81 FR 28887 - Notice of Lodging of Proposed First Amended Consent Decree Under the Clean Water Act

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE

Federal Register Volume 81, Issue 90 (May 10, 2016)

[Federal Register Volume 81, Number 90 (Tuesday, May 10, 2016)]
[Notices]
[Page 28887]
From the Federal Register Online  [www.thefederalregister.org]
[FR Doc No: 2016-10954]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed First Amended Consent Decree Under 
the Clean Water Act

    On May 2, 2016, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed First 
Amended Consent Decree with the United States District Court for the 
Northern District of Ohio in the lawsuit entitled United States v. City 
of Akron, Ohio, et al., Civil Action No. 09-cv-00272.
    In this action the United States, and the State of Ohio in a cross-
claim, sought civil penalties and injunctive relief for violations of 
the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq., in connection with the 
City of Akron's (``Akron's'' or ``City's'') operation of its municipal 
wastewater treatment facility and sewer system. Under the Consent 
Decree, which was approved by the Court in January 2014, Akron was 
required to develop and implement a comprehensive plan to address 
overflows from its combined sewer system and bypasses around secondary 
treatment at the wastewater treatment facility. That plan, known as the 
``Long Term Control Plan Update'' (``LTCP Update''), which was approved 
by the United States in November 2011 and the State of Ohio in April 
2012, sets forth specific projects that the City is required to 
implement, and identifies dates for completion of these projects.
    The proposed amendment modifies two provisions of the 2014 Consent 
Decree to take into account new engineering solutions. Both of the 
affected projects are included in the approved LTCP Update. The first 
modification requires that the City expand secondary treatment at its 
wastewater treatment plant sooner than is required under the current 
agreement: Under the amended Decree, the City will achieve 220 million 
gallons/day of secondary treatment capacity by 2019 instead of 2021. In 
exchange, the City may delay by approximately two years the 
installation of a biologically enhanced high rate treatment 
(``BioActiflo'') unit at the treatment plant. The City has committed 
to, and the United States previously approved (under the terms of the 
Consent Decree itself), an increase in the size of secondary treatment 
capacity, and an equivalent reduction in the size of the BioActiflo 
unit.
    The second modification eliminates the requirement for the City to 
construct a mile-and-a-half-long sewer line parallel to an existing 
interceptor that connects the combined sewer system to the wastewater 
treatment plant. In place of the parallel sewer, the amendment requires 
the City to construct a steel reinforced concrete cap along all but a 
fraction of the existing interceptor sewer line. The cap will be in 
place by November 2017, the same Achievement of Full Operation date as 
for the original project.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the First Amended Consent Decree. Comments should be addressed to the 
Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, 
and should refer to United States v. City of Akron, Ohio, et al., D.J. 
Ref. No. 90-5-1-1-3144/2. All comments must be submitted no later than 
thirty (30) days after the publication date of this notice. Comments 
may be submitted either by email or by mail:

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         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
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By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, DC 20044-7611.
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    During the public comment period, the First Amendment to the 
Consent Decree may be examined and downloaded at this Justice 
Department Web site: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We 
will provide a paper copy of the proposed amendment to the Consent 
Decree upon written request and payment of reproduction costs. Please 
mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library, U.S. DOJ--
ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611.
    Please enclose a check or money order for $7.25 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Randall M. Stone,
Acting Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, 
Environment and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2016-10954 Filed 5-9-16; 8:45 am]
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