[Federal Register Volume 88, Number 33 (Friday, February 17, 2023)]
[Notices]
[Pages 10383-10384]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2023-03340]


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DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE


Notice of Lodging of Proposed Modification to Partial Consent 
Decree Under the Clean Water Act

    On February 13, 2023, the Department of Justice lodged a proposed 
Modification to Partial Consent Decree with the United States District 
Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania in the lawsuit entitled 
United States and Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of 
Environmental Protection v. Capital Region Water and the City of 
Harrisburg, PA, Civil Action No. 1:15-cv-00291-CCC.
    The United States and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental 
Protection (``PADEP'') jointly filed this lawsuit in February 2015 
against Capital Region Water (``CRW'') and the City of Harrisburg 
alleging violations of the Clean Water Act and the Pennsylvania Clean 
Streams Law. The complaint sought injunctive relief and civil penalties 
for alleged unpermitted discharges from the sewer system in Harrisburg, 
failure to prepare a Long-Term Control Plan in compliance with EPA's 
1994 Combined Sewer Overflow Control Policy (``CSO Policy''), and 
failure to comply with other requirements of sewer and stormwater 
National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (``NPDES'') permits. At 
the same time, the United States and PADEP also lodged a Partial 
Consent Decree that required CRW to perform injunctive relief to 
address the alleged

[[Page 10384]]

violations. The Partial Consent Decree resolved all claims against the 
City of Harrisburg and nearly all claims against CRW, except for claims 
regarding CRW's implementation of a Long-Term Control Plan and claims 
for civil penalties against CRW. The Partial Consent Decree became 
effective on August 24, 2015.
    The Modification to Partial Consent Decree refines the 2015 Partial 
Consent Decree by requiring CRW to perform injunctive measures to 
ensure that the sewer system is capable of meeting capture goals in a 
Long-Term Control Plan. Those measures include, among other 
requirements, construction projects to help bring the sewer system to a 
functional baseline; public notification of combined sewer overflow 
events, including real-time monitoring of certain combined sewer 
outfalls, and submission of a Long-Term Control Plan that complies with 
EPA's CSO Policy no later than December 31, 2024. The Modification 
provides the same resolution as the 2015 Partial Consent Decree; it 
does not resolve claims regarding CRW's implementation of the Long-Term 
Control Plan and claims for civil penalties against CRW.
    The publication of this notice opens a period for public comment on 
the Modification to Partial Consent Decree. Comments should be 
addressed to the Assistant Attorney General, Environment and Natural 
Resources Division, and should refer to United States and Pennsylvania 
Department of Environmental Protection v. Capital Region Water and City 
of Harrisburg, D.J. Ref. No. 90-5-1-1-10157. All comments must be 
submitted no later than thirty (30) days after the publication date of 
this notice. Comments may be submitted either by email or by mail:

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         To submit comments:                     Send them to:
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By email............................  [email protected].
By mail.............................  Assistant Attorney General, U.S.
                                       DOJ--ENRD, P.O. Box 7611,
                                       Washington, D.C. 20044-7611.
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    During the public comment period, the Modification to Partial 
Consent Decree may be examined and downloaded at this Justice 
Department website: https://www.justice.gov/enrd/consent-decrees. We 
will provide a paper copy of the Modification to Partial 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 $22.25 (25 cents per page 
reproduction cost) payable to the United States Treasury.

Jeffrey Sands,
Assistant Section Chief, Environmental Enforcement Section, Environment 
and Natural Resources Division.
[FR Doc. 2023-03340 Filed 2-16-23; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4410-15-P