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ADMINISTRATIVE CIVIL LIABIL•ORDER NO. • 8 MUSCO OLIVE PRODUCTS AND THE STUDLEY COMPANY SAN JOAQUINCOUNTY With respect to the violator, it is believed that there is an ability to pay and continue operating. The Discharger claims that it has suffered a net loss as a result of its attempts to comply with the WDRs and C&A Order. Staff dispute that claim. The Discharger also claims that the proposed liability would be overly burdensome because of product price competition from subsidized foreign competitors. However, the Discharger has not provided any financial documents indicating an inability to pay the administrative civil liability, other than asking to pay the liability in three installments. The Discharger's recent history of wastewater discharge has been one of continued noncompliance with the WDRs, C&A, and Time Schedule Order No. R5-2002-0014 adopted on 25 January 2002. Facility inspections on 8 May 2000, 2 November 2001, and 10 May 2002 revealed numerous violations of the prohibitions and specifications of the WDRs and failure to construct required improvements. In addition, the Discharger has never fully complied with its monitoring and reporting program. The Discharger has made no voluntary effort to cleanup or abate the conditions that caused the violations of the WDRs and C&A Order. The Discharger owns and operates the facility that generates the wastewater and owns and operates the land application area. The Discharger is therefore responsible for the wastewater and is culpable for the violations cited because it has received numerous written and verbal notifications regarding the necessity to submit the technical reports and self-monitoring reports and comply with the WDRs and C&A Order. The Discharger had ample opportunity to submit the required information and complete the required improvements, but failed to do so. By failing to submit the required reports and complete the required facility improvements, the Discharger realized an economic benefit by delaying the expenditure of funds necessary to adequately treat and safely dispose of the wastewater, to properly monitor the discharge, and to provide technical information required to develop revised WDRs. In assessing this liability, the Board has considered the economic benefit derived by the Discharger for the above violations. There may be other matters that justice requires. 33. A$150,000 Administrative Civil Liability is appropriate based on the determinations in Findings No. 30 through 32. 34. Staff costs associated with processing this Order are approximately ten thousand dollars ($10,000). 35. Issuance of this Order is exempt from the provisions of the California Environmental Quality Act (Public Resources Code Section 21000, et. seq.), in accordance with Section 15321 (a)(2), Title 14, of the California Code of Regulations. 36. Any person affected by this action of the Board may petition the State Water Resources Control Board (State Board) to review this action. The petition must be received by the State Board within 30 days of the date on which this Order was adopted by the Board. Copies of the law and regulations applicable to filing petitions will be provided upon request.