EPA v. SULFCO LLC, CHATNAM COUNTY GEORGIA

Case summary

DECEMBER 11, 2024 - ADMINISTRATIVE COMPLIANCE ORDER ON CONSENT This AOC pertains to the discharge of dredged and/or fill material into approximately 2.6 acres of jurisdictional waters of the United States. The Discharge Area is near the City of Savannah, Chatham County, Georgia (Site). The discharge occurred during the construction of a multi-use deep water marine terminal. Section 301(a) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1311(a), prohibits the discharge of pollutants by any person into waters of the United States except in compliance with a permit issued under, inter alia, Section 404 of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1344. Commencing on or about February 2020, Respondent, and/or those acting on behalf of the Respondent, discharged dredged and/or fill material into jurisdictional waters within the Discharge Area using earth moving machinery including, but not limited to, excavators and bulldozers, during unauthorized activities associated with the construction of the Seapoint Marine Industrial Complex. Currently, the unauthorized dredged and/or fill material remains in waters of the United States. Respondent's unauthorized activities in the Discharge Area impacted approximately 2.6 acres of wetlands with a continuous surface connection to the Savannah and Wilmington Rivers. The Savannah and Wilmington Rivers are both traditional navigable waters. The discharged dredged and/or fill material, including earthen material deposited at the Discharge Area, are pollutants as defined in Section 502(6) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1362(6). The earth moving machinery employed by the Respondent to deposit the dredged and/or fill material at the Discharge Area are point sources as defined in Section 502(14) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1362(14). A discharge of a pollutant as defined in Section 502(12)(A) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ?1362(12)(A), is any addition of any pollutant to navigable waters from any point source. Respondent's placement of the dredged and/or fill material into the Discharge Area is a discharge of pollutants as defined in Section 502(12) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1362(12). The term navigable waters as defined in Section 502(7) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ?1362(7), means the waters of the United States, including the territorial seas. The Discharge Area includes navigable waters as that term is defined in Section 502(7) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1362(7). At no time during the discharge of dredged and/or fill material into the Discharge Area from February 2020 to the present did the Respondent possess a permit under Section 404 of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1344, authorizing such discharge of dredged and/or fill material by Respondent. Each discharge by the Respondent of pollutants into navigable waters without the required permit issued by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) under Section 404 of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1344, is a violation of Section 301(a) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1311(a). Each day the material discharged by the Respondent remains in waters of the United States without the required permit under Section 404 of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1344, constitutes a day of violation of Section 301(a) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1311(a). Therefore, Respondent has violated Section 301(a) of the CWA, 33 U.S.C. ? 1311(a), by discharging pollutants into navigable waters without a permit.

Defendants (1)

• SULFCO LLCNamed in settlement

Facilities (1)

• SEAPOINT INDUSTRIAL MARINE COMPLEX

  SEAPOINT BLVD, SAVANNAH, GA, 31401

  Registry ID: 110071752778

Statutes cited

• CWA 404 — Permits for Dredge and Fill Material

Enforcement conclusions (1)

• SULFCO LLC, CHATNAM COUNTY GEORGIAentered 2024-12-11

  Primary law: CWA

Timeline (2 milestones)

• 2024-12-11Final Order Issued
• 2024-12-12Enforcement Action Data Entered