Repairs Force WMA to Divert Sewage Over Long Reef
By Source Staff — January 18, 2011
The LBJ sewer system pump station will be taken offline Wednesday and sewage temporarily pumped into the sea for 10 days while a V.I. Waste Management Authority contractor finishes part of the work to replace the LBJ sewer force main, according to the WMA.
VIWMA is advising residents of the LBJ Housing Community and surrounding areas to avoid groundwater in the area as it may be contaminated with sewage.
Contractor GEC is doing the work, which includes:
– Shutting down of the LBJ Pump Station and pumping over Long Reef for roughly 10 days;
– Connecting the newly installed 24-inch force main to the existing system;
– Replacing the flow meter and stand pipe at the pump station; and
– Cleaning the pump station’s wet well.
To complete this work, the LBJ Pump Station will be placed offline Wednesday and will remain offline until Jan. 27th.
According to VIWMA, this is being conducted in accordance and in compliance with the Authority’s Territorial Pollution Discharge Elimination System Permit and notification has been provided to the regulatory agencies as required.
This phase of work began with the replacement of a portion of the force main from the LBJ Pump Station, south along the access road and then east along Route 751, which runs adjacent to the LBJ Housing Community toward the WAPA Richmond Plant.
Workers installed roughly 1,300 linear feet of 24-inch PVC piping parallel to the existing force main line.
Once the sewer line work is complete, workers will repair the roadway, sidewalk or road apron, according to VIWMA.
NOAA Defers Raw Sewage Issue to EPA … and the Dumping Continues
—–Original Message—–
From: Thomas Bigford [mailto:Thomas.Bigford@noaa.gov]
Sent: Monday, May 03, 2010 1:09 PM
To: Susan Wolterbeek
Subject: Your Phone Call
Susan — I relayed the basics from our phone conversation and have been heartened by the vigorous discussion across many federal agencies and from regions to headquarters. I’ll try to distill the conversations in an email to you later today or will ask someone else to contact you in my absence (I’ll be on the west coast from Tues-Thur). Thanks again for your call.
Tom
—–Original Message—–
From: Thomas Bigford [mailto:Thomas.Bigford@noaa.gov]
Sent: Thursday, May 06, 2010 12:35 AM
To: Susan Wolterbeek
Cc: Jennifer.Koss; Jennifer Moore; Steven Thur
Subject: Re: Update Tomorrow
Susan —
Sorry for the delay. My travels to Seattle have been busier than expected.
I shared details from our phone call immediately after we talked last Friday. The coral, protected species, and habitat folks across NOAA exchanged ideas based on our conversation and your earlier postings to NOAA’s coral email address. The protected species people know their options if Acropora are present. And the coral people relayed the info to EPA Region 2, with jurisdiction in the islands. This is really a water quality issue in EPA’s hands but we realize the implications to NOAA interests, too. I have not seen any new emails in the past day so must assume EPA Region 2 in NYC and the islands are proceeding. We’ll remain in touch with them so we know what happens.
Tom
Susan Wolterbeek wrote:
Dear Tom:
I see this as impacting Endangered Species, Habitat, Coastal Zone, and your Coral Divisions. In addition to the 72 million gallons dumped 1/17-3/17, VIWMA dumped April 24-27th. Then, an Iron Man Triathalon was held on Sunday, May 2, and these top competitors, in top physical shape, swam in those waters. We need to stop this dumping. I have written an analysis and am talking with Judith Enck, Regional Director, EPA tomorrow. I will get back to you after that.
Sincerely, Susan
NOAA Notified of Illegal, Continuing Dumping of Raw Sewage
From: Thomas Bigford [mailto:Thomas.Bigford@noaa.gov]
Sent: Friday, April 30, 2010 4:04 PM
To: Susan Wolterbeek
Subject: Re: VIWMA dumping 72 million gallons or raw sewage over Long Reef, St. Croix
Thanks for your phone call and message, Susan. I have relayed the information to others and will follow up with them later today and Monday. I’ll get back to you asap.
