DATE: Wednesday, April 30, 1997             TAG: 9704300517

SECTION: LOCAL                   PAGE: B4   EDITION: FINAL 

SOURCE: BY SCOTT HARPER, STAFF WRITER 

DATELINE: RICHMOND                          LENGTH:   70 lines

NORFOLK AND WESTERN FINED FOR WAITING TO FIX DRAINAGE TROUBLE THE DEADLINE FOR COMPLETING THE POLLUTION WORK WAS JANUARY 1995.

Norfolk and Western Railway Co. was fined $16,000 Tuesday for waiting two years to correct a drainage problem that was polluting the Elizabeth River.

The company, a subsidiary of railroad giant Norfolk Southern, had been under a state order to crack down on grease, oil and other wastes flowing into the river from the Lambert's Point docks near downtown Norfolk.

The deadline for completing the work was January 1995.

A new, $1.8 million system was built in time, but it didn't work. This spring state inspectors found more violations and issued a warning that the company could face prosecution.

The treatment plant, which filters thousands of gallons of dirty waste water from docks and rail lines, is running fine. Contaminants that caused ``minor damage'' for years to the Elizabeth are again under control, said David S. Gussman, a senior enforcement chief for the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality.

``We're concerned about the Elizabeth River; it certainly has a lot of problems,'' Gussman said. ``So we're especially concerned when someone does not comply with their environmental commitments.''

Bob Fort, a Norfolk Southern spokesman, attributed the problem to ``a shakedown period'' associated with new technology. He noted that the plant, since coming on line, has won an environmental award.

Gussman was asked Tuesday by a member of the State Water Control Board why the railroad faced such stiff fines if its state-of-the-art plant was functioning.

Gussman replied that it appeared the railroad had intentionally delayed the project, not wanting to invest the money until pressed by the state.

``We believe the railroad put off a very expensive upgrade,'' he said. ``Economic benefit was gained. . . because they had that money on hand.''

Fort denied any stalling, saying bad weather and bugs in the new technology were to blame.

The state also flagged the railroad for not conducting toxicity tests, which would determine whether wastes would kill fish and small marine life. Under a state order, the company must start the tests immediately.

Norfolk and Western was not alone Tuesday. Two other companies were fined by the State Water Control Board for polluting the Elizabeth, a Chesapeake Bay tributary.

The river, which cuts through the industrial heart of South Hampton Roads, has been abused for decades. But the river now is the subject of a grass-roots cleanup that has state and federal funding.

C&M Oil Distributors, a waste-water recycler on the Eastern Branch of the Elizabeth, was fined $12,000 for numerous pollution violations since opening last year.

The Norfolk company has had little problem controlling the usual suspects with oily waste water, such as grease and fuel particles. The problem, Gussman described, is sewage, apparently coming in bilge water from Navy and commercial ships.

As part of its agreement with the state, C&M will stop piping sewage into the Elizabeth and instead send the sludge to a treatment plant run by the Hampton Roads Sanitation District.

Tarmac Mid-Atlantic Inc. was fined $3,000 for problems at its concrete plant on the banks of the Western Branch of the Elizabeth in Portsmouth.

Waste water from the plant is too alkaline and must be screened better so it does not harm water quality, Gussman said.

Tarmac has completed a plan to correct the problem, which the state is reviewing. A fine was recommended because of pollution violations last spring and summer.

State inspectors also found tiny pieces of concrete collecting on the river bottom near the plant. While not a violation, the concrete can smother sea grasses and harm small marine life, Gussman said. KEYWORDS: FINE POLLUTION ELIZABETH RIVER NORFOLK AND

WESTERN RAILWAY CO.

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