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NEW CASTLE AIRPORT CITED FOR STORMWATER VIOLATIONS

Release Date: 10/6/1999
Contact Information: Bonnie Smith, (215) 814-5543

Bonnie Smith, (215) 814-5543

NEW CASTLE COUNTY, Del. -- The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has cited the Delaware River and Bay Authority, the owner of the New Castle County Airport, for violating Clean Water Act regulations to reduce polluted stormwater runoff from industrial areas.

EPA seeks a $52,000 penalty for the alleged failure to obtain a required state permit covering stormwater discharge from de-icing, vehicle maintenance and equipment cleaning facilities at the airport. The runoff flows into storm sewer systems which discharge into the Delaware River, Nonesuch Creek and Army Creek.

According to EPA, the New Castle County Airport was required to apply for a stormwater discharge permit for these facilities by October 1992. The authority became the owner of the airport in July 1995, but did not file a permit application until after a July, 1999 inspection by EPA and the Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control.

Stormwater runoff from industrial facilities, which is often collected by storm drains and discharged into rivers and streams, may contain pollutants such as oil and grease, hazardous chemicals, nutrients, and oxygen-demanding compounds. Owners of industrial or construction operations involving at least five acres must obtain a Clean Water Act permit before discharging stormwater runoff into waterways. These permits need to include a stormwater pollution prevention plan.

The authority has the right to a hearing to contest the alleged violation and proposed penalty.