Document mpp735qGXMwwDE6VExO5y2b5O

EPA REGION 10 Enforcement and Compliance Assurance Division INSPECTION REPORT Inspection Entry Date/Time Inspection Exit Date/Time Weather Media Statute(s)/Program(s) Type of Inspection 01/29/2025 9:14 AM (PT) Announced: Yes 01/29/2025 1:35 PM (PT) Access: Granted 50F, Sunny Water Clean Water Act, NPDES, WWTP Compliance Evaluation Inspection Permittee Name Facility Name Facility Physical Address City, State, Zip Code County Facility GPS Coordinates Lummi Indian Business Council Kwina Road MBR WWTP 4100 Lummi Shore Road Bellingham, Washington 98226 Whatcom 48.790239, -122.612852 FRS ID Permit Number SIC 110038391406 WA0026727 4952 (Sewerage Systems) Lead Inspector: RAYMOND ANDREWS Date: 2025.02.25 13:46:57 -08'00' Digitally signed by RAYMOND ANDREWS Raymond Andrews EPA Region 10 andrews.raymond@epa.gov (206) 553-4252 Supervisor Review: Contreras, Peter Peter Contreras EPA Region 10 Digitally signed by Contreras, Peter Date: 2025.02.25 15:11:24 -08'00' contreras.peter@epa.gov (206) 553-6708 Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 SECTION I - Opening Conference I arrived at the Lummi Kwina Road MBR WWTP ("Facility"), located at 4100 Lummi Shore Road, Bellingham, Washington, at 9:14 AM (PT) on 01/29/2025 for an announced inspection. I presented my credentials to Daniel Jeffries, Lead Operator, and informed him I was there to conduct an inspection to determine the facility's compliance with the Clean Water Act (CWA) and its National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit, permit # WA0026727. This report is based on information supplied by Mr. Jeffries, my direct observations, and records and reports maintained by the permittee. In addition, information gathered prior to or after the Inspection from a review of EPA, State, and/or public records may be included in this report. This is the third of three inspections I conducted on Lummi Tribal wastewater treatment facilities. The Kwina Road MBR Wastewater Treatment Plant's permit became effective on January 1, 2023, and will expire on December 31, 2027. The Gooseberry Point WWTP maintains the tribal laboratory that conducts the in-house analysis for specific parameters for all three facilities. Attendees Organization EPA Region 10 Attendee Name Raymond Andrews Title Lead Inspector Present in Opening Conf. Yes Present in Closing Conf. Yes Lummi Tribal Sewer Daniel Jeffries Lead Operator Yes Yes and Water District Facility Information Responsible Official? Jim Heigzman, District Manager, jimh@ltswd.com How many employees The Lummi Sewer and Water District ("District") shares three employees does the facility have? between its three facilities. Of the District's three employees, two hold level one certifications and the third is in training. What is the facility's There is an operator on site for two hours Monday and Friday, and one hour operation schedule? on weekends with a person on-call for holidays. What is the facility's The facility services approximately 1,500 residents. service population? What is the facility's design capacity and average daily flow? The facility has a design capacity of 0.108 million gallons per day (mgd), and an average daily flow of 0.120 mgd. The average daily flow exceeds the design capacity but, per Mr. Jeffries, the exceedance does not seem to be an issue currently, but it is the reason for the upgrade to double capacity. What is the facility's primary flow measuring device? The facility uses two Magmeters to measure flow, one at the influent and one at the effluent. How often is the flow The manufacturer specifications state the magmeters do not require measuring device calibration. calibrated? What is the facility's The facility discharges into a wetland area that is not specifically named but is receiving water? designated Wetland area # 211-08. How many outfalls The facility has a single outfall. does the facility have? How often is the outfall inspected? An operator visually inspects the outfall daily. 2 of 7 Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 Where do you sample The influent is sampled prior to the headworks. The effluent is sampled right influent? Effluent? before the outfall. Are water samples analyzed in-house or sent out to a contract laboratory? The facility analyzes total suspended solids (TSS), biological oxygen demand (BOD), fecal coliform, dissolved oxygen (DO), pH, and temperature in-house. A contract laboratory analyzes water samples for total Kjeldahl nitrogen (TKN), ammonia and total nitrate + nitrites (N+N). Laboratory contact information. Edge Analytical 805 Orchard Drive Suite 4 Bellingham, Washington 98225 (360) 715-1212 How are biosolids managed? Biosolids are