(A) It is unlawful for any person to discharge to any natural outlet within the city or in any area under the jurisdiction of the city any sewage or other polluted waters, except where suitable treatment has been provided in accordance with subsequent provisions of this section.
(B) Except as hereinafter provided, it is unlawful for any person to construct or maintain any privy, privy vault, cesspool or other facility intended or used for the disposal of sewage.
(C) It is the duty of every owner or occupant of any property having a dwelling house or business building situated thereon, which property is abutting a street in which there are city water and sewer mains, to install a toilet in the dwelling or business building and make connection thereof with the water and sewer mains, if the property is within 300 feet of the mains. The city shall serve written notice upon the owner or occupant requiring the installation of toilet facilities upon premises described in the notice, and connection thereof with the sewer and water mains, all of which shall be done within 30 days after service of the written notice. Whenever any owner or occupant shall default in compliance with the written notice, the Council may by resolution direct that a toilet be installed and connection made with the water and sewer mains and that the actual cost of the installation be paid in the first instance out of the city funds and assessed against the property so benefitted. After the installation and connection is completed by order of the Council, the city shall serve a written notice of intention to make an assessment therefor. If the assessment is not paid within ten days, the city shall certify the amount thereof to the County Auditor in the same manner as with other special assessments, provided that the Council may, by resolution, provide that the assessment be spread over a term of three years upon written request by the owner of the property.
(D) In the event an owner shall fail to connect to a public sewer in compliance with a notice given under division (H) below, the city may undertake to have the connection made and shall assess the cost thereof against the benefitted property and the assessment shall be a lien against the property. The assessment, when levied, shall bear interest at the legal rate for local improvements and shall be certified to the auditor of the appropriate county and shall be collected and remitted to the city in the same manner as assessments for local improvements. The rights of the city under this division (D) shall be in addition to any other remedial or enforcement provisions of this section.
(E) It is unlawful for any person to discharge or cause to be discharged directly or indirectly any clear water, including storm water, surface water, ground water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, waste from on-site disposal systems, and unpolluted cooling or process water into the sanitary sewer collection system. No roof, sump pump, or surface or subsurface water drainage system shall be connected to the sanitary sewer system, and no building shall hereafter be constructed, nor shall any existing buildings be hereafter altered in a manner so as to provide the connection with the sanitary sewer system, either inside or outside the building, except during the period of November 1 to March 15.
(1) Before October 1, 2022, any person having a roof, sump pump or surface or subsurface drainage system now connected and/or discharging into the sanitary sewer, shall disconnect and/or remove the same. Any disconnects or openings in the sanitary sewer shall be closed and repaired in an effective, workmanlike manner, as approved by the city.
(2) Within 60 days of one of the following events, every person owning improved real estate, or contractors and builders who are building a structure connected to the city's sanitary sewer system, shall obtain an inspection of each building located on such property by an inspector designated by the city. The purpose of this city inspection shall be to confirm that there is no prohibited discharge into the municipal sanitary sewer system. The following events prompt required inspections: notice from the city, property being offered for sale or conveyance by deed or contract for deed, unless the city has the verification that the property was already inspected and found to be in compliance within the last ten years, or the city orders a street improvement project, and the property is adjacent to a street in the project area.
(3) The owner of the property shall allow employees of the city or its agents to inspect the buildings to confirm compliance with the provisions hereof, or the owner may alternatively furnish a certificate from a licensed plumber certifying that their property is in compliance with this section in lieu of a city inspection of the same. All costs associated with an inspection by a privately retained plumber shall be the responsibility of the property owner. The privately retained plumber must complete the standardized inspection form proved by the city. It is unlawful for any person to refuse to allow their property to be inspected, or to refuse to provide a plumber's certificate of compliance within 60 days of the date a city employee or agent is denied admittance to inspect the property, and the owner will be found in violation of this section. Any additional costs incurred by the city as a result of noncompliance with this section shall be the responsibility of the property owner.
(4) Unless the property owner already has a valid certificate of compliance issued by the city for the property, the owner or owner's representative is required to complete an inspection and obtain a certificate of compliance issued by the city before such property is offered for sale, gifted or transferred, and before the owner or owner's representative enters into any contract for deed or other transaction changing the party responsible for the property. The seller is responsible for correcting the deficiencies prior to the sale unless the buyer has assumed such responsibility. In this case, the buyer shall sign a written acknowledgement from the city that includes the buyer's assumption of responsibility for correcting the deficiencies within one year after closing on the property, that the buyer understands that a reinspection is required to verify the corrections have been completed, that the buyer holds the city harmless from liabilities and claims if the buyer occupies the dwelling prior to corrections of the deficiencies, and that failure to correct the deficiencies is a violation of the city code and the buyer may be subjected to a monthly surcharge described in the violations section.