Susan Wolterbeek wrote:
April 30, 2010
Mr. Thomas Bigford, Habitat Division (F/HC2)
National Marine Fisheries Service, NOAA
1315 East-West Highway, Rm 15317
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Dear Mr. Bigford:
I have been doing the preliminary research on various federal laws and approaches to the problem, and I think the best solution would be to file an amicus brief with the Federal District Court, in conjunction with NOAA, FWS, the Nature Conservancy and the Center for Biological Diversity, and in support of the EPA. Here are the basic facts:
There is a longstanding EPA consent decree based upon prior violations by VIWMA. VIWMA does not abide by the consent decree. VIWMA does not even do the minimum required publishing and reporting every day the fact that it is daily dumping 1.2 million gallons of raw sewage and people should stay out of the coastal waters, and fishermen should not catch fish there. This in itself is a gross negligence for failing to perform the most rudimentary of health care measures. Further, we have a large tourist population during the height of season, and they should have been warned as well as the Virgin Islanders.
Also, this discharge of 72 Million Gallons of raw sewage was dumped near protected wildlife refuges, and in coastal waters which is the home to staghorn and elkhorn coral and their habitat, all protected by the ESA as well as protected turtles, fish, and other species.
VIWMA is fiscally irresponsible, not collecting septage and other basic fees, not keeping all federally mandated records or even issuing an annual report for the past 4 years.
VIWMA has not maintained its equipment, or had a reasonable back-up system, resulting in VIWMA dumping 72 million gallons of raw sewage over Long Reef, St. Croix, over a two month period. VIWMA was told by the EPA to stop dumping but did not do so until it received a Court Order.
Federal District Court Judge Gomez issued specific orders on March 18, 2010. VIWMA then violated those orders as reported in a newspaper article.
Then, VIWMA again dumped raw sewage on April 27, 2010.
Clearly, VIWMA has no interest or intention of following court orders. We cannot wait for VIWMA to dump any more raw sewage.
The Federal District Court has the ability to take extraordinary measures on behalf of the people of the Virgin Islands for human health reasons, for criminal taking of Endangered Species, for wholescale mismanagement of the VIWMA. The Federal District Court may order the EPA to take over management of the VIWMA.
That needs to occur now. If the EPA takes over management of VIWMA, it can stop dumping, buy necessary equipment, say no to Alpine, and focus on a comprehensive waste management plan.
My rough research shows the following:
It is entirely appropriate to file an Amicus Brief , particularly when VIWMA has just violated Federal District Court Orders.
The ESA affects regulation under the Clean Water Act. In early 1999 EPA, FWS, and NMFS published a draft Memorandum of Agreement regarding enhanced coordination under the Clean Water Act and the ESA. 64 Fed. Reg. 2741-57 (January 15, 1999). Moreover, EPA has been negotiating agreements with states that issue NPDES, thus it is also appropriate and helpful to the District Court Judge to get NOAA, FWS, The Nature Conservancy and the Center for Biological Diversity’s point of view on all of this, while the case is currently before the Court.
ESA § 9 makes it unlawful for anyone to “take” a listed animal, and this includes significantly modifying its habitat.
Public Law 100-478, enacted October 7, 1988, (102 Stat 2306) included the following provisions:
- Redefines the definition of “person” to clarify law applies to municipal corporations.
Thus, NOAA and the U.S. Attorney’s Office may chose to prosecute the Senior Staff, Board of Directors, and perhaps other agency personnel for thousands of criminal violations of the ESA. All of this could have been avoided, and now so much of our coral, wildlife preserves and ecosystem in general is at risk. Given what is going on with the oil leak in the Gulf of Mexico, and how that may devastate the Florida coral populations, that makes this case all the more unconscionable, since it should never have happened.
Pursuant to ESA Chapter 7, “Each federal agency shall . . . ensure that any action authorized, funded, or carried out by such agency . . . is not likely to jeopardize the continued existence of any endangered species or threatened species or result in the destruction or adverse modification of habitat of such species.” The only way the EPA can ensure this is if it takes over VIWMA.
