(A) For the purpose of this article, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates, or requires, a different meaning.
ACT or THE ACT. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 U.S.C. §§ 1251 et seq.
APPROVAL AUTHORITY. The Director of the Division of Water Quality of the State Department of Environment and Natural Resources, or his or her designee.
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE INDUSTRIAL USER.
(a) If the industrial user is a corporation,
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE shall mean:
1. The president, secretary, or a vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy, or decision-making, functions for the corporation; or
2. The manager of one, or more, manufacturing, production, or operation facilities employing more than 250 persons, or having gross annual sales or expenditures exceeding $25,000,000 (in second-quarter, 1980 dollars), if authority to sign documents has been assigned, or delegated, to the manager in accordance with corporate procedures.
(b) If the industrial user is a partnership or sole proprietorship, an
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE shall mean a general partner or the proprietor, respectively.
(c) The individuals described in subsections (a) and (b) above may designate another
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE if the authorization is in writing, the authorization specifies the individual, or position, responsible for the overall operation of the facility from which the discharge originates, or having overall responsibility for environmental matters for the company, and the written authorization is submitted to the town.
(d) If the designation of an
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE is no longer accurate because a different individual, or position, has responsibility for the overall operation of the facility, or overall responsibility for environmental matters for the company, a new authorization satisfying the requirements of this section must be submitted to POTW Director prior to, or together with, any reports to be signed by an AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE.
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD). The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedures for five days at 20C, usually expressed as a concentration (for example, mg/l).
BUILDING SEWER. A sewer conveying wastewater from the premises of a user to the POTW.
BYPASS. The intentional diversion of waste streams from any portion of a user’s treatment facility.
CATEGORICAL STANDARDS. National categorical pretreatment standards, or pretreatment standard.
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY OR EPA. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or where appropriate the term may also be used as a designation for the administrator, or other duly authorized official, of said agency.
GRAB SAMPLE. A sample which is taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis without regard to the flow in the waste stream, and over a period of time not to exceed 15 minutes.
HOLDING TANK WASTE. Any waste from holding tanks, including, but not limited to, such holding tanks as vessels, chemical toilets, campers, trailers, septic tanks, and vacuum-pump tank trucks.
INDIRECT DISCHARGE or DISCHARGE. The discharge, or the introduction, from any non-domestic source regulated under § 307(b), (c), or (d) of the Act, (33 U.S.C. § 1317), into the POTW (including holding tank waste discharged into the system).
INDUSTRIAL USER or USER. Any person which is a source of indirect discharge.
INTERFERENCE. The inhibition, or disruption, of the POTW treatment processes, operations, or its sludge process, use, or disposal, which causes, or contributes, to a violation of any requirement of the POTW’s NPDES, or non-discharge, permit, or prevents sewage sludge use, or disposal, in compliance with specified applicable state and federal statutes, regulations, or permits. The term includes prevention of sewage sludge use, or disposal, by the POTW in accordance with § 405 of the Act, (33 U.S.C. § 1345), or any criteria, guidelines, or regulations developed pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) (42 U.S.C. §§ 6901 et seq.), the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act (15 U.S.C. §§ 2601 et seq.), the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuary Act (MPRSA) (16 U.S.C. §§ 1431 et seq. and 33 U.S.C. §§ 1401 et seq.), or more stringent state criteria (including those contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Title IV of SWDA) applicable to the method of disposal, or use, employed by the POTW.
MEDICAL WASTE. Isolation wastes, infectious agents, human blood and blood products, pathological wastes, sharps, body parts, contaminated bedding, surgical wastes, potentially contaminated laboratory wastes, and dialysis wastes.
NATIONAL POLLUTION DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM or NPDES PERMIT. A permit issued pursuant to § 402 of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1342), or pursuant to G.S. § 143-215.1 by the state under delegation from the EPA.
NATIONAL PROHIBITIVE DISCHARGE STANDARD or PROHIBITIVE DISCHARGE STANDARD. Absolute prohibitions against the discharge of certain substances; these prohibitions appear in § 21-306, and are developed under the authority of § 307(b) of the Act and 40 C.F.R. § 403.5.
NATURAL CATEGORICAL PRETREATMENT STANDARD or CATEGORICAL STANDARD. Any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by EPA in accordance with § 307(b) and (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1317), which applies to a specific category of industrial users, and which appears in 40 C.F.R. chapter 1, subchapter N, parts 405 through 471.
NEW SOURCE.
