waste management authority
Citizen’s Suit – Motion to Intervene
DISTRICT COURT OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS
DIVISION OF ST. THOMAS AND ST. JOHN
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff
CIVIL No. 1984-104
GOVERNMENT of the VIRGIN ISLANDS
Defendant
BRIEF ON MOTION TO INTERVENE
Now comes Susan K. Wolterbeek, Pro Se, being duly sworn, and hereby states as follows:
Intervenor is a Citizen of the United States and a resident of St. Thomas, United States
Virgin Islands. An Affidavit in Support of Motion to Intervene is included with this filing.
Intervenor is bringing this Motion to Intervene as of Right, under Rule 24 (a)(1) of the
Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (F.R.C.P.). Citizens are given an unconditional right to
intervene in this case by federal statute, 33 United States Code (U.S.C.) 1365 (b)(1)(B), as (the
parties would contend that) the Administrator has commenced and is diligently prosecuting a
civil action in a court of the United States.
Intervenor has an Interest that is Significantly Protectable
In addition, Intervention is as of right under F.R.C.P. Rule 24 (a)(2). As a resident of the US
Virgin Islands, Intervenor has a compelling interest in the continued health of, not pollution of,
USVI territorial waters. As stated in the accompanying Affidavit in Support of Motion to
Intervene, [Affidavit], Intervenor moved to St. Thomas in part out of deep affection for and
commitment to Coral and Hawksbill and Green Sea Turtles, endangered and threatened
species living in the coastal waters directly surrounding the U.S. Virgin Islands. Intervenor
snorkels and swims in USVI territorial waters.
It is a scientific fact that a small drop of fecal matter can contain millions of
microorganisms of many types, some of which are pathogenic.
Microbial pathogens in raw or inadequately treated sewage can cause illnesses ranging from
temporary stomach cramps to life-threatening conditions such as inflammation of the heart.
Cholera, Typhus and SARS can cause outbreaks and death, and many of the other diseases can
debilitate people severely, such as Hepatitis A,B, Giardia Lambia, Gastroenteritis, Poliovirus,
and Poliomyelitis.
There has been a recent outbreak of Cholera in Haiti, sickening 250,000, and killing 5,000.
Apparently the outbreak was caused by a U.N. facility having sanitation problems [Exhibit 13].
This dumping of raw sewage is being done willfully, and has been for 27 years. If people fall ill,
it will have a devastating effect on the people, tourism and our economy. If we have an outbreak
of cholera or typhus, our economy will fail as well as our bodies.
Citizens have a right to enjoy our coastal waters, not to swim in raw sewage, without even
being given legal warning of these bypasses. The Affidavit reveals through 150 VIWMA Non-
Compliance Reports and newspaper articles at least 83 full days of bypassing raw sewage since
this Court’s Order of 3/18/10 [Exhibits 2-5, 15-18, 23-25].
The Affidavit details VIWMA’s failure to abide by the Territorial Pollutant Discharge
Elimination System (TPDES) Permit, and this Honorable Court’s Order by not publishing
required Public Notices before, during, and after bypasses, or posting warnings on beaches. Thus
Citizens have no knowledge if or when VIWMA is dumping raw sewage, and whether it is even
safe to go swimming. Intervenor therefore has an interest that is “significantly protectable”.
Donaldson v. United States, 400 U.S. 517, 531, 91 S.Ct. 534, 542, 27 L.Ed.2d 580 (1971).
The Motion Is Timely
This motion is timely, because this an ongoing case, with VIWMA to supply this Honorable
Court with ongoing data in regard to the wastewater systems, and a plan to buy, replace and
maintain the pumps. The Court has established an emergency fund to purchase or repair pumps
on an emergency basis with the goal that no further bypasses of raw sewage will occur, and has
held a hearing on these issues on May 11, 2011.
However, neither party has fully apprised this Honorable Court of the massive 83 days of
bypasses that VIWMA has been committing since the Order of March 18, 2010.
Exhibit 2 is a Summary of the 186 Non-Compliance Reports provided by the EPA enumerating
raw sewage discharges by VIWMA from1/1/10 -3/23/11. Defendant’s Exhibit C stated that it
included all St. Croix bypasses of raw sewage until April, 2011, yet there were several major
bypasses in March which were not included in Exhibit C.
If the rate of flow is the same as last year, these 83 days of bypasses probably exceed the
bypasses which were the subject of the emergency motion on March 11, 2010. It is therefore
important and timely to provide this Honorable Court with the full truth concerning the many
ongoing bypasses of raw sewage over the past year as well as the present condition of the pumps
and the systems which continue to break down regularly.
When determining timeliness, the Court examines the prejudice that the delay of the
intervention will cause the current parties to the litigation. Mountain Top, Mountain Top Condo.
Ass’n v. Dave Stabbert Master Builder, Inc., 72 F.3d 361 at 369-70 (3d Cir. 1995).
In the case at hand Intervention will not cause delay. To the contrary, this information will be
useful to the Court to render a decision. Even if there is any question as to timeliness,
as the Court stated in Mountaintop, when “intervention is of right, the would-be intervenor may
be seriously harmed if he is not permitted to intervene, [thus] courts should be reluctant to
dismiss a request for intervention [of right] as untimely.” Mountain Top, 72 F.3d at 368.
The Existing Parties are not adequately representing or protecting Citizens’ Interests.
Disposing of this action will impair or impede Intervenor’s ability to protect her interest in
swimming and snorkeling, and seeing living endangered species, as well as keeping the
territorial waters unpolluted by raw sewage. VIWMA has continued to pump many, many more
millions of gallons of raw sewage into USVI coastal waters since this Honorable Court’s Order
of March 18, 2010, and the EPA has allowed these illegal actions, and will not file for Contempt
or Receivership [Exhibits 6-7, 11]. The EPA has apparently made no plans to address our
polluted waters with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), the agency
responsible for protecting the territorial waters of the U.S. Virgin Islands, and who has spent
millions of dollars on projects to protect and re-colonize Corals.
Further, as detailed in the accompanying Affidavit, VIWMA has not followed specific
Court Orders in regard to the Figtree and Cancryn Pump Stations, nor maintained the requisite
back-up pumps for St. Croix.
