Fair Grounds Replaces ‘Jackpot’ Pick 5 With Traditional Early, Late Pick 5 Wagers

When the Fair Grounds' 149th season of racing kicks off Thanksgiving Day at the New Orleans, La. track, a traditional early and late Pick Five will replace the Black Gold Five, a jackpot wager that had been in place for the past several years.

On a regular basis, the early Pick Five will encompass races 1-5, and the late Pick Five will be offered on the final five races of the card. The 50-cent minimum wager will pay 100% of the day's pool plus any carryover coming into the day to those who correctly select 5-of-5 winners. Should no one pick 5-of-5, 25% of the pool will be paid to those who select the most winners, with the remaining 75% of the pool carrying over to the following day's late Pick Five sequence.

In addition to the newly implemented early and late Pick Five, Fair Grounds will also offer an early Pick Four, which will now move to races 2-5, as well as two other Pick Fours later on the card. Rolling Pick Threes and daily doubles remain a staple of the wagering menu.

Fair Grounds will also make a key change to their horizontal wagering platform. Beginning this meet, any race that is taken off the turf after a sequence has started will revert to ALL on any live tickets. This rule only applies to turf races moved to the main track. Any scratch in a race that did not switch surfaces will result in the bettor getting a replacement of the post time favorite.

A complete list of wagering information, special wagers, and with key racing dates for the meet can be found at: https://www.fairgroundsracecourse.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/2020-2021-Thoroughbred-Racing-Season-Wagering-Info-FINAL-.pdf

The post Fair Grounds Replaces ‘Jackpot’ Pick 5 With Traditional Early, Late Pick 5 Wagers appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Churchill To Pay Record Civil Penalty Of $2.79 Million For Clean Water Act Violations At Fair Grounds

On Tuesday, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice announced a settlement with the Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company LLC, d/b/a Fair Grounds Corporation (Fair Grounds) that will resolve years of Clean Water Act (CWA) violations at its New Orleans racetrack.

Under the settlement, Fair Grounds will eliminate unauthorized discharges of manure, urine and process wastewater through operational changes and construction projects at an estimated cost of $5,600,000.

The company also will pay a civil penalty of $2,790,000, the largest ever paid by a concentrated animal feeding operation in a CWA matter.

Overview of Company

Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company, LLC, d/b/a Fair Grounds Corporation (Fair Grounds) is a horse racing facility in New Orleans, Louisiana. The facility is one of Louisiana's oldest commercial horse racetracks and is located in an area surrounded by residential neighborhoods. The facility is a large concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO) because it stables or confines more than 500 horses for at least 45 days a year. During a typical horse racing season, Fair Grounds stables as many as 1,800 horses or more at one time. The facility includes a 38.8-acre production area that includes stables, horse stall barns and receiving barns, horse wash racks, horse walkways, horse walkers, manure storage areas, and storage areas for raw materials. The facility also includes a one-mile dirt racetrack and a 7/8-mile turf racetrack, the infield area, the grandstand, the casino, and associated parking areas.

Fair Grounds was purchased by Churchill Downs, Inc. (CDI) in 2004. CDI is a Kentucky entity that operates a number of racetracks, casinos, and other gaming and entertainment entities in eleven states.

Violations

The United States' complaint alleges that Fair Grounds violated the Clean Water Act (CWA), including the terms and conditions of its Louisiana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (LPDES) permit issued pursuant to Section 402 of the CWA. Specifically, the complaint alleges that, since at least 2012, Fair Grounds has regularly discharged untreated process wastewater into the New Orleans municipal separate storm sewer system (including the London Avenue Canal that is used for fishing), which then leads to Lake Pontchartrain, the Mississippi River, and ultimately to the Gulf of Mexico. Fair Grounds is permitted to discharge into the storm sewer system in significant rain events (i.e., when 10 inches of rain falls in 24 hours). However, unauthorized discharges have occurred during rain events as small as a half-inch of rain falling over 24 hours, as well as in dry weather, and would have continued to occur without this settlement. The complaint alleges that unauthorized discharges of horse wash water and other contaminated wastewater occurred more than 250 times between 2012 and 2018. The untreated process wastewater from the facility contains manure, urine, horse wash water, and other biological materials that are “pollutants” as defined by the CWA, the facility's permit, and the applicable EPA and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality (LDEQ) regulations.

The complaint also alleges that Fair Grounds violated several other permit conditions, such as failure to comply with its Nutrient Management Plan, failure to submit discharge monitoring reports on time, failure to report discharges in annual reports, and failure to include all appropriate monitoring and reporting data for fecal coliform in quarterly reports.

In addition, this case is part of EPA's National Compliance Initiative for Reducing Significant Noncompliance with National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permits.

Injunctive Relief

As part of the settlement, Fair Grounds will implement best management practices and construction projects designed to eliminate unauthorized discharges and ensure compliance with its permit and the CWA. Fair Grounds will also perform site-specific sampling, monitoring and hydraulic modeling to help the company and EPA determine whether the remedial actions required by the consent decree are successful in eliminating unauthorized discharges. Furthermore, the proposed consent decree includes a provision requiring Fair Grounds to implement additional remedial measures if these measures do not successfully eliminate unauthorized discharges.

Pollutant Impacts

Pollutants associated with the discharges from this facility include nutrients (nitrogen and phosphorus), pathogens (bacteria), and organic enrichment (low dissolved oxygen), all of which contribute to water quality impairment in U.S. waters. Other potential environmental and human health risks include transmission of disease-causing bacteria and parasites associated with food and waterborne diseases, fish advisories, and algal blooms.

