A. Prohibitions on Wastewater Discharges. No user shall discharge or deposit or cause or allow to be discharged or deposited into the wastewater treatment system any wastewater which contains the following:
(1) Oils and Grease.
(a) Oil and grease concentrations or amounts from industrial facilities violating Federal pretreatment standards.
(b) Wastewater from industrial facilities containing floatable fats, wax, grease or oils.
(c) Any oils in amounts that will cause pass through or interference are prohibited.
(2) Fire/Explosive Hazard. Liquids, solids or gases which by reason of their nature or quantity are, or may be, sufficient either alone or by interaction with other substances to cause fire or explosion or be injurious in any other way to the wastewater treatment system or to the operation of the system. At no time shall two successive readings on an explosion hazard meter, at the point of discharge into the sewer system, be more than 5% nor any single reading over 10% of the Lower Explosive Limit (L.E.L.) of the meter. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, benzene, toluene, zylene, ethers, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides, chlorates, perchalorates, bormates, carbides, hydrides and sulfides. Any waste streams with a closed cup flash point of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit or 60º Celsius using test methods specified in 40 CFR § 261.21.
(3) Noxious Material. Noxious or malodorous solids, liquids or gases, which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are capable of creating a public nuisance or hazard to life, or are or may be sufficient to prevent entry into a sewer for its maintenance and repair.
(4) Improperly Shredded Garbage. 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 ½ inch in any dimension.
(5) Radioactive Wastes. Radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration that they do not comply with regulations or orders issued by the appropriate Federal and State agencies having control over their use and which will or may cause damage or hazards to the sewage facilities or personnel operating system.
(6) Solid or Viscous Wastes. Solid or viscous wastes which will or may cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer, or otherwise interfere with the proper operation of the wastewater treatment system. 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.
(7) Excessive Discharge Rate. Wastewater at a flow rate or containing such concentrations or quantities of pollutants that exceed for any time period longer than 15 minutes more than 5 times the average 24 hour concentration, quantities or flow during normal operation and that would cause a treatment process upset and subsequent loss of treatment efficiency; or the introduction of any pollutant, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (such as BOD), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which would cause interference with the POTW.
(8) Toxic Substances. Any toxic substances in amounts exceeding standards promulgated by the Administrator of the United States Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to 307(a) of the Act, and chemical elements or compounds, phenols or other taste or odor- producing substances, or any other substances which are not susceptible to treatment or which may interfere with the biological processes or efficiency of the treatment system, or that will pass through the system.
(9) Unpolluted Waters. Any unpolluted water including, but not limited to, cooling water or of storm water origin.
(10) Colored Discharge. If a non-domestic discharge causes unusual color in the treatment plant’s influent samples, the wet well or the primary clarifier inlets, the colored discharge is prohibited and must be ceased. BMP’s to control color can be required. [Ord. 545]
(11) Corrosive Wastes. Any waste which will cause corrosion or deterioration of the treatment system. All wastes discharged to the public sewer system must have a pH value in the range of 6 to 9 standard units. 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) Interference. Any waste which would cause interference with the biological processes or efficiency of the treatment system as defined in this Part.
(13) Pass Through. Any waste which constitutes a pass through of the system as defined in this Part.
(14) Any trucked or hauled pollutants, except at discharge points designated by the Borough in accordance with § 18-854(H).
(15) Temperature. Any wastewater having a temperature that 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 104º Fahrenheit (40º Celsius).
(16) Any sludges, screenings or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial waste.
(17) Any medical waste, except as specifically authorized by the Township Manager in a wastewater discharge permit.
(18) Any wastewater causing the treatment plant’s effluent to fail a toxicity test.
(19) Any wastes containing detergents, surface active agents or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the POTW.
(20) Toxic Gases/Vapors/Fumes. 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.
Wastes prohibited in this Section shall not be processed or stored in such a manner that they would be discharged to the POTW. All floor drains located in process or material storage areas must discharge to the industrial user’s pretreatment facility before connecting with the POTW.
