Environmental Complaints and How We Handle Them

Lacy Powers, Conservation Technician, BCCD
At the Bradford County Conservation District (BCCD) our goal is to help conserve, protect and restore our natural resources.  One of the ways we work to achieve that goal is through our delegation agreement with the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) in Chapter 102 for Erosion and Sediment Control and Chapter 105 for Waterway, Wetland and Waterbody Management. By having this agreement with DEP, we can handle permit reviews, approvals, and provide educational opportunities to our community - resulting in faster permit turnaround times and being able to better assist our community in their environmental needs.  Through this agreement we are also delegated to handle environmental complaints for DEP and attempt to receive voluntary compliance when environmental laws have been broken under Chapter 102 or 105 regulations. 

There are two ways we receive an environmental complaint- either from a referral given to us by DEP or a complaint that was submitted to our office directly. Once a complaint is received at our office the BCCD must respond and investigate it within 8 to 10 business days according to our delegation agreements.  From there the BCCD will work with the responsible party to achieve voluntary compliance and help them restore and/or get the necessary permits for the work that was completed. 

Examples of complaints we respond to include reports of visible sediment discharging from a construction site to an offsite area, unpermitted disturbance potentially exceeding 1 acre and unauthorized filling, excavation or sediment discharge within a wetland, stream, floodway, pond or lake.  The BCCD will receive a complaint regarding the work done and then goes out to perform an investigation. If the responsible party is on site during the investigation we will educate them on the Chapter 102 and 105 laws that are being broken with their work and give them direction on how to bring the site back into compliance by acquiring a Chapter 102 or 105 General Permit and/or informing them of the needed erosion and sediment control practices for the work being done. If they are not on site, we will mail them the corresponding Chapter 102 and/or 105 Inspection Report(s) and ask for them to reach out to us to resolve the issues. From there we work on establishing timelines for when the site’s violations will be resolved and help the responsible party achieve site resolution.

But what happens when the responsible party does not want to follow the BCCD’s guidance and refuses to work toward environmental compliance? In cases where the BCCD cannot achieve voluntary compliance the complaint is then referred to the DEP- Northcentral Regional Office. Once the complaint is in DEP’s possession, they will become the main point of contact and will work to achieve compliance.  In severe cases DEP has the authority to place fines and in some cases submit Orders that legally require you to comply with Chapter 102 and 105 laws.  The BCCD works diligently to help landowners and other parties in receiving voluntary compliance so such instances will not take place.

On the other hand, conservation districts and DEP have a very close relationship due to the delegation agreement and because not all environmental issues can be treated the same.  In some instances where a clear solution to an environmental issue cannot be found, the conservation district will reach out to DEP for more guidance and the best course of action to bring the site back into compliance.  This does not mean that the complaint has been referred to DEP. It is still in the conservation district’s hands and voluntary compliance is still working on being met.  In other cases, the environmental issue can just be too much for the district to handle and DEP will be brought on to inspect and assist with the district’s work toward voluntary compliance, without the cases being completely handed over.

Ultimately our goal at the BCCD is to assist our community wherever possible in all areas of natural resource management.  We do not seek to reprimand people who commit environmental violations but rather desire to educate and assist them on their path back into compliance. We want to work with our community not against it and understand the issues and wants for development while also protecting our resources for the future generations to come.
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The Bradford County Conservation District is committed to helping people manage resources wisely. You can visit the Bradford County Conservation District at 200 Lake Rd in Wysox across from the Wysox Fire Hall. Contact us at (570) 485-3144 or visit our web page at www.bccdpa.com.