Last evening at a Public Hearing in Raleigh, the National Pollution Discharge Elimination Systems (NPDES) permit(s) for Southern Granville County Water and Sewer Authority (SGWASA) and several other dischargers who have consistently failed to meet permit requirements and water quality standards were challenged by the Neuse River Foundation as will as several residents from Butner.
Clean Water NC has deemed SGWASA as a “chronic polluter” and they have worked closely with residents of Butner to provide the community with the tools needed to have a better understanding of the potenial environmetal consequences of SGWASA’s continued non-compliance. SGWASA’s history speaks for its self consider this from Raleigh Eco News;
Southern Granville County Water and Sewer Authority’s sewage treatment plant, formerly Butner, has had a long history of compliance problems that have contributed directly to declining water quality in Falls Lake — a drinking water supply for 400,000 Wake County Citizens. Since 2003, this plant has received 86 Notice of Violations or enforcement actions by the state, totaling more than $61,000 in fines and penalties. Falls Lake was listed as impaired from pollution on the states 303d “Impaired Waters” list.
The NCDENR, Division of Water Quality notified SGWASA of the “significant changes from their current permit” on May 7, 2008. For those of you who have yet to comment there is still time to let your voice be heard. The comment period for the NPDES permit for SGWASA was extended unti June 30. This is not a new issue for those of us who live in Butner but we can have a hand in how this plays out in the future.
Filed under: Activism, Business, Butner, Civil Rights, Creedmoor, Durham, Environmental, Government, Green, Local, Nature, News, North Carolina, Opinion, Politics, Public Health, Raleigh
I am not receiving Butner water yet, but in the future I will be. I am concerned with the fines and penalties they have received and from what I have observed they have a long way to go to comply.
Water is a precious resource that should be protected. Before any additional developments are considered permits should be withheld. Most people that use Butner’s water have to buy water for drinking, what a shame.
Growing up in Granville County I can remember drinking water from streams, it was pure and clean, buy I would not dare do so now. What have we done to our water supplies.