(a) Any building, structure, facility, or installation from which there may be a discharge of pollutants, the construction of which commenced after the publication of proposed categorical pretreatment standards under § 307(c) of the Act, which will be applicable to such source if such standards are thereafter promulgated in accordance with § 307(c), provided that:
1. The building, structure, facility, or installation is constructed at a site at which no other source is located;
2. The building, structure, facility, or installation totally replaces the process, or production equipment that causes the discharge of pollutants at an existing source; or
3. The production or wastewater generating processes of the building, structure, facility, or installation are substantially independent of an existing source at the same site. In determining whether these are substantially independent, factors such as the extent to which the new facility is integrated with the existing plant, and the extent to which the new facility is engaged in the same general type of activity as the existing source, should be considered.
(b) Construction on a site at which an existing source is located results in a modification rather than a
NEW SOURCE if the construction does not create a new building, structure, facility, or installation meeting the criteria of subsections (a)2. or (a)3. above, but otherwise alters, replaces, or adds to existing process or production equipment.
(c) For purposes of this definition, construction of a
NEW SOURCE has commenced if the owner, or operator, has:
1. Begun, or caused to begin, as part of a continuous on-site construction program:
a. Any placement, assembly, or installation of facilities or equipment; or
b. Significant site preparation work, including clearing, excavation, or removal of existing buildings, structures, or facilities which is necessary for the placement, assembly, or installation of
NEW SOURCE facilities or equipment.
2. Entered into a binding contractual obligation for the purchase of facilities, or equipment, which are intended to be used in its operation within a reasonable time. Options to purchase, or contracts which can be terminated or modified without substantial loss, and contracts for feasibility, engineering, and design studies do not constitute a contractual obligation under this definition.
NON-CONTACT COOLING WATER. Water used for cooling which does not come into direct contact with any raw material, intermediate product, waste product, or finished product.
NON-DISCHARGE PERMIT. A disposal system permit issued by the state pursuant to G.S. § 143-215.1.
PASS THROUGH. A discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the state in quantities or concentrations which, alone or with discharges from other sources, causes a violation, including an increase in the magnitude, or duration, of a violation, of the POTW’s NPDES, or non-discharge, permit, or a downstream water quality standard.
PERSON. Any individual, partnership, co-partnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, estate, governmental entity, or any other legal entity, or their legal representatives, agents, or assigns. This definition includes all federal, state, and local government entities.
pH. A measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a substance, expressed as standard units, and calculated as the logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in grams per liter of solution.
POLLUTANT. Any waste, as defined in G.S. § 143-213(18), and dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, medical wastes, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discarded equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt, and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste, and certain characteristics of wastewater (for example, pH, temperature, TSS, turbidity, color, BOD, COD, toxicity, or odor).
POTW DIRECTOR. The Director of the town’s publicly-owned treatment works.
POTW TREATMENT PLANT. The portion of the POTW designed to provide treatment to wastewater.
PRETREATMENT or TREATMENT. The reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater prior to, or in lieu of, discharging or otherwise introducing such pollution into a POTW. The reduction, or alteration, can be obtained by physical, chemical, or biological processes, or process changes or other means, except by diluting the concentration of the pollutants, unless allowed by an applicable pretreatment standard.
PRETREATMENT PROGRAM. The program for the control of pollutants introduced into the POTW from non-domestic sources which was developed by the town in compliance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.8, and approved by the approval authority as authorized by G.S. § 143-215.3(a)(14), in accordance with 40 C.F.R. § 403.11.
PRETREATMENT REQUIREMENTS. Any substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment, other than a pretreatment standard.
PRETREATMENT STANDARDS. Prohibited discharge standards, categorical standards, and local limits.
PUBLICLY-OWNED TREATMENT WORKS (POTW) or MUNICIPAL WASTEWATER SYSTEM. A treatment works, as defined by § 212 of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1292), which is owned in this instance by the town. This definition includes any devices, or systems, used in the collection, storage, treatment, recycling, and reclamation of municipal sewage, or industrial wastes of a liquid nature. It also includes sewers, pipes, and other conveyances only if they convey wastewater to the POTW treatment plant. For the purposes of this article, POTW shall also include any sewers that convey wastewaters to the POTW from persons outside the town who are, by contract or agreement with the town, or in any other way, users of the town’s POTW.
SEVERE PROPERTY DAMAGE. Substantial physical damage to property, damage to the user’s treatment facilities which causes them to become inoperable, or substantial and permanent loss of natural resources which can reasonably be expected to occur in the absence of a bypass. SEVERE PROPERTY DAMAGE does not mean economic loss caused by delays in production.