B. Limitations on Wastewater Discharges. Proactive control of influent pollutants of concern must be given a high priority. Wastewater entering the treatment plant is treated by biological organisms growing in slime like bio-films which are susceptible to inhibition or destruction from relatively small amounts of toxic influent materials. The plant does not have flow equalization which increases the risk of harm from short duration, higher concentration influent loadings. Very small amounts of bio-toxic materials, such as biocides, bactericides, herbicides and pesticides can cause aquatic toxicity and inhibit or kill the plant’s biological treatment processes. Therefore both the Borough and non-domestic users have a responsibility to identify actual or potential bio-toxics to prevent problems such as process interference, sludge quality, aquatic toxicity, personnel and public exposure, collection system issues, regulatory compliance, and water quality because discharges to the Lehigh River and under the “Special Protection Waters Rules” as adopted by the Delaware River Basin Commission.
Each industrial user is limited on the concentration of pollutants allowed to be discharged as hereinafter detailed. The controlling limit is the lesser of (1) the local limit or (2) the Federal categorical pre-treatment standard for each pollutant. Dilution of any wastewater for the purpose of meeting the limits hereinafter described, or the local limits or Federal categorical pre-treatment standards, shall be considered a violation of this Part 8.
(1) The following are the maximum concentrations of pollutants allowable, the action level guidelines for pollutants of concern and surcharge levels of pollutants of concern in wastewater discharges to the wastewater treatment system. Development of these limits and levels was done taken into account the existing loading on our sludge of these pollutants, plant efficiency, total combined flow from all industrial discharges. These local limits will be reviewed periodically and may change as a result of changes in the factors contributing to their development. If such changes are made in the local limits for pollutants of concern, these changes, with the required EPA approvals, can be adopted and used in new or revised permits without further ordinance revisions.
(a) Local Limits for Pollutants of Concern.
Parameter | Daily Maximum Concentration |
Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) 1 | 850 mg/l |
Total Suspended Solids (TSS) | 850 mg/l |
pH | 6-9 Standard Units |
Total Dissolved Solids (TDS) | Monitor Only |
Oil & Grease, Cyanide, Silver, Bio-Toxics | Enforceable BMPs |
Action Level Guidelines for Pollutants of Concern
Parameter | Action Level (mg/l) |
Cadmium | 0.104 |
Chromium | 6.97 |
Copper | 1.35 |
Silver | 0.535 |
Zinc | 2.96 |
Barium | 715 |
Surcharge Levels for Pollutants of Concern
Surcharge Parameter | TSS | BOD | COD | NH3-N | TKN |
Surcharge level | 200 mg/l | 200 mg/l | 600 mg/l | 30 mg/l | 75mg/l |
Action level | 600 | 600 | 1,200 | 120 | 600 |
Prohibited level | 850 | 850 | 2,500 | 200 | 1,000 |
Discharges over the prohibited level are not allowed at any time and must be ceased.
1) Action Level Appeal Process. The numerical action levels are guidelines that when exceeded indicate that a CAP is necessary. The submission of an acceptable CAP is an enforceable permit condition. If the sewer user believes that the action level is not appropriate or that a CAP is not necessary, the user can petition the Borough, or Township if the determination was made by the Township, for reconsideration by submitting additional information to the pretreatment coordinator to justify the change. If in the opinion of the Borough or Township, as appropriate, the data submitted is not sufficient to make a determination. the discharge above the action level may be temporarily or permanently denied. In instances where the Township or Borough must use an outside consultant to evaluate the information submitted, the user must first agree to compensate the Township or Borough for the estimated consultant fees. When the Township or Borough has determined that discharges over the action level are not acceptable all such discharges must be ceased or the permit can be revoked and service terminated. The permit can also be amended to exclude any discharges of the specific materials exceeding the action level.
(2) Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards. Any categorical industry discharging to the POTW must also comply with the categorical industrial limits established by EPA. There are too many types of categorical industries for the Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards to be listed here. Any industrial user which would be regulated under the categorical pretreatment standards will have those standards listed in its Industrial Discharge Permit. The categorical pretreatment standards found at 40 CFR, Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405–471, are incorporated by reference herein.
