Name: Georgia poised to allow more pollution in Ogeechee River
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Georgia poised to allow more pollution in Ogeechee River

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Mary Landersmlanders@savannahnow.comView CommentsA proposed pollution permit for a textile factory on the Ogeechee River would reduce protections for the popular recreational river, according to the Ogeechee Riverkeeper.“The facility still struggles with violations and operating within the permit,” said Riverkeeper Damon Mullis. “Despite that, the EPD is looking at loosening it up.”In 2011, a major fish kill below the King America Finishing plant in Screven County focused attention on the textile plant. State and federal regulators discovered the company had been operating a fire retardant line there without a permit.The Ogeechee Riverkeeper sued under the Clean Water Act which produced a $2.5 million settlement, more frequent and transparent water testing protocol, and a discharge permit that Georgia Environmental Protection Division deemed its strictest permit ever. Along the way the plant was sold to Spartanburg-based Milliken and renamed the Milliken Longleaf Pine Facility.Now that five-year permit is overdue for a renewal. last month and has scheduled a virtual public hearing on the permit Nov. 17 with public comments due Nov. 20.The plant had failed to comply with the Clean Water Act in , racking up $354,500 in fines since 2015, according to EPD’s records.Before the pandemic, Milliken’s Longleaf Plant employed about 400 people and paid nearly $17 million in annual payroll. Milliken is a leading producer of flame resistant fabrics and is capable of producing 600,000 yards of cloth per week, the Screven County Development Authority reported in 2018.Milliken officials did not respond to two requests for comment about the draft permit.Audra Dickson, EPD’s wastewater regulatory program manager, said the draft permit was written in accordance with the applicable regulations governing the facility’s discharge.“Milliken is required to comply with the permit at all times. EPD has and will continue to take the appropriate enforcement actions if Milliken violates the permit,” she wrote in an email, where she also pointed to a fact sheet accompanying the permit for more information.Riverkeeper’s concernsRiverkeeper Damon Mullis said he has three main concerns about the draft permit:• It eliminates the testing of some parameters and constituents (including formaldehyde and the flame retardant (THPC).• It reduces the required frequency of sampling for other parameters and constituents.• It bases some limits on a tiered system tied to production quantity.“The permit should be based on, you know, on protecting the river, not on any production levels, or what they want to do,” Mullis said.He’s especially concerned about the discharge of a group of man-made chemicals called per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS for short. Known to have cancer-causing and other health effects on people and to accumulate in fish, PFAS are used in fire retardants.One of the provisions of the settlement after the 2011 fish kill required the company to perform a complete fish tissue study if it was found to be discharging PFAS. This study was intended to determine the levels of chemicals building up in the river’s plants and animals.In 2014, Milliken submitted documentation to EPD to show they were not discharging PFAs.“The current permit required Milliken to sample the effluent and then if PFAS was detected, they were required to sample the fish tissue,” Dickson wrote. “Milliken sampled the effluent and concluded there was no PFAS in the effluent, hence the fish tissue sampling was never performed.”EPD included a “PFAS Effluent Characterization Study” in the draft permit, Dickson said.But Mullis said Milliken’s study was flawed and the study EPD is requiring going forward is insufficient.In its own sampling, the Riverkeeper found Milliken was discharging PFAS chemicals. That gave Mullis reason to doublecheck Milliken’s study methods.“The test was for solids instead of liquid, and the detection limit was really high, much higher than would have been anticipated,” Mullis said.These chemicals are going to stick around the Ogeechee and are liable to affect fish and shellfish in the estuary, too, Mullis said. Residents need to know if they’re accumulating in fish and shellfish they’re eating."The study should’ve been done,“ Mullis said. ”We’re just asking that it be done.“A virtual public hearing will be held via Zoom at 7 p.m. Nov. 17. Here’s the link to the meeting:Written comments: To ensure their consideration, written comments should be received by close of business Nov. 20. Address written comments to Georgia Environmental Protection Division, 2 MLK Jr. Drive, Suite 1152E, Atlanta, GA 30334, or via email at EPDcomments@dnr.ga.gov. If you choose to e-mail your comments, include the words “NPDES Permit Issuance – King America Finishing Inc.” in the subject line to ensure that your comments will be forwarded to the correct staff.View Comments

Mary Landersmlanders@savannahnow.comView CommentsA proposed pollution permit for a textile factory on the Ogeechee River would reduce protections for the popular recreational river, according to the Ogeechee Riverkeeper.“The facility still struggles with violations and operating within the permit,” said Riverkeeper Damon Mullis. “Despite that, the EPD is looking at loosening it up.”In 2011, a major fish kill below the King America Finishing plant in Screven County focused attention on the textile plant. State and federal regulators discovered the company had been operating a fire retardant...

Georgia poised to allow more pollution in Ogeechee River

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