As detailed in the accompanying Affidavit, although Intervenor has asked the EPA
Region 2 Administrator several times, in person and by letters, to stop VIWMA from continuing
to dump the raw sewage, and implored the Region 2 attorneys during weekly conference calls for
the past month to file for Contempt and Receivership, [Exhibits 6,7,10,11], the EPA will not take
such action. For the foregoing reasons, the existing parties are not adequately representing or
protecting Citizens’ interests.
As the United States Supreme Court stated, “[t]he requirement of the Rule is satisfied if the
applicant shows that representation of his interest ‘may be’ inadequate; and the burden of making
that showing should be treated as minimal.” Trbovich v. United Mine Workers, 404 U.S. 528,
538 n. 10, 92 S.Ct. 630, 636 n. 10, 30 L.Ed.2d 686 (1972). The most important factor in
determining adequacy of representation is how the interest of the absentee compares with the
interest of the present parties. If the interest of the absentee is not represented at all, or if all
existing parties are adverse to him, as in the case at hand, then he is not adequately represented.
This Intervention may be commenced Immediately
This Motion to Intervene, Complaint in Intervention, and Motion for an Expedited Hearing
on Contempt and Receivership may be brought immediately, without the normal 60 day notice,
pursuant to 33 U.S.C. 1365 (b)(2) because VIWMA is in violation of 33 U.S.C sections 1316
and/or 1317(a), [as well as this Honorable Court’s Orders] by committing illegal discharges in
violation of the effluent standard of performance under the Clean Water Act.
Therefore, since this motion is timely, Intervenor may Intervene as a matter of right
pursuant to FRCP Rule 24 (a)(1) and 33 United States Code (U.S.C.) 1365 (b)(1)(B) as well as
under F.R.C.P. Rule 24 (a)(2). In addition, Intervention is further appropriate through F.R.C.P.
Rule 24 (b)(1)(B) because Intervenor has compelling facts to offer the Court, in regard to the
150 Non-Compliance Reports since 3/18/10, signed by VIWMA and provided by the EPA,
along with the Summary of said reports.
Wherefore, Intervenor hereby requests the following relief of this Honorable Court:
- That the within Motion to Intervene is granted, and Susan K. Wolterbeek is permitted to be a party to this case, as of Right.
- That in light of the Summary of Non-Compliance Reports and newspaper articles submitted by Intervenor as Exhibits, which reveal 83 days of raw sewage bypasses, Intervenor’s Motion, Pleadings and evidence are accepted, and Intervenor may proceed in this case immediately.
- Any further relief that is just and equitable.
Respectfully submitted,
_______________________
Susan K. Wolterbeek, Pro Se
PO Box 306658
St. Thomas, VI 00803
(340) 714-2233
susan@GreenerVI.org
Territory of the US Virgin Islands
District of St. Thomas and St. John
Citizen’s Suit – Affidavit in Support of Motion to Intervene
DISTRICT COURT OF THE VIRGIN ISLANDS
DIVISION OF ST. THOMAS AND ST. JOHN
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,
Plaintiff
CIVIL No. 1984-104
GOVERNMENT of the VIRGIN ISLANDS
Defendant
AFFIDAVIT IN SUPPORT OF MOTION TO INTERVENE
Now comes Susan K. Wolterbeek, Pro Se, being duly sworn, and hereby states as follows:
VIWMA’s REPORTS REVEAL 77 DAYS OF RAW SEWAGE BYPASSES SINCE 3/18/10
I moved to St. Thomas in part out of deep affection for and commitment to Coral
and Hawksbill and Green Sea Turtles, endangered and threatened species living in the coastal
waters directly surrounding the US Virgin Islands. I snorkel and swim in USVI
territorial waters.
Pursuant to the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA), on March 28, 2011, I requested of
the EPA the start dates, stop dates and rate of flow for all raw sewage bypasses in the USVI
from 1/1/10 until the present. [Exhibit 14]. The EPA furnished 186 Non-Compliance Reports,
150 of which were issued since the 3/18/10 Court Order. A Summary of these reports is at
Exhibit 2.
These Non-Compliance Reports as a whole are available to the Court, should the Court
wish to review them. A few individual Non-Compliance Reports are at Exhibits 15-18,
and 23-25.
The total days of raw sewage bypasses between 3/18/10 and 3/23/11 reported by
VIWMA exceeds 77 days. Even so, based upon the reports themselves and newspaper articles,
[Exhibits 3-5] there were at least 6 additional days of bypassing raw sewage, and this number is
likely to be significantly higher, as several of the reports do not give stop dates, and some reports
are missing entirely.
On August 30, 2010 NaNa Gut had an “Ongoing “ bypass, [Exhibit 17] as did
Weymouth Rhymer Pump Station on 1/4/11 [Exhibit 18]. Many pump stations were not
working during Hurricane Earl, and state “n/a”, instead of a stop date. [Exhibit 2]. All of
these “Ongoing” and “n/a” bypasses were counted by me as only one day each, thus the actual
count of raw sewage bypass days may be significantly higher.
VIWMA DID NOT FILE ANY NON-COMPLIANCE REPORTS FOR A MAJOR BYPASS
On 4/28/10, the VI Daily News reported that VIWMA started pumping raw sewage over
Long Reef on Saturday, April 24, 2010, and that the bypassing was expected to continue for the
next five days, while a 4/29/10 report stated the dumping had ceased on 4/27. [Exhibit 3].
This major bypass was not included in the 186 Non-Compliance Reports of 1/1/10-3/23/11
furnished by the EPA. Assuming the EPA gave me all of the Non-Compliance Reports which
VIWMA prepared, then there are no Non-Compliance Reports for a major bypass, in clear
violation of the TPDES Permit and the Clean Water Act.
VIWMA HAS REFUSED TO GIVE REQUIRED PUBLIC NOTICE OF SEWAGE BYPASSES
I have reviewed the Avis and VI Daily News publications, and VIWMA did not give
notice of raw sewage bypasses in these publications according to the TPDES Permit or
3/18/10 Court Order. For example, although there were bypasses at LBJ for at least
4/24/10-4/27/10, at a critical time, during Ironman Triathlon practice swims and just before the
5/2/10 Ironman Race itself, Public Notices were not published every day, and apparently the
beaches were not posted either. There were newspaper articles written, on 4/28 and 4/29, after
the fact, but no public notices in the papers during the dumping of raw sewage. This event was
was barely a month after last year’s Court Order of 3/18/10 directing VIWMA to give Public
Notices as mandated in the TPDES Permit.
