§ 53.075 PURPOSE AND POLICY; APPLICATION.

   (A)   This subchapter sets forth uniform requirements for discharges to the city’s wastewater treatment system and enables the city to comply with applicable state and federal laws. The objectives of this subchapter are:

      (1)   To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the wastewater treatment system which will interfere with the operation of the system, including the use or disposal of the sludge;

      (2)   To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the wastewater treatment system which will pass through the system inadequately treated into receiving waters or otherwise be incompatible with the system; and

      (3)   To improve the opportunities to recycle and reclaim wastewaters and sludges.

   (B)   This subchapter provides for the regulation of discharges into the city’s wastewater treatment system through the issuance of permits to certain users and through enforcement of the general requirements for the other users, authorizes monitoring and enforcement activities, requires user reporting and provides for the setting of fees for the equitable distribution of costs resulting from the program established herein.

   (C)   This subchapter shall apply to the city and to persons outside the city who are, by contract or agreement with the city, users of the city’s wastewater treatment system. Except as otherwise provided herein, the City Engineer shall implement, administer and enforce the provisions of this subchapter.

(2004 Code, § 53.070) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985)

§ 53.076 DEFINITIONS.

   (A)   For the purpose of this subchapter, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.

      ACT. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.

      BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND or BOD. The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days at 20°C expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams per liter (mg/l)).

      GENERAL PRETREATMENT REGULATIONS. The general pretreatment regulations for existing and new sources of pollution promulgated by the EPA under § 307(b) and (c) of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1317(b) and (c) and found at 40 C.F.R. part 403.

      INDUSTRIAL USER. A person who discharges to the wastewater treatment system liquid wastes resulting from the processes employed in industrial, manufacturing, trade or business establishments, or from the development of any natural resource.

      INTERFERENCE. A discharge by an industrial user which, alone or in conjunction with discharges by other sources, inhibits or disrupts the wastewater collection and treatment facilities, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes, use or disposal and which is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the city’s NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or state disposal system permit, or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal by the city in accordance with the following statutory provisions and regulations or permits issued thereunder (or more stringent state or local regulations): § 405 of the Clean Water Act, being 33 U.S.C. §1345, the Solid Waste Disposal Act, being 42 U.S.C. §§ 6901 et seq. (SWDA) (including Title II, more commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and including state regulations contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA), the Clean Air Act, being 42 U.S.C. §§ 7401 et seq., the Toxic Substance Control Act, being 15 U.S.C. §§ 2601 et seq., and the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act, being 16 U.S.C. §§ 1431 et seq. and 33 U.S.C. §§ 1401 et seq.

      MINNESOTA PRETREATMENT RULES. Minn. Rules Ch. 7049 that implement the general pretreatment regulations, federal categorical pretreatment standards and the authorities of M.S. § 115.03, Subd. 1, par. (e), clause (2). This definition may also be used in the singular as MINNESOTA PRETREATMENT RULE.

      NATIONAL CATEGORICAL PRETREATMENT STANDARDS. National pretreatment standards specifying quantities or concentrations of pollutants or pollutant properties which may be discharged or introduced into the wastewater treatment system by specific industrial users.

      NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM OR NPDES PERMIT. Any permit or requirements issued by the State Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) pursuant to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended, for the purpose of regulating the discharge of wastewater, industrial wastes or other wastes under the authority of § 402 of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1342.

      NON-CONTACT COOLING WATER. The water discharged from any use such as air conditioning, cooling or refrigeration, or during which the only pollutant added to the water is heat.

      PERSON. Any individual, partnership, association, corporation, public agency and any other organization or group of individuals, public or private.

      pH. The logarithm (base ten) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions in moles per liter.

      PRETREATMENT.

         (a)   The process of equalizing or reducing the amount of pollutants, eliminating pollutants or altering the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to or in lieu of discharging or otherwise introducing the pollutants into the wastewater treatment system.

         (b)   The reduction, elimination or alteration may be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, process changes or other means, except as prohibited by § 53.078(D) of this code.

      PUBLICALLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS (POTW). A treatment works as defined in M.S. § 115.01, Subd. 21, that is owned by a state or municipality as defined by § 502(4) of the Clean Water Act, 33 U.S.C. § 1362(4) and M.S. § 115.41, as it may be amended from time to time. This term includes POTW PLANT and POTW AUTHORITY.

      SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER. Any industrial user of the wastewater treatment system which:

         (a)   Has a discharge flow of 25,000 gallons or more per average work day;

         (b)   Has a flow greater than 5% of the flow in the wastewater treatment system;

         (c)   Has in its wastes toxic pollutants as defined pursuant to § 307 of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1317, or Minnesota Statutes and Minn. Rules; or

         (d)   Has a significant impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industries, on the wastewater treatment system, the quality of sludge, the system’s effluent quality or air emissions generated by the system.

