HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0092.044 2004-2006 Claudia Rohr
369 Nene St.
Hilo, HI 96720
96720
934-8040
April 4, 2005
Jeremy Johnstone
U.S. EPA Region 9
75 Hawthorne Street
San Francisco, CA, 94105
RE: NPDES HI0000191 Hilo Coast Power Company
Deaz Mr. Johnstone,
Mr. Eugene Bromley sent me a copy of the EPA report "Report on the Evaluation of Wastewater
Discharges from Raw Cane Sugaz Mills in the Hilo-Hamakua Coast of the Island of Hawai'i,"
August 11, 1989. It confirmed that copper and manganese were being discharged into the ocean
in exceedences of the EPA acute and chronic marine criteria for copper and the EPA human
health marine criteria for manganese (part 8.2.1.3, pg. 8-5) through the land containment settling
system in 1989.
There aze currently numerous drainage problems in the former land containment settling system
area due to water course disruption where stockpiled soil sediment was never removed and
blocks the drainage. Two water courses saturate the former land containment settling system
azea. There is a pile of sediment from the land containment system under the current coal ash
pile. Surface water seeping into the coal ash pile/sediment pile comes out the other side blood
red as you can see from the photos I sent you in January. The dazk red bacteria most probably
indicates the presence of manganese in the leachate. Surface water saturating and draining
through the land containment settling system is probably causing more contaminates to be
passively leached out and discharged into the ocean through a system of drainage ways which
lead back to the same outfalls servicing the coal ash pile (see attached diagram on aerial photo.
The bacteria and whatever is causing it is being dischazged through the outfall covered by
NPDES HI0000191. I understand that the Hilo Coast Power Company ("HCPC") has failed to
perform the required periodic water testing as their NPDES permit requires and therefore there is
no information to know what contaminants may be dischazged.
The EPA report stated that manganese had previously been at the level of being harmful to
human health in the flesh offish if consumed. I understand eccessive amounts of manganese
causes central nervous system damage and can be permanent. There are still many fisherman
who fish in this azea by the outfall. This leachate should be tested and the local fisherman
informed if contamination of the offshore waters may cause health concerns.
Sincerely, +
Claudia Rohr Comm. No. Z' T
Ref. To: Pre~e~
Raf, Uate