From January 27 through February 9, 2011, VIWMA conducted a 13 day, 11.5 hour raw
sewage bypass at LBJ for a new force main. This major planned bypass should have been
therefore reported in public notices, every day, from January 26, 2011 the day before the bypass
was to commence, through February 10, 2011, the day after the bypass was completed. Instead,
there was a newspaper article in the VI Daily News on 2/5/11, and one Public Notice in the Avis
on 2/9/11. [Exhibits 19-20].
VIWMA submitted a Non-Compliance Report for January 4, 2011, stating Weymouth
Rhymer station in St. Thomas was having an “Ongoing” bypass, [Exhibit 18] but nothing was
reported in the VI Daily News on January 4th or January 5th, 2011. Similarly, there were 13 Non-
Compliance Reports for 13 different areas and pump stations on 8/30-8/31, including an
“Ongoing” bypass in NaNa Gut, [Exhibits 2, 17] yet there were no Public Notices in the VI
Daily News for those dates.
There were 2 different bypasses from 2/24/11 to 3/2/11, one broken force main adjacent to
Hovensa, of 6 days 6 hours, and one Figtree broken force main of 5 days 22 hours [Exhibits 23-
24] . Notice was published in the Avis from February 27-March 4 for the Hovensa force main
break, [Exhibit 21] but the notice was run without spacing, in a single column at the end of the
classified ads, not a boxed notice such as the notice of Exhibit 20, which made it difficult to read
and easy to overlook.
During this past month, April – May, 2011, LBJ has been bypassing since sometime in
April. Again, this dumping of raw sewage occurred during the practice swims or even during the
Ironman Triathlon Race itself. VIWMA published identical Public Notices on April 27-29, in the
VI Daily News, [Exhibit 4] but the notices do not give start or stop dates, and VI Daily News
May 4, 2011 newspaper article states that the impacted line “currently is causing an overflow of
sewage in the area” [Exhibit 5], indicating that the discharge was still ongoing as of May 4,
2011. (If so, the Ironman Triathletes were downstream of LBJ, while LBJ was bypassing raw
sewage during their 1.5 mile swimming race at Christiansted Harbor on May 1, 2011.)
Therefore, the public has no idea when the dumping of raw sewage has started or stopped,
or if it is still continuing today. That same article states that Figtree was bypassing raw
sewage into Cane Garden Bay on May 3, 2011. Indeed, AUSA Frankel cited a May 10, 2011
Non-Compliance Report showing a bypass, which was not reported in the VI Daily News.
When I questioned the Media Relations Coordinator of DPNR about the lack of posting
warning signs on beaches, he confirmed that DPNR does not enforce that requirement, and the
excuse for violating Court Orders was that the hotels don’t like the warning signs. When asked
for the rationale of not posting on non-hotel beaches either, the response was that such posting
would not be fair. Clearly, public safety is not the priority, or following Court Orders.
VIWMA VIOLATED THE 3/18/10 COURT ORDER ON FIGTREE PUMP STATION
On 3/18/10, this Honorable Court ordered that VIWMA keep operational the Flygt house
pump borrowed from LBJ Pump Station and installed at Figtree in March, 2010. Further,
VIWMA was ordered to get another house pump for Figtree by 3/23/10, and that both pumps
were to be properly maintained and kept operational.
Despite these very specific court orders, according to the 4/11/11 Declaration of Pedro
Modesto, of the EPA, as of March 16, 2011, a year after the Court Order, only the one Flygt
house pump borrowed from LBJ is working at Figtree. The EPA’s Final Submission states that
the 8” Thompson Diesel Back-Up Pump being used at Figtree is “still not able to pump the entire
flow coming into the station.” This statement implies that a partial bypass may be occurring now.
VIWMA VIOLATED THE COURT ORDER ON CANCRYN PUMP STATION
The Cancryn Station pumps 2.5 million gallons of sewage per day in St. Thomas. The
3/18/10 Order specified that VIWMA maintain the 10-inch pump allegedly in operation at that
time, and that VIWMA further certify that the Cancryn pump station have both a six-inch and a
four-inch auxiliary diesel back-up pumps in working order.
VIWMA submitted its certification to the Court on March 23, 2010. However, in a VI
Daily News article of April 16, 2010, several weeks later, May Adams Cornwall, the Executive
Director of VIWMA is quoted, stating:
“St. Thomas’ Cancryn pump station – the island’s main station-A 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.”
[Exhibit 22].
Further, VIWMA represented during the March 2010 hearing that it would completely
upgrade Cancryn Station using EPA or Dept. of the Interior (DOI) funds. Regardless, on March
16, 2011, a year later, VIWMA admitted to the EPA that it has not begun to upgrade the station,
replacing or repairing pumps and valves, according to the EPA Submission of April 11, 2011.
VIWMA VIOLATED THE COURT ORDER ON AUXILIARY PUMPS
The 3/18/10 Court Order also specifies that 2 auxiliary diesel pumps shall be operational on
St. Croix, by March 26, 2010 (and remain operational). VIWMA avers that the Figtree Diesel
Pump, the LBJ Diesel Pump, and the 6″ Thompson pump used to pump waste over Long Reef
were all operational. In contrast, according to the 4/11/11 Declaration of Pedro Modesto, of the
EPA, these pumps have only been intermittently operational since the Emergency Hearing.
VIWMA reported in early September, 2010, that all three of these backup pumps were non-
operational, and in October, 2010 two of these pumps were not operational. These pump failures
appear to coincide with 8 days of raw sewage bypasses commencing on 9/1/10, as shown by the
Summary of Non-Compliance Reports, Exhibit 2.
