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Fort Worth, TX Code of Ordinances
FORT WORTH, TEXAS CODE OF ORDINANCES
OFFICIALS of the CITY OF FORT WORTH, TEXAS
PART I: THE CHARTER OF THE CITY OF FORT WORTH
PART II: CITY CODE
CHAPTER 1: GENERAL PROVISIONS
CHAPTER 2: ADMINISTRATION
CHAPTER 2.5: RETIREMENT
CHAPTER 3: AIRPORTS AND AIRCRAFT
CHAPTER 4: ALCOHOLIC BEVERAGES
CHAPTER 5: AMBULANCES/EMERGENCY MEDICAL SERVICES
CHAPTER 6: ANIMALS AND FOWL
CHAPTER 7: BUILDINGS
CHAPTER 8: CABLE COMMUNICATION SERVICE
CHAPTER 9: COMMUNITY FACILITIES AGREEMENTS
CHAPTER 10: COURTS
CHAPTER 11: ELECTRICITY
CHAPTER 11.5: EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT
CHAPTER 12: EMERGENCY REPORTING EQUIPMENT AND PROCEDURES
CHAPTER 12.5: ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND COMPLIANCE
CHAPTER 13: FIRE PREVENTION AND PROTECTION
CHAPTER 14: RESERVED
CHAPTER 15: GAS
CHAPTER 16: HEALTH AND SANITATION
CHAPTER 17: HUMAN RELATIONS
CHAPTER 18: LAKE WORTH
CHAPTER 19: LIBRARIES
CHAPTER 20: LICENSES AND MISCELLANEOUS BUSINESS REGULATIONS
CHAPTER 21: RESERVED
CHAPTER 22: MOTOR VEHICLES AND TRAFFIC
CHAPTER 23: OFFENSES AND MISCELLANEOUS PROVISIONS
CHAPTER 24: PARK AND RECREATION
CHAPTER 25: RESERVED
CHAPTER 26: PLUMBING
CHAPTER 27: POLICE
CHAPTER 28: PUBLIC UTILITIES
CHAPTER 29: SIGNS
CHAPTER 29.5: SMOKING
CHAPTER 30: STREETS AND SIDEWALKS
CHAPTER 31: SUBDIVISION ORDINANCE
CHAPTER 32: TAXATION
CHAPTER 33: TREES, SHRUBS, ETC.
CHAPTER 34: VEHICLES FOR HIRE
CHAPTER 35: WATER AND SEWERS
CHAPTER 36: RESERVED
APPENDIX A: ZONING REGULATIONS
APPENDIX B: CODE COMPLIANCE
APPENDIX C: RESERVED
CODE COMPARATIVE TABLE
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§ 12.5-610 DISCHARGES TO THE CITY OF FORT WORTH VILLAGE CREEK WATER RECLAMATION FACILITY.
   (a)   General prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW any pollutant or wastewater which causes pass through or interference. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the POTW regardless of whether they are subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, state or local pretreatment standards or requirements.
   (b)   Specific prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW the following pollutants, substances or wastewater:
      (1)   Pollutants which create a fire or explosive hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed-cup flashpoint of less than 140°F (60°C) using the test methods specified in 40 C.F.R. § 261.21;
      (2)   Wastewater having a pH less than 5.0 or more than 12.0, or otherwise causing corrosive or structural damage to the POTW or equipment;
      (3)   Solid or viscous substances in amounts which will cause obstruction of the flow in the POTW resulting in interference but in no case solids greater than one-half inch in any dimension;
      (4)   Oil and grease.
         a.   Petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting oil or non polar products of mineral oil origin in concentrations greater than 200 mg/l;
         b.   Visible free floatable polar oils, fats or grease or a concentration greater than 250 mg/l in wastewater discharged from industrial or commercial facilities into the POTW; and
         c.   In no case shall discharges in amounts that cause interference or operational problems with the POTW be allowed;
      (5)   Pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, will cause interference with the POTW;
      (6)   Wastewater having a temperature greater than 150°F (65°C), or which will inhibit biological activity in the treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 104°F (40°C);
      (7)   Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;
      (8)   Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;
      (9)   Industrial waste.
         a.   Trucked or hauled industrial waste, except as approved in writing by the director; or
         b.   Trucked or hauled waste from any industrial activities/processes regulated by any specific category listed in 40 Code of Federal Regulations (40 CFR) Parts 405 - 471 with detectable quantities of PFAS;
      (10)   Noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, solids or other wastewater which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are sufficient to create a public nuisance or a hazard to life, or to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance or repair;
      (11)   Hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide or nitrous oxide in excess of ten parts per million in water.