Do you think NOAA/NMFS would submit an Amicus Brief, either jointly with or separately from the aforementioned agencies? The Center for Biological Diversity is very interested, but they don’t have the manpower to prepare the Amicus Brief. I have been communicating with Peter Galvin, Chief, International Division, telephone: 707.986.2600 email: ‘PGalvin@biologicaldiversity.org‘
In regard to the Nature Conservancy, since they have 3 project areas of recolonization of Staghorn and Elkhorn Coral around St. Croix and 1 in St. Thomas, (through a NOAA grant) they may have all the data you need to make your criminal as well as civil action successful. The contact person there is:
Kemit-Amon Lewis, Coral Conservation Manager for The Nature Conservancy at (340) 718-5575 or via email klewis@tnc.org.
I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,
Susan K. Wolterbeek
Federal Partnership Needed in Virgin Islands
April 22, 2010
Adam Warren
Director
VI Renewable Energy Pilot Project
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
1617 Cole Blvd.
Golden, CO 80401-3305
Adam.Warren@nrel.gov
Joseph McDermott
Acting Director Liaison
Office of Insular Affairs – Policy & Liaison Division
U.S. Department of the Interior
1849 C Street, NW
Washington, DC 20240
Steve Meyers
Partnerships and Communications
NOAA Fisheries Service
1315 East West Highway
Silver Spring, Maryland 20910
Gentlemen:
I write to you as a stateside attorney and an environmental citizen’s advocate on St. Thomas. It was a pleasure to speak with all of you in regard to the VI Renewable Energy Pilot Project, the current waste and energy challenges we face in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the need to form a partnership with citizens, environmentalists and federal and local agencies to address these challenges together.
As you can see by the attached articles in the Virgin Islands Daily News, the VI Waste Management Authority (VIWMA) had a series of equipment breakdowns which resulted in dumping 1.2 million gallons of raw sewage per day over Long Reef in St. Croix from January 17 to mid-March. The main station in St. Thomas, Cancryn, “has been without a working pump for close to nine months, Cornwall said.” The landfill in St. Croix was scheduled to close years ago, and St. Thomas is not far behind. Clearly, VIWMA needs help, with a comprehensive approach toward both solid waste and wastewater treatment. These major Territorial issues are in addition to our energy woes, which you are already familiar with.
Understandably, the VI Senate is all the more pressed to find a solution to our landfill and wastewater problems as well as our energy issues. Alpine and our local government, unilaterally, without citizen knowledge or involvement, entered into an agreement in 2009 for a waste to energy concept which is fueled primarily by petroleum coke and oil, and refuse derived fuel (rdf). Many factors are not addressed by Alpine, such as, for example, the horrendous toll on the environment from heavy metal and CO2 emissions. If we do not lower our CO2 emissions, all the remaining coral in the world will die.
There has been a vehement outcry of collective opposition to the Alpine plan by citizens and environmentalists, from both an economic and an environmental perspective. Many town and community meetings have been held, dozens and dozens of Letters to the Editor have been published, Testimony has been given before the VI Senate, and several environmentalists have devoted themselves full-time to researching and educating the rest of us as to the facts and the issues involved. I prepared a brief analysis for the Senate. Please see the attached letter to Senator Malone which discusses the Alpine plan and how it is counter to the goals of EDIN and our Country’s and Territory’s pledge to decrease our reliance on oil-based solutions.
A portion of the Alpine plan was voted down by the VI Senate in March, 2010, but Alpine is modifying their proposal and will be submitting it to the VI Legislature within 2-4 weeks, according to VIWMA. According to the VI Daily News, the new Alpine plan would only burn petroleum coke in an emergency. Yet that means that rather than building a straight rtf plant, they would be building a plant for an untried technology, (burning rtf and petroleum coke), just for an emergency situation. That is not logical from an economic aspect, unless they plan to have many emergencies. The previous plan called for burning up to 4,600 hours of oil a year, with the petroleum coke and rtf. An oil-based solution, even with rtf, is not the best solution, and would tie us to the volatile oil market for at least 20 years, right when everyone has agreed in EDIN that we will be the pilot for renewable energy.