(5) In addition to any criminal penalties which may be imposed for violation of this division (E), the property owner shall make the necessary changes to bring the property into compliance within 60 days.
(6) Notwithstanding anything to the contrary herein, a property owner may discharge contrary to the terms hereof during the period of November 1 to March 15.
(F) Storm water and all other unpolluted water shall be discharged either outside of the dwelling, building, or structure, or connected to a storm sewer, except that unpolluted cooling or process water shall only be so discharged upon approval by the city.
(G) It is unlawful for any person to discharge or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, any of the following described substances to any public sewer:
(1) Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil or other flammable or explosive liquid, solid or gas;
(2) Any water or wastes containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids or gases in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, to injure or interfere with any sewage treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, create a public nuisance, or create any hazard in the wastewater treatment works;
(3) Any water or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5 or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment and personnel of the wastewater treatment works;
(4) Solid or viscous substances, either whole or ground, in quantities or of such size capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers, or other interference with the proper continuation of the wastewater facilities, including, but not limited to ashes, cinders, disposable diapers, glass grinding or polishing wastes, stone cuttings or polishing wastes, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, unground garbage, whole blood, paunch manure, hair and fleshings, entrails and sanitary napkins, paper dishes, cups, milk containers and other paper products;
(5) Noxious or malodorous liquids, gases or substances which either singly or by interaction with other wastes are sufficient to create a public nuisance or hazard to life or are sufficient to prevent entry into the sewers for their maintenance and repair; and/or
(6) Prohibited wastes shall be regulated in accordance with the city's NPDES/SDS permit, 33 U.S.C. § 1317(a) and (b) of the Clean Water Act and all other applicable state and federal regulations.
(H) It is unlawful for any person to discharge or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, the following described substances to any public sewer unless in the opinion of the city, the discharge will not harm the wastewater facilities, nor cause obstruction to the flow in sewers, nor otherwise endanger life, limb or public property, nor constitute a nuisance. In forming its opinion as to the acceptability of these wastes, the city may give consideration to such factors as the quantities of the subject wastes in relation to flows and velocities in the sewers, materials of construction of the sewers, nature of the sewage treatment process, capacity of the sewage treatment plant, degree of treatability of wastes in the sewage treatment plant, the city's NPDES/SDS permit, and other pertinent factors. The city may make the determinations either on a general basis or as to discharges from individual users or specific discharges, and may prohibit certain discharges from individual users because of unusual concentrations or combinations which may occur. The substances prohibited are:
(1) Any liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than 150°F (65°C);
(2) Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease or oils, whether emulsified or not, in excess of 100 mg/l or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32° and 150°F (0° and 65°C);
(3) Any 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 public sewers, with no particles greater than one-half inch in any dimension;
(4) Any water or wastes containing strong acid, iron pickling wastes or concentrated plating solutions, whether neutralized or not;
(5) Any water or wastes containing phenols or other taste or odor producing substances which constitute a nuisance or hazard to the structures, equipment or personnel of the sewage works, or which interfere with the treatment required to meet the requirements of the state and federal government and any other public agency with proper authority to regulate the discharge from the sewage treatment plant;
(6) Radioactive wastes or isotypes of a half-life or concentration that they are in noncompliance with regulations issued by the appropriate authority having control over their use or which have caused or may cause damage or hazards to the treatment works or personnel operating it;
(7) Any water or wastes having a pH in excess of 9.5; or
(8) Materials which exert or cause:
(a) Unusual concentration of suspended solids (such as, but not limited to, Fullers earth, lime slurries and lime residues) or of dissolved solids (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate);
(b) Excessive discoloration (such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions);
(c) Unusual BOD, chemical oxygen demand or chlorine requirements in such quantities as to constitute a significant load on the wastewater treatment works;
(d) Unusual volume of flow or concentration of wastes constituting a slug; or
(e) Water or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment or reduction by the sewage treatment processes employed, or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the sewage treatment plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of the NPDES permit or requirements of other governmental agencies having jurisdiction over discharge from the sewage treatment plant.
