| (2) |
At the completion of the negotiation
process required by O.C.G.A. § 12-2-2(c)(6) and
before executing and issuing any administrative consent order which falls in
any of the categories in (a) below, the Environmental Protection Division shall
provide notice and opportunity to the public to comment on and provide
information regarding the proposed issuance of such orders. This chapter shall
not apply to or delay emergency actions as determined by the director of the
Environmental Protection Division, nor actions which will immediately address
ongoing harmful releases into the environment, nor actions relating to
Georgia's Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund disbursements on behalf of that
fund's participants.
| (a) |
The following
categories of administrative consent orders are subject to (2) above:
| 1. |
orders for which the director of the
Environmental Protection Division believes a release of a regulated substance
into the environment may have endangered or may be endangering human health. A
regulated substance is one having a human health-based standard adopted by the
Board of Natural Resources. The Director may consider such factors as the
toxicity of the released substance, the amount and duration of the release and
the potential for human exposure to the release. |
| 2. |
orders with compliance schedules exceeding
one year or orders extending an existing compliance schedule. |
| 3. |
a second order issued to the same facility
for reasons of noncompliance under the same statute in a twelve month
period. |
| 4. |
orders for which the
person entering into the proposed order requests in writing that notice be
issued to the public. |
|
| (b) |
A thirty-day comment period shall be
provided. The notices shall include, at a minimum, the name and location of the
facility; the nature of the violation or cause of the order, and information on
how to obtain a copy of the proposed order. |
| (c) |
The Environmental Protection Division
shall consider all information received during the comment period prior to
acting upon the proposed administrative consent order. Such information may
consist of, but not be limited to, letters, documents, photos, and
videos. |
|