picked up by a 3rd party contractor and disposed of on an asneeded basis. Does the facility have The facility uses a supervisory control and data acquisition (SCADA) system to a failure alarm? How monitor the facility. If the system detects a failure, it sends an automated to is an alarm the on-call operator. addressed? Does the facility have The entire facility is on back-up power. The back-up power automatically back-up power? activates if the system detects a loss of main power. What is the facility's overflow/emergency capacity? The facility does not have an emergency or overflow capacity. Are there any industrial users? The facility does not have any industrial users. Are there shared or contributing jurisdictions? There are no shared jurisdictions. Does the facility accept waste from septage haulers? The facility does not accept waste from septage haulers. Has the facility had Around 2021, the plant bypassed treatment but sent the effluent to the any bypasses or Gooseberry plant for treatment and discharge. hydraulic overloads in the past 5-years? Has the facility been renovated or upgraded in the last 5-years? The membrane bioreactors (MBR) were upgraded in 2022. Are there any plans to The District plans to add another MBR system to double capacity within the renovate or upgrade next couple of years. the facility? SECTION II - Observations There were no observations made of facility operations that were an Area of Concern. 3 of 7 SECTION III - Records Review Records may not be in sequential order. Record: Other - Operations and Maintenance Plan Ref #: RA1-RR-006 Reviewed By: Raymond Andrews Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 AOC: Yes Reviewed Date: 01/29/2025 At the time of the inspection, I requested to review the facility's Operations & Maintenance (O&M) Plan. The facility did not have an O&M Plan. Record: Other - EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database AOC: Yes Ref #: RA1-RR-005 Reviewed By: Raymond Andrews Reviewed Date: 02/13/2025 Post inspection, I reviewed information submitted by the facility to EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database for the time period from February 2020 through January 2025. Per ICIS, the facility did not have any effluent exceedances. ICIS did show the facility was late in submitting DMR data. A table showing the late DMR data is included in Appendix 2. Data in ICIS shows the facility has not yet submitted notification to EPA or the Lummi Natural Resources Department (LNRD) that the O&M Plan, QA Plan and the ERPN had been developed and implemented, which were all due on June 30, 2023. Record: DMR Reports AOC: No Ref #: RA1-RR-004 Reviewed By: Raymond Andrews Reviewed Date: 02/13/2025 Post inspection, I reviewed facility Discharge Monitoring Reports (DMRs) from January 2022 through December 2024. I did not note any areas of concern. Record: Other - Quality Assurance Plan AOC: Yes Ref #: RA1-RR-002 Reviewed By: Raymond Andrews Reviewed Date: 01/29/2025 At the time of the inspection, I reviewed the Quality Assurance Plan (QAP), dated March 7, 2016. The QAP needs an update. There is no indication the QAP was reviewed annually. The QAP was not prepared in the required format. The QAP did not contain the minimum requirements, I.e., it was missing: Details on the number of samples, type of sample containers, preservation of samples, holding times, analytical methods, analytical detection and quantitation limits for each target compound, type and number of quality assurance field samples, precision and accuracy requirements, sample preparation requirements, sample shipping methods, and laboratory data delivery requirements. Map(s) indicating the location of each sampling point. Qualification and training of personnel. Name(s), address(es) and telephone number(s) of the laboratories used by the Permittee. Record: Other - Emergency Response and Public Notification Plan AOC: Yes Ref #: RA1-RR-001 Reviewed By: Raymond Andrews Reviewed Date: 01/29/2025 At the time of inspection, I reviewed the facility's Emergency Response and Public Notification Plan (ERPN). The Kwina Road MBR facility uses the same ERPN plan as the Sandy Point facility, which I inspected first. After my inspection of the Sandy Point facility, the contacts were updated. However, the other areas of concern were still present. The plan was undated, and it did not explain how notification of the public would be carried out. The Plan did not explain how emergency operations would be carried out. SECTION IV - Sampling Activity No sampling was conducted. 4 of 7 Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 SECTION V - Areas of Concern Areas of Concern may not be in sequential order. The presentation of Areas of Concern does not constitute a formal compliance determination or violation. