The following terms, as used in this chapter, shall have the meanings stated:
ACT: The Clean Water Act (33 USC 1251 et seq., as amended).
AUTHORIZED ENFORCEMENT AGENCY: The City of Little Falls, its employees or designees designated to enforce the provisions of this Code.
BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (BMPs): Schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, general good housekeeping practices, pollution prevention and educational practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants directly or indirectly to stormwater, receiving waters or stormwater conveyance systems. BMPs also include treatment practices, operating procedures and practices to control site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or water disposal, or drainage from raw materials storage.
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND 5 (BOD5): The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedures in five (5) days at twenty degrees centigrade (20°C) and as expressed in terms of milligrams per liter (mg/l).
BUILDING DRAIN: That part of the lowest horizontal piping of a drainage system which receives the discharge from soil, waste and other drainage pipes inside the walls of the building and conveys it to the building sewer, beginning five feet (5') (1.5 meters) outside the building wall.
BUILDING SEWER: The extension from the building drain to the public sewer or other place of disposal, sometimes called the house connection or service connection.
CHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND: The quantity of oxygen utilized in the chemical oxidation of organic matter, expressed in milligrams per liter, as determined in accordance with standard laboratory procedure as set out in the latest edition of "Standard Methods For The Examination Of Water And Wastewater".
CITY APPROVED GARBAGE BAG: A color coded thirty two (32) gallon plastic bag, purchased by the hauler or city and made available for retail distribution for a price, which includes tipping fees.
CLEAN WATER ACT: The federal water pollution control act (33 USC 1251 et seq.), and any subsequent amendments thereto.
COLLECTION: The aggregation of solid waste and/or recyclable materials from the place at which it is generated and includes all activities up to the time when the material is delivered to a designated facility.
COMBINED SEWER: A sewer intended to serve as a sanitary sewer and a storm sewer, or as an industrial sewer and a storm sewer.
COMMERCIAL USER: All users of the system classified as industrial users in the "Standard Industrial Classification Manual", 1972, U.S. office of management and budget, as amended and supplemented under divisions A, B, D, E, and I, but who are excluded from such definition for the purposes of this chapter because they discharge primarily segregated domestic wastes, or wastes from sanitary conveniences, except that the classification shall not include such exempt users who are otherwise classified in this chapter as "domestic users". In addition, commercial users shall include any other place of business which discharges only sanitary wastes.
COMPANY: A natural or corporate person, business association, political subdivision, public or private agency of any kind, its successors and assigns, who or which:
A. Is a private utility system to which a franchise has been granted by the city; or
B. Seeks or is required to construct, install, operate, repair, maintain, remove or relocate facilities in the city.
CONSTRUCTION: Any one or more of the following: preliminary planning to determine the feasibility of treatment works, engineering, architectural, legal, fiscal or economic investigations or studies, surveys, designs, plans, working drawings, specifications, procedures, or other necessary actions, erection, building, acquisition, alteration, remodeling, improvement, or extension of treatment works, or the inspection or supervising of any of the foregoing items.
CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY: Activities subject to NPDES construction permits or city land disturbance permits. These include construction projects resulting in land disturbance of greater than five thousand (5,000) square feet. Such activities include, but are not limited to, clearing and grubbing, grading, excavating, and demolition.
CONSUMER AND CUSTOMER: Refers to any user of a utility.
COOLING WATER: Water used for cooling which does not come into direct contact with any raw material, product, byproduct, or waste.
DOMESTIC USER: Those establishments whose wastes consist solely of domestic sanitary wastes.
DOMESTIC WASTEWATER: Wastewater derived principally from a dwelling due to domestic activities. It may not contain groundwater, surface water or stormwater.
EPA: United States environmental protection agency.
FACILITIES: Telecommunications equipment of any kind, including, but not limited to, audio, video, paging, facsimile or similar service, not governed by Minnesota statutes chapter 238, including all trunks, lines, circuits, physical connections, switching equipment, wireless communication equipment of all kinds, and any necessary appurtenances owned, leased or operated by a company on, over, in, under, across or along public grounds.