      (12)   Wastewater which imparts color which cannot be removed by the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions;
      (13)   Wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations;
      (14)   Stormwater, surface water, ground water, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the director;
      (15)   Sludges, screenings or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;
      (16)   Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the director in a wastewater discharge permit;
      (17)   Wastewater causing, alone or in conjunction with other sources, the treatment plant’s effluent to fail a toxicity test;
      (18)   Detergents, surface-active agents or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the POTW;
      (19)   Swimming pool drainage from private residential pools. Swimming pool drainage from public and semi-public swimming pools may be discharged to the POTW with the prior consent of the director. Swimming pool filter backwash may be discharged to the POTW;
      (20)   BTEX concentration greater than 1.0 mg/l; or
      (21)   Any PFAS or PFAS-related substances above baseline collection system concentrations of 25 ng/L without an approved plan of correction, as defined in the dischargers permit, which employs “Best Management Practices” (BMPs) to reduce or eliminate the pollutants within one year of detection/notification.
   (c)   Categorical pretreatment. The categorical pretreatment standards found at 40 C.F.R. Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405-471 are hereby incorporated into this article. A user shall not discharge in violation of categorical pretreatment standards.
      (1)   Where a categorical pretreatment standard is expressed only in terms of either the mass or the concentration of a pollutant in wastewater, the director may impose equivalent concentration or mass limits in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(c).
      (2)   When wastewater subject to a categorical pretreatment standard is mixed with wastewater not regulated by the same standard, the director shall impose an alternate limit in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(e).
      (3)   A user may obtain a variance from a categorical pretreatment standard if the user can demonstrate, pursuant to the procedural and substantive provisions in 40 C.F.R. § 403.13, that factors relating to its discharge are fundamentally different from the factors considered by the EPA when developing the categorical pretreatment standard.
      (4)   A user may obtain a net/gross adjustment to a categorical standard in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.15.
   (d)   Local limits.
      (1)   The following local pollutant limits are established to protect against pass through and interference. The limits apply at the point where the wastewater is discharged to the POTW. The director may impose mass limitations in addition to, or in place of, the concentration-based limitations. All concentrations for metallic substances are for total metal unless indicated otherwise.
      (2)    No person shall discharge wastewater containing the following. Pollutants in the form of compounds or elements with total concentrations exceeding the following:
Pollutant
Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Pollutant
Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Arsenic
0.25
Cadmium
0.15
Chromium
5.0
Copper
4.0
Lead
2.9
Mercury
0.01
Nickel
2.0
Silver
1.0
Zinc
5.0
Cyanide or cyanogens compounds (expressed as total CN-)
1.0
 
   (e)   The director may develop best management practices by ordinance approved by the city council, or in individual wastewater discharge permits to help implement local limits and other pretreatment standards and the requirements of this section.
   (f)   A person commits an offense if with criminal negligence the person processes or stores pollutants, substances or wastewater prohibited by this section in such a manner that they could be discharged to the POTW.
(Ord. 12274, § 1, passed 11-28-1995; Ord. 15496, § 6, passed 3-25-2003; Ord. 17074, § 5, passed 7-25-2006; Ord. 18428-01-2009, § 1, passed 1-6-2009; Ord. 20043-01-2012, § 4, passed 1-10-2012; Ord. 26888-04-2024, § 2, passed 4-23-2024, eff. 5-3-2024; Ord. 27308-11-2024, § 2, passed 11-19-2024, eff. 11-29-2024)
§ 12.5-610.1 DISCHARGES TO THE TRINITY RIVER AUTHORITY CENTRAL REGIONAL WASTEWATER SYSTEM.
   (a)   General prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW any pollutant or wastewater which causes pass through or interference. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the POTW regardless of whether they are subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, state or local pretreatment standards or requirements.
   (b)   Specific prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW the following pollutants, substances or wastewater:
      (1)   Pollutants which create a fire or explosive hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed-cup flashpoint of less than 140°F (60°C) using the test methods specified in 40 C.F.R. § 261.21;
      (2)   Wastewater having a pH less than 5.5 or more than 11.0, or otherwise causing corrosive or structural damage to the POTW or equipment;
      (3)   Solid or viscous substances in amounts which will cause obstruction of the flow in the POTW resulting in interference but in no case solids greater than one-half inch in any dimension or fats, oil and grease measured as total oil and grease in excess of 200 mg/l;
      (4)   Pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, will cause interference with the POTW;
      (5)   Wastewater having a temperature greater than 150°F (65°C), or which will inhibit biological activity in the treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 104°F (40°C);
      (6)   Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;
      (7)   Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;
      (8)   Trucked or hauled waste except at discharge points designated by the director;
      (9)   Noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, solids or other wastewater which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are sufficient to create a public nuisance or a hazard to life, or to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance or repair; hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide or nitrous oxide in excess of ten parts per million.
