Commission Proceedings 



agricultural runoff were the biggest sources of impairment. ERC members asked several 

 questions about the process of listing waters and the sources of impairment on specific 

 bodies of water. Members also expressed concern that agriculture may be unfairly 

 targeted by water quality laws and enforcement, considering that it appeared to account 

 for only 27% of the instances of impairment. 



Sedimentation Control Program 



Mell F. Nevils, Jr., Chief of the Division of Land Resources in DENR, gave a report 

 on the role of sedimentation control in protecting water quality. He said the numbers of 

 sediment control projects and disturbed acres were increasing. He reported that his staff 

 is now inspecting sites more frequently than ever before and has recorded an increase in 

 off-site sedimentation from disturbed sites. 



ERC members raised concerns about a mining permit that had been approved with no 

 notice to neighbors and requested that legislation be drafted to address the problem. 



Upper Neuse River Basin Association, Inc. 



Lisa Martin, Executive Director of the Upper Neuse River Basin Association, Inc., 

 reported on the activities of the Association, which received an appropriation from the 

 General Assembly to develop an Upper Neuse River Watershed Management Plan. Ms. 

 Martin reported that the association consisted of local governments with land-use 

 jurisdiction in the Falls Lake Watershed, and said the focus of the group was on 

 protecting drinking water quality. ERC members requested that Ms. Martin provide a 

 detailed accounting of how the appropriation to the association had been spent. 



Solid waste 



Dexter R. Matthews, Chief of the Solid Waste Section of the Division of Waste 

 Management in DENR, presented reports on the management of white goods, the 

 condition of the scrap tire disposal account, and the status of solid waste management 

 efforts in the State. He said the white goods program had been very successful, and that 

 the State was now recycling 54% of its scrap tires. Senator Odom requested that DENR 

 work with ERC staff to develop legislation to remove sunsets on the scrap tire and white 

 goods programs, and also make provisions for reducing the fees that support the 

 programs. Mr. Mathews noted that the State is still making negative progress towards its 

 solid waste reduction goal, and recommended the following measures to address this: 

 requiring "pay-as-you-throw" programs; requiring buy-recycled programs; and 

 establishing a statewide tipping fee. 



Heather E. Sandner, Waste Management Analyst for the Community and Business 

 Assistance Section of the Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance 

 (DPPEA) in DENR, gave an annual report on the amounts and types of materials and 

 supplies with recycled content that were purchased by State agencies during the previous 

 fiscal year. Ms. Sandner reported that the information DPPEA had received from other 

 State agencies demonstrated declining support for recycling and buying recycled products 

 by top managers. There was discussion about how to make agencies more committed to 

 recycling and buying recycled products. 



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