(A) Wastewater dischargers. It shall be unlawful for any person to contribute to the POTW without first obtaining the permission of the town. When requested by the POTW Director, a contributor must submit information as to the nature and characteristics of its wastewater within 30 days of the request. The POTW Director is authorized to prepare a form for this purpose and may periodically require contributors to update this information.
(B) Wastewater permits. All SIUs shall obtain a SIU permit prior to the commencement of discharge to the POTW. Existing industrial wastewater contributors who are determined by the POTW Director to be SIUs shall obtain a SIU permit within 180 days of receiving notification of the POTW Director’s determination. Industrial wastewater contributors who do not fit the SIU criteria may, at the discretion of the POTW Director, be required to obtain a wastewater permit for non-SIUs, as defined in § 50.327 herein.
(1) Significant industrial contributor determination. All persons proposing to discharge industrial wastewater or proposing to change the volume or characteristics of an existing discharge of industrial wastewater shall request from the POTW Director a SIU determination. If the POTW Director concludes that the proposed discharge fits the SIU definition, he or she will require that a SIU permit application be filed.
(2) Significant industrial contributor permit application. Contributors required to obtain a SIU permit shall complete and file with the town an application in the form prescribed by the POTW Director, accompanied by an application fee in the amount prescribed in the schedule of charges and fees. SIUs shall apply for a SIU permit within 180 days after notification of the POTW Director’s determination in § 50.339(B)(1) above. In support of the application, the contributor shall submit at a minimum, in units and terms appropriate for evaluation, the following information:
(a) Name of industrial wastewater contributor;
(b) Address of industrial wastewater contributor;
(c) Standard industrial classification (SIC) code(s) or expected classification and industrial wastewater contributor category;
(d) If available, actual daily maximum and average wastewater flow, including daily, monthly or seasonal variations in flow rate for the preceding 12 months, or if the operation is a new operation with flow history of less than 12 months, then use existing flow information plus flow estimates of expected daily, monthly and seasonal variations;
(e) Analytical data on wastewater constituents and characteristics, including but not limited to, those mentioned in §§ 50.328 through 50.335 of this chapter, and any of the priority pollutants (§ 307(a) of the Act) that the applicant knows or suspects are or will be present in the discharge as determined by a reliable analytical laboratory; any pollutants limited by town, state or federal pretreatment standards; and any other pollutant of concern to the town. Sampling and analysis shall be performed in accordance with procedures established by the EPA pursuant to § 304(g) of the Act and contained in 40 C.F.R. part 136, as amended, and as required in §§ 50.364 and 50.365 of this chapter;
(f) Major products manufactured or services supplied;
(g) Description of existing, on-site pretreatment facilities and practices;
(h) Locations of discharge points;
(i) Raw materials used or stored at the site;
(j) Flow diagram or sewer map for the industrial wastewater contributor, showing all sewers, floor drains, sewer connections, direction of flow and appurtenances;
(k) Number and type of employees;
(l) Operation and production schedules, including actual hours of operation of pretreatment system;
(m) Description of current and projected waste-reduction activities in accordance with G.S. § 143-215.1(g);
(n) Description of activities, facilities and plant processes on the premises, including all materials that are or could be accidentally or intentionally discharged;
(o) If additional pretreatment and/or operation and maintenance (O&M) will be required to meet the pretreatment standards, the shortest schedule by which the contributor will provide such additional pretreatment. The completion date in this schedule shall not be longer than the compliance date established for the applicable pretreatment standard. See § 50.356 of this chapter for compliance schedule requirements.
(p) If subject to a categorical standard, a baseline monitoring report in accordance with 40 C.F.R. part 403.12(b) and 15A NCAC 2H .0908(a), as outlined in § 50.355 of this chapter; and
(q) Any other information as may be deemed by the POTW Director to be necessary to evaluate the wastewater permit application.
(3) Application signatories and certification. All wastewater permit applications and contributor reports must be signed by an authorized representative of the contributor, on file with the town as defined in § 50.327(B) of this chapter, and contain the following certification statement:
“I certify under penalty of law that this document and all attachments were prepared under my direction or supervision in accordance with a system designed to assure that qualified personnel properly gather and evaluate the information submitted. Based on my inquiry of the person or persons who manage the system, or those persons directly responsible for gathering the information, the information submitted is, to the best of my knowledge and belief, true, accurate and complete. I am aware that there are significant penalties for submitting false information, including the possibility of fine and imprisonment for knowing violations.”
