[Federal Register Volume 67, Number 13 (Friday, January 18, 2002)]
[Notices]
[Pages 2669-2670]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 02-1298]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Consent Decree Pursuant to the Clean Water 
Act

    In accordance with Departmental policy, including 28 CFR 50.7, 
notice is hereby given that a proposed Consent Decree in United States 
of America and State of Louisiana v. City of Baton Rouge and Parish of 
East Baton Rouge, Civil Action No. 01-978-B-M-3, was lodged on November 
13, 2001, with the United States District Court for the Middle District 
of Louisiana.
    The proposed Consent Decree settles an action brought under Clean 
Water Act (``CWA'') Section 301, 33 U.S.C. 1311, for civil penalties 
and injunctive relief for violations related to the publicly owned 
treatment works owned and operated by the City/Parish. The Consent 
Decree resolves all claims in the Complaint and provides for injunctive 
relief, a civil penalty of $729,500; a $1.125 million supplemental 
environmental project that will connect certain neighborhoods to the 
sewage treatment system; and payment $216,000 in stipulated penalties 
which accrued under a prior Consent Decree. The injunctive relief will 
require the City/Parish to implement specified projects including a 13-
15 year project to improve its sewage collection system, a Sanitary 
Sewer Overflow Response Plan to protect the public health by responding 
to overflows, and an extensive preventive maintenance program.
    The Department of Justice will receive comments relating to the 
proposed Consent Decree for a period of thirty (30) days from the date 
of this publication. As a result of the discovery of anthrax 
contamination at the District of Columbia mail processing center in 
mid-October 2001, the delivery of regular first-class mail sent through 
the U.S. Postal Service has been disrupted. Consequently, public 
comments which are addressed to the Department of Justice in 
Washington, DC, and sent by regular, first-class mail through the U.S. 
Postal Service are not expected to be received in timely manner. 
Therefore, comments should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney 
General, Environment and Natural Resources Division, Department of 
Justice, and sent: (1) c/o United States Attorneys Office, Middle 
District of Louisiana, 777 Florida St., Ste 208, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, 
Attention: John Gaupp; and/or (2) by facsimile to (202) 353-0296; and/
or (3) by overnight delivery, other than through the U.S. Postal 
Service, to Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, 1425 New York 
Avenue, NW., 13th Floor, Washington, DC 20005. Each communication 
should refer on its face to United States and Louisiana v. Baton Rouge, 
No. 01-978-B-M-3 (M.D. La.), DOJ Ref. # 90-5-1-1-2769/1.
    Notice of this Consent Decree was previously published at 66 FR 
66931 (2001), and, that notice instructed commenters to send comments 
via the U.S. Postal Service to P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-
7611. Due to the

[[Page 2670]]

same mail delivery problems referred to in the previous paragraph, any 
comments submitted pursuant to the previous notice through the U.S. 
Postal Service are not expected to be received in a timely manner. In 
order to ensure that all comments are considered, any persons who 
submitted comments via the U.S. Postal Service pursuant to the previous 
notice are advised to resubmit those comments by one of the methods 
specified in the previous paragraph.
    The proposed Consent Decree may be examined at the office of the 
United States Attorney for the Middle District of Louisiana, 777 
Florida St., Ste 208, Baton Rouge, LA 70801, and at the Region 6 office 
of the Environmental Protection Agency, 1445 Ross Avenue, Dallas, Texas 
75202. A copy of the proposed Consent Decree may also be obtained by 
faxing a request to Tonia Fleetwood, Department of Justice Consent 
Decree Library, fax no. (202) 616-6584; phone confirmation no. (202) 
514-1547. There is a charge for the copy (25 cent per page reproduction 
cost). Upon requesting a copy, please mail a check in the amount of 
$67.75 payable to the ``U.S. Treasury'' to: Consent Decree Library, 
U.S. Department of Justice, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611. 
The check should refer to United States and Louisiana v. Baton Rouge, 
No. 01-978-B-M-3 (M.D. La.), DOJ Ref. # 90-5-1-2769/1.

Thomas A. Mariani, Jr.,
Assistant Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment and 
Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 02-1298 Filed 1-17-02; 8:45 am]
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