by Citation News Editor
20. December 2011
In one of the largest civil penalties under the Clean Water Act (CWA), the US EPA and Department of Justice announced on December 12, 2011 that Tennessee-based Wright Brothers Construction Co. and the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) have agreed to pay a $1.5 million penalty and spend more than $1.3 million to offset environmental damages to resolve alleged violations.
Between 2004 and 2007, Wright Brothers Construction was hired by the GDOT to dispose of excess soil and rock left over from a northeast Georgia highway expansion. In the process, and with the approval of the GDOT, Wright Brothers buried all, or portions of, seven primary trout streams considered to be waters of the United States. These actions resulted in the unauthorized dumping of more than one million cubic yards of excess rock and soil, impacting approximately 2,800 linear feet of stream.
Burying and piping streams can destroy the aquatic habitat and threaten water quality. All of the streams that were filled are tributaries of Lake Burton and Tallulah Falls Lake. Reduced water quality may have adversely impacted downstream trout populations – a major recreational resource.
Under the settlement, Wright Brothers and GDOT must perform injunctive relief measures, including purchasing 16,920 mitigation credits at an estimated cost of $1.35 million to offset the impact to waters of the United States that cannot be restored.
At an estimated cost of $25,000, Wright Brothers and the GDOT will also restore the bed and bank of a 150-foot stream channel that was impacted from the disposal activities. When complete, the restoration activities and injunctive relief measures will mitigate the 2,800 feet of stream impacted by the CWA violations.
The settlement is subject to a 30-day comment period and final court approval.