THE EPA IS WITHHOLDING FROM THE PUBLIC THE QUANTITY OF RAW SEWAGE BYPASSED INTO COASTAL WATERS
Pursuant to Section 184-26(a)(3) of the TPDES Permit, any information obtained pursuant
to any monitoring, records, reporting or sampling shall be available to the public. The Permit
further specifies: “(b) Claims of confidentiality for the following information will be denied:…
(2) …effluent data.” 33 U.S.C. § 1318 (b) of the Clean Water Act also states specifically that
effluent data shall be available to the public.
Since the Non-Compliance Reports were incomplete, I renewed my FOIA request to the
EPA several times, urging the EPA to furnish to me the start and stop dates and rate of flow for
all raw sewage bypasses, so that I could fully present this evidence to the Court. [Exhibits 8-12].
The EPA has not supplied any further information beyond the Non-Compliance Reports
previously furnished, even though the EPA was to furnish this data on or before 4/18/11.
Further, it appears from remarks by EPA personnel and the reports themselves that the
EPA redacted the flow quantity from the Non-Compliance Reports before furnishing them to me.
Neither the EPA attorneys nor the FOIA Officer for Region 2 with whom I have consulted have
claimed this information is privileged, or given any reason or excuse for failing to comply with 5
U.S. Code §552.
THE EPA GROSSLY UNDERSTATED RAW SEWAGE BYPASSES TO THE COURT
Although I have beseeched the EPA repeatedly to do so, the EPA will not even alert the
Court to the massive raw sewage bypasses which have occurred since the 3/18/10 Court Order.
[Exhibits 10-12] Indeed, the EPA’s submission of April 11, 2011 grossly understates these
bypasses.
The EPA does not tell the Court Figtree had bypasses in February and March, 2011 of 5
Days 22 hours and one (by Hovensa) of 6 Days 6 Hours. The EPA mentions a Barren Spot
bypass of 3 days, while the bypass of 3/13/11 – 3/23/11 was actually for 10 days. Barren Spot
had 18 days 18 hours 30 min. of bypasses, from 3/18/10-3/28/11 in addition to however long
Barren Spot was bypassing during Hurricane Earl.
The EPA mentions some small bypasses by Mon Bijou and Campo Rico pump stations, but
left out a 4/10/2010-4/13/2010 3 day bypass at Mt.Bijou. Other Pump Station Bypasses not
mentioned by the EPA: Lagoon Street PS 3 days 22 hours, Humbug II PS 5 Days 3 ½ Hours,
NaNa Gut PS 3 Days 6 Hours. Weymouth Rhymer PS and NaNa Gut had bypasses listed as
ONGOING, without any further information, and throughout the territory many pump stations
were out during Hurricane Earl, commencing 8/30/10, without mandatory stop dates. [Exhibits
1,2, 17, 18].
The agency failed to report the major bypasses of LBJ Pump Station. Since Figtree has
LBJ’s Flygt pump and Barren Spot has LBJ’s Back-up pump, it is no surprise that LBJ has had
bypasses from 4/24/10-4/27/10, 9/8/10-9/11/10 and 1/27/11-2/9/11, over 19 days of dumping
raw sewage over Long Reef, in addition to the bypass occurring during April-May 2011,
or still Ongoing, as mentioned above [Exhibits 1-5, 19-20].
I declare under penalty of perjury that, based on information personally known to me,
information provided to me by persons at the EPA, DPNR and VIWMA, and my review of
newspaper articles pertaining to this matter, the foregoing is true and correct to the best of my
information and belief.
Respectfully submitted,
_______________________
Susan K. Wolterbeek, Pro Se
PO Box 306658
St. Thomas, VI 00803
(340) 714-2233
susan@GreenerVI.org
Territory of the US Virgin Islands
District of St. Thomas and St. John
This is What the Citizen’s Lawsuit is About
Citizen’s Lawsuit against the EPA and VIWMA, Exhibit 2
1/1/2010-3/23/2011 VIWMA Non-Compliance Reports concerning raw sewage
1/4/2010 VI Resource Center sewage into street paper and debris in line 2 Hours
1/7/2010 Chicken Fry 102 Contant overflow rocks and debris in line 1 Hour
1/11/2010 Campo Rico PS Vent line clogged sewage overflowed 3 Hours 30 min.
1/12/2010 56 Prindsens Gade sewage into street /rocks and debris 1 Hour 30 min.
1/11/2010 296A Hospital Ground sewage into street rocks and debris 1 Hour
1/14/2010 St. Croix Renaissance Manhole overflow 1 Hour 40 min.
1/15/2010 Mon Bijou PS pump motor malfunction causing overflow 5 hours
1/17/2010 Fig Tree PS house pump failed 5 Hours 30 min.
1/19/2010 Seventh Day Gut sewage overflow/ sand and debris 1 Hour
1/19/2010 Market Square sewage overflow into street /grease and debris 1 Hour
1/19/2010 Estate Thomas 14QL sewage into street/ grease rocks, stones 2 Hours
1/21/2010 Fig Tree PS suction house air locked preventing back-up system 1 Hour 30 min.
1/21/2010 Over the Bridge Bar Excessive Grease and Debris in Line 1 Hour
1/22/2010 Fig Tree PS suction hose defective 5 Hours
1/24/2010 Fig Tree PS Backup Diesel pump air locked 1 Hour 30 min.
1/25/2010 17 ABC Prindsens Gade Excessive rocks and debris in line 1 Hour 30 min.
1/30/2010 Barren Spot PS Pump coupling broke 2 Hours 10 min.
2/1/2010 Humbug 1 PS Pump was air locked 30 minutes
2/4/2010 ED Plumbing Manhole overflow excessive rocks, debris in line 1 Hour 30 min.
2/4/2010-2/5/2010 149 Hospital Ground/grease, debris says 15 hrs. actually 17 Hours
2/4/2010 146-100 Anna’s Retreat Manhole overflow/excess sand and debris 1 Hour
2/4/2010 Windward Passage Manhole overflow excess rocks and debris 1 Hour
2/5/2010-2/6/2010 15 Crown Bay fill grease, debris says 17 hours, actually 20 Hours
2/7/2010 Kirwan Terrace Lindbergh Bay excess grease and rocks 1 Hour 30 min.
