North Carolina Administrative Code
Title 15A - Environmental Quality
Chapter 02 - ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
Subchapter B - SURFACE WATER AND WETLAND STANDARDS
Section .0500 - SURFACE WATER MONITORING: REPORTING
Section 02B .0506 - REPORTING REQUIREMENTS

Universal Citation: 15A NC Admin Code 02B .0506

Current through Register Vol. 39, No. 6, September 16, 2024

(a) General:

(1) Discharge Monitoring Reports. Every person subject to this Section shall file certified monitoring reports setting forth the results of tests and measurements conducted pursuant to NPDES permit monitoring requirements.
(A) Monthly monitoring reports shall be filed no later than 30 calendar days after the end of the reporting period for which the report is made.

(B) Reports filed pursuant to the requirements of Subparagraph (a)(1) of this Rule shall be submitted in a manner consistent with the requirements of 40 CFR Parts 3 and 127, which are hereby incorporated by reference including subsequent amendments and additions. Where submittal of monitoring reports on printed forms is allowed, such submittals shall be made on EPA Form 3320-1 (available at https://www3.epa.gov/npdes/pubs/dmr.pdf at no charge), DWR Form MR-1 (available at https://deq.nc.gov/about/divisions/water-resources/water-resources-permits/wastewater-branch/npdes-wastewater/forms-documents at no charge), or a substantially equivalent format approved by the Director and shall be submitted in duplicate to:

ATTN: CENTRAL FILES

DIVISION OF WATER RESOURCES

MAIL SERVICE CENTER 1617

RALEIGH, NORTH CAROLINA 27699-1617

(C) A copy of all printed reports submitted to the Director pursuant to this Section shall be retained by the owner of each permitted facility for a period of at least three years from the date of submission and shall be available on-site for inspection by the Division.

(D) In order to document information contained in reports submitted to the Director pursuant to this Section, the owner of each pollution control facility shall retain or have readily available for inspection by the Division the following items for a period of at least three years from report submission:
(i) the original laboratory reports from any certified laboratory utilized for sample analysis. Such reports must be signed by the laboratory supervisor, and must indicate the date and time of sample collection and analysis, and the analysts' name;

(ii) bench notes and data logs for sample analyses performed by the pollution control facility staff or operator in responsible charge, whether or not the facility has a certified lab; and

(iii) copies of all process control testing.

(E) In situations where no discharge has occurred from the facility during the report period, the permittee shall submit a monthly monitoring report giving all required information and indicating "NO FLOW" unless the Director agrees to waive the reporting requirement during extended conditions of no discharge.

(2) Incident Reports: 24-Hour Telephone Report.
(A) Every person subject to this Section shall report by telephone to either the central office or appropriate regional office of the Division as soon as possible but no later than 24 hours after occurrence or on the next working day following the occurrence or first knowledge of the occurrence of any of the following:
(i) any failure of a collection system, pumping station, or treatment facility resulting in a by-pass without treatment of all or any portion of the wastewater;

(ii) any occurrence at the water pollution control facility that results in the discharge of wastes that are abnormal in quantity or characteristic, such as the dumping of the contents of a sludge digester or the known passage of a hazardous substance through the facility; or

(iii) any process unit failure, due to known or unknown reasons, that renders the facility incapable of providing sufficient wastewater treatment to comply with permit requirements, such as might be caused by mechanical or electrical failures of pumps, aerators, compressors, etc.;

except that if the occurrence is one that may endanger the public health or fish or wildlife, and if contact with the central office or the appropriate regional office cannot be made, such person shall report as soon as possible to the NC Emergency Operations Center 24/7 at 1-800-858-0368 (toll-free) or 919-733-3300.

(B) The report shall provide, at a minimum, the following information in addition to the general information required in Subparagraph (a)(4) of this Rule:
(i) identity of the caller;

(ii) description of the incident;

(iii) location, date and time of the incident;

(iv) nature and estimated quantity of spill or release, if pertinent;

(v) duration and expected duration of the incident, if pertinent;

(vi) estimated nature and extent of environmental damage caused by the incident;

(vii) steps taken or anticipated in response to the incident.

(3) Incident Reports: 5-Day Written Report. Persons reporting such occurrences by telephone shall also provide a written report to the Division in letter or electronic form setting out the information required in Subparagraphs (a)(2) and (a)(4) of this Rule and pertinent information pertaining to the occurrence. This report must be received by the Division within five days following first knowledge of the occurrence.

(4) All reports required to be filed by this Section shall contain the following information in addition to such other information as is required for the particular report:
(A) name of facility;

(B) water pollution control facility location;

(C) the class assigned to the water pollution control facility;

(D) the water pollution control facility permit number assigned by the Department of Environmental Quality to the permit or other approval document issued by the Environmental Management Commission under which the discharge is made; and

(E) contact name, telephone number, email address, and mailing address; and

(5) Any person desiring confidentiality for any influent information submitted shall specify the influent information for which confidentiality is sought and shall justify such request to the Department of Environmental Quality, and, if such request is approved by the Director in accordance with G.S. 143-215.3C and 15A NCAC 02H .0115, shall by an appropriate stamp indicate the location of such information on each report filed thereafter.