FLOW: The quantity of sewage expressed as gallons or cubic feet per twenty four (24) hours.
FOOD HANDLERS AND PROCESSORS: Users of the system with kitchens serving the general public and serving a minimum of twenty (20) persons in an average day. Examples of users in this class include restaurants, and institutional facilities such as schools, nursing homes, hospitals, etc. Also included are businesses processing food that results in considerable grease being discharged to the sewer system. Examples include meat markets and bakeries.
GARBAGE: Solid wastes resulting from the domestic and commercial preparation, cooking and dispensing of food, and from the handling, storage or sale of meat, fish, fowl, fruit, vegetables, condemned food, solid waste, paper, glass, etc.
GENERAL MUNICIPAL USER: Any user discharging sewage to the general municipal flow other than entities identified as significant industrial users and municipalities.
GENERAL PRETREATMENT REGULATIONS: The general pretreatment regulations for existing and new sources of pollution promulgated by EPA under section 307(b) and (c) of the clean water act and found at 40 CFR part 403.
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS: Any material, including any substance, waste or combination thereof, which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical or infectious characteristics may cause, or significantly contribute to, a substantial present or potential hazard to human health, safety, property or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of or otherwise managed.
HEAVY DENSITY: A parcel of land, the surface of which is covered by between sixty seven percent (67%) to one hundred percent (100%) impervious surface.
ILLICIT CONNECTIONS: An "illicit connection" is defined as either of the following: any drain or conveyance, whether on the surface or subsurface, which allows an illegal discharge to enter the storm sewer system, including, but not limited to, any conveyances which allow any nonstormwater discharge, including sewage, process wastewater, and wash water to enter the storm sewer system and any connections to the storm sewer system from indoor drains and sinks, regardless of whether said drain or connection had been previously allowed, permitted or approved by an authorized enforcement agency, or any drain or conveyance connected from a commercial or industrial land use to the storm sewer system which has not been documented in plans, maps or equivalent records and approved by an authorized enforcement agency.
ILLICIT DISCHARGE: Any direct or indirect nonstormwater discharge to the storm sewer system.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE: Any surface which does not provide vertical drainage of water, including, but not limited to, roofs, buildings, concrete, bituminous surfaces, surface concrete pavers and class V gravel.
INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY: Activities subject to NPDES industrial permits as defined in 40 CFR 122.26(b)(14).
INDUSTRIAL DISCHARGE PERMIT OR PERMIT: A permit issued by the city of Little Falls to an industrial user to use the city disposal system, as established herein.
INDUSTRIAL USER: Any "entity", as defined in the "Standard Industrial Classification Manual" (latest edition) as categorized, that discharges wastewater to the public sewer, including, but not limited to, agriculture, forestry, fishing, mining, manufacturing, transportation, communications, electric, gas and sanitary sewers, or any user who discharges, singly or by interaction with other wastes:
A. Contaminate the sludge of the wastewater treatment system;
B. Injure or interfere with the treatment process;
C. Create a public nuisance or hazard;
D. Have an adverse effect on the waters receiving wastewater treatment plant discharges;
E. Exceed NDSW limitations.
INDUSTRIAL WASTE: Solid, liquid or gaseous wastes, including cooling water (except where examined by an NPDES permit), resulting from any industrial, manufacturing or business process, or from the development, recovery or processing of a natural resource.
INFILTRATION: The water entering a sewer system, including sewer service connections, from the ground, through such means as, but not limited to, defective pipes, pipe joints, connections or manhole walls. "Infiltration" does not include, and is distinguished from "inflow", as defined in this section.
INFLOW: The water discharged into a sewer system, including service connections from such sources as, but not limited to, roof leaders, cellar, yard and area drains, foundation drains, cooling water discharges, drains from springs and swampy areas, manhole covers, cross connections from storm sewers and combined sewers, catch basins, stormwater, surface runoff, street wash waters or drainage. "Inflow" does not include, and is distinguished from, "infiltration", as defined in this section.
