Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control Secretary Shawn M. Garvin signed an order allowing the City of Rehoboth Beach to move forward with construction of an outfall that will discharge the city’s treated wastewater into the Atlantic Ocean.
The controversial move comes amid criticism over using the ocean over spray irrigation, an approach that would be expensive, due to a lack of available land.
The Department is issuing permits for the outfall based on the DNREC Secretary’s determination that the City of Rehoboth Beach satisfied all regulatory requirements with its applications, a release stated.
Since taking office in mid-March, Secretary Garvin has listened to numerous stakeholders with often disparate opinions and perspectives on the ocean outfall option, according to a release.
“These are very dedicated individuals who have spent a great deal of time studying the issues and participating in the public process,” he said. “I wanted to glean as much information as possible from them before I made a decision. I sincerely appreciate the time they spent in discussion with me and the insights they provided the Department.
Opponents had expressed concern about the ocean outfall’s potential impacts to Hen and Chicken Shoals, an important habitat for numerous marine species. Information in the hearing record, however, demonstrates that the outfall’s alignment completely avoids Hen and Chicken Shoals and that the effluent, treated to a very high level, will not appreciably impact the shoals, the release stated.
Information in the hearing record demonstrates that the outfall’s alignment completely avoids Hen and Chicken Shoals and that the effluent, treated to a very high level, will not appreciably impact the shoals, the release stated. Work done for Rehoboth by the city’s consultants also demonstrated that water quality, natural
Permits approved in the Secretary’s Order will restrict all work on the outfall to the colder months when recreational uses, wildlife and marine animals, including piping plovers, ospreys, and migrating fish, turtles and mammals, will not be affected.
The order states that the ocean outfall was the remedy chosen by the City of Rehoboth for complying with a court order to stop discharging effluent from the city’s wastewater treatment plant into the Lewes-Rehoboth Canal by June 1, 2018.
The outfall will enable Rehoboth to achieve compliance with federal Clean Water Act and state standards for its wastewater discharge.
The outfall will enable Rehoboth to achieve compliance with federal Clean Water Act and state standards for its wastewater discharge. When operational, the outfall also will bring closure to a lengthy process during which the city has worked to achieve wastewater compliance – starting in 1998.
The Secretary’s Order can be found on the DNREC website athttp://www.dnrec.delaware.gov/Info/Pages/SecOrders_Permits.aspx