(b) Monthly Monitoring Reports:

(1) Every person operating a monitoring system required by this Section shall file a monitoring report once each month that includes the data for the samples collected during the month. This report shall be filed no later than 30 calendar days after the end of the reporting period for which the report is made.

(2) Monthly monitoring reports shall be reviewed, compliance status determined, certified by signature, and submitted by the following:
(A) for a corporation: by a responsible corporate officer. For the purpose of the Section, a responsible corporate officer means:
(i) a president, secretary, treasurer or vice president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy or decision-making functions for the corporation; or

(ii) the manager of one or more manufacturing, production, or operating facilities, provided, the manager is authorized to make management decisions which govern the operation of the regulated facility including having the explicit or implicit duty of making major capital investment recommendations, and initiating and directing other comprehensive measures to ensure long term compliance with environmental laws and regulations; the manager can ensure that the necessary systems are established or actions taken to gather complete and accurate information for permit application requirements; and where authority to sign documents had been assigned or delegated to the manager in accordance with corporate procedures.

(B) for a partnership or sole proprietorship: by a general partner or the proprietor, respectively;

(C) for a municipality, State, Federal, County, or other public agency: by either a principal executive officer or ranking elected official; or

(D) a duly authorized representative of the person described in Paragraphs (b)(2)(A), (B) and (C). A person is a duly authorized representative only if:
(i) the authorization is made in writing by a person described in Paragraphs (b)(2)(A), (B) and (C);

(ii) the authorization specifies either an individual or a position having responsibility for the overall operation of the regulated facility or activity, such as the position of plant manager, operator of a well or well field, or superintendent; or an individual or position having overall responsibility for environmental matters for the company. A duly authorized representative may thus be either a named individual or any individual occupying a named position; and

(iii) the written authorization is submitted to the permitting authority. A permittee authorizing another individual to sign as representative in no way relinquishes any responsibility for the permit or his responsibility to remain familiar with the permit conditions and limits, including any modifications, and for the compliance data reports for the permit.

(E) Certification by Signature. The permittee signing the report shall certify to the following statement: "I certify, under penalty of law, that this document and all attachments were prepared under my direction or supervision in accordance with a system designed to assure that qualified personnel properly gather and evaluate the information submitted. Based on my inquiry of the person or persons who managed the system, or those persons directly responsible for gathering the information, the information submitted is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true, accurate, and complete. I am aware that there are significant penalties for submitting false information, including the possibility of fines and imprisonment for knowing violations." The monthly report shall also be certified by the operator in responsible charge of a classified treatment facility or by the manager of an industrial establishment that has a point source of waste discharge and that does not have a classified water pollution control facility.

(3) In addition to the information required on all reports as set forth in Subparagraph (a)(4) of this Rule, the following information shall be submitted in monthly monitoring reports:
(A) name of person or group collecting sample or making observation;

(B) name of person or group that analyzed sample;

(C) name of operator in responsible charge of the facility and the grade certificate held;

(D) sampling point for each sample;

(E) date and time (on 2400 hour clock basis) at which each grab sample was collected;

(F) for composite samples:
(i) date on which collection of composite samples is commenced; and

(ii) time of starting and ending of composite sample period on 2400 hour clock basis;

(G) wastewater flow in million gallons per day (MGD), or in units specified in the permit;

(H) results of analyses (reported to the designated number of figures with a properly placed decimal point as indicated on each report sheet) together with the proper storet number (to be furnished by the Division) for the analytical procedure used and the reporting units shall be those specified by the NPDES permit or current enforcement document, unless modified by the Director;

(I) only numeric values shall be accepted in reporting results of fecal coliform testing. The reporting of "too numerous to count" (TNTC) as a value shall constitute a violation;

(J) the results of all tests on the characteristics of the effluent, including but not limited to NPDES Permit Monitoring Requirements, shall be reported on monthly report forms in accordance with Subparagraph (a)(1) of this Rule.

(K) the monthly average of analysis for each parameter and the maximum and minimum values for the month shall be reported; and

(L) certification by the Operator in Responsible Charge (ORC) that, in accordance with 15A NCAC 08G .0200, the report is accurate and complete and he or she has performed and documented the required visitation and process control.

(c) Additional Monitoring and Reporting Requirements:

(1) When a facility is operated on an independent contract basis, the operator in responsible charge shall, in accordance with 15A NCAC 08G .0900, notify the owner of the facility in writing of any existing or anticipated conditions at the facility that may interfere with its proper operation and that need corrective action by the owner. The notice shall include recommendations for corrective action.

(2) Two printed copies, or an electronic copy, of the signed notice to the owner shall be sent to the Division no later than the next monthly monitoring report.

(3) A log demonstrating visitation at the proper frequency for the assigned classification, in accordance with 15A NCAC 08G .0204, including dates and times of visits and documentation of proper process control monitoring, shall be maintained and shall be submitted to the Division upon request. Copies of all information must be available for inspection for a period of three years.

(d) All information submitted shall be classified as public information unless determined otherwise by the Director in accordance with 15A NCAC 02H .0115.

Authority G.S. 143-215.1(b); 143-215.3(a)(1); 143-215.64; 143-215.65; 143-215.66;
Eff. February 1, 1976;
Amended Eff. August 2, 1993; April 1, 1993; December 1, 1984; November 1, 1978;
Readopted Eff. May 1, 2020.

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