(4) Application review and evaluation.
(a) The POTW Director is authorized to accept, review and evaluate applications for the town.
(b) Within 30 days of receipt, the POTW Director shall acknowledge and confirm that the application appears to be complete; or, if not complete, shall return the application to the applicant with a statement of what additional information is required.
(5) Tentative determination and draft wastewater permit.
(a) The POTW Director shall conduct a review of the application and an on-site inspection of the industrial wastewater contributor, including any pretreatment facilities, and shall prepare a written evaluation and tentative determination to issue or deny the wastewater permit.
(b) If the POTW Director’s tentative determination in division (B)(5)(a) above is to issue the wastewater permit, the following additional determinations shall be made in writing:
1. Proposed discharge limitations for those pollutants proposed to be limited;
2. A proposed schedule of compliance, including interim dates and requirements, for meeting the proposed limitations; and
3. A brief description of any other proposed special conditions that will have significant impact upon the discharge described in the application.
(c) The POTW Director shall organize the determinations made pursuant to divisions (B)(5)(a) and (B)(5)(b) above and the town’s general wastewater permit conditions into a wastewater permit.
(6) Wastewater permit supporting documentation. Upon modification, renewal or issuance of an SIU permit, the POTW Director shall prepare the following documents and submit them to the approval authority:
(a) An allocation table (AT) listing permit information for all significant industrial users, including but not limited to, wastewater permit limits, wastewater permit effective and expiration dates, and a comparison of total permitted flows and loads with Approval authority-approved maximum allowable loadings of the POTW, including flow, on forms or in a format approved by the approval authority. The AT shall be updated as wastewater permits are issued or renewed, and as wastewater permits are modified where the permitted limits or other AT information is revised.
(b) The basis, or rationale, for the pretreatment limitations, including the following:
1. Documentation of categorical determination, including documentation of any calculations used in applying categorical pretreatment standards; and
2. documentation of the rationale of any parameters for which monitoring has been waived under 40 C.F.R. part 403.12(e)(2).
(7) Hearings.
(a) Initial adjudicatory hearings. An applicant whose wastewater permit is denied, or is granted subject to conditions he or she deems unacceptable, a permittee/contributor assessed a civil penalty under § 50.999 of this chapter, or one issued an administrative order under §§ 50.395 through 50.400 of this chapter, shall have the right to an adjudicatory hearing before a hearing officer designated by the POTW Director. A hearing must be requested in writing, must identify the specific issues to be contested, and must be delivered to the POTW Director within 30 days following receipt of the wastewater permit, civil penalty assessment, or administrative order. Unless such written demand is made within the time specified herein, the action shall be final and binding. The hearing officer shall conduct a hearing and make a final decision on the contested wastewater permit, penalty or order within 45 days of the receipt of the written demand for a hearing. The POTW Director shall transmit a copy of the hearing officer's decision by registered or certified mail.
1. New wastewater permits. Upon appeal, including judicial review in the Superior Court of Watauga County, of the terms or conditions of a newly issued wastewater permit, the terms and conditions of the entire wastewater permit are stayed, and the wastewater permit is not in effect until either the conclusion of the judicial review or until the parties reach a mutual resolution.
2. Renewed wastewater permits. Upon appeal, including judicial review in the Superior Court of Watauga County, of the terms or conditions of a renewed wastewater permit, the terms and conditions of the existing wastewater permit remain in effect until either the conclusion of the judicial review or until the parties reach a mutual resolution.
(b) Final appeal hearings. Any decision of a hearing officer made as a result of an adjudicatory hearing held under § 50.339(B)(7)(a) above may be appealed to the Town Council, upon filing a written demand within ten days of receipt of notice of the decision. Hearings held under this division shall be conducted in accordance with customary quasi-judicial hearing procedures. Failure to make written demand within the time specified herein shall bar further appeal. The Town Council shall ordinarily conduct the hearing at a regular meeting, and shall make a final decision on the appeal in no case more than 60 days of the date the appeal was filed with the Town Clerk. The Town Clerk shall deliver a written copy of its decision by registered or certified mail.
(c) Judicial review. Any person against whom a final order or decision of the Town Council is entered pursuant to the hearing conducted under § 50.339(B)(7)(b) above, may seek judicial review of the order or decision by filing a written petition for certiorari within 30 days after receipt of notice by registered or certified mail of the order or decision, but not thereafter, with the Superior Court of Watauga County. The proceeding shall follow the procedures set out in G.S. § 160A-393. Within 30 days after receipt of the Court's writ of certiorari, the Town Council shall transmit to the reviewing court the official record.
