DNREC Requires Allen Harim to Act on Environmental Concerns at Harbeson and Millsboro Poultry Plants

Conciliation Order Resolves Prior Effluent Problems at Harbeson Facility

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control announced the signing of a conciliation order today with Allen Harim Foods, LLC that requires the company to take actions protective of human health and the environment at its Millsboro and Harbeson facilities.

According to the order, Allen Harim is required to perform wastewater reduction actions; to investigate and install stormwater improvements; and to terminate stream discharge for wastewater disposal purposes at both the Harbeson and Millsboro facilities. Also, the order resolves past effluent violations at the Harbeson facility and requires cleanout and repurposing of an old anaerobic lagoon as a diversion lagoon for non-compliant wastewater prior to retreatment and disposal.

Beyond those DNREC requirements Allen Harim agrees to pay a penalty of $150,340 and will be subject to stipulated penalties by the Department for non-compliance with any corrective action provisions of the order. The conciliation order between DNREC and Allen Harim can be found at dnrec.delaware.gov.

The second action taken today by DNREC concerning Allen Harim involves the issuance of an Onsite Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Operations Permit for the company’s Harbeson facility. The operations permit allows Allen Harim to perform onsite treatment of poultry processing wastewater and subsequently to transfer treated effluent to Artesian’s Northern Sussex Regional Recharge Facility for disposal via spray irrigation. The operations permit requires that Allen Harim implement the same high level of treatment that would be required for spray disposal at golf courses or state parks. The permit also requires Allen Harim to divert non-compliant wastewater onsite for retreatment if needed.

A copy of the operations permit can be found at the DNREC Groundwater Discharges webpage at https://de.gov/gwds.

Media Contacts: Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov; Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov

DNREC Issues Wastewater Permits to Mountaire Farms for Making Pollution Control Improvements at Millsboro Plant

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control has issued two permits this week to Mountaire Farms of Delaware to construct and operate an upgraded wastewater treatment facility at its Millsboro plant. The upgraded facility will allow the poultry producer to address the regulatory compliance issues and wastewater violations that led to the September 2017 wastewater treatment plant failure. The permits will also allow Mountaire to move forward with pollution reduction improvements at the plant.

Mountaire is required to construct and operate the upgraded wastewater treatment facility as part of a May 2020 agreement with the Department. In addition, the Department has requested that the U.S. District Court for the District of Delaware enter the agreement as a consent decree. The District Court’s decision is pending. Together, the permits authorize Mountaire to construct significant upgrades to its wastewater treatment facility and to put wastewater treatment improvements into operation when construction is complete.

The On-Site Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Construction permit issued by DNREC authorizes Mountaire to make significant upgrades to the existing wastewater treatment facility at the Millsboro poultry processing complex. Among other improvements, the wastewater treatment facility upgrades will provide enhanced wastewater treatment capabilities resulting in total nitrogen concentrations of 10 mg/L or less in treated effluent, which aligns with state and federal drinking water standards for the protection of public health. This highly treated effluent will then be spray irrigated onto permitted agricultural fields where additional nutrient reductions will occur through crop uptake.

The second permit issued by DNREC to Mountaire was a modification and renewal of Mountaire’s Operations Permit for on-site wastewater treatment and disposal, which authorizes spray irrigation of Mountaire’s treated wastewater on 893 acres of permitted agricultural fields in Sussex County. The Operations Permit modification provides for more stringent effluent limitations and enhanced monitoring requirements and also authorizes Mountaire to place facility upgrades into operation once construction is complete.

Both permits were issued in accordance with 7 Del. Admin. C. §7101, Delaware Regulations Governing the Design, Installation and Operation of On-Site Wastewater Treatment and Disposal Systems and 7 Del.C. Chapter 60. The Secretary’s Order and Mountaire permits can be found on the DNREC website.

Media Contacts: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov; Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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DNREC to Host Public Hearing on Diamond State Port Corp.’s Proposed Container Port on Sept. 29

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control will hold a virtual public hearing Tuesday, Sept. 29 on a proposal from the Diamond State Port Corporation (DSPC) to construct a new container port on the Delaware River at the DSPC property at 4600 Hay Road, Edgemoor, New Castle County.

The proposed container port project will require permits from both DNREC’s Division of Water and the Division of Waste of Hazardous Substances, as well as a Federal Consistency Certification from the Delaware Coastal Management Program within DNREC’s Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy, all of which will be presented for public comment in the Sept. 29 hearing.

