Tag Archives: Cochise County

ADEQ Reaches $1,250,000 Settlement with Apache Nitrogen Products, Inc.

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PHOENIX — Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) officials announced today that Apache Nitrogen Products, Inc. (ANPI), a nitric acid and ammonium nitrate-based products manufacturer in St. David, Cochise County, has settled with the State for years of past noncompliance with ANPI’s air quality control permit issued by ADEQ.

ANPI will pay a $500,000 civil penalty, and could be required to pay an additional suspended penalty up to $750,000 if ADEQ documents additional significant violations in the next three years.

Between August 2010 and February 2015, ADEQ issued ANPI eight separate Notices of Violation related to production processes at two nitric acid production plants. Alleged violations included failing five emissions tests for ammonia and ammonium nitrate, the inability of the continuous emissions monitors for NOx (nitrogen oxide and nitrogen dioxide) to pass accuracy tests on four occasions, and failure to calibrate, maintain and operate a continuous opacity monitor.

“By holding Apache Nitrogen Products, Inc. accountable for its violations, the company has improved its operations, is now in compliance with its permit and public health and the environment are protected,” ADEQ Air Quality Division Director Eric Massey said.

ANPI has resolved the alleged violations and is now in compliance with the permit requirements.

The consent judgment is subject to court approval.

Background
According to the Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry (ATSDR), NOx can damage respiratory airways and burn skin and eyes. Nitrogen dioxide also reacts with sunlight, which leads to formation of ozone and smog. ATSDR also states that exposure to high levels of ammonia can cause irritation and serious burns on the skin and in the mouth, throat, lungs, and eyes.

PUBLIC NOTICE – City of Willcox Willcox Wastewater Treatment Plant

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PROPOSED ARIZONA POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM (AZPDES) RENEWAL PERMIT

Pursuant to the Clean Water Act and in accordance with Arizona Administrative Code (A.A.C.) R18-9-A907, the Director of the Arizona Department of Environmental Quality (ADEQ) proposes to issue an Arizona Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (AZPDES) Permit to discharge pollutants to Waters of the United States to the following applicant, subject to certain effluent limitations and special conditions:

Public Notice No.15-23

AZPDES Permit No. AZ0025771

City of Willcox

101 South Railroad Avenue, Suite B

Willcox, Arizona 85643

The City of Willcox applied for a renewal AZPDES permit for the discharge of up to 0.6 million gallons per day (mgd) of treated domestic wastewater from the City of Willcox Wastewater Treatment Plant (WWTP) to Lake Cochise in the San Pedro-Willcox Playa-Rio Yaqui River Basin in Township 14S, Range 25E, Section 7, in Cochise County, Arizona. The City of Willcox WWTP is a publicly owned treatment works that receives domestic wastewater from residential and commercial sources in Willcox. Sludge is accumulated at the bottom of the lagoons and will be removed when necessary by dredging and thickening, and disposed off site in accordance with state and federal regulations.

The permit and fact sheet may be viewed online at http://www.azdeq.gov/cgi-bin/vertical.pl by typing the permit number in the box left of “Search Event”. The public notice and related documentation also are available for public review, Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., at the ADEQ Records Center, 1110 W. Washington St., Phoenix, Arizona, 85007. Please call (602) 771-4380 or e-mail recordscenter@azdeq.gov 24 hours in advance to schedule an appointment to review the file.

Persons may submit comments or request a public hearing on the proposed action in writing, to Chiou Chen, Arizona Department of Environmental Quality, Water Quality Division, 1110 W. Washington St., 5415B-3, Phoenix, Arizona 85007. All written comments received by ADEQ by the close of business on the date 30 days after publication of this notice will be considered in the final permit decision. A public hearing request must be in writing and must include the reasons for such request. If there is a significant degree of public interest, the Director will hold a hearing in accordance with A.A.C. R18-9-908(B).