      (10)   Wastewater which imparts color which cannot be removed by the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions;
      (11)   Wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations;
      (12)   Stormwater, surface water, ground water, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the director;
      (13)   Sludges, screenings or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;
      (14)   Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the director in a wastewater discharge permit;
      (15)   Detergents, surface-active agents or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the POTW; or
      (16)   Swimming pool drainage from private residential pools. Swimming pool drainage from public and semi-public swimming pools may be discharged to the POTW with the prior consent of the director. Swimming pool filter backwash may be discharged to the POTW.
   (c)   Categorical pretreatment. The categorical pretreatment standards found at 40 C.F.R. Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405 through 471 are hereby incorporated into this article. A user shall not discharge in violation of categorical pretreatment standards.
      (1)   Where a categorical pretreatment standard is expressed only in terms of either the mass or the concentration of a pollutant in wastewater, the director may impose equivalent concentration or mass limits in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(c).
      (2)   When regulated, process wastewater subject to a categorical pretreatment standard is mixed with non-regulated wastewaters prior to treatment, the director or the industrial user with the written concurrence of the director, shall derive fixed alternative discharge limits in accordance with procedures and the combined wastestream formula found in 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(e) or by a flow weighted average.
      (3)   A user may obtain a variance from a categorical pretreatment standard if the user can prove, pursuant to the procedural and substantive provisions in 40 C.F.R. § 403.13, that factors relating to its discharge are fundamentally different from the factors considered by the EPA when developing the categorical pretreatment standard.
      (4)   A user may obtain a net gross adjustment to a categorical standard in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.15.
   (d)   Local limits.
      (1)   The following local pollutant limits are established to protect against pass through and interference. The limits apply at the point where the wastewater is discharged to the POTW. The director may impose mass limitations in addition to, or in place of, the concentration-based limitations. All concentrations for metallic substances are for total metal unless indicated otherwise.
      (2)   No person shall discharge wastewater containing the following. Pollutants in the form of compounds or elements with total concentrations exceeding the following:
Pollutant
Instantaneous Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Pollutant
Instantaneous Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Arsenic
0.2
Cadmium
0.1
Chromium, total
2.1
Copper
1.8
Cyanide, total
0.4
Lead
1.2
Mercury
0.06
Molybdenum
0.5
Nickel
3.3
Selenium
0.2
Silver
0.8
Zinc
6.1
 
   (e)   Best management practices. The director may develop best management practices by ordinance approved by the city council, or in individual wastewater discharge permits to help implement local limits and other pretreatment standards and the requirements of this section.
   (f)   Offense. A person commits an offense if with criminal negligence the person processes or stores pollutants, substances or wastewater prohibited by this section in such a manner that they could be discharged to the POTW.
(Ord. 15496, § 7, passed 3-25-2003; Ord. 17074, § 6, passed 7-25-2006; Ord. 18428-01-2009, § 2, passed 1-6-2009; Ord. 20043-01-2012, § 5, passed 1-10-2012; Ord. 27308-11-2024, §§ 3, 5, 6, passed 11-19-2024, eff. 11-29-2024)
§ 12.5-610.2 DISCHARGES TO THE TRINITY RIVER AUTHORITY DENTON CREEK REGIONAL WASTEWATER SYSTEM.
   (a)   General prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW any pollutant or wastewater which causes pass through or interference. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the POTW regardless of whether they are subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, state or local pretreatment standards or requirements.
   (b)   Specific prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW the following pollutants, substances or wastewater:
      (1)   Pollutants which create a fire or explosive hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed-cup flashpoint of less than 140°F (60°C) using the test methods specified in 40 C.F.R. § 261.21;
      (2)   Wastewater having a pH less than 6.0 or more than 10.0, or otherwise causing corrosive or structural damage to the POTW or equipment;
      (3)   Solid or viscous substances in amounts which will cause obstruction of the flow in the POTW resulting in interference but in no case solids greater than one-half inch in any dimension or fats, oil and grease measured as total oil and grease in excess of 100 mg/l;
      (4)   Pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, will cause interference with the POTW; biochemical oxygen demand (five-day) in excess of 250 mg/l surcharge limit only), total suspended solids in excess of 250 mg/l (surcharge limit only).