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-006 Records Review: Other - Operations and Maintenance Plan Permit Requirement Part II.A of the permit states, in part, "...the permittee must develop and implement an Operations and Maintenance (O&M) Plan for the wastewater treatment facility. Any existing O&M Plan may be modified for compliance with this section. Any changes occurring in the operation of the plant must be reflected within the O&M Plan." AOC: The facility did not have an O&M Plan. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-005 Records Review: Other - EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database Permit Requirement Part II.A of the permit states, in part, "Within 180 days of the effective date of this permit, the permittee must submit written notice to EPA and LNR that the QAP has been developed and implemented." AOC: The facility has not supplied EPA or LNR with notice the O&M Plan had been developed and implemented, which was due on June 30, 2023. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-005 Records Review: Other - EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database Permit Requirement Part II.B of the permit states, in part, "Within 180 days of the effective date of this permit, the permittee must submit written notice to EPA and LNR that the QAP has been developed and implemented." AOC: The facility has not supplied EPA or LNR with notice QA Plan had been developed and implemented, which was due on June 30, 2023. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-005 Records Review: Other - EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database Permit Requirement Part II.E.2 of the permit states, in part, "The permittee must submit written notice to EPA and LNR that the plan has been developed and implemented within 180 days of the effective date of this permit." AOC: The facility has not supplied EPA or LNR with notice the ERPM had been developed and implemented, which was due on June 30, 2023. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-005 Records Review: Other - EPA's Integrated Compliance Information System (ICIS) Database Permit Requirement Part III.B of the Permit states, in part, "The Permittee must summarize monitoring results each month on the Discharge Monitoring Report (DMR) form..." AOC: The facility was late in submitting DMR data. The late data is in a table in Appendix 2. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-002 Records Review: Other - Quality Assurance Plan 5 of 7 Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 Permit Requirement Part II.B of the Permit states, in part, "The Permittee must also certify to EPA that the QAP is being implemented and is reviewed with staff annually. Annual reviews will be registered with EPA by submittal of the staff attendance sheet used for the review sessions, along with a cover letter confirming the QAP review and identifying the enclosed attendance record. The annual QAP review letter and attendance sheet must be submitted with the January DMR of each subsequent year." AOC: There was no documentation the QAP was reviewed annually. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-002 Records Review: Other - Quality Assurance Plan Permit Requirement Part II.B.2 of the Permit states, "Throughout all sample collection and analysis activities, the Permittee must use the EPA-approved QA/QC and chain-of-custody procedures described in the most recent versions of Requirements for Quality Assurance Project Plans (EPA/QA/R-5) and Guidance for Quality Assurance Project Plans (EPA/QA/G-5). The QAP must be prepared in the format that is specified in these documents." AOC: The QAP was not prepared per the reference documents "Requirements for Quality Assurance Project Plans (EPA/QA/R-5)" and "Guidance for Quality Assurance Project Plans (EPA/QA/G-5)". AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-002 Records Review: Other - Quality Assurance Plan Permit Requirement Part II.B.3 of the Permit states, "At a minimum, the QAP must include the following: a) Details on the number of samples, type of sample containers, preservation of samples, holding times, analytical methods, analytical detection and quantitation limits for each target compound, type and number of quality assurance field samples, precision and accuracy requirements, sample preparation requirements, sample shipping methods, and laboratory data delivery requirements. b) Map(s) indicating the location of each sampling point. c) Qualification and training of personnel. d) Name(s), address(es) and telephone number(s) of the laboratories used by or proposed to be used by the Permittee." AOC: The QAP was missing all elements required in Part II.B.3 of the Permit. