Hū Honua Bioenergy fined for illegal wastewater discharge

In Hawaii, The Hawai‘i Department of Health (DOH) Clean Water Branch has issued a Notice of Violation and Order (NOVO) to Hū Honua Bioenergy, LLC for an unauthorized discharge of industrial wastewater on Nov. 9, 2018, at their facility in Pepe‘ekeo on Hawai‘i Island. The NOVO states that Hū Honua Bioenergy, LLC, violated Hawai‘i Revised Statutes, HRS 342D-50(a) for discharging pollutants to a state water without a permit or other authorization.

The DOH investigation determined the discharged wastewater was generated between Nov. 2- 6, 2018, as part of Hū Honua Bioenergy’s commissioning of its boiler and had been stored in wastewater treatment tanks prior to the discharge. Between 3,500 and 32,500 gallons of treated industrial wastewater composed of freshwater, acidic metal cleaning solution and residue from the descaling of the boiler was discharged. While the dark green colored wastewater had been filtered and neutralized prior to discharge, it contained high levels of iron and is a regulated waste.

The NOVO requires Hū Honua Bioenergy to implement environmental compliance training for all its employees within 30 days, develop standard operating procedures to prevent discharges of a similar nature, and pay a penalty of $25,000 to DOH. After all corrective actions have been completed, Hū Honua Bioenergy must submit a corrective action report to DOH.