(A) Notice of violation.
(1) Any user found to be violating any provisions of this chapter, wastewater permit, or any order issued hereunder, shall be served by the city with the written notice stating the nature of the violation(s). Within ten (10) days of the receipt date of this notice, an explanation of the violation and a plan for the satisfactory correction and prevention thereof, to include specific required actions, shall be submitted to the superintendent. Submission of this plan in no way relieves the user of potential liability for any violation occurring before or after receipt of the notice of violation.
(2) If the violations persist or the explanation and/or plan are not adequate, the city's response shall be more formal and commitments (or schedules as appropriate) for compliance will be established in an enforceable document. The enforcement response selected will be related to the seriousness of the violation. Enforcement responses will be escalated if compliance is not achieved expeditiously after the initial action. A significant non-compliance as defined in § 31.374, will require a formal enforcement action.
(3) The full scale of enforcement actions will be as detailed in the enforcement response plan.
(B) Administrative orders. Any user who after receiving a notice of violation shall continue to discharge in violation of this chapter or other pretreatment standards or requirements or is determined to be a chronic or persistent violator or who is determined to be a significant violator, shall be ordered to appear before the city. At the appearance, a compliance schedule will be given to the non-conforming user and an administrative fine assessed. The fine shall be determined on a case-by-case basis which shall consider the type and severity of violation, duration of violation, number of violation, severity of impact on the POTW, impact on human health, users economic benefit from violation, history of violations, good faith of the user, and shall be a non-arbitrary but appropriate amount. The administrative order may take any of the following three forms.
(1) Consent orders. The superintendent or their designee is hereby empowered to enter into consent orders, assurances of voluntary compliance, or other similar documents establishing an agreement with the industrial user responsible for the noncompliance. The orders will include specific action to be taken by the industrial user to correct the noncompliance within a time period also specified by the order. Consent orders shall have the same force and effect as orders issued pursuant to subsection (B)(3).
(2) Compliance orders. When the superintendent or their designee finds that an industrial user has violated or continues to violate the chapter or a permit or order issued thereunder, he may issue an order to the industrial user responsible for the discharge directing that, following a specified time period, sewer service shall be discontinued unless adequate treatment facilities, device, or other related appurtenances have been installed and are properly operated. Orders may also contain such other requirements as might be reasonably necessary and appropriate to address the noncompliance, including the installation of pretreatment technology, additional self-monitoring, and management practices.
(3) Cease and desist orders. When the superintendent finds that an industrial user has violated or continues to violate this chapter or any permit or order issued hereunder, the superintendent may issue an order to cease and desist all such violations and direct those persons in non-compliance to comply forthwith, or take such appropriate remedial or preventive action as may be needed to properly address a continuing or threatened violation, including halting operations and terminating the discharge.
(C) Show cause hearing.
(1) The superintendent or his designee may issue to any user who causes or contributes to violations of this chapter, wastewater permit or order issued hereunder, an order to appear and show cause why the proposed enforcement action should not be taken. A notice shall be served on the user specifying the time and place of a hearing to be held by the superintendent regarding the violation, the reasons why the action is to be taken, the proposed enforcement action, and directing the user to show cause, before the superintendent, why the proposed enforcement action should not be taken. The notice of the hearing shall be served personally or by registered or certified mail (return receipt requested) at least ten (10) days before the hearing. Service may be made on any agent or officer of the industrial user or its representative appears, immediate enforcement action may be pursued.
(2) The city may, itself, conduct the hearing and take the evidence, or designate a representative to:
(a) Issue, in the name of the city, notices of hearings requesting the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of evidence relevant to any matter involved in such hearing;
(b) Take the evidence;
(c) Transmit a report of the evidence and hearing, including transcripts and other evidence, together with recommendations to the city for action thereon.
(3) At any hearing held pursuant to this chapter, testimony taken must be under oath and recorded stenographically. The transcript, so recorded, will be made available to any member of the public or any party to the hearing upon payment of the usual charges thereof.
(4) After the city has reviewed the evidence, it may issue an order to the user responsible for the discharge directing that, following a specified time period, the sewer service will be discontinued unless adequate treatment facilities, devices, or other related appurtenances are properly operated. Further orders and directives as are necessary and appropriate may be issued.
(D) Additional enforcement remedies.
(1) Performance bonds. The superintendent may decline to reissue a permit to any industrial user which has failed to comply with the provisions of this chapter or any order or previous permit issued hereunder unless such user first files with it a satisfactory bond, payable to the POTW, in a sum not to exceed a value determined by the superintendent to be necessary to achieve consistent compliance.
(2) Liability insurance. The superintendent may decline to reissue a permit to any industrial user which has failed to comply with the provisions of this chapter or any order or previous permit issued hereunder, unless the industrial user first submits proof that it has obtained financial assurances sufficient to restore or repair POTW damage caused by its discharge.
(Ord. No. 17-91, 6-25-91)