CHARLESTON—The West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection (WVDEP) is suing the town of Chesapeake for allegedly violating pollution codes.
Scott G. Mandirola, director of the WVDEP's Division of Water and Waste Management filed a suit on Nov. 19, 2015 in Kanawha Circuit Court against Chesapeake, alleging that the town violated the West Virginia Water Pollution Control Act (WPCA).
Chesapeake operates a sewer collection system in Kanawha County that is supposed to only discharge to a treatment center in Marmet. The suit alleges that a state inspection in July 2012 revealed that the system was discharging waste into the Kanawha River. The discharge allegedly polluted the river, creating sludge deposits, suspended solids and harmful materials. The suit also claims that Chesapeake failed to submit quarterly progress reports for the work to remove inflow and infiltration from its collection system. This pollution allegedly continued for several months after the discovery.
The plaintiff is suing Chesapeake for an enjoinment from any and all future violations of the WPCA, corrective behaviors, a civil penalty of $25,000 per day for each violation, abatement of the public nuisance the town created and appropriate damages, and any other rewards deemed proper. Mandirola is represented by attorney Andrew F. Tarr of the WVDEP.
Kanawha Circuit Court Case number 15-c-2055