      SLUG. Any waste discharge into the wastewater treatment system which, in concentration of any given constituent, except pH, or in quantity of flow, exceeds four times the average concentration or flow rate for a normal operating day.

      STATE DISPOSAL SYSTEM PERMIT. Any permit, including any terms, conditions and requirements thereof, issued by the MPCA pursuant to M.S. § 115.07, as it may be amended from time to time, for a treatment system as defined by M.S. § 115.01(8), as it may be amended from time to time.

      STORM WATER. Any flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation and resulting therefrom.

      SUSPENDED SOLIDS. The total suspended matter that floats on the surface of, or is suspended in, water, wastewater or other liquids, and which is removable by a standard glass fiber filter.

      USER. Any person who discharges, causes or permits the discharge of wastewater into the wastewater treatment system.

      WASTEWATER. The liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities and institutions, together with any ground water, surface water and storm water that may be present, whether treated or untreated, which is discharged into or permitted to enter the wastewater treatment system.

      WASTEWATER DISCHARGE PERMIT or PERMIT. A permit issued by the city to an industrial user to use the city’s wastewater treatment system, as established in § 53.081 of this code.

      WASTEWATER TREATMENT SYSTEM or SYSTEM. Any devices, facilities, structures, equipment or works owned or used by the city for the purpose of transmission, storage or treatment of industrial and domestic wastewater, including intercepting sewers, outfall sewers, wastewater collection system, pumping, power and other equipment, and their appurtenances; extensions, improvements, remodeling, additions and alterations thereof; and any works, including land, that will be an integral part of the treatment process or is used for ultimate disposal of residues resulting from that treatment.

      WATERS OF THE STATE. All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through or border upon the state or any portion thereof.

   (B)   Terms not otherwise defined herein shall be as given in M.S. Ch. 115 and 116, as they may be amended from time to time.

(2004 Code, § 53.071) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985; Ord. 14-0722, passed 3-11-2014)

§ 53.077 DISCHARGE PROHIBITIONS.

   (A)   It is unlawful for any person to discharge or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, any of the following described substances into the wastewater treatment system or to any public sewer:

      (1)   Any combustible, flammable or explosive liquids, solids or gases which by their nature or quantity will or are likely to cause, either alone or by interaction with other substances, a fire or explosion or be injurious to the wastewater treatment system or to its operation. At no time shall two successive readings on an explosion hazard meter, at the point of discharge into the system or at any point in the system, be more than 5%, nor shall there be any single reading over 10%, of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of the meter. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, fuel oil, benzene, toluene, xylene, ethers, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides, chlorates, perchlorates, bromates and hydrides;

      (2)   Any solids or viscous substances which will or are likely to cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer or interference with the operation of the wastewater treatment system. These include, but are not limited to, grease, garbage with particles greater than one-half inch in any dimension, 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, gas tar, asphalt residues, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, mud or glass grinding or polishing wastes;

      (3)   Any wastewater having a pH less than 5.0 or more than 10.0, or having a corrosive property that will or is likely to cause damage or hazard to structures, equipment and personnel of the wastewater treatment system;

      (4)   Any wastewater containing toxic or poisonous pollutants in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, to inhibit or disrupt any wastewater treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals or create a toxic effect in the receiving waters of the wastewater treatment system. A toxic pollutant shall include, but not be limited to, any pollutant identified pursuant to § 307(a) of the Act, being 33 U.S.C. § 1317(a);

      (5)   Any noxious or malodorous liquids, gases or solids, which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, will or are likely to create a public nuisance or hazard to life or prevent entry into a sewer for its monitoring, maintenance and repair;

      (6)   Any wastewater with objectionable color not removed in the treatment process, including, but not limited to, dye wastes, vegetable tanning solutions and printing inks;

      (7)   Heat in amounts which will or are likely to inhibit biological activity in the wastewater treatment system resulting in interference or damage to the system, but in no case heat in quantities so that the industrial wastewater temperature is greater than 150°F (65.6°C) at its point of discharge to the system, or heat causing, individually or in combination with other wastewater, the influent at the wastewater treatment plant to have a temperature exceeding 104°F (40°C);

      (8)   Any slug load discharged in a volume or strength so as to cause interference to the wastewater treatment system;

      (9)   Any unpolluted water, including non-contact cooling water, rain water, storm water or ground water, unless there is no prudent and feasible alternative;

      (10)   Any wastewater containing fat, wax, grease or oils, whether emulsified or not, in excess of 150 mg/l which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32°F and 150°F (0°C and 65.6°C); and any wastewater containing oil and grease concentrations of mineral origin of greater than 100 mg/l, whether or not emulsified;

      (11)   Any wastewater containing inert suspended solids (including Fuller’s earth, lime slurries and lime residues) or dissolved solids (including sodium chloride and sodium sulfate) in quantities that will or are likely to cause interference with the wastewater treatment system; or

      (12)   Any wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes of a half-life or concentration so that they are in non-compliance with standards issued by the appropriate authority having control over their use and which will or are likely to cause damage or hazards to the wastewater treatment system or personnel operating it.

