On this blog we’ve talked about the rumors of greater enforcement actions (see October 15 and August 5 posts). Now the Obama Administration has put their money where there mouth is and followed up.

What does this mean for Tennesseans? Well, we’re not being left out.  EPA issued a demand letter to the Knoxville Utility Board for illicit discharges (illegal dumping) of sewage from 2005-2008.  These dates are for the years immediately following our lawsuit.

Then yesterday we found out about an enforcement action EPA took against a developer for guess what?  Stormwater runoff to the tune of $350,000!  That is freakin’ huge!

Finally, we’re getting some relief!

Yesterday we went back out to Rarity Ridge to ensure they followed through with their sediment control requirements.  I must say, in the past year we have been out to this site numerous times and it has never been this well maintained.  Don’t get me wrong, it is far from perfect.  There are still several failing sediment control measures, dirt in the streeet, and other issues.  But check this out: 

Twice a year the state Water Quality Control Board opens up its floor to the public.  This is an opportunity for anyone to speak on an issue relevant to water quality and have the Board listen to you.  The WQCB is responsible for ensuring the TN Water Quality Control Act is implemented properly and has oversight of all water quality issues falling under this Act.  The meeting is October 20th and will be held on the 17th floor of TDEC’s headquarters in downtown Nashville at 401 Church Street.  Come on out and voice your concerns!

We received a response from TDEC addressing the complaint (and attached photo documentation) we sent about violations at the Rarity Ridge site in Oak Ridge.  Click here to read the response.  We appreciate TDEC’s quick follow up and inspection at the site.  We also appreciate their enforcement against the upstream contributor to sediment in Roberts Branch.  However, we think more action should have been taken to clear the streets and storm drains of months and months of collected sediment.  This site operator has been informed on more than 4 occasions about violations at the development.  Hopefully this site has taken the necessary steps to prevent dirt from entering our waters.  To make sure, we’ll get back out there soon and let you know what we find!

The U.S. EPA is putting out a call for people to help them with their enforcement program.  They’ve got a cool new tool out to help you look at water quality in relation to other states.

The meeting to discuss what you think EPA should be doing on enforcement will take place on Thursday, August 13, 2009, from 1:00 - 3:00 pm EST at EPA Headquarters, 1201 Constitution Avenue, NW, Washington DC, EPA East Building, Room 1153. A conference line will be available for those who cannot attend in person. The call-in number will be 866-212-0875, access code 764075#. Please contact Chad Carbone at 202-564-2523 with any questions. Also, please contact Chad Carbone to indicate if you will be participating via conference call, or in-person. (If you plan to attend in-person, we need your name two days in advance to get you thru building security.)

This is YOUR  chance to weigh in on what you think the feds need to do to protect clean water. We’ll be on the call too and report back to you on this blog.  We’ll do a play-by-play on our twitter account. To follow us on Twitter click here.

RvH