2/7/2010 Frenchtown McDonald’s manhole overflow grease and debris 2 Hours
2/4/2010 ONGOING LBJ PS Figtree pumps sent off island substit. LBJ diesel Ongoing
“Pumping over the Reef”
2/10/2010-ONGOING Barren Spot PS pump failure Ongoing
2/16/2010 Dept. of Labor 2353 Kronprindsens Gade Manhole overflow 5 Hours
2/16/2010 Frenchtown McDonald’s Manhole overflow grease and debris 1 Hour
2/17/2010 Frenchtown McDonald’s Manhole overflow grease and debris 2 Hours
2/17/2010 55 Dronningens Gade Manhole overflow/grease and debris 2 Hours
2/17/2010 2nd Street Estate Thomas Manhole overflow grease and debris 1 Hour 30 min.
2/18/2010 Market Square Manhole overflow grease and debris 2 Hours
2/18/2010-2/19/2010 Crown Bay Bldg17/Texas Pit/grease, debris 21 Hours
2/20/2010 14QL Estate Thomas Manhole overflow/dirt, rocks, clothing 2 Hours
2/22/2010 Ulla Miller School Manhole overflow/ grease and debris 2 Hours
3/19/2010-3/20/2010 Contant 2A-1 Manhole overflow grease/debris 19 Hours
3/20/2010 Domino’s Gas Station, Contant Manhole overflow/grease 2 Hours 30 min.
3/26/2010-4/3/2010 16A-17 Commandant Gade overflow/grease, debris 9 Days
4/1/2010-4/3/2010 Savan Red Ball Grocery Manhole overflow/grease/sand 48 Hours
4/3/2010 385 Mon Bijou dirt and grease caused lines to clog 3 Hours 30 min.
4/3/2010 395 Mt. Pleasant manhole overflow 3 Hours
4/4/2010-4/5/2010 Ulla Muller Tamarind Tree overflow/grease, debris 24 Hours
4/4/2010-4/5/2010 200-7-1 Altona overflow/grease, debris 25 Hours 30 min.
4/4/2010-4/5/2010 Nadir Racetrack overflow/sand, debris 24 Hours 30 min.
4/7/2010 New TuTu Lower Valley PS illegal load of sludge 4 Hours
4/10/2010-4/13/2010 102 Mt.Bijou Hairline crack in #6 Force Main 3 Days 1 Hour
4/12/2010 Mon Bijou PS Electrical Panel Malfunctioned 4 Hours 44 min.
4/13/2010 346 Mon Bijou sewer lines clogged with grease and dirt 22 Hours 15 min.
4/15/2010-4/16/2010 14Q Estate Thomas Manhole overflow/sand, grease 21 Hours
4/16/2010 2nd Street Estate Thomas Manhole overflow/sand, grease 4 Hours
4/17/2010-4/18/2010 Vicinity of Gomez School Manhole overflow/grease 27 Hours
4/19/2010 Fig Tree PS electrical switch tripped 36 minutes
4/21/2010-4/22/2010 Behind Old Lucy’s Market overflow/grease, debris 24 Hours
5/3/2010 394-364 Hidden Valley overflow/rocks, debris 1 Hour
5/5/2010 Old PWD Yard station breaker malfunctioned 3 Hours 45 min.
5/5/2010 Old PWD Yard Sewage bubbling Burnt and defective wiring 1 Hours 30 min.
5/10/2010-5/11/2010 394 C-2 Anna’s Retreat Manhole overflow/grease debris 18 Hours
5/12/2010-5/13/2010 1st Ave. Sugar Estate sewage into gut/grease, debris 26 Hours 30 min.
5/14/2010 Concordia PS Discharge Vent Hose line came loose 45 minutes
5/19/2010 Concordia PS Pump Vent Line Clogged 45 minutes
5/24/2010 Bluebeard’s Castle overflow into street/stone, debris 1 Hour 30 min.
5/24/2010 23-15 Commandant Gade Manhole overflow/grease, debris 4 Hours
6/13/2010 Barren Spot PS Pump Coupling Sheared 1 Day 4 Hours
6/15/2010 202 Anna’s Retreat Manhole overflow/sand, stone, debris 5 Hours 30 min.
6/17/2010 Crown Bay Marina sewage backing up into business/grease,debris 3 Hours
6/19/2010 Cancryn PS Pump impeller clogged 30 minutes
6/19/2010 Cancryn PS Shut PS off to prevent overflowing reg. 6MGD 3 Hours
6/19/2010 Bovoni Texaco Both pumps tripped off-line/storm water 1 Hour
6/19/2010 Long Bay PS All pumps blocked with stormwater debris 2 Hours
6/20/2010 Long Bay PS Both Pump impellers blocked 2 Hours
6/20/2010 Bovoni Texaco Both Pumps tripped/clogged stormwater debris 4 Hours
6/28/2010 Barren Spot PS Pump vent line Plugged 1 Hour 15 min.
7/4/2010 239 Concordia Clogged Sewer Line 16 Hours 50 min.
7/20/2010 Mangrove Lift Station Sewage overflow, heavy rain 6 Hours
7/21/2010 Market Square overflow into street/grease, stones, debris 6 Hours
7/21/2010 Savan Lutheran Church sewage in street/ grease, rags debris 3 Hours 30 min.
7/21/2010 Polyberg Domino’s Gas sewage in street/ grease, stones, debris 3 Hours
7/24/2010 Mangrove Lift Station Sewage overflow, pump tripped 1 Hour 15 min.
7/26/2010-7-27/2010 Savan Basketball Ct. overflow onto Bask. Ct/dirt,stone 30 Hours
7/26/2010 Prindsens Gade sewage in street/ grease, sand, debris 2 Hours
7/27/2010 Pearson Gardens overflow into street/ grease and stone 2 Hours
7/27/2010 199AB Hospital Ground sewage in street/rocks,dirt debris 1 Hour
7/27/2010 Subbase Tennis Courts Sewage in Street/ grease, gravel, stone 9 Hours
7/30/2010 #3A Mon Bijou Manhole clogged with tree roots and debris 2 Hours
8/5/2010 #3A Mon Bijou Manhole clogged with tree roots and debris 1 Hour
8/18/2010 Polyberg Domino’s gas sewage into street /sand, stone, debris 2 Hours
8/18/2010 Jah Yard Hospital Ground sewage into street /sand, stone, debris 2 Hours
8/19/2010 Barren Spot PS Pump lost its prime 1 Hour 45 min.