(d) Official record. Within 30 days of Superior Court writ of certiorari or such other time as Court may order, the Town shall prepare an official record of the case, which shall include:
1. All notices, motions and other like pleadings;
2. A copy of all documentary evidence introduced;
3. A certified transcript of all testimony taken, if testimony is transcribed. If testimony is taken and not transcribed, then a narrative summary of any testimony taken. If applicant requests that a transcript be included in the official record, it must state that in the petition for judicial review and must deposit with the town a sum sufficient to pay for its preparation. Once the transcript has been prepared, the town will refund any portion of the deposit that exceeds the actual cost of the transcript, or applicant must pay the additional sum required.
4. A copy of the final decision of the Town Council.
(8) Final action on wastewater permit applications.
(a) The POTW Director shall take final action on all wastewater permit applications not later than 90 days following receipt of a complete application.
(b) The POTW Director is authorized to:
1. Issue a wastewater permit containing such conditions as are necessary to effectuate the purposes of this chapter and G.S. § 143-215.1;
2. Issue a wastewater permit containing time schedules for achieving compliance with applicable pretreatment standards and requirements;
3. Modify any wastewater permit upon not less than 60 days notice and pursuant to § 50.339(B)(9) hereinafter set forth;
6. Deny a wastewater permit application when, in the opinion of the POTW Director, such discharge may cause or contribute to pass through or interference of the POTW treatment plant or where necessary to effectuate the purposes of G.S. § 143-215.1.
(9) Wastewater permit modification.
(a) Modifications of wastewater permits shall be subject to the same procedural requirements as the issuance of wastewater permits, except as listed below. Any changes or new conditions in the wastewater permit shall include a reasonable time schedule for compliance.
1. Changes in the ownership of the discharge when no other change in the wastewater permit is indicated;
2. A single modification of any compliance schedule not in excess of four months;
3. Modification of compliance schedules (construction schedules) in wastewater permits for new sources where the new source will not begin to discharge until pretreatment facilities are operational.
(b) Within nine months of the promulgation of a national categorical pretreatment standard, the wastewater permit of contributors subject to such standards shall be revised to require compliance with such standard within the time frame prescribed by such standard. Where a contributor, subject to a national categorical pretreatment standard, has not previously submitted an application for a wastewater permit as required by § 50.339(B) of this chapter, the contributor shall apply for a wastewater permit within 180 days after the promulgation of the applicable national categorical pretreatment standard.
(c) A request for a modification by the permittee shall constitute a waiver of the 60-day notice required by G.S. § 143-215.1(b) for modifications.
(10) Wastewater permit conditions. The POTW Director shall have the authority to grant a wastewater permit with such conditions attached as he or she believes necessary to achieve the purpose of this chapter and G.S. § 143-215.1. Wastewater permits shall contain, but are not limited to, the following:
(a) A statement of duration (in no case more than five years);
(b) A statement of non-transferability;
(c) Applicable effluent limits based on categorical standards or local limits, or both;
(d) Applicable monitoring, sampling, reporting notification, and record keeping requirements. These requirements shall include an identification of pollutants to be monitored, sampling location, sampling frequency and sample type, based on federal, state and local law;
(e) Requirements for notifying the POTW Director in the event of an accidental discharge or slug load as defined in § 50.327(B) of this chapter;
(f) Requirements to implement a plan or other controls for prevention of accidental discharges and/or slug loads as defined in § 50.327(B) of this chapter, if determined by the POTW Director to be necessary for the contributor;
(h) A statement of applicable civil and/or criminal penalties for violation of pretreatment standards and requirements and any applicable compliance schedule.
(11) Wastewater permit duration. Wastewater permits shall be issued for five years. However, a wastewater permit may be issued for a period less than a year or may be stated to expire on a specific date when circumstance indicates that a more limited time frame is appropriate.
(12) Wastewater permit transfer. Wastewater permits are issued to a specific contributor for a specific operation. A wastewater permit shall not be reassigned or transferred or sold to a new owner, new contributor, different premises, facility, or a new or changed operation.
(13) Wastewater permit reissuance. A contributor shall apply for wastewater permit reissuance by submitting a complete wastewater permit application, in accordance with § 50.339(B) of this chapter, a minimum of 180 days prior to the expiration of the existing wastewater permit.
(Ord. passed 6-21-2011; Am. Ord. passed 12-13-2012) Penalty, see § 50.999