INTERFERENCE: A discharge which alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources inhibits or disrupts the publicly owned treatment works, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes, use or disposal and, therefore, is a cause of a violation of any requirements of the Little Falls publicly owned treatment works' NPDES permit, or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal with statutory provisions and regulations or permits.
LIGHT DENSITY: A parcel of land, the surface of which is covered by between zero percent (0%) to thirty three percent (33%) impervious surface.
LOAD: Quantities of sewage characteristics such as BOD and SS, and other constituents as expressed in milligrams per liter (mg/l) or pounds per twenty four (24) hours.
MPCA: Minnesota pollution control agency.
MEDIUM DENSITY: A parcel of land, the surface of which is covered by between thirty four percent (34%) to sixty six percent (66%) impervious surface.
MONITORING: The measurement, sometimes continuous, of water quality.
MULTIPLE-FAMILY DWELLING: A building or portion thereof containing three (3) or more dwelling units.
MUNICIPAL SEPARATE STORM SEWER SYSTEM (MS4): Publicly owned facilities by which stormwater is collected and/or conveyed, including, but not limited to, any roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, gutters, curbs, inlets, piped storm drains, pumping facilities, retention and detention basins, natural and human made or altered drainage channels, reservoirs and other drainage structures.
MUNICIPAL UTILITY: Refers to any municipally owned utility system.
NATIONAL POLLUTION DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM PERMIT OR NPDES PERMIT: The system for issuing, conditioning and denying permits for the discharge of pollutants from point sources into the navigable waters, the contiguous zone and the oceans by the administrator of the environmental protection agency pursuant to sections 402 and 405 of the federal water pollution control act, amendment 1972.
NATURAL OUTLET: Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake or other body of surface or ground water.
NONSTORMWATER DISCHARGE: Any discharge to the storm sewer system that is not composed entirely of stormwater.
NORMAL DOMESTIC STRENGTH WASTEWATER (NDSW): Wastewater that is primarily introduced by residential users with BOD5 concentrations not greater than two hundred milligrams per liter (200 mg/l), and total suspended solids concentrations not greater than two hundred milligrams per liter (200 mg/l).
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE COSTS (O&M COSTS): The expenses related to the costs of the operation, maintenance, replacement and administration of the total treatment works or system.
PERSON: Any individual, association, organization, partnership, firm, corporation or other entity recognized by law and acting as either the owner or as the owner's agent.
pH: The logarithm of the reciprocal of the hydrogen ion concentration. The concentration is the weight of hydrogen ions, in grams, per liter of solution. Neutral water, for example, has a pH value of 7 and a hydrogen ion concentration of 10-7.
POLLUTANT: Anything which causes or contributes to pollution. "Pollutants" may include, but are not limited to: paints, varnishes and solvents; oil and other automotive fluids; nonhazardous liquid and solid wastes and yard wastes; refuse, rubbish, garbage, litter or other discarded or abandoned objects, ordnance and accumulations, so that same may cause or contribute to pollution; floatables; pesticides, herbicides and fertilizers; hazardous substances and wastes; sewage, fecal coliform and pathogens; dissolved and particulate metals; animal wastes; wastes and residues that result from constructing a building or structure; and noxious or offensive matter of any kind.
PREMISES: Any building, lot, parcel of land or portion of land, whether improved or unimproved, including adjacent sidewalks and parking strips.
PRETREATMENT: The application of physical, chemical and biological processes to reduce the amount of pollutants in, or alter the nature of the pollutant properties in, a wastewater prior to discharging such wastewater into the publicly owned wastewater treatment system.
PRIVY OR PRIVY VAULT: A small building having a bench with holes through which the user may defecate or urinate.
PUBLIC GROUNDS: Highways, roads, streets, alleys, public ways, utility easements and public grounds in the city.
PUBLIC SEWER: Any sewer owned or operated by a unit or agency of government.