8/21/2010 Barren Spot PS Couplings were destroyed 15 Hours 30 min.
8/23/2010 Green Corner sewage into street grease/gravel/debris 3 Hours
8/21/2010 Dept. of Labor sewage into street/ Sand, grease debris 2 Hours 30 min.
8/23/2010 Campo Rico PS Diesel pump suction line separated 2 Hours 35 min.
8/24/2010 Barren Spot PS Couplings were off balanced 2 Hours
8/30/2010 Fig Tree PS Electrical surge 1 Hour 15 min.
8/30/2010 Barren Spot House Pump Failed 1 Hour 45 min.
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 New TuTu Lower Valley Pump PS failed/loss electric 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Bovoni Texaco PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Bovoni Housing PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Weymouth Rhymer PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Subbase PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010 NaNa Gut PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl ONGOING
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Cancryn PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 11 Hours 30 min.
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Long Bay PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Airport PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/30/2010-8/31/2010 Bourfield Amco PS failed/loss electric power Hurr. Earl 1 Day?
8/31/2010 Campo Rico PS WAPA Power Surges- pump malfunction 1 Hour 15 min.
9/1/2010 Ulla Muller School Manhole overflow/ grease, debris 7 Hours
9/1/2010 Green Corner sewage in street/ grease, stones debris 7 Hours
9/1/2010-9/3/2010 Barren Spot Broken 8” sewer force main 2 Days 5 Hours
9/5/2010-9/7/2010 Barren Spot House Pump Failed 2 Days 9 Hours 30 min.
9/8/2010 Barren Spot PS House Pump Failed 12 Hours
9/8/2010-9/11/2010 LBJ Broken Force Main 2 Days 18 Hours 30 min.
9/9/2010 3359-3360 Nadir Manhole overflow stone and debris 6 Hours
9/9/2010 Na Na Gut PS impeller pump clogged with debris 3 Hours 30 min.
9/13/2010 Cancryn PS station off-line flow control relay malfunction 50 minutes
9/13/2010 11B Lindbergh Bay Happy View into street/dirt, paper, debris 2 Hours
9/14/2010 Estate TuTu E1 Manhole overflow/rocks, bottles, grease debris 3 Hours
9/14/2010 2-25 Bovoni Sewage in street/ stones, gravel, debris 1 Hour
9/16/2010-9/17/2010 Garden Street Villa Fair View sewage in st/dirt, paper 25 Hours, 30 min.
9/17/2010 1-2 Haabets Gade Sewage in Street/dirt, wire hangers, paper 4 Hours
9/19/2010 Backstreet Manhole overflow/excessive grease 3 Hours 30 min.
9/19/2010 #84 Contant Sewage in Street/excess gravel and stone 1 Hour 30 min.
9/20/2010 35 Anna’s Retreat Sewage in Street/dirt, tree roots 3 Hours
9/21/2010 Bovoni Racetrack Sewage overflow/rocks, gravel 3 Hours
9/22/2010 Fig Tree PS electrical malfunction 30 minutes
9/23/2010 Campo Rico PS suction hose came away 59 minutes
12/2/2010 Campo Rico PS clogged vent line 40 minutes
12/2/2010-12/3/2010 Barren Spot ditch line for diesel pump separated 27 Hours 15 min.
12/5/2010 Ramsey Guest House Sewage in Street/Sand, grease, gravel 1 Hour 30 min.
12/6/2010 394-171 Anna’s Retreat overflow into yard/ sand and gravel 3 Hours
12/6/2010 Bovoni Racetrack Sewage in Street/ sand and gravel 4 Hours 30 min.
12/13/2010-12/14/2010 394-134 Hidden Valley sewage in yd/debris, sand 25 Hours 30 min.
12/13/2010-12/14/2010 11B Upper Contant sewage in yd/sand, gravel 24 Hours
12/15/2010 Hospital Ground (Wallace Bldg) overflowing/grease, gravel 2 Hours
12/18/2010 Lagoon Street PS house pump failed-sewage overflow 3 days 22 hours
1/4/2011 Weymouth Rhymer PS Force Main Break Ongoing
1/4/2011 143A 13 Anna’s Retreat Sewage overflowing excessive rags, debris 2 Hours
1/6/2011-1/10/2011 148-50 Anna’s Retreat overflow, excess. Rags, debris 4 Days 2 Hours
1/7/2011-1/10/2011 146 92 Anna’s Retreat overflow/ excessive rags, debris 3 Days 3 Hours
1/9/2011-1/14/2011 Humbug II PS Obstructed Force Main 5 Days 3 ½ Hours
1/10/2011 Chicken Fry manhole overflow excessive grease, debris 2 Hours 30 min.
1/10/2011 Metro Motors overflow-excessive sand and stone 2 Hours 30 min.
1/10/2011 Frenchtown manhole overflow/excessive Grease 4 Hours
1/10/2011 Soto Town, Contant sewage overflow/sand and dirt 4 Hours
1/14/2011 St Croix Rennaissance sewer line clogged with dirt 1 Hour 30 min.
1/16/2011 Campo Rico PS clogged suction line 2 Hours 12 min.
1/27/2011-2/9/2011 LBJ new force main “10 days 11.5 hrs” (actually 13 Days 11.5 Hours)
1/30/2011 148-166 Estate TuTu Manhole overflow/excessive dirt, rocks 26 Hours
1/31/ 2011 Campo Rico PS wastewater overflow/clogged vent line 25 minutes
1/31/2011 46 Sion Farm Manhole overflow/grease clogged line 2 Hours
1/31/2011 Frenchtown Excessive dirt rocks and stones in line 3 Hours
2/2/2011 29-A Contant Sewage overflow, grease and gravel 1 Hour 30 min.
2/3/2011 #5 First Street, Sugar Estate sewage overflowing 4 Hours 30 min.
2/3/2011 Cancryn PS WAPA outage caused pump to fail 12 Hours
2/11/2011-2/14/2011 Peter’s Rest Manhole Overflow (48 Hrs/30 min) real: 72 Hours 30 min.
