ALABAMA DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT INTHE MATTER OF Hope Coal Co., Ine. Alliance Mine No. 1 NPDES Permit No. ALOO74039 Shelby County, Alabama 03A12038 ANSWIOVNVH UALVAWYOLS Meredyth Mine NPDES Permit No. ALOO78280 Winston and Franklin Counties, Alabama SS 2t Ud 82 930 O02 Buttahatchee East Mine NPDES Permit No. ALOO78271 Marion County, Alabama CONSENT ORDER NO. XX-XXX-CWP PREAMBLE ‘This Special Order by Consent is made and entered into by the Alabama Department of Environmental Management hereinafter “the Department") and Hope Coal Co., Inc. (hereinafter “the Permittee") pursuant to the provisions of the Alabama Environmental Management Act, Ala, Code §§ 22-22A-1 through 22-22A-16 (2006 Rplc. Vol, the Alabama Water Pollution Control Act, Ala, Code §§ 22-22-1 through 22-22-14 (2006 Rple. Vol), and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto, and § 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1342 STIPULATIONS 1. The Permittee operates the following coal mines in the state of Alabama Alliance Mine No. 1 located in Shelby County, Meredyth Mine located in Winston and Franklin Counties, and Buttahatchee East Mine located in Marion County 2, The Department is a duly constituted department of the State of Alabama pursuant to Ala. Code §§ 22-22A-1 through 22-22A-16 (2006 Rple. Vol.)3. Pursuant to Ala, Code § 22-22A-4(n) (2006 Rplc, Vol, the Department is the state agency responsible for the promulgation and enforcement of water pollution contro! regulations in accordance with the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 to 1387. In addition, the Department is authorized to administer and enforce the provisions of the Alabama Water Pollution Control Act, Ala, Code §§ 22-22-1 through 22-22-14 (2006 Rp. Vol). 4 On August 31, 2007, the Department issued the Permittee National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (hereinafter, “NPDES") Permit Number AL0074039. which established limits on the discharge of pollutants from Alliance Mine No. 1 from nineteen point sources, designated therein as outfall numbers 001 through 019, into Jesse Creek, unnamed tributaries (hereinafter, “UTS") to Jesse Creek, Murry Creek, and UTs to Murry Creek, all of which are Waters of the State. 5. On October 31, 2007, the Department issued the Permittee NPDES Permit Number AL0078280 which established limits on the discharge of pollutants from Meredyth Mine from twenty-cight point sources, designated therein as outfall numbers 001 through 028, into Bagwell Branch, Posey Creek, Allen Mill Creek, UTs to Allen Mill Creek, Butler Falls Branch, Whitehead Creek, and a UT to Whitehead Creek, all of which are Waters of the State. 6. On May 30, 2008, the Department issued to Twin Pines Coal Co., Inc., NPDES Permit Number ALQO78271 which established limits on the discharge of pollutants from Buttahatchee Bast Mine from eighty-two point sources, designated therein as outfall numbers 001 through 082, into Buttahatchee River, UTs to Buttahatchee River, Kimbrough Cove Creek, UTs to Kimbrough Cove Creek, and Craft Pour-Off, all of which are Waters of the State. NPDES Permit Number AL0078271 was transferred to the Permittee through a permit modification, effective April 16, 2008. 7. NPDES Permit Number ALOO74039, NPDES Permit Number ALOO78280, and NPDES Permit Number ALO078271 (hereinafter, “the Permits") described in Paragraphs 4 through 6. above require that the Permittee monitor its discharges and submit periodic Discharge Monitoring Reports (hereinafter “DMRs") to the Department describing the results ofthe monitoring, The Permits also require that the Permittee maintain in good working order all systems used by the Permittee to achieve compliance with the terms and conditions of the Permits 8. The Permittee violated Part LA. of the Permits by discharging pollutants into Waters of the State in violation of the discharge limitations established in the Permits, The months the violations occurred, along with the parameters violated and the associated outfalls are listed in Attachment 1 9, The Permittee consents to abide by the terms of the following Consent Order and to pay the civil penalty assessed herein, 10. The Department has agreed to the terms of this Consent Order in an effort to resolve the violations cited herein without the unwarranted expenditure of State resources in further prosecuting the alleged violations. ‘The Department has determined that the terms contemplated in this Consent Order are in the best interests of the citizens of Alabama. CONTENTIONS 11. Pursuant to Ala. Code § 22-22A-5(18}c (2006 Rple. Vol.), in determining the amount of any penalty, the Department must give consideration to the seriousness of the violation, including any irreparable harm to the environment and any threat to the health or safety of the public; the standard of care manifested by the Permittee; the economic benefit that delayed compliance may have conferred upon the Permittee; the nature, extent and degree of success of the Permittee’s efforts to minimize or mitigate the effects of such violation upon the environment; the Permittee’s history of previous violations; and the ability of the Permittee to pay such penalty. Any civil penalty assessed pursuant to this authority shall not be less than $100.00 or exceed $25,000.00 for each violation, provided however, that the total penalty assessed in an order issued by the Department shall not exceed $250,000.00. Each day that such violation continues shall constitute a separate violation, In arriving at this civil penalty, the Department has considered the following: