For the purpose of this chapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ACT or “THE ACT”. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 USC 1251, et. seq.
APPROVAL AUTHORITY. The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality (MDEQ) or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
BIOSOLIDS. The accumulated solids separated from liquids, such as water or wastewater, during processing.
BOD or BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND. The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days at 20° C., expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams per liter — mg/l).
BUILDING DRAIN. That part of the lowest horizontal piping of a sanitary drainage system which receives the discharge from soil, waste, and other drainage pipes inside the walls of the building and conveys it to the building sewer, beginning five feet outside the inner face of the building wall.
BUILDING SEWER. The extension from the building drain to the POTW.
CITY. The City of Big Rapids, Michigan, or its Control Authority.
CITY COMMISSION. The City Commission of the City.
COD or CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND. The oxygen consuming capacity of inorganic and organic matter present in wastewater.
COMBINED SEWER. A sewer receiving both surface runoff and sewage.
COMMERCIAL USER. Any user whose premises are used to offer services and/or products including but not limited to such things as gasoline stations, restaurants, hotels, motels, warehouses, private clubs, theaters, retail and wholesale stores.
CONTROL AUTHORITY. The term shall refer to the “Approval Authority” defined hereinabove; or the City Engineer/Utilities Director if the City has an approved Pretreatment Program under the provisions of 40 CFR 403.11.
CONVENTIONAL POLLUTANTS. Those pollutants that are compatible with the existing treatment works, including but not limited to BOD, total suspended solids, phosphorus, and pH.
DEBT SERVICE ALLOCATION. The charge levied to all users for the purpose of paying back any bonds or loans used to finance construction of facilities associated with the system.
DEPARTMENT. The Office of the City Engineer/Utilities Director, and/or the Office of the City of Big Rapids Department of Public Works, or their designate.
DIRECTOR. The City Engineer/Utilities Director, or the City of Big Rapids Public Works Director or their designate.
FATS, OIL, AND GREASE CONTROL DEVICES (FOG CONTROL DEVICES). Any on site devices by which fats, oil, grease, or solvent extractables are removed from wastewater prior to discharge into the sanitary sewer, including but not limited to grease traps and interceptors.
FOOD SERVICE ESTABLISHMENTS (FSEs). Establishments that prepare food for consumption in a dining, carry-out, or institutional setting, or that prepare food for sale on the premises such as a bakery, grocery or convenience store deli.
GARBAGE. Solid wastes from the preparation, cooking, and dispensing of food, and from the handling, storage and sale of produce.
GOVERNMENTAL USER. Any Federal, State and local government user of the City system.
GRAB SAMPLE. A random sewage sample.
HOLDING TANK WASTE. Any waste from holding tanks such as vessels, chemical toilets, campers, trailers, septic tanks, and vacuum pump tank trucks.
INDIRECT DISCHARGE or DISCHARGE. The introduction of pollutants into a POTW from any nondomestic source regulated under Section 307(b), (c) or (d) of the Act.
INDUSTRIAL USER. Any person who introduces pollutants into a POTW from any nondomestic source regulated under the Act, state law or local ordinance.
INDUSTRIAL WASTES. The liquid wastes from an industrial process or processes as distinct from sanitary sewage.
INSTITUTIONAL USER. A school, hospital, church, nursing home, or like user.
INTERFERENCE. A discharge which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from
other sources, inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes (use or disposal).
NATIONAL CATEGORICAL PRETREATMENT STANDARD. Any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by the EPA in accordance with Section 307(b) and (c) of the Act, which applies to industrial users. This term includes prohibitive discharge limits established pursuant to 40 CFR 403.5.
NPDES PERMIT or NATIONAL POLLUTION DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM PERMIT. According to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended by Public Law 92-500, it prohibits any person from discharging pollutants into a waterway from a point source unless the discharge is authorized by a permit issued either by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or by an approved state agency.
NATIONAL PROHIBITIVE DISCHARGE STANDARD or PROHIBITIVE DISCHARGE STANDARD. Any regulation developed under the authority of 307(b) of the Act and 40 CFR, Section 403.5.
NATURAL OUTLET. Any outlet into a water- course, pond, ditch, lake or other body of surface or groundwater.
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE or O&M. All costs, direct and indirect, not including debt service, but inclusive of expenditures attributable to administration, equipment replacement and treatment and collection of wastewater necessary to insure adequate treatment and collection on a continuing basis in conformance with all applicable regulations.
O,M&R COSTS. The charge levied to all users for operation, maintenance, and replacement and customer related administrative costs associated with the system.
PASS THROUGH. A discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the state in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, causes or may cause a violation of any requirement of the POTW's NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).
PERSON. Any individual, partnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint stock
company, trust, estate, governmental entity or any legal entity, or their legal representatives, agent or assigns. The masculine gender shall include the feminine, the singular shall include the plural where indicated by the context.
pH. The logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in moles per liter of solution.
POINT OF DISCHARGE. Any discernible, confined and discrete conveyance or vessel from which pollutants are or may be discharged into a public waterway or public sewer system.
PRETREATMENT STANDARD or STANDARD. Any local, state or federal regulation containing pollutant discharge limits. This term includes local limits, prohibitive discharge limits including those promulgated under 40 CFR 403.5, and categorical pretreatment standards.
PRIORITY POLLUTANT. The EPA has determined that there are 127 toxic compounds that can reasonably be expected in the discharges from the 34 categorical industries. These are labeled priority pollutants. Each industrial category by nature of their common processes can be expected to discharge certain compounds from the list of 127.
PROHIBITED DISCHARGES. Prohibited discharges include all discharges which may interfere with or pass through the treatment plant operations. They include, but are not limited to the priority pollutants, hazardous materials, and certain characteristics of the water which may interfere with system. They are defined as follows:
(1) Chemical compounds which may interfere with or pass through the treatment process.
(2) Materials which may create a fire or explosion hazard in the sewers or treatment works, or which may release poisonous gasses.
(3) Materials which may obstruct the flow in the sewage or treatment system.
(4) Materials which may change the pH to highly acidic or alkaline.
(5) Water which may increase the treatment influent to above 104° F. (40° C.).
PROPERLY SHREDDED GARBAGE. The wastes from the preparation, cooking, and dispensing of
food that have been shredded to such a degree that all particles will be carried freely under the flow conditions normally prevailing in public sewers, with no particle greater than one-half inch in any dimension.
PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS or POTW. A treatment works as defined by Section 212 of the Act, (33 USC 1292) which is owned in this instance by the City. This includes any sewer that conveys wastewater to the POTW treatment plant. For the purposes of this chapter, “POTW” shall also include any sewers that convey wastewater to the POTW from persons outside the City who are users of the POTW.
PUBLIC SEWER. A sewer in which all owners of abutting properties have equal rights, and is controlled by public authority.
REPLACEMENT COSTS. Expenditures during the service life of the system to replace equipment, appurtenances and accessories necessary to maintain the intended performance of the system.
RESIDENTIAL USER. A user whose waste normally emanates from residential living units and results from the day-to-day activities usually considered to be carried on in a domicile.
SANITARY SEWER. A sewer which carries sewage and to which storm, surface and groundwaters are not intentionally admitted.
SEWAGE. A combination of water-carried wastes from residences, businesses and/or commercial buildings, institutions, and industrial establishments, together with such ground, surface and storm waters as may be present.
SHALL. Mandatory. MAY is permissive.
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER.
(1) Except as provided in division (2) of this definition, the term “Significant industrial user” means:
(a) All industrial users subject to Categorical Pretreatment Standards under 40 CFR 403.6 and 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N; and
(b) Any other industrial user that discharges an average of 25,000 gallons per day or more of process wastewater to the POTW (excluding sanitary, non-contact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater); contributes a process wastestream which makes up 5% or more of the average dry weather hydraulic or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant; or
(c) Is designated as such by the POTW on the basis that the industrial user has a reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement (in accordance with 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6)).
(2) Upon a finding that an industrial user meeting the criteria in division (1)(b) of this definition has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the POTW may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user, and in accordance with 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6), determine that such industrial user is not a significant industrial user.
SIGNIFICANT NONCOMPLIANCE.
(1) Chronic violations of wastewater discharge limits, defined here as those in which 66% or more of all of the measurements taken during a six month period exceed (by any magnitude) the daily maximum limit or the average limit for the same pollutant parameter.
(2) TECHNICAL REVIEW CRITERIA or TRC VIOLATIONS, defined here as those in which 33% or more of all of the measurements for each pollutant parameter taken during a six-month period equal or exceed the product of the daily maximum limit or the average limit multiplied by the applicable TRC (TRC = 1.4 for BOD, TSS, fats, oils, and grease, and 1.2 for all other pollutants except pH).
(3) Any other violation of a pretreatment effluent limit (daily maximum or longer-term average) that the Control Authority determines has caused, or may cause, alone or in combination with other discharges, interference or pass through the POTW and has the potential to endanger the health of POTW personnel or the general public.
(4) Any discharge of a pollutant that has caused imminent endangerment to human health, welfare or to the environment or has resulted in the POTW's exercise of its emergency authority under § 53.108 to halt or prevent such a discharge.
(5) Failure to meet, within 90 days after the scheduled date, a compliance schedule milestone contained in a local control mechanism or enforcement order for starting construction, completing construction, or attaining final compliance.
(6) Failure to provide, within 30 days after the due date, required reports such as baseline monitoring reports, 90-day compliance reports, periodic self monitoring reports, and reports on compliance with compliance schedules.
(7) Failure to accurately report noncompliance.
(8) Any other violation or group of violations which the Control Authority determines may adversely affect the operation or implementation of the local pretreatment program.
SLUG. Any discharge of a nonroutine, episodic nature, including but not limited to an accidental spill or a non-customary batch discharge.
STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION. A classification pursuant to the most recent version of the “Standard Industrial Classification Manual” issued by the Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget.
STATE. The State of Michigan.
STORM SEWER or STORM DRAIN. A sewer that carries storm and surface waters and drainage, but excludes sewage and polluted industrial wastes.
SUPERINTENDENT. The Superintendent shall be appointed by the City Engineer/Utilities Director, subject to the approval of the City Manager, and shall meet the minimum requirements established by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality. All references in this code to the SUPERINTENDENT shall include the Superintendent’s designees.
SUSPENDED SOLIDS. Solids that either float on the surface of, or are in suspension in, water, sewage or other liquids, and which are removable by the wastewater treatment process.
SURCHARGE. An extra charge to cover the cost of treating conventional pollutants in excess of domestic background concentrations.
TOXIC POLLUTANT. Any pollutant or combination of pollutants which is or may be harmful to public health or environment including those listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by the Administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under the provision of the CWA 307(a) or other Acts, or included in the Critical Materials Register promulgated by the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality or other Acts.
TREATMENT PLANT. That portion of the POTW designed to provide treatment to wastewater.
UNITS OF MEASURE. Concentration of pollutants used to report the results of water or wastewater analysis, and expressed as:
Milligram per liter, mg/l
Microgram per liter, ug/l
Nanogram per liter, ng/l
U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY or USEPA. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or the Administrator or other duly authorized official of said agency.
USER. Any person who contributes, causes or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City's POTW.
USER CHARGE. The charge levied on users of the system for the cost of operation and maintenance of such work pursuant to Section 204b of P.L. 92-500, which charge shall also include cost of replacement.
WASTEWATER. The liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, and institutions, together with any groundwater, surface water, and stormwater that may be present, whether treated or untreated, which is contributed into or permitted to enter the POTW.
WATERS OF THE STATE. Waters of the State include:
(1) Both surfaces and underground waters within the boundaries of this State subject to its jurisdiction, including all ponds, lakes, rivers, streams, public ditches, tax ditches, and public drainage systems within this State, other than those designed and used to collect, convey, or dispose of sanitary sewage; and
(2) The flood plain free-flowing waters determined by the Department of Natural Resources on the basis of 100-year flood frequency.
(3) Any other waters specified by State Law.
WATERCOURSE. A channel in which a flow of water occurs, either continuously or intermittently.
(Ord. 311-3-92, passed 3-16-92; Am. Ord. 492-05-02, passed 5-20-02; Am. Ord. 700-09-16, passed 9-6-16)