2/14/2011 125-60 Old TuTu sewage overflow- excess stone, gravel, debris 1 Hour 30 min.
2/14/2011 Long Path Garden Street overflow-paper towel, gravel, debris 1 Hour 30 min.
2/16/2011 Gomez School Sewage overflow- excess grease in line 1 Hour
2/17/2011 Chicken Fry manhole overflow excess grease and debris 2 Hours 30 min.
2/17/2011 Credit Union 34B-35 Norre Gade manhole overflow 1 Hour 30 min.
2/18/2011 172 Anna’s Retreat manhole overflow, excess rocks sand, debris 3 Hours 45 min.
2/22/2011 29A Contant Sewage overflowing 1 Hour 30 min.
2/22/2011 Monbijou PS Busted Suction Line Gasket 2 Hours 15 min.
2/22/2011-2/23/2011 McDonald’s, Frenchtown overflow-excessive grease 24 Hours
2/22/2011-2/23/2011 NaNa Gut PS sewage flowed into gut 1 Day?
2/23/2011 Barren Spot PS busted discharge hose 3 Hours 15 min.
2/23/2011 Weymouth Rhymer PS pump was air locked 3 Hours 15 min.
2/23/2011 New TuTu lower PS station overflow 2 Hours
2/23/2011 Chicken Fry excessive grease and debris in line 2 Hours 30 min.
2/23/2011 Contant Car Wash sewage overflowing into street-rocks, gravel 1 Hour 30 min.
2/23/2011 Palms Strada #16GB manhole overflow excess grease, debris 4 Hours
2/24/2011-3/2/2011 Force main adj to Hovensa Broken Force Main 6 Days 6 Hours
2/24/2011-3/2/2011 Fig Tree PS Broken Force Main 5 Days 22 hours
2/25/2011-3/1/2011 Hospital Ground sewage into street/gravel, stones 4 Days 35 min.
3/2/2011 Barren Spot PS pump impeller was blocked with debris 10 minutes
3/3/2011-3/4/2011 Monbijou PS Defective Pump bypassing 22 ½ Hours
3/10/2011 Campo Rico PS Clogged Suction Line 50 minutes
3/10/2011 178 and 236 Altona and Welgunst excess branches, trees, debris 2 Hours
3/12/2011 Campo Rico PS “Non- compliance Form will follow” 15 minutes
3/13/2011-3/23/2011 Barren Spot PS/submersible pump had elec. failure 10 Days
3/14/2011-3/15/2011 Anna’s Retreat basketball ct. grease, rocks 1 Day 1 Hour 15 min.
3/14/2011-3/15/2011 First Ave. Sugar Estate into street grease/debris 24 Hours
3/18/2011 New TuTu Lower PS pump station off-line shaft seal failed 1 Hour 30 min.
3/21/2011-3/24/2011 NaNa Gut PS Pump impeller 3 Days 6 Hours
3/23/2011 Campo Rico PS Clogged Vent Line 15 minutes
NOTE 1: SEVERAL OF THE BYPASSES STATE “ONGOING” WITHOUT STOP DATES, SO THE COUNT MAY BE SIGNIFICANTLY HIGHER.
NOTE 2: THESE NON-COMPLIANCE REPORTS ARE NOT COMPLETE. THEY DO NOT REFLECT THE LBJ BYPASS WHICH COMMENCED ON 4/24/10. THAT BYPASS, REPORTED 4/28/10 IN THE VI DAILY NEWS, OCCURRED DURING THE TIME IRONMAN TRIATHLETES SWAM THEIR PRACTICE SWIMS AND JUST BEFORE THE IRONMAN RACE IN CHRISTIANSTED HARBOR ON 5/2/10, IN THE AFFECTED WATERS.
NOTE 3 THE BYPASSES WHICH APPEAR TO HAVE BEEN PUMPED INTO COASTAL WATERS, THROUGH PUMP STATIONS, ARE BOLDED.
EPA Complicit – Grossly Understating Raw Sewage Dumping
This is what we got in response from the EPA:
From: Enck.Judith@epamail.epa.gov [mailto:Enck.Judith@epamail.epa.gov]
Sent: Saturday, April 30, 2011 8:36 PM
To: Susan Wolterbeek
Subject: Re: EPA has allowed at VIWMA to continue dumping millions of gallons of raw sewage into our territorial waters, despite court order and federal laws designed to protect us
Thanks. We will get back to you in about 2 weeks
Sent by EPA Wireless E-Mail Services
The following is an emailed letter sent to the EPA, NOAA, The Center For Biological Diversity and the VI Daily News
Susan K. Wolterbeek
President, GreenerVI.org
P.O. Box 306658
St. Thomas, VI 00803-6658
April 29, 2011
Judith Enck
Regional Administrator
EPA Region 2
290 Broadway
New York, New York 10007-1866
Enck.Judith@epamail.epa.gov
Administrator Enck:
We Virgin Islanders have a legal right to not have our Caribbean coastal waters filled with raw sewage. Don’t you agree? Although I met with you last May about this, and have written to you several times imploring the EPA to stop allowing millions of gallons of raw sewage to be dumped into our coastal waters, your agency still has not regulated VIWMA.
In the past year since the Court Order of 3/18/10, VIWMA has dumped raw sewage for at least 87 days according to the records which came from your office, and newspaper articles. Last year the rate testified to and reported in the VI Daily News was that raw sewage was pumped out at 1.2 million gallons per day.
If the rate is the same, that means since the 3/18/10 Court Order, 104 million gallons of raw sewage were dumped where people swim and fish, dive and snorkel, where Hawksbill and Green Sea Turtles eat, and where Staghorn and Elkhorn Coral live. We humans and these Endangered Species are protected by federal laws which your agency is sworn to uphold.
Nevertheless, within weeks VIWMA had violated the Court Orders, as I kept telling you, yet the dumpings continued, and your agency would not and will not file for Contempt, Receivership, Sanctions, or even alert NOAA that your agency’s actions, each of those bypasses, have occurred, each of which are separate violations of the Endangered Species Act.
