operates in accordance with all other state or local
laws, ordinances, rules, regulations or orders.
(D) Facility is not located over closed-out disposal site.
(E) Safety measures are taken to prevent fires and access to fire
equipment or fire fighting services is provided.
Article 9.
Solid Waste Management
§ 130A-294. Solid waste management program
(m) Demolition debris consisting of used asphalt or used asphalt mixed with dirt, sand, gravel, rock, concrete, or similar nonhazardous material may be used as fill and need not be disposed of in a permitted landfill or solid waste disposal facility. Such demolition debris may not be placed in the waters of the State or at or below the seasonal high water table.
To answer your question regarding the possibility of material being in the ground, we have no way of knowing what is there unless we are informed of the burial. Shallow material can be detected by hand probes and deeper objects require ground penetrating radar to detect. Either way, soil removal would be required and even then, as stated above, certain materials are allowable under certain conditions. After which, proper remediation could be required based on the type of material and site conditions. If there is a concern about your drinking water, the first contact I would make would be the local Health Dept.
I would like to see your questions and concerns addressed, but there are many factors involved and clarification is required. Feel free to contact me at my office number in my signature below. Also, it appears you may be located in Greensboro. I am copying Jason Watkins, the Western District supervisor, so he will be aware of a possible incident in his area of coverage."
Myself and others are still wondering how it is that Mr Hare knew I'm located in Greensboro. Was this case already being discussed throughout NC DENR offices statewide before I contacted Wes Hare in Wilmington and if so, why?
Secondly, which statute trumps? North Carolina § 130A-294 allows the dumping of "Beneficial Fill" provided no Guilford County rules were broken but Guilford County regulations require that a permit first be issued and that the permit be limited to 1 year. Simmons Hauling Landfill was in operation from 2011 until 2013.
And NC DENR still dances around the issues of Asbestos being dumped in Danny's hole despite the fact that it was City of Greensboro employees who brought me that concern.
But we did get some answers out of Mr Hare. He wrote:
" In lieu of “permits” we issue “notifications” for certain types of waste/operations."
Were any such "notifications" issued to the Simmons Hauling landfill operation?
And for those of you who are concerned about your drinking water (and that should include not only nearby property owners with wells but anyone getting water from the Randalman Dam) Mr Wes Hare of the North Carolina Department of Environment and Natural Resources highly recommends:
"If there is a concern about your drinking water, the first contact I would make would be the local Health Dept."
Guilford County Health Department
Randolph County Health Department
Davidson County Health Department
Communities south of the Randalman Dam along the Deep River and Cape Fear River should also be concerned until this problem has been addressed. After all, we have no idea who or what besides the City of Greensboro went into Danny Simmons' unpermitted landfill. And no one from government is willing to talk about it.