Health Effects and Environmental Benefits

The objective of the proposed CD is to eliminate the discharge of process wastewater to the New Orleans municipal separate storm sewer system, which ultimately leads to Lake Pontchartrain, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico. As a result of the settlement, Fair Grounds' unauthorized discharges will no longer enter nearby waters, thereby benefitting the New Orleans' residents and the surrounding communities.

Civil Penalty

Fair Grounds will be required to pay a civil penalty of $2,790,000 within 30 days of the effective date of the CD.

Comment Period

The proposed settlement, lodged in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana, is subject to a 30-day public comment period and final court approval. Information on submitting a comment is available at the Department of Justice.

The post Churchill To Pay Record Civil Penalty Of $2.79 Million For Clean Water Act Violations At Fair Grounds appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Fair Grounds Must Pay Record Fine in Clean Water Act Settlement

In an attempt to resolve years of federal Clean Water Act (CWA) violations at its Fair Grounds racetrack in New Orleans, Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company, LLC, has agreed to pay a $2.7 million penalty–the largest civil fine ever paid by a concentrated animal feeding operation in a CWA matter.

Under the terms of the settlement announced Sept. 29 by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and the Department of Justice (DOJ), the limited liability company that runs Fair Grounds must also implement $5.6 million in operational changes and construction projects to eliminate the unauthorized discharges of manure, urine, and wastewater from the track’s stable area.

“We are pleased to announce an agreement with Churchill Downs to address years of CWA violations at its Fair Grounds racetrack in New Orleans,” said principal deputy assistant attorney general Jonathan Brightbill of the Justice Department’s Environment and Natural Resources Division. “This consent decree will stop the flow of untreated process wastewater into the local sewer system, which leads to local waters used for fishing…in a way that recognizes the challenges presented by the racetrack’s urban location.”

According to the joint EPA/DOJ press release, the federal complaint alleges that Fair Grounds violated the CWA, “including the terms and conditions of its Louisiana Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit. Specifically, the complaint alleges that since at least 2012, Fair Grounds has regularly discharged untreated process wastewater into the New Orleans municipal separate storm sewer system that leads to the London Avenue Canal, Lake Pontchartrain, the Mississippi River, and ultimately to the Gulf of Mexico.”

According to the release, Fair Grounds’s permit prohibits any discharge unless there is a significant rain event (i.e., when 10 inches of rain falls in 24 hours).

“In violation of their permit, Fair Grounds has discharged wastewater after as little as a half-inch of rain, as well as in dry weather,” the EPA/DOJ release stated. “The complaint alleges that unauthorized discharges of contaminated wastewater occurred more than 250 times between 2012 and 2018. The untreated wastewater contains manure, urine, horse wash water, and other biological materials that are ‘pollutants’ as defined by the CWA, the facility’s permit, and the applicable EPA and Louisiana Department of Environmental Quality regulations.”

The release stated that the consent decree “includes a provision requiring Fair Grounds to implement additional remedial measures if these measures do not successfully eliminate unauthorized discharges.”

The settlement was lodged Tuesday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana and is subject to a 30-day public comment period. The penalty is due within 30 days of the effective date of the consent decree, the release stated.

The post Fair Grounds Must Pay Record Fine in Clean Water Act Settlement appeared first on TDN | Thoroughbred Daily News | Horse Racing News, Results and Video | Thoroughbred Breeding and Auctions.

Source of original post

Hurricane Aftermath: Commission Orders Fair Grounds Open To Evacuees, Churchill Goes To Court

Last Thursday evening marked the second time this year that the Louisiana State Racing Commission has issued an emergency order related to stabling, reports nola.com. After a request from the Louisiana Horsemen's Benevolent and Protective Association, the commission ordered both the Fair Grounds in New Orleans and Louisiana Downs in Bossier City to take in Thoroughbreds from Evangeline Downs (Opelousas).

Hurricane Laura's path of destruction left Delta Downs, in Vinton, La., in bad shape, and though an evacuation order was in place for the area, as many as 500 Quarter Horses and their caretakers had nowhere else to go. All managed to survive the hurricane, but now many are in temporary stabling locations with nowhere to train.

Evangeline Downs ended its Thoroughbred meet this weekend, and the horses at the Opelousas track would normally shift to Delta Downs for the next Thoroughbred race meet, while Delta's Quarter Horse population would shift to Evangeline. Since Delta is not in any condition to host racing, there simply aren't enough stalls to accommodate both populations at the same time.

The commission's decision would send Evangeline's Thoroughbreds to the Fair Grounds, while the Quarter Horses would be able to take up residence at Evangeline. However, Churchill Downs, Inc., the Fair Grounds' parent company, has said that the New Orleans track is not prepared to take on horses at this time. The track is in the midst of preventative maintenance, New Orleans has been a hotspot for Covid-19, and hurricane season is not yet ended.

“We would love to help,” Fair Grounds attorney David Waguespack said during Thursday's commission meeting, according to crescentcitysports.com. “We're just not able to do what the Commission wants us to do.”

The commission's order included that both Fair Grounds and Louisiana Downs provide: stabling for the horses, “customary accommodations” for their caretakers, training hours, and the necessary security and maintenance staff.

On Friday, Churchill's lawyers lodged a legal challenge asking an Orleans Parish judge to halt the order. A hearing is scheduled for this Friday, Sept. 11.

The post Hurricane Aftermath: Commission Orders Fair Grounds Open To Evacuees, Churchill Goes To Court appeared first on Horse Racing News | Paulick Report.

Source of original post

Verified by MonsterInsights