RECYCLABLE ITEMS: Aluminum cans, corrugated cardboard, the type of glass, paper and/or plastics that are recyclable.
RECYCLABLE MATERIALS: Materials that are separated from solid waste for the purpose of recycling and includes aluminum recyclables, can recyclables, corrugated cardboard, glass recyclables, paper recyclables and plastic recyclables.
RECYCLING: The process of collecting and preparing recyclable materials and reusing the materials in their original form or using them in manufacturing processes that do not cause the destruction of recyclable materials in a manner that precludes further use.
REPLACEMENT: Expenditures for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories or appurtenances which are necessary during the useful life of the treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which such works were designed and constructed. The term "operation and maintenance" includes replacement.
RESIDENTIAL DWELLING UNIT: For garbage and recycling only, the owner of an attached and detached single or double dwelling unit.
RESIDENTIAL EQUIVALENT FACTOR (REF): The volume of runoff generated by a one-third (1/3) acre lot covered by no more than thirty three percent (33%) impervious surface.
RESIDENTIAL USER: A user of the wastewater collection facility whose building is used primarily as a private residence and discharges NDSW.
SIC: The standard industrial classification code (1972) issued by the executive office of the president, office of management and budget, for use in the classification of establishments by types of business and the primary and economic activity engaged.
SANITARY SEWER: A sewer intended to carry only sanitary or sanitary and industrial wastewaters from residences, commercial buildings, industrial plants and institutions.
SANITARY WASTES: The liquid and water carried waste discharged from sanitary plumbing facilities.
SEPARATION OR TO SEPARATE: To place and store recyclable materials in containers provided by the city in a manner determined by the city, apart from solid waste.
SERVICE: Refers to providing a particular utility to a customer or consumer.
SEWAGE COLLECTION SYSTEM: Each, and all, of the common lateral sewers within a publicly owned treatment system, which are primarily installed to receive wastewaters directly from facilities which convey wastewater from individual structures or from private property, and which include service connection "Y" fittings designed for connection with those facilities. The facilities which convey wastewater from individual structures, from private property to the public lateral sewer or its equivalent, are specifically excluded from this definition, with the exception of pumping units and pressurized lines for individual structures or groups of structures when such units are cost effective and are owned and maintained by the grantee.
SEWAGE OR WASTEWATER: The water carried waste products from residences, public buildings, institutions, industrial establishments or other buildings, including the excrementitious or other discharge from the bodies of human beings or animals, together with such water used to wash or flush.
SEWER: A pipe or conduit for carrying sewage, industrial waste or other waste liquids.
SEWER SERVICE LINE: A privately owned line connection with the City sanitary sewer system.
SEWER SYSTEM OR SEWERAGE SYSTEM: Pipelines or conduits, pumping stations, force mains, and all other devices and appliances appurtenant thereto, used for collecting or conducting sewage, industrial wastes or other wastes to a point of ultimate disposal.
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER: Any industrial user of the City wastewater treatment system whose flow: a) exceeds twenty five thousand (25,000) gallons or more process wastewater flow per average workday; b) has exceeded five percent (5%) of the average dry weather flow or organic load carried by the City wastewater treatment system during any one day; c) has in its waste "toxic pollutants", as defined pursuant to section 307 of the Act, or Minnesota Statutes and Rules; or d) has a significant impact, either by itself or in combination with other contributing industries, on the wastewater disposal system, the quality of sludge, the system's effluent quality, or air emissions generated by the system.
SINGLE-FAMILY HOME AND DUPLEX: A residential accommodation, including complete kitchen facilities permanently installed which are arranged, designed, used or intended for use exclusively as living quarters for one or two (2) families, and not more than an aggregate of two (2) roomers or boarders, and also including detached, semidetached and attached dwellings.
SLUDGE: The solids and associated liquids in Municipal wastewater which are encountered and concentrated by the Municipal wastewater treatment plant.