China and India are burning petroleum coke, and having a very negative impact on the world’s atmosphere. Our federal agencies cannot do anything about those jurisdictions, but you gentlemen can make all the difference by helping our Territory to say no to Alpine, and instead, working together, put great minds to the task of coming up with a comprehensive waste management system, and hopefully a waste to energy system using AC Plasma Gasification.
We citizens and environmentalists have been consulting with a Professional Engineer in Waste Management who is preparing a solid waste strategy/plan now, to submit to the VI Senate for their careful consideration as an alternative to the Alpine proposal. The concept is to address all of the USVI solid waste issues, to develop a comprehensive plan which is economical and environmentally responsible. By representatives of all concerned focused together, with transparency, we will be able to implement the plan much more efficiently, without collective energy focused on objections and lawsuits. Further, since all federal and local agencies would be involved in the process from the outset, the permitting and approvals would be more streamlined.
Alpine’s waste to energy plan would tie the territory to using petroleum coke, oil or both for at least the next 20 years. Thus, this issue involves not only the EPA, but all the federal agencies who are committed to the success of the EDIN VI Renewable Energy Pilot Project. Further, the high CO2 and heavy metal emissions, in addition to other hazardous materials, affect the islands and coastal waters which are the responsibility of NOAA and FWS. If all these federal agencies are helping us Virgin Islanders and our government to shoulder the collective responsibility for the success of this waste to energy project, we will succeed.
Our solid waste strategy/plan includes the consideration of alternating current (AC) plasma gasification, which would be a far more economical, environmentally green waste to energy system. Since AC plasma gasification is cutting edge technology, it should be of great interest to the federal agencies involved in the VI Pilot Project. We will forward these documents to you as soon as they are submitted.
Sincerely yours,
Susan K. Wolterbeek
cc: Judith Enck, EPA Administrator, Region II
Miyoko Sakashita, Esq. Center for Biological Diversity
US Attorney Notified About Continuing, Illegal Dumping of Raw Sewage
Although We Wrote to the US Attorney About Contempt of Court Orders, We Heard Nothing Further
Response email from the US Attorney
From: Hewlett, Joycelyn (USAVI) [mailto:Joycelyn.Hewlett@usdoj.gov]
Sent: Thursday, April 29, 2010 12:45 PM
To: Susan Wolterbeek
Cc: Enck.Judith@epamail.epa.gov; miyoko sakashita; Frankel, Donald (ENRD)
Subject: RE: Recent dumping of 72 million gallons of raw sewage over Long Reef
Dear Ms. Wolterbeek:
Thank you for your telephone call and e-mail. I have copied Attorney Donald Frankel, the lead attorney on this case. He has been following the developments in this case and will respond accordingly.
Original Notification Letter to US Attorney, Asking Them to Enforce Court Orders and the Endangered Species Act
Joycelyn Hewlett
Civil Chief/ FLU Supervisory Attorney
United States Attorney’s Office
United States Courthouse & Federal Building
5500 Veteran’s Drive, Suite 260
St. Thomas, Virgin Islands 00802-6424
Re: Recent dumping of 72 million gallons of raw sewage over Long Reef
Dear Attorney Hewlett:
I am a stateside attorney and former NYC Assistant District Attorney, and am writing in regard to VIWMA’s dumping 72 million gallons of raw sewage over Long Reef from January 17th through mid-March, 2010. The VI Daily News reported that Federal District Court Judge Gomez directed VIWMA to do the following:
– Ensure the one working pump at Figtree station remains operational.
– Install a second working pump at Figtree by Tuesday.
– Comply with the public notification requirements as detailed in the Territorial
Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit. According to the permit, the agency must notify the public by television, radio and newspaper each day a sewage bypass occurs.