The public may comment in writing prior to the hearing, or comment live during the virtual hearing, or submit written comments following the hearing until November 1, 2020.

Written comments may be submitted online, via email or mail from now until Nov. 1. Written comments are made available to the public on the hearing website as they are received.

Members of the public who wish to comment live during the virtual hearing must pre-register with the Department online or by phone no later than noon on Tuesday, Sept. 29. Live comments will be transcribed and will be publicly available soon after the hearing.

All comments receive equal weight. All comments will be reviewed by the hearing officer as she makes her recommendations on all pending matters associated with this proposed project to DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin. Comments will also be reviewed by the Secretary as he makes a final decision on the applications. No recommendations or decisions on any matters currently pending before the Department are made at the time of the hearing.

All documentation and information about the proposed project and links to the upcoming hearing, including instructions on how to join, pre-register, and/or submit comments, may be reviewed at https://de.gov/portproject.

About DNREC
The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. The Division of Climate, Coastal and Energy uses science, education, policy development and incentives to address Delaware’s climate, energy and coastal challenges. The Division of Waste and Hazardous Substances ensures Delaware’s wastes are managed to protect human life, health, safety and the environment. The Division of Water manages and protects Delaware’s water resources. For more information, visit the website and connect with DNREC on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media Contacts: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov ; Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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DNREC opens virtual operations for water-related services

Permit applications and licenses expedited by online transactions

The Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control continues pivoting to virtual operations both during the COVID-19 pandemic and into the future for greater efficiencies and ease of use for DNREC customers and constituents. The latest advance for DNREC’s ePermitting comes from the Division of Water and covers a spectrum of permit applications and license payments.

The new process is part of the continuing effort to keep DNREC staff and customers safe during the pandemic while providing consistent business practices, and in this case also enhancing the Department’s water-related transactions. Until now almost all permit applications and license forms from the Division of Water required hardcopy submissions, with payment by check or cash.

Online submission and payment can now be made via the ePermitting system for the following services:

Professional License Renewals:

Well driller
Liquid waste hauler
Wastewater operator

Water Supply

Water allocation permits
Well permits (use existing application)

Wastewater

Septic permits
Site evaluation
Septic inspections
Septic system repair/Component replacement
Authorization to use existing system
Holding tanks (New/replacement/repair for private systems)
Septic site waiver request

Wetlands and Subaqueous Lands

Letters of authorization and Statewide Activity Approvals (SAA)
New permits or leases
Supplemental approval for lease/permit
Jurisdictional determination requests
Water quality certification
Wetlands permits

“The COVID-19 pandemic expedited our efforts and to roll out ePermitting developments such as well drilling licenses and other water permitting and licensing, which state staff from DNREC and the Department of Technology and Information implemented in a matter of weeks,” said DNREC Secretary Shawn Garvin. “Contractors and constituents doing business with our Division of Water have asked for this option since online transactions became a part of State of Delaware business, and we are happy to provide it, especially at this time.”

Many DNREC services are available online, including hunting and fishing permits, sales of park passes and wildlife are conservation access passes (though state park and wildlife area fees and passes are currently waived until further notice), hunter education classes and plenty of virtual content. Public hearings and public meetings are also occurring virtually as well.

About DNREC

The Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control protects and manages the state’s natural resources, protects public health, provides outdoor recreational opportunities and educates Delawareans about the environment. For more information, visit the website and connect with DNREC on Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn.

Media contact: Michael Globetti, michael.globetti@delaware.gov or Nikki Lavoie, nikki.lavoie@delaware.gov

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Source Water Protection Subcommittee to meet Feb. 20 in Dover

DOVER – The Source Water Assessment Plan (SWAP) Subcommittee of the Source Water Assessment and Protection Program will meet from 10 a.m. to noon, Thursday, Feb. 20, in the Training Room of Tidewater Utilities located at 1100 South Little Creek Road, Dover, DE 19901.

The SWAP Subcommittee’s meeting agenda can be found on the Delaware Public Meeting Calendar at https://publicmeetings.delaware.gov/Meeting/65028.

For more information about the Source Water Assessment and Protection Program, please visit http://delawaresourcewater.org, or contact Hydrologist Douglas Rambo, DNREC Division of Water, at 302-739-9945.

Media contact: Joanna Wilson, DNREC Public Affairs, 302-739-9902.

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