(3) Best Management Practices for Additional Pollutants of Concern. Enforceable best management practices are required for discharges containing significant amounts of materials such as Arsenic, Lead, Mercury, Molybdenum, Nickel, Selenium, toxics, biocides, dissolved solids, and any material which in the opinion of the Borough or Township is a POC because it will cause or have the potential to cause environmental problems such as those listed in “action levels.” BMPs must be pre-approved before any discharges will be authorized and will be enforceable permit conditions.
[Ord. 545]
C. Special Agreements. Nothing in this section shall be construed as preventing any special agreement or arrangement between the Borough and any user of the wastewater treatment system whereby wastewater of unusual strength or character is accepted into the system and specially treated to be acceptable, subject to any payments or user charges as may be applicable. Local standards set forth in this Chapter may be waived by special agreement but this provision does not allow waiver of any National pretreatment standards.
(1) Any special agreement is prohibited from waiving any other Federal retreatment requirements. [Ord. 545]
(2) One of the conditions of any special agreement is that the total loading for any pollutant allocated to all users does not exceed the maximum allowable industrial loading calculated as part of the most recently accepted local limits evaluation. [Ord. 545]
(3) Any special agreement must be entered into and authorized in writing. [Ord. 545]
D. Concentrations. Concentrations apply at the point where industrial waste is discharged to the POTW. All concentrations for metallic substances are for “total” metal unless indicated otherwise. At his discretion, the Borough Manager may impose mass limitations in addition to or in place of the concentration based limitations set forth above in Subsection (B) of this Section.
E. Dilution. No industrial user shall ever increase the use of the 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. The Borough Manager may impose mass limitations on industrial users which are using dilution to meet applicable pretreatment standards or requirements, or in other cases when the imposition of mass limitations is appropriate.
F. Sludge Protection Requirements (SPRs). The following are the maximum sludge protection requirement levels allowable in wastewater discharges to the wastewater treatment plant. Each industrial or commercial user actively discharging pollutants that could accumulate in the sludge must comply with the SPRs. If the discharge level exceeds the SPRs, the user must develop a plan to come into compliance within a reasonable period of time as approved by the Borough of Catasauqua or cease discharging the problem waste stream.
The Borough shall have the right to revise these limits based on observational data. The Borough also shall have the right to set more stingent limits for any pollutant, such as reactive cyanide or reactive sulfide, if it finds actual or potential discharges adversely effects sludge quality and the landfill or land application of the sludge.
Reactivity Parameter | EPA Sludge Limit | Daily Max. Concentration |
Reactive Cyanide | 250 mg/kg | 0.05 mg/l |
Reactive Sulfide | 500 mg/kg | 0.1 mg/l |
If reactive sulfide and/or reactive cyanide exceed or have the potential to exceed 50% of their respective limits, pretreatment is required.
Being able to comply with an SPR is not an authorization to discharge a non- domestic and/or toxic pollutant or domestic pollutant in quantities exceeding the normal domestic levels. Authorization to discharges only granted by the issuance of a permit, an amended permit or a letter of approval (which requires a submission of a permit application or a notification of changed discharge). [Ord. 445]
(Ord. 396, 9/6/2000, § 853; as amended by Ord. 445, 11/19/2003, §§ 1, 2; and by Ord. 545, 4/17/2013, §§ 5–7)
Notes
| 1 | Notes: In situations where, in the opinion of the Township or Borough, BOD is not representative of the strength of industrial and commercial discharges. and/or COD tests are better for process control purposes, testing for COD may be substituted for testing for BOD. Where monitoring for COD is required in a permit or permit amendment, the permittee will usually not be required to monitor for BOD. However, if there is need to know the site’s BOD loading as a percentage of the plant’s design capacity, testing both BOD and COD may be required. |
| 1 | Borough Guideline |
| 2 | EPA Ceiling Limit |