(I) If any water or wastes are discharged, or are proposed to be discharged directly or indirectly to the public sewers, which water or wastes do not meet the standards set out in or promulgated under this division (I), or which in the judgment of the city may have a deleterious effect upon the treatment works, processes, equipment or receiving waters, or which otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the city may take any or all of the following steps:
(1) Refuse to accept the discharges;
(2) Require control over the quantities and rates of discharge;
(3) Require pretreatment to an acceptable condition for the discharge to the public sewers; or
(4) Require payment to cover the added cost of handling and treatment wastes. The design and installation of the plant and equipment for pre-treatment or equalization of waste flows shall be subject to the review and approval of the city and subject to the requirements of 33 U.S.C. § 1317(b) of the Clean Water Act and all applicable codes, ordinances and laws.
(J) Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be provided when they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease, or any flammable wastes, sand or other harmful ingredients. All interceptors required herein shall be of a type and capacity approved by the city and shall be located as to be readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection. The interceptors shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units.
(K) Where preliminary treatment, flow equalizing facilities or interceptors are provided for any water or wastes, they shall be effectively operated and maintained continuously in satisfactory and effective condition by the owner at his or her expense and shall be available for inspection by the city at all reasonable times.
(L) When required by the city, the owner of any property serviced by a building sewer carrying industrial wastes shall install a suitable control structure, together with the necessary meters and other appurtenances in the building sewer to facilitate observation sampling and measurement of the wastes. The structures and equipment when required shall be constructed at the owner's expense in accordance with plans approved by the city and shall be maintained by the owner so as to be safe and accessible at all times.
(M) All measurements, tests and analyses of the characteristics of water and wastes to which reference is made in this section shall be determined in accordance with the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, and shall be determined at the control structure provided, or upon suitable samples taken at the control structures.
(1) In the event that no special structure has been required, the control structure shall be considered to be the nearest downstream manhole in the public sewer from the point at which the building sewer is connected. Sampling shall be carried out by customarily accepted methods to reflect the effect of constituents upon the sewerage works and to determine the existence of hazards to life, limb and property. The particular analyses involved will determine whether a 24-hour composite of all outfalls of a premises is appropriate or whether a grab sample or samples should be taken.
(2) Normally, but not always, BOD and suspended solids analyses will be obtained from 24-hour composite of all outfalls whereas pH's will be determined from periodic grab samples.
(N) The city may conduct tests as are necessary to enforce this section, and employees of the city may enter upon any property for the purpose of taking samples, obtaining information or conducting surveys or investigations relating to the enforcement.
(1) Entry shall be made during operating hours unless circumstances require otherwise. In all cases where tests are conducted by the city for the purpose of checking to determine if a previously found violation of this section has been corrected, the cost of the tests shall be charged to the user and added to the user's sewer charge.
(2) In those cases where the city determines that the nature of volume of a particular user's sewage requires more frequent than normal testing, the city may charge the user for the test, after giving the user ten days' written notice of its intention to do so, and the cost thereof shall be added to the user's sewer charge.
(3) In any case where industrial wastes are discharged to a public sewer, the city may require the user at his or her own expense to test his or her discharge on a regular basis and to report the test results to the city within a reasonable time.
(4) All the tests shall be ordered by the city and shall be conducted by qualified personnel and in accordance with the standards set out in division (M) above.
(O) Accidental discharges of prohibited waste into the sewage works, directly or through another disposal system, or to any place from which the waste may enter the treatment works, shall be reported to the city by the persons responsible for the discharge, or by the owner or occupant of the premises where the discharge occurred, immediately upon obtaining knowledge of the fact of the discharge.
(P) New connections to the sanitary sewer system shall be prohibited unless sufficient capacity is available in all downstream facilities, including capacity for flow, BOD and suspended solids.
(Q) No statement contained herein shall be construed as preventing any special agreement or arrangement between the city and any industrial concern whereby an industrial waste of unusual strength or character may be accepted by the city for treatment, subject to payment therefor, by the industrial concern, in accordance with applicable ordinances and any supplemental agreement with the city, and providing that national categorical pretreatment standards and the city's NPDES/SDS permit limitations are not violated.
(2003 Code, § 3.30-2) (Ord 7, passed 9-23-1988; Ord. 19, passed 11-22-1990; Ord. 27, passed 4-26-1991; Ord. 209, passed 9-6-2022) Penalty, see § 10.99