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER. Any industrial user of the wastewater disposal system who:
(a) Discharges an average of 25,000 gallons per day, or more, of process wastewater to the POTW (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling, and boiler blowdown wastewaters);
(b) Contributes process wastewater which makes up 5%, or more, of the NPDES or non-discharge permitted flow limit, or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant. In this context, organic capacity refers to BOD, TSS, and ammonia;
(c) Is required to meet a national categorical pretreatment standard; or
(d) Is found by the town, the State Division of Water Resources, or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to have the potential for impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industrial users, on the wastewater treatment system, the quality of sludge, the system’s effluent quality, or compliance with any pretreatment standards or requirements.
SIGNIFICANT NON-COMPLIANCE or REPORTABLE NON-COMPLIANCE. A status of non-compliance defined as follows.
(a) Violations of wastewater discharge limits:
1. For chronic violations, 66%, or more, of the measurements exceed (by any magnitude) the same daily maximum limit, or the same average limit in a six-month period;
2. For technical review criteria (TRC) violations, 33%, or more, of the measurements equal to, or greater than, the TRC times the limit (maximum or average) in a six-month period. There are two groups of TRCs: For the conventional pollutants, BOD, TSS, fats, oil and grease TRC = 1.4; for all other pollutants TRC = 1.2;
3. Any other violation(s) of an effluent limit (average or daily maximum) that the control authority believes has caused, alone or in combination with, other discharges, interference, or pass through; or endangered the health of the sewage treatment plant personnel, or the public; and/or
4. Any discharge of a pollutant that has caused imminent endangerment to human health/welfare, or to the environment, or has resulted in the POTW’s exercise of its emergency authority to halt, or prevent, such a discharge.
(b) Violations of compliance schedule milestones, contained in a pretreatment permit or enforcement order, for starting construction, completing construction, and attaining final compliance by 90 days, or more, after the schedule date.
1. Failure to provide reports for compliance schedule, self-monitoring data, baseline monitoring reports, 90-day compliance reports, and periodic compliance reports within 30 days from the due date:
2. Failure to accurately report non-compliance; and
3. Any other violation, or group of violations, that the control authority considers to be significant.
SLUG LOAD or DISCHARGE. Any discharge at a flow rate, or concentration, which has a reasonable potential to cause interference or pass through, or in any other way violates the POTW’s regulations, local limits, or industrial user permit conditions. This can include, but is not limited to, spills and other accidental discharges; discharges of a non-routine, episodic nature; a non-customary batch discharge; or any other discharges that can cause a violation of the prohibited discharge standards in § 21-306.
STANDARD INDUSTRIAL CLASSIFICATION (SIC). A classification pursuant to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual issued by the Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget, 1987.
STORMWATER. Any flow occurring during, or following, any form of natural precipitation and resulting therefrom.
SUPERINTENDENT. The person designated by the town to supervise the operation of the publicly-owned treatment works, and who is charged with certain duties, and responsibilities, by this article, or his or her duly authorized representative.
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 laboratory filtering.
UPSET. An exceptional incident in which there is unintentional, and temporary, non-compliance with categorical pretreatment standards because of factors beyond the reasonable control of the user. An UPSET does not include non-compliance to the extent caused by operational error, improperly designed treatment facilities, inadequate treatment facilities, lack of preventive maintenance, or careless, or improper, operation.
WASTEWATER. The liquid and water-carried industrial, or domestic, wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, mobile sources, treatment facilities and institutions, together with any groundwater, surface water, and stormwater that may be present, whether treated or untreated, which are contributed into, or permitted to enter, the POTW.
WASTEWATER PERMIT. As set forth in § 21-336.
WATERS OF THE STATE. All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourse, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, 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) This article is gender neutral, and the masculine gender shall include the feminine, and vice-versa.
(C) Shall is mandatory; may is permissive or discretionary.
(D) The use of the singular shall be construed to include the plural, and the plural shall include the singular as indicated by the context of its use.
(E) The following abbreviations, when used in this article, shall have the designated meanings:
Abbreviations
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Designation
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Abbreviations
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Designation
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BOD | Biochemical oxygen demand |
C.F.R. | Code of Federal Regulations |
COD | Chemical oxygen demand |
EPA | Environmental Protection Agency |
gpd | Gallons per day |
G.S. | North Carolina General Statutes |
l | Liter |
mg | Milligrams |
mg/l | Milligrams per liter |
NPDES | National pollution discharge elimination system |
O&M | Operation and maintenance |
POTW | Publicly-owned treatment works |
RCRA | Resource Conservation and Recovery Act |
SIC | Standard industrial classification |
SWDA | Solid Waste Disposal Act |
TSS | Total suspended solids |
TKN | Total kjeldahl nitrogen |
U.S.C. | United States Code |
(Ord. 33-2002, passed 10-21-2002; Ord. 29-2008, passed 10- -2008)