– Ensure that St. Croix has two operational auxiliary diesel pumps for emergencies. The first must be obtained by Wednesday and the second by March 26.
– Certify that the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas has a six-inch and a four-inch auxiliary diesel pump in working order as backup for the 10-inch pump currently in operation.
The federal government said in Thursday’s court filing that in addition to the problems at LBJ and Figtree, the Barren Spot pump station on St. Croix and the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas also are in danger of failing as well.
One would think that VIWMA would be very scrupulously complying with the federal court order, purchasing and installing all the replacement and backup pumps according to the judge’s schedule. Also note that VIWMA was to certify that the Cancryn Pump Station, the main station of St. Thomas, is operational, with two back-up pumps. However, according to the VI Daily News article dated Friday, April 16, 2010:
“Because of the frequent failures, Waste Management is planning to buy a number of upgraded pumps to replace the downed pumped and a backup for each station on St. Croix.” …“St. Thomas’ Cancryn pump station – the island’s main station – has been without a working pump for close to nine months, Cornwall said. A contractor is diverting flow around Cancryn to another station while cleaning takes place. The station should be back up and running by the end of April, Cornwall said.”
These statements lead one to believe that the pumps have not been purchased yet, in direct violation of the District Court Order.
I wrote to Jim Casey, Virgin Islands Coordinator of EPA Region 2 on Monday, April 26, 2010 to suggest that the EPA may want to confirm that VIWMA has complied with the March District Court Order. Then, the next day, VIWMA again allowed raw sewage to flow into our coastal waters and the Caribbean Sea. It was emphatically stated that this new release of raw sewage was a pipe issue, not the pumps, but you may want to find out whether VIWMA bought and installed the pumps as specified in the court order, or just submitted a plan to do so.
Further, the March Court Order states that Cancryn pump station “is in danger of failing”, not that it has already failed, waste is currently diverted around Cancryn, and that station has been without a working pump for 9 months. According to the Order, VIWMA had to certify in March for Cancryn that there are 4 inch and 6 inch auxiliary backup pumps in addition to a working 10 inch operational pump. Yet, VIWMA stated in April that the Cancryn pump has not been working for 9 months, so how could they possibly make such a certification?
According to NOAA, “coral reefs buffer adjacent shorelines from wave action and prevent erosion, property damage and loss of life. Reefs also protect the highly productive wetlands along the coast, as well as ports and harbors and the economies they support. Healthy reefs contribute to local economies through tourism. Diving tours, fishing trips, hotels, restaurants, and other businesses based near reef systems provide millions of jobs and contribute billions of dollars all over the world. Recent studies show that millions of people visit coral reefs in the Florida Keys every year. These reefs alone are estimated to have an asset value of $7.6 billion (Johns et al., 2001).”
You may be aware of the enormous oil spill which is near Florida and appears to be headed for the Florida Keys, where NOAA and Coral experts have been protecting and recolonizing coral. If Florida’s coral dies from this massive oil spill, we must be all the more protective of the coral in the USVI.
There remains only 3 percent left of the coral of 30 years ago. Staghorn and Elkhorn Coral are currently protected by the Endangered Species Act, and the Center for Biological Diversity has filed a formal petition to protect 83 more imperiled coral species, seven of which are local to the U.S. Virgin Islands. These corals already face a growing threat of extinction due to rising ocean temperatures caused by global warming, and the related threat of ocean acidification. Now 72 million gallons of raw sewage has been dumped onto the reefs, then more on Tuesday. Steps must be taken to ensure there will be no more dumping, or the reefs will be gone.