SLUG: Any discharge of water, wastewater or industrial waste which, in concentration of any given constituent or in quantity of flow, exceeds for any period of duration longer than fifteen (15) minutes more than five (5) times the average twenty four (24) hour concentrations, quantities or flows during the normal operation.
SOLID WASTE CONTAINER: A container specifically manufactured and approved by the City or a thirty two (32) gallon plastic bag approved by the City, specifically constructed for solid waste disposal for one and two family dwelling units, and a dumpster for multi-family dwelling units.
SOLID WASTE OR SOLID WASTE MATERIAL: Putrescible and nonputrescible solid waste including garbage (food waste), rubbish (nonfood waste) and wood ashes.
STORM SEWER: A sewer which carries storm and surface water and drainage, but excludes sewage and industrial wastes, other than unpolluted cooling or processed water.
STORMWATER: Any surface flow, runoff and drainage consisting entirely of water from any form of natural precipitation and resulting from such precipitation.
STORMWATER POLLUTION PREVENTION PLAN (SWPPP): A document which describes the Best Management Practices and activities to be implemented by a person or business to identify sources of pollution or contamination at a site and the actions to eliminate or reduce pollutant discharges to stormwater, stormwater conveyance systems and/or receiving waters to the maximum extent practicable.
SUSPENDED SOLIDS: Solids that either float on the surface of or are in suspension in water, sewage or other liquids, and which are removable by laboratory filtering, in accordance with the latest edition of standard methods for the examination of water and wastewater.
TREATMENT WORKS OR PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS (POTW): Any devices and systems for the storage, treatment, recycling and reclamation of Municipal sewage, domestic sewage or liquid industrial wastes used to implement section 201 of the Act, or necessary to recycle or reuse water at the most economical cost over the useful life of the works. These include intercepting sewers, outfall sewers, sewage collection systems, individual systems, pumping, power and other equipment, and their appurtenances; extensions, improvement, remodeling, additions and alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a reliable recycled supply such as standby treatment units and clear well facilities; and any works, including site acquisition of the land that will be an integral part of the treatment process or is used for ultimate disposal of residues resulting from such treatment (including land for composting sludge, temporary storage of such compost, and land used for the storage of treated wastewater in land treatment systems before land application); or any other method or system for preventing, abating, reducing, storing, treating, separating or disposing of Municipal waste or industrial waste, including waste in combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems.
TWO-FAMILY DWELLING: A residential building containing two (2) dwelling units, including detached, semidetached and attached dwellings.
USEFUL LIFE: Estimated period during which a treatment works will be operated.
USER: Any person, firm, corporation, or other entity, whether Municipal or otherwise, discharging sewage into the disposal system.
UTILITY: Refers to all utility services, whether the same be public Municipally owned facilities or furnished by private utility companies.
WASTEWATER: The water carried waste products from residences, public buildings, institutions, industrial establishments or other buildings, including the excrementitious or other discharge from the bodies of human beings or animals, together with such water used to wash or flush.
WASTEWATER TREATMENT FACILITIES: That portion of the treatment works specifically utilized for wastewater treatment and subsequent sludge disposal. This shall include any future treatment facilities as may be necessary to comply with the State and Federal laws.
WATER AND WASTEWATER BASE FEE: The base fee for water and wastewater will be a fee established to pay for nonoperating expenditures which will include expenses not defined in the operation and maintenance of the City's water treatment, power and pumping and distribution and wastewater collection, conveyance and treatment. Examples of expenses in this category are debt service principal and interest payments, capital improvement plan expenses or other expenses that are transferred out of the operating funds and/or made from the Improvement Fund. The fee may be based on number of units served by the meter, meter size or any combination thereof as set by resolution of the City Council.
WATER AND WASTEWATER USAGE FEE: The usage fee for water and wastewater will be a fee established to pay for the annual operation and maintenance of the water treatment facility, including power and pumping, distribution and administration and the wastewater collection, conveyance and treatment facilities including sludge disposal costs and administration. (Ord. 84, 6th Series, eff. 3-21-2016; amd. Ord. 99, 6th Series, eff. 8-21-2017)