   (B)   In addition to these prohibitions, it is unlawful for any person to discharge to any public sewer any discharge which causes interference, as defined, with the wastewater treatment system. Pollutants in the effluent from an industrial user shall not be considered to cause interference where the industrial user is in compliance with specific prohibitions or standards developed by federal, state or local governments. Where the industrial user is in compliance with these specific prohibitions or standards, and pollutants in the effluent from the industrial user’s facility nevertheless are deemed to have caused or significantly contributed to a violation of any requirements of the city’s NPDES or state disposal system permit, and are likely to cause such a violation in the future, the city may take appropriate action to develop and enforce specific effluent limits for that industrial user to ensure renewed and continued compliance with the city’s NPDES or state disposal system permit.

(2004 Code, § 53.072) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985; Ord. 14-0722, passed 3-11-2014) Penalty, see § 10.99

§ 53.078 LIMITATIONS ON WASTEWATER STRENGTH.

   (A)   National categorical pretreatment standards. National categorical pretreatment standards promulgated by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pursuant to the Act shall be met by all users who are subject to those standards in any instance where they are more stringent than the limitations in this subchapter unless the City Engineer has applied for and obtained from the MPCA approval to modify the specific limits in the national categorical pretreatment standards. When requested, an application for modification of the national categorical pretreatment standards will be considered for submittal by the City Engineer when the wastewater treatment system achieves consistent removal of the pollutants. Consistent removal shall be defined as in 40 C.F.R. part 403, “General Pretreatment Regulations for Existing and New Sources”. Conditional revisions of national categorical pretreatment standards may be made by the city in accordance with 40 C.F.R. part 403, “General Pretreatment Regulations for Existing and New Sources” if requested by an industry in accordance with requirements of 40 C.F.R. part 403.

   (B)   State requirements. State requirements and limitations on discharge shall be met by all users who are subject to those standards in any instance in which they are more stringent than federal requirements and limitations or those in this or any other applicable provision of this code of ordinances.

   (C)   City’s right of revision. The city reserves the right to establish by ordinance more stringent limitations or requirements on discharge to the wastewater treatment system if deemed necessary to comply with the objectives presented in this subchapter.

   (D)   Dilution. It is unlawful for any person to increase the use of potable or process water or in any way attempt to dilute a discharge as a partial or complete substitution for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with the limitations set forth in this subchapter or applicable pretreatment standards.

   (E)   Supplementary limitations.

      (1)   It is unlawful for any person to discharge wastewater containing the following substances in excess of the amounts contained in their wastewater discharge permit.

      (2)   Once limits are appropriated for individual industries, those industries’ rights to discharge up to those limits shall not be reduced by permit limits issued later to new industries. Reduction of limits may be necessary to achieve the objectives stated in this subchapter.

(2004 Code, § 53.073) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985; Ord. 14-0722, passed 3-11-2014) Penalty, see § 10.99

§ 53.079 ACCIDENTAL DISCHARGES; NOTIFICATION.

   (A)   Each user shall provide protection from accidental discharges of prohibited materials or other substances regulated by this subchapter. Where necessary, facilities to prevent accidental discharge of prohibited materials shall be provided and maintained at the user’s cost and expense.

   (B)   Users shall notify the City Engineer immediately upon having a slug or accidental discharge of substances or wastewater in violation of this subchapter in order to enable countermeasures to be taken by the City Engineer to minimize damage to the wastewater treatment system and the receiving waters. The notification shall include location of discharge, date and time thereof, description of accidentally discharged waste including an estimate of concentration and volume, and corrective actions. These notifications will not relieve users of liability for any expense, loss or damage to the wastewater treatment system or treatment process, or for any fines imposed on the city on account thereof under any state or federal law. The city may choose to take no further action or to take action in accordance with §§ 53.089(A), 53.090 and 53.091.

   (C)   A notice shall be permanently posted in a prominent place on the user’s premises advising employees whom to call in the event of a slug or accidental discharge. Employers shall ensure that all employees who may cause or discover such a discharge are advised of the emergency notification procedure.

(2004 Code, § 53.074) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985)

§ 53.080 CHARGES AND FEES; PURPOSE.

   (A)   Fees; purpose. It is the purpose of this subchapter to provide for the recovery of costs from users of the wastewater treatment system for the implementation and administration of the program established herein. The applicable charges or fees shall be set forth in the city’s schedule of charges and fees, to be prepared from time to time by the City Engineer and approved by the Council.

   (B)   Charges and fees. The Council shall adopt charges and fees which may include:

      (1)   Fees for monitoring, inspections and surveillance procedures;

      (2)   Fees for permit applications;

      (3)   Appeal fees; and

      (4)   Other fees as the City Engineer may deem necessary to carry out the requirements contained herein.

(2004 Code, § 53.075) (Ord. 727, passed 12-12-1985)