No person shall discharge or allow to be discharged wastewaters directly or indirectly into city sewer facilities that cause or are capable of causing, either alone or by interaction with other substances, interference with the operation of city sewers, including but not limited to the following.
A. General prohibitions.
1. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the city sewer system, any pollutant, wastewater, or flow that causes pass through or interference or would cause the city to violate any federal, state, or local regulatory requirement.
2. No user shall increase the contribution of flow, pollutants, or change the nature of pollutants where such contribution or change does not meet applicable standards and requirements or where such contribution would cause the city to violate any federal, state, or local regulatory permit.
3. No person shall transport waste from one location or facility to another for the purpose of treating or discharging it directly or indirectly to the city sewer system without written permission from the city.
4. No person shall deliver by vehicular transport, rail car, or dedicated pipeline, directly or indirectly to the OCSD sewerage facilities, wastewater which contains any substance that is defined as a hazardous waste by the regulatory agencies.
B. Specific prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the sewerage facilities, pollutants, substances, or wastewater which:
1. Creates a fire or explosive hazard in the sewerage facilities including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed-cup flashpoint of less than one hundred forty degrees Fahrenheit (140°F) (sixty degrees Centigrade (60°C)) using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21; or produces a gaseous mixture that is ten percent (10%) or greater of the lower explosive limit (LEL). Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, benzene, toluene, ethers, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides, chlorates, perchlorates, bromates, carbides, hydrides and sulfides;
2. Causes obstruction to the flow in the sewer system resulting in interference or damage to the sewerage facilities;
3. Produces noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, solids, or other wastewater which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, is sufficient to create a public nuisance or a hazard to life, or to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance or repair;
4. Results in toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the sewerage facilities in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;
5. Contains any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable regulations from other governmental agencies empowered to regulate the use of radioactive materials;
6. Causes, alone or in conjunction with other sources, the OCSD’s treatment plant effluent to fail a toxicity test. Any toxic substances in amounts exceeding established standards. Any chemical elements or compounds, phenols or other taste or odor producing substances. Any chemical elements or compounds, which are not susceptible to treatment and/or will pass through the OCSD treatment facilities or which may interfere with the biological processes or efficiency of the treatment processes. Any chemical elements or compounds cause acute worker health and safety problems;
7. Causes the OCSD’s effluent or any other product of the treatment process, residues, biosolids, or scums, to be unsuitable for reclamation, reuse or disposal;
8. Causes discoloration or any other condition that affects the quality of the OCSO’s influent or effluent in such a manner that inhibits the OCSO’s ability to meet receiving water quality, biosolids quality, or air quality requirements established by regulatory agencies;
9. Creates excessive foaming in the sewer system or at the treatment facilities;
10. Violates any applicable federal categorical pretreatment standard, statute, regulation, or ordinance of any public agency or regulatory agency having jurisdiction over the operation of or discharge of wastewater through the sewerage facilities;
11. Has a pH less than six (6.0) or greater than twelve (12.0). Any waste which will cause corrosion or deterioration of the city sewer system or OCWD treatment facilities. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, acids, sulfides, concentrated chloride and fluoride compounds and substances which will react with water to form acidic products;
12. Has a maximum biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) greater than fifteen thousand (15,000) pounds per day;
13. Is in excess of the permitted mass emission rates established in accordance with: the concentration limits set forth in Table 1, or the latest update of OCSD wastewater discharge regulations or the OCSD-issued discharge permit;
14. Contains material which will readily settle or cause an obstruction to flow in the sewer resulting in interference. Any solid or viscous wastes which will or may cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer, or otherwise interfere with the proper operation of OCSD treatment facilities. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, grease, uncomminuted garbage, animal guts or tissues, paunch manure, bones, hair, hides or fleshings, entrails, whole blood, feathers, ashes, cinders, sand, spent lime, stone or marble dust, metal, glass, straw, shavings, grass clippings, rags, spent grains, spent hops, waste paper, wood, plastic, tar, asphalt residues, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, and similar substances;
