ORDERS:
CONSENT ORDER OF DISMISSAL
WHEREAS this contested case comes before the undersigned by way of an agency transmittal from the South Carolina
Department of Health and Environmental Control (hereinafter "Department") directing a hearing due to the request for a
contested case hearing by Jimmy Frye Swine Facility regarding the Department=s Administrative Order 00-111-W,
pertaining to an agricultural facility located in Horry County, South Carolina;
WHEREAS prior to a hearing being held, the parties have reached an agreement which will effectively conclude this
matter without necessitating the adjudication of the issues;
WHEREAS the Department has regulatory authority over agricultural facility=s compliance with approved waste
management plans pursuant to the South Carolina Pollution Control Act (hereinafter ASCPCA@), S.C. Code Ann. ' 48-1-30
(1976 & Supp. 1998), and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto, 25A S.C. Code Regs. 61-43.200 (Supp. 1998); WHEREAS Jimmy Frye is an owner of a swine facility located in Horry County, South Carolina (Athe Site@) that was
issued Permit No. ND0067903 by the Department to operate the swine facility in strict compliance with the terms,
conditions, and requirements of the permit;
WHEREAS on January 22, 1999, representatives of the Department conducted an inspection of the Site and observed that
an unpermitted hog house had been constructed on the bank of a natural pond and that the animals in the house appeared to
be covered in oil, wastes were spilling out of the house onto the ground, and there were carcasses on the banks of the pond
and in the pond;
WHEREAS after providing Jimmy Frye with a copy of the inspection report, the Department conducted a follow-up
inspection on March 1, 1999, that revealed that the unpermitted house was empty and the carcasses had been removed;
WHEREAS the Department conducted another inspection of the Site on June 21, 1999, that revealed that the unpermitted
house had been placed back in operation and there were approximately twenty (20) animals in the house along with a large
amount of waste in house that was being discharged into the pond;
WHEREAS the Department met with Jimmy Frye at the Site on June 25, 1999, during which Jimmy Frye stated that the
house was being used only as a corral for capturing animals to medicate them;
WHEREAS during the June 25, 1999, inspection, it was noted that the animals had been coated with motor oil to prevent
lice infestation and that motor oil had mixed with animal waste, which had been discharged into the pond;
WHEREAS an enforcement conference was held with the Petitioner on September 13, 2000;
WHEREAS the Natural Resource Conservation Service (NRCS) indicated to the Department by letter dated October 6,
1999, that it had met with the Petitioner at the Site and that: 1) the hog house in question should only be used to catch pigs
for loading for market and for weighing on scales; 2) the feeders should be stored upside down and out of the weather in
the shed; 3) a 15 foot vegetation strip located between the pond and the hog pasture should be maintained in its present
condition; and, 4) no pigs should be kept in the shed other than those mentioned in the first recommendation. The letter
indicated that the Petitioner had agreed to these recommendations;
WHEREAS the Department conducted inspections of the Site on December 16, 1999, and January 4, 2000, and observed
that the Petitioner had not complied with the NRCS letter in that there were small, non-market pigs kept in the hog house
and the feeders were not upside down;
WHEREAS the Petitioner has violated the South Carolina Pollution Control Act, S.C. Code Ann. ' 48-1-90(a)(1987 &
Supp. 1999), in that Petitioner discharged wastewater into waters of the State without Department approval;
WHEREAS the Petitioner has violated 25A S.C. Code Ann. Regs. 61- 43.200.30(A) (Supp. 1999), in that Petitioner failed
to fully implement his Waste Management Plan as directed by the Department;
WHEREAS the Department issued Administrative Order 00-111-W in June of 2000, ordering Petitioner to: (1)
immediately dismantle the unpermitted hog house, including removing the effluent pipe which runs to the natural pond;
and (2) pay a civil penalty of twenty thousand dollars ($20,000.00) for the violations stated above;
WHEREAS Petitioner filed a Petition to request a hearing to contest issuance of Administrative Order 00-111-W;
WHEREAS since issuance of the Administrative Order, Petitioner has dismantled the unpermitted hog house, including
removing the effluent pipe which runs to the natural pond;
WHEREAS the Department has acknowledged by letter dated January 17, 2001, that the Petitioner has satisfied all the
corrective action requirements in Administrative Order 00-111-W and that the only remaining requirement in the
Administrative Order is payment of the civil penalty (Attachment A); and
WHEREAS the Petitioner has documented to the Department that it is financially unable to pay the penalty assessed in
Administrative Order 00-111-W and the Department has acknowledged his inability to pay (Attachment A);
NOW THEREFORE IT IS ORDERED AND AGREED that the Department shall waive the assessed civil penalty of
twenty thousand dollars ($20,000.00) in light of Petitioner=s financial situation;
NOW THEREFORE IT IS FURTHER ORDERED AND AGREED that all of the remaining requirements of
Administrative Order 00-111-W have been satisfied by the Petitioner;
NOW THEREFORE IT IS ORDERED AND AGREED that this matter is dismissed with prejudice.
AND IT IS SO ORDERED.
Ralph King Anderson, III
Administrative Law Judge |