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-001 Records Review: Other - Emergency Response and Public Notification Plan Permit Requirement Part II.E.1.c of the Permit states, at a minimum, the ERPN must, in part, "Ensure immediate notification to the public..." AOC: The ERPN did not explain how notification to the public would be carried out. AOC Reference #: RA1-RR-001 Records Review: Other - Emergency Response and Public Notification Plan Permit Requirement Part II.E.1.e of the Permit states, at a minimum, the ERPN must, "Provide emergency operations." AOC: The ERPN did not explain how emergency operations would be carried out. 6 of 7 Kwina Road MBR WWTP Permit # WA0026727 SECTION VI - Closing Conference I held a closing conference with Mr. Jeffries at 1:35 PM (PT) on 01/29/2025 for the inspection. During the closing conference, I discussed the observations and Areas of Concern identified during the inspection. Observations and Areas of Concern have not yet been evaluated for a formal compliance determination. SECTION VII - List of Appendices 1. Photo Log 2. Area of Concern Tables 7 of 7 APPENDIX 1: Photo Log Site Diagram IMG-202501290936463646113119.jpg 01/29/2025 09:36 AM No CBI No PII Photographer: Raymond Andrews 48.78986078, -122.61370399 This is a pre-upgrade site diagram. The screen on the diagram was replaced with a newer model and an additional pre-air basin was added. Influent auto sampler. IMG-202501290939313931123147.jpg 01/29/2025 09:39 AM No CBI No PII Photographer: Raymond Andrews 48.79030225, -122.6134156 The influent auto sampler takes flow proportional samples. Screen system 01/29/2025 09:41 AM No CBI 48.79016113, -122.61381929 No PII IMG-202501290941244124118642.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews Digester 01/29/2025 09:42 AM No CBI 48.78985863, -122.61394193 Digester, photo 1 No PII IMG-202501290942394239136066.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews Digester 01/29/2025 09:42 AM No CBI 48.78996072, -122.61380585 Digester, photo 2 No PII IMG-202501290942434243137606.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews Discharge/Outfall 01/29/2025 09:45 AM No CBI 48.79064958, -122.61268236 The discharge pipe is in the rocks. No PII IMG-202501290945254525191892.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews Discharge IMG-202501290945404540210235.jpg 01/29/2025 09:45 AM No CBI No PII Photographer: Raymond Andrews 48.79061632, -122.61279645 The discharge flows downhill to an unnamed wetland. It is unclear if the discharge reaches the Nooksack River. Membrane Bioreactors 01/29/2025 09:50 AM No CBI 48.78982481, -122.61400777 Covered membranes. No PII IMG-202501290950125012102950.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews Pre-air Tank 01/29/2025 09:50 AM No CBI 48.78994797, -122.61386829 No PII IMG-202501290950465046115627.jpg Photographer: Raymond Andrews APPENDIX 2: Area of Concern Tables Monitoring Period End Date January 31, 2023 January 31, 2023 January 31, 2023 January 31, 2023 January 31, 2023 January 31, 2023 July 31, 2022 July 31, 2022 February 28, 2022 February 28, 2022 February 28, 2022 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 December 31, 2021 July 31, 2021 June 30, 2020 June 30, 2020 Late DMR Parameters DMR Due Date Parameter February 20, 2023 Nitrogen, ammonia total [as N] February 20, 2023 Nitrogen, ammonia total [as N] February 20, 2023 Nitrogen, ammonia total [as N] February 20, 2023 Nitrogen, ammonia total [as N] February 20, 2023 Nitrogen, Kjeldahl, total [as N] February 20, 2023 Nitrite + Nitrate total [as N] August 20, 2022 Oil and Grease August 20, 2022 Solids, total dissolved March 20, 2022 Temperature, water C March 20, 2022 Temperature, water C March 20, 2022 Temperature, water C January 20, 2022 Oxygen, dissolved [DO] January 20, 2022 Oxygen, dissolved [DO] January 20, 2022 Nitrogen, Kjeldahl, total [as N] January 20, 2022 Nitrogen, Kjeldahl, total [as N] January 20, 2022 Nitrite + Nitrate total [as N] January 20, 2022 Nitrite + Nitrate total [as N] January 20, 2022 Phosphorus, total [as P] August 20, 2021 Oil and Grease July 20, 2020 Nitrogen, Kjeldahl, total [as N] July 20, 2020 Nitrogen, Kjeldahl, total [as N] DMR Value Received Date February 17, 2023 February 17, 2023 February 17, 2023 February 17, 2023 February 17, 2023 February 17, 2023 August 23, 2022 August 23, 2022 December 08, 2022 December 08, 2022 December 08, 2022 January 26, 2022 January 26, 2022 August 03, 2023 August 03, 2023 August 03, 2023 August 03, 2023 August 03, 2023 August 20, 2021 July 27, 2020 July 27, 2020