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

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<title>Federal Register, Volume 91 Issue 197 (Wednesday, October 14, 2026)</title>
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[Federal Register Volume 91, Number 197 (Wednesday, October 14, 2026)]
[Notices]
[Page 65266]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [<a href="http://www.gpo.gov">www.gpo.gov</a>]
[FR Doc No: 2026-21003]



[[Page 65266]]

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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


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

    On October 7, 2026, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
Fourth Amendment to the 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'') 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 
implement a comprehensive plan (the ``Long Term Control Plan Update'' 
or ``LTCP Update'') to address overflows from its combined sewer system 
and bypasses around secondary treatment at the wastewater treatment 
facility.
    The proposed amendment modifies certain provisions of the 2014 
Consent Decree set forth in the LTCP Update. The proposed amendment (1) 
replaces a construction requirement for a new treatment facility with 
Performance Criteria limiting Akron to three untreated CSO discharges 
per Typical Year and volumetric discharge limits; (2) adds monitoring, 
modeling, and reporting requirements for evaluating achievement of the 
Performance Criteria; and (3) extends the requirement that Akron 
disinfect and dechlorinate certain discharges from six to eight months 
during a calendar year.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the proposed Fourth Amendment to the Consent Decree. Comments should be 
addressed to the Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General, Energy 
and Natural Resources Division, and should refer to United States v. 
City of Akron 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 e-mail...........................  <a href="/cdn-cgi/l/email-protection#a6d6d3c4c5c9cbcbc3c8d28bc3c3d588c3c8d4c2e6d3d5c2c9cc88c1c9d0"><span class="__cf_email__" data-cfemail="e1919483828e8c8c848f95cc848492cf848f9385a19492858e8bcf868e97">[email&#160;protected]</span></a>.
By mail.............................  Principal Deputy Assistant
                                       Attorney General, U.S. DOJ--ENRD,
                                       P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC
                                       20044-7611.
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    Any comments submitted in writing may be filed by the United States 
in whole or in part on the public court docket without notice to the 
commenter.
    During the public comment period, the proposed Fourth Amendment to 
the Consent Decree may be examined and downloaded at this Justice 
Department website: <a href="http://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees">http://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees</a>. If you 
require assistance accessing the proposed Fourth Amended Consent 
Decree, you may request assistance by email or by mail to the addresses 
provided above for submitting comments.

Jason A. Dunn,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Energy and 
Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2026-21003 Filed 10-13-26; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P


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