I formally requested of your office, through the Freedom Of Information Act (FOIA), the start and stop dates and rate of flow of every bypass of raw sewage in the Territory since 1/1/10. Your office supplied me with many Non-Compliance Reports, but there are significant gaps. The 50 million gallons of raw sewage pumped over Long Reef January-March last year is not reflected in the Non-Compliance Reports for that time period, except for 2 reports, of LBJ and Barren Spot Pump Stations, which simply say “ONGOING BYPASS”.
There have been 150 Non-Compliance Reports, since the 3/18/10 Court Order, and a few of those said “ONGOING BYPASS”, too, which itself is not compliant with federal law or the TPDES Permit, and without start and stop dates, the bypasses may have continued for days, weeks, months, or they are still ongoing, so the actual days of bypass since the 3/18/10 Court Order may be significantly higher than 87. Further, there was a newspaper article about a 10 day bypass of raw sewage over Long Reef April 24-May 4, 2010, right when the Ironman Tri-athletes were swimming in the affected waters, yet there are no Non-Compliance Reports furnished for those dates. How many other major bypasses did not get written into Non-Compliance Reports?
Because the Non-Compliance Reports are woefully incomplete, I have repeatedly renewed my FOIA Request for the start and stop dates and rate of flow from your office so that I may give the Federal District Court accurate figures, yet your FIOA Officer will not release this information, without explanation, in violation of 5 U.S.C. § 552 (6)(A)(i).
In the EPA’s Final Submission, filed with the Federal District Court on 4/11/11, instead of informing the Court about this horrific 87 days bypassing of 104 million gallons of raw sewage which your agency has allowed to continue, your attorneys alluded to some small bypasses and specifically mentioned a Barren Spot 3 day bypass to the judge, [which was in truth March 13-23, 2011, 10 days, by your own records]. The EPA further failed to tell the Court about VIWMA’s continued Contempt of Court Orders by refusing to warn the public with required Public Notices and posting signs on affected beaches. What thought or care is being given to those most at risk-the elderly, pregnant women, people with immune deficiencies, and what of the turtles and coral which live in those waters?
Since the EPA will not give the Court this vital information of VIWMA’s continued willful violation of federal laws and contempt of Court Orders, it falls to us citizens to do the work. We need this continued dumping of raw sewage to stop now, and forever. I am preparing a Citizen’s Suit through a Motion to Intervene, and am asking that your agency now provide to the Public, and the Court, the full, unredacted details of all raw sewage bypasses since 1/1/10, including start dates, stop dates and rates of flow. Further, please tell me whom, if anyone, the EPA has contacted at NOAA, the National Park Service and the Department of the Interior concerning these bypasses, as each of these agencies is affected and should have been notified.
I look forward to hearing from you in regard to these issues, as soon as possible.
Sincerely
Susan K. Wolterbeek
President, GreenerVI.org
cc: Lisa Jackson, Administrator, EPA
Thomas Bigford, NOAA
Miyoko Sakashita, Oceans Director, Center For Biological Diversity
Lowe Davis, VI Daily News
Sewage diverted over St. Croix reef
Sewage diverted over St. Croix reef
By JOY BLACKBURN, Daily News Staff
Published: April 28, 2010
ST. CROIX — The V.I. Waste Management Authority started pumping sewage over Long Reef on Saturday because of a leak near the LBJ pump station.
According to a statement Waste Management released Tuesday, the authority diverted the wastewater flow to sea over the reef “to reduce the impact to the adjacent neighborhood and prevent sewer overflows in Christiansted town and surrounding areas.”
Although the statement said the diversion was because of a broken force main, spokeswoman Stella Saunders said the problem was a leak at the junction where a bypass line and the force main meet about 50 feet east of the LBJ pump station.
The bypassing over Long Reef started at 3:30 p.m. Saturday and was expected to continue for the next five days, according to the statement the authority released Tuesday.
Saunders said officials anticipate it will take that long to make the repairs, which involve letting the line drain, excavating, and repairing or replacing the affected parts.
The federal government last month filed an emergency motion in federal court seeking an order for the Waste Management Authority to make specific improvements at its Fig Tree pump station on St. Croix and at the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas to stop sewage from dumping into the sea.
In its motion, the federal government contended that between January and March, the authority discharged more than 50 million gallons of raw sewage into the Caribbean Sea — in violation of an amended consent decree and the Clean Water Act — because of pump failures at various times at both the Fig Tree and LBJ stations.
The resulting court order pertained specifically to Waste Management having operational pumps and backups at the Fig Tree station on St. Croix and at the Cancryn pump station on St. Thomas, as well as ensuring St. Croix has two operational diesel pumps for emergencies.
The Waste Management Authority must also comply with public notification requirements.
The order does not deal specifically with the LBJ pump station or the problem that Waste Management says caused the current bypass.
“You have to realize this is an old system. We have to make repairs,” Saunders said.
John Senn, a spokesman for the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, said in an e-mail that the authority informed the EPA about the problem on Monday and that EPA has requested additional information.
“We will continue to monitor the situation and are hopeful that the discharge is stopped as soon as possible,” he said.
In its statement, the Waste Management Authority advised all residents with compromised immune systems to avoid the area during this time because the sewage may contain contaminants. It said signs will be posted on the beach reminding persons to avoid the Long Reef and adjacent beach areas until the force main is back in service.
Turtles and Coral
Register to Vote / Subscribe
Please provide your Confidential email to vote and receive updates
Recent Posts
- Letter to New EPA Administator – 2/19/2017
- IG Report: EPA Must keep Toxins out of our Waters!
- Stop the Coral World Dolphin Enclosures
- LBJ Pump Station offline 2011-2013
- Letter to EPA Administrator, Region 2, May 16th, 2010
- 9-27-2001 Federal Court Order Against the VI Government; and Still, Nothing is Done
- Endangered Species Act Federal MOU
- All of the USVI Beaches are Impaired or Threatened
- Staphylococci Infections are an Issue
- DPNR is Not Testing our Coastal Waters; it’s Unbelievable, but true
- The EPA is, finally, taking Protection of Coral Seriously
- The Significance of NOAA’s Recent Proposal to Protect 66 Coral Species
- Privatization of VIWMA and WAPA
- WAPA Spewing Sticky Soot; Polluting our Air, Water and Corals
- Stench of Government Indifference – DailyNews September 2012