Sincerely yours,
Susan K. Wolterbeek
cc: Judith Enck, EPA Administrator, Region 2
Miyoko Sakashita, Oceans Director, Center for Biological Diversity
Letter to NOAA Bureau Chiefs
February 14, 2010
Sarah Heberling, NOAA
Steve Meyers, NOAA
Dave Bernhardt, NOAA
Miles Croom, NOAA
Dear NOAA Chiefs:
The Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority is dumping an enormous amount of raw sewage onto Long Reef, St Croix, US Virgin Islands, and has been doing so all last week. Please see the VI Daily News article below. Sadly, I learned from Paul Chakroff, Executive Director of the St. Croix Environmental Association, that Waste Management has been dumping large quantities of raw sewage every few months for many years, and DPNR has kept on allowing it, every time. Each time they claim it is an emergency, so that they can qualify under a provision in a 1990 consent order between DPNR and VI Public Works, which is attached.
Paragraph 17 of said agreement states “DPNR records document an extensive chronology of unpermitted discharges of untreated sewage into the waters on all three islands.” Now, 20 years later, Waste Management is still dumping raw sewage, every few months. I have alerted Judith Enck, our new EPA Regional Administrator, of the dumping. Ms. Enck had just visited the Virgin Islands, and met with not only the local government but also with local environmentalists and concerned citizen groups, one of the first meetings of its kind here with federal agents, which we deeply appreciated. Barely two days after Administrator Enck left, Waste Management suddenly had another quarterly emergency and the dumping began again. The EPA is investigating the matter from their end, but it would help to coordinate agency efforts, and to let the USVI citizens know that you care, because they are killing our coral, and this dumping of raw sewage has been going on and on for years.
Since DPNR is under NOAA, and you are all bureau chiefs and coral experts, won’t you please force Waste Management and DPNR to come up with at least an interim plan, immediately, so they will not do any more dumping? Second, can any funds and personnel be released to evaluate and clean up Long Reef, before it is too late? I emailed Dr. Lisamarie Carrubba, our local NOAA contact, but she has not even responded. Again, this has been an ongoing problem, for decades. Can’t we please get a task force down here, from National Headquarters, before it is too late?
Waste Management still has all residents throwing garbage into huge dumpsters, without any recycling. They have agreed to the Alpine plan to build petroleum coke/oil/garbage burning plants here, using the heavy metal refuse from Venezuelan oil, hence very high in sulphur, emitting far greater CO2 than at present, right into Stalley Bay, which the local government characterized a few months ago as “pristine”, and filled with endangered species.
A lease has already been signed to build these plants in St. Thomas and St. Croix, with 444 million of Virgin Island ratepayers’ money, then run these plants for 20 years, with a renewal for another 20 years. They plan to build a 10 million dollar dock in St. Thomas, with 300 foot barges driving in all of the petroleum coke, ammonia, and other products, and barging out 370,000 tons of fly ash per year, without any spills or accidents. There would be huge intake and outflow pipes of “treated water” going out into this “pristine” bay. It is very windy here in the Virgin Islands. They plan to build silos to contain only 2 days worth of fly ash. What if the barges were to run into heavy weather several days in a row? Please see the attached letter to Senator Malone, urging him to take action and dispense with Alpine.
I am taking a similar approach with Alpine as to that which worked so successfully in Lindbergh Bay, as you all may remember from October, and caused the local government to withdraw their application to dump dredge spoils just a few days after the letter to USACE was published in the VI Daily News.
In addition to all the citizens and environmentalists who have written daily Letters to the Editor for many months now, and testified before the Senate, and the appeal of the Public Service Commission decision, I am consulting with federal agencies, supplying documentary proof, and publishing the legal analysis, but I am a private citizen, unpaid, without resources or clout of a federal agency. If NOAA has a position for this sort of work, I am your woman, but otherwise it would be of enormous help if the federal agencies would take a more proactive role here, beginning with stopping the dumping of raw sewage onto our reefs.