15. Contains wax, grease or oil of mineral origin in concentrations of more than one hundred (100) mg/l whether emulsified or not, or any other waste containing substances which may precipitate, solidify or become viscous at temperatures between thirty-two and one hundred fifty degrees Fahrenheit (32° and 150°F) (zero and sixty-five degrees Centigrade (0°and 65°C)) at the point of discharge into city sewers;
16. Contains garbage that has not been ground or comminuted to such a degree that all particles will be carried freely in suspension under flow conditions normally prevailing in the public sewers, with no particle greater than one-half (1/2) inch in any dimension;
Table 1 Orange County Sanitation District Maximum Allowable Local Discharge Limits | |
Constituent | Milligrams/liter |
Table 1 Orange County Sanitation District Maximum Allowable Local Discharge Limits | |
Constituent | Milligrams/liter |
Arsenic | 2.0 |
Cadmium | 1.0 |
Chromium (total) | 2.0 |
Copper | 3.0 |
Lead | 2.0 |
Mercury | 0.03 |
Nickel | 10.0 |
Silver | 5.0 |
Zinc | 10.0 |
Cyanide (total) | 5.0 |
Cyanide (amenable) | 1.0 |
Polychlorinated biphenyls | 0.01 |
Pesticides | 0.01 |
Total toxic organics | 0.58 |
Sulfide (total) | 5.0 |
Sulfide (dissolved) | 0.5 |
Oil and grease of mineral or petroleum origin | 100.0 |
BOD | 15,000 lbs/day |
Maximum Allowable Discharge Limits For Wastehaulers Discharging Domestic Septage | |
Constituent | Milligrams/liter |
Maximum Allowable Discharge Limits For Wastehaulers Discharging Domestic Septage | |
Constituent | Milligrams/liter |
Cadmium | 1.0 |
Chromium | 2.0 |
Copper | 25.0 |
Lead | 10.0 |
Nickel | 10.0 |
Zinc | 50.0 |
17. Contains slug load concentrations of pollutants that may cause interference with the OCSD treatment facilities;
18. Contains any amounts of organic phosphorus compounds released in a discharge at a flow rate or in a concentration which will cause pass through or interference with the sewerage facilities; or
19. Contains any waste not in compliance with national categorical pretreatment standards as represented in 40 CFR Ch. I, Subch. N or 40 CFR Parts 401-471.
C. Storm water. Ground water, street drainage, subsurface drainage, foundation drains, or yard drainage shall not be discharged directly or indirectly to the city sewer system. The city, at its sole discretion, may approve the discharge of such water by granting a special purpose permit only when no alternative method of disposal is reasonably available. The applicant shall bear the burden of demonstrating that no alternative method of disposal is reasonably available. If a special purpose permit is granted for the discharge of such water into a sewer, the user shall pay connection fees, applicable charges and fees for use and shall meet such other conditions as required by the city.
D. Unpolluted water. Unpolluted water, such as single-pass cooling water, shall not be discharged through direct or indirect connection to a public sewer. The city may approve the discharge of such water only when no alternative method of disposal is reasonably available by issuing a special purpose permit.
E. Septic tank and cesspool wastes. Discharges of septic tank, or cesspool wastes, into the city sewer or directly into the treatment plant facilities is prohibited.
F. Temperature. No person shall discharge wastewater with a temperature higher than one hundred forty degrees Fahrenheit (140°F) (sixty degrees Centigrade (60°C)). Heat in discharged wastewater shall not cause the temperature of wastewater entering the headworks of any OCSD wastewater treatment plant to exceed one hundred four degrees Fahrenheit (104°F) (forty degrees Centigrade (40°C)).
G Point of discharge. No person, excluding city personnel involved in maintenance functions of sewer facilities, shall discharge any water, wastewater or any substance directly into a manhole or other opening in a sewer other than through an approved building sanitary sewer, unless upon written application by the user and approved by the city and payment of the applicable charges for use and fees.
H. Wastewater strength limitations. No person shall discharge wastewater containing substances in excess of the quantities or concentrations listed in Table 1 or containing other materials, or having other characteristics, including, but not limited to, ammonia, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand, total organic carbon, suspended solids, oil or grease of animal or vegetable origin, total dissolved solids, and phenolic compounds in quantities that may cause or are found to cause problems, pass through, or interference with the sewerage facilities. No person shall discharge wastewater containing in excess of 0.01 mg/l of pesticides as a daily maximum, to include, but not limited to the following: DDT (dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane, both isomers), DDE (dichlorodiphenylethylene), DDD (dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane), Aldrin, Benzene Hexachloride (alpha, beta, and gamma isomers), Chlordane, Endrin, Endrin aldehyde, TCDD (2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzop-dioxin), Toxaphene (alpha)-Endosulphan, (beta)-Endosulphan, Endosulphan sulfate, Heptachlor, Heptachlor epoxide, and Dieldrin. No person shall discharge wastewater containing in excess of 0.01 mg/l of polychlorinated biphenyls as a daily maximum to include, but not limited to the following: Aroclors 1016, 1221, 1228, 1232, 1248, 1254, 1260, and 1262.