      (5)   Wastewater having a temperature greater than 150°F (65°C), or which will inhibit biological activity in the treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 104°F (40°C);
      (6)   Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;
      (7)   Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;
      (8)   Trucked or hauled waste except at discharge points designated by the director;
      (9)   Noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, solids or other wastewater which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are sufficient to create a public nuisance or a hazard to life, or to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance or repair; hydrogen sulfide, sulfur dioxide or nitrous oxide in excess of ten one-hundredths mg/l;
      (10)   Wastewater which imparts color which cannot be removed by the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions;
      (11)   Wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations;
      (12)   Stormwater, surface water, ground water, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the director;
      (13)   Sludges, screenings or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;
      (14)   Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the director in a wastewater discharge permit;
      (15)   Wastewater causing, alone or in conjunction with other sources, the treatment plant’s effluent to fail a toxicity test; total toxic organics in excess of one mg/l collected as a grab sample.
      (16)   Detergents, surface-active agents or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the POTW; or
      (17)   Swimming pool drainage from private residential pools. Swimming pool drainage from public and semi-public swimming pools may be discharged to the POTW with the prior consent of the director. Swimming pool filter backwash may be discharged to the POTW.
   (c)   Categorical pretreatment. The categorical pretreatment standards found at 40 C.F.R. Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405-471 are hereby incorporated into this article. A user shall not discharge in violation of categorical pretreatment standards.
      (1)   Where a categorical pretreatment standard is expressed only in terms of either the mass or the concentration of a pollutant in wastewater, the director may impose equivalent concentration or mass limits in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(c).
      (2)   When regulated, process wastewater subject to a categorical pretreatment standard is mixed with non-regulated wastewaters prior to treatment, the director or the industrial user with the written concurrence of the director, shall derive fixed alternative discharge limits in accordance with procedures and the combined wastestream formula found in 40 C.F.R. § 403.6(e) or by a flow weighted average.
      (3)   A user may obtain a variance from a categorical pretreatment standard if the user can prove, pursuant to the procedural and substantive provisions in 40 C.F.R. § 403.13, that factors relating to its discharge are fundamentally different from the factors considered by the EPA when developing the categorical pretreatment standard.
      (4)   A user may obtain a net gross adjustment to a categorical standard in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.15.
   (d)   Local limits.
      (1)   The following local pollutant limits are established to protect against pass through and interference. The limits apply at the point where the wastewater is discharged to the POTW. The director may impose mass limitations in addition to, or in place of, the concentration-based limitations. All concentrations for metallic substances are for total metal unless indicated otherwise.
      (2)   No person shall discharge wastewater containing the following. Pollutants in the form of compounds or elements with total concentrations exceeding the following:
Pollutant
Instantaneous Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Pollutant
Instantaneous Maximum Allowable Discharge Limit mg/l
Arsenic
0.1
Barium
1.0
Cadmium
0.1
Chromium
1.0
Copper
1.5
Lead
1
Mercury
0.005
Nickel
1.0
Selenium
.05
Silver
0.1
Zinc
2.0
Cyanide or cyanogen compounds (expressed as total CN-)
1.0
 
   (e)   The director may develop best management practices by ordinance approved by the city council, or in individual wastewater discharge permits to help implement local limits and other pretreatment standards and the requirements of this section.
   (f)   A person commits an offense if with criminal negligence the person processes or stores pollutants, substances or wastewater prohibited by this section in such a manner that they could be discharged to the POTW.
(Ord. 15496, § 8, passed 3-25-2003; Ord. 17074, § 7, passed 7-25-2006; Ord. 20043-01-2012, § 6, passed 1-10-2012; Ord. 27308-11-2024, § 4, passed 11-19-2024, eff. 11-29-2024)
§ 12.5-611 CITY’S RIGHT OF REVISION.
   The city reserves the right to establish, by ordinance or in wastewater discharge permits, more stringent standards or requirements on discharges to the POTW than those set forth above.
(Ord. 12274, § 1, passed 11-28-1995)
§ 12.5-612 DILUTION.
   (a)   No user shall ever increase the use of process water, or in any way attempt to dilute a discharge, as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with a discharge limitation unless expressly authorized by an applicable pretreatment standard or requirement.
   (b)   The director may impose mass limitations on users who are using dilution to meet applicable pretreatment standards or requirements, or in other cases when the imposition of mass limitations is appropriate.
(Ord. 12274, § 1, passed 11-28-1995)
§ 12.5-613 UPSET.
   When an upset occurs, a user shall control production of all discharges to the extent necessary to maintain compliance with categorical pretreatment standards upon reduction, loss or failure of its treatment equipment until the equipment is restored or an alternative method of treatment is provided. The user must also report the upset in accordance with § 12.5-656. This requirement applies in the situation where, among other things, the primary source of power of the treatment equipment is reduced, lost or fails. A user may have an affirmative defense to upset under § 12.5-677.1 of this article only if the cause of action is brought in a federal court.
(Ord. 12274, § 1, passed 11-28-1995; Ord. 20043-01-2012, § 7, passed 1-10-2012)
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