[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 189 (Wednesday, September 30, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 58790-58791]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-24711]


-----------------------------------------------------------------------

DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Consent Decree Under the Clean Air 
Act

    On September 24, 2015, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
Consent Decree with the United States District Court of the Virgin 
Islands in the lawsuit entitled United States of America v. Virgin 
Islands Water and Power Authority, Civil Action No. 3:14-cv-00086.
    The Consent Decree resolves Clean Air Act violations alleged in the 
Complaint filed by the United States on October 30, 2014. The 
violations alleged in the Complaint with respect to VIWAPA's St. Thomas 
facility include VIWAPA's failure to properly operate and/or maintain 
its water injection systems on its gas turbine units, failure to 
operate in compliance with NOX, sulfuric acid mist, 
particulate matter and VOC emission limits, failure to operate in 
compliance with opacity limits, failure to perform required audits and 
maintain required quality data availability, failure to properly 
operate and calibrate the continuous emission monitoring systems (CEMS) 
for NOX and CO, failure to conduct stack testing every 30 
months, and failure to properly report non-compliance. The violations 
alleged in the Complaint with respect to VIWAPA's St. John facility 
concern VIWAPA's failure to comply with the RICE NESHAP regulations, 
failure to timely submit a Title V renewal application and operation 
without a Title V permit, and failure to conduct stack testing every 30 
months.
    The Consent Decree requires VIWAPA to generate a high percentage of 
its KWh from liquid propane gas or liquid natural gas and renewables, 
to implement a spare parts inventory program, to control NOX 
emissions through improved operation of its water injection system, to 
maintain and operate continuous emissions monitoring systems on 
specified units, to operate a video camera system for visible 
emissions, to perform stack testing, and to conduct targeted self-
audits and third party audits given its long term compliance problems. 
The Consent Decree also requires a $1,300,000 penalty to be paid within 
two years of the Effective Date of the Consent Decree. The penalty 
amount was based upon VIWAPA's limited financial ability to pay a 
penalty.
    The Department of Justice will receive, for a period of thirty (30) 
days from the date of this publication, comments relating to the 
Consent Decree. Comments should be addressed to the Assistant Attorney 
General for the Environmental and Natural Resources Division, and 
should refer to United States v. Virgin Islands Water and Power 
Authority, DOJ Ref. # 90-5-2-1-10424. All comments must be submitted no 
later than thirty days after the publication date of this notice. 
Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:

------------------------------------------------------------------------
         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
------------------------------------------------------------------------
By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, DC 20044-7611.
------------------------------------------------------------------------

    During the public comment period, the Consent Decree may be 
examined and downloaded at this Justice Department Web site: http://

[[Page 58791]]

www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We will provide a paper copy of 
the Consent Decree upon written request and payment of reproduction 
costs. Please mail your request and payment to: Consent Decree Library, 
U.S. DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611, Washington, DC 20044-7611. Please 
enclose a check or money order for $22.75 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Robert E. Maher Jr.,
Assistant Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment & 
Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2015-24711 Filed 9-29-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P