After all, your agency is spending millions to fund coral and coastal zone programs. Those monies and efforts are wasted if raw sewage is being dumped on the reefs, and petroleum coke/oil/garbage plants belch out heavy metals, dioxins and high levels of CO2 for the next 40 years. May we please form a coalition, now, of federal agencies, local agencies, environmentalists and citizens to address our waste and energy issues? Thank you for your consideration in regard to this matter. I look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely yours,
Susan K. Wolterbeek
Miyoko Sakashita, Esq., Center for Biological Diversity Dr. Caroline Rogers Dr. Jeff Miller Judith Enck, EPA Administrator, Region II |
Federal Judge Orders Upgrades on Illegal Sewage Discharges
Compliance and Enforcement News Release (Region 2): Virgin Islands Halts Illegal Sewage Discharge on St. Croix; Federal Judge Orders Upgrades
U.S. EPA [usaepa@govdelivery.com]
Mon 3/22/2010 4:03 PM
Virgin Islands Halts Illegal Sewage Discharge on St. Croix;
Federal Judge Orders Upgrades
Contacts: (News Media Only): John Senn, (212) 637-3667, senn.john@epa.gov, or Jose Font, (787) 977-5815, font.jose@epa.gov.
(San Juan, P.R. – March 22, 2010) Acting on a motion from the U.S. Department of Justice, U.S. Chief District Judge Curtis V. Gómez last week ordered that a pump at the Figtree Pump Station on St. Croix remain operational and that additional pumps be installed at the station after equipment failure there led to the illegal discharge of millions of gallons of raw sewage over a two month period. The Justice Department, acting on behalf of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), filed an emergency motion on March 11 to have the discharges from the Figtree Station stopped. This followed an EPA order on March 2 requiring the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority to stop discharges from the Figtree and LBJ pump stations. The discharge from LBJ, which was pumped over Long Reef north of St. Croix, had been stopped on February 26, and the Figtree discharge was stopped on March 17 when a pump was moved from the LBJ station to the Figtree station. Contact with polluted water, usually during swimming, can cause infections and illnesses, especially among children, the elderly and people with compromised immune systems.
“The continued discharge of raw sewage from a pump station in St. Croix was simply not acceptable,” said EPA Regional Administrator Judith Enck. “Discharges of raw sewage are a potential threat to public health, and are destructive to the incredible natural resources, such as coral reefs on which much of the Virgin Islands’ people and its economy depend.”
Equipment failure at the Figtree Pump Station on St. Croix led to a daily discharge of 300,000 to more than 1 million gallons of raw sewage from January 17 to March 17 into Cane Garden Bay or over Long Reef, both of which feed into the Caribbean Sea. The LBJ Pump Station was by-passed to reduce the raw sewage flowing to the Figtree Pump Station. Under normal operating conditions, sewage passes through the LBJ Pump Station, goes to the Figtree Pump Station, and then flows to the Anguilla Wastewater Treatment Plant.
Under Judge Gómez’s order, the Waste Management Authority must install a second house pump at the Figtree station by tomorrow, make sure St. Croix has two functioning auxiliary pumps by Friday, certify that two pumps at the Cancryn Pump Station are operational and comply with public notification requirements regarding sewage discharges.
Initially, the Virgin Islands Department of Planning and Natural Resources took action to stop the discharges by issuing a Notice of Violation to the Virgin Islands Waste Management Authority. When the authority failed to correct the problems, EPA issued the order directing the Waste Management Authority to immediately stop the discharges. EPA’s order also required the Waste Management Authority to implement measures to prevent equipment failures. The discharge of raw sewage is regulated by EPA under the National Pollution Discharge Elimination System, a component of the federal Clean Water Act.
“Measures to prevent the failure of equipment and contingency plans for quickly addressing damaged equipment did not exist or utterly failed in these incidents,” Enck added. “We expect the Virgin Islands to have plans in place to prevent these types of discharges from happening in the future.”
For more information on how EPA regulates the disposal of sewage, visit http://cfpub.epa.gov/npdes/home.cfm?program_id=5. For more information on EPA’s work in the U.S. Virgin Islands, visit http://epa.gov/region2/cepd/vilink.htm.
Follow EPA Region 2 on Twitter at http://twitter.com/eparegion2 and Facebook at http://www.facebook.com/eparegion2.