(A) General prohibitions. No user shall contribute or cause to be contributed into the POTW, directly or indirectly, any pollutant or wastewater which causes interference or pass through. These general prohibitions apply to all users of a POTW whether or not the user is a significant industrial user or subject to any national, state, or local pretreatment standards or requirements.
(B) Specific prohibitions. No user shall contribute or cause to be contributed into the POTW the following pollutants, substances, or wastewater:
(1) Pollutants which create a fire or explosive hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140°F (60°C) using the test methods specified in 40 C.F.R. § 261.21;
(2) Solid or viscous substances in amounts which may cause obstruction of the POTW resulting in interference, but in no case solids greater than one half inch in any dimension;
(3) Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;
(4) Any wastewater having a pH less than 5.0 or more than 10.5 or wastewater having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to the POTW or personnel of the POTW;
(5) Any wastewater containing pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants, (BOD and the like) in sufficient quantity, (flow or concentration) either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, to cause interference with the POTW;
(6) Any wastewater having a temperature greater than 150°F (66°C), or which will inhibit biological activity in the POTW treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 40°C (104°F);
(7) Any 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;
(8) Any trucked or hauled pollutants, except at discharge points designated by the POTW Director in accordance with § 52.023;
(9) Any noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, or solids or other wastewater 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 maintenance and repair;
(10) Any substance which may cause the POTW’s effluent or any other product of the POTW, such as residues, sludges, or scums, to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse or to interfere with the reclamation process. In no case shall a substance discharged to the POTW cause the POTW to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal regulations or permits issued under § 405 of the Act; the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, or state criteria applicable to the sludge management method being used;
(11) Any wastewater with objectionable color not removed in the treatment process, such as but not limited to dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions, which consequently imparts sufficient color to the treatment plant’s effluent to render the waters injurious to public health or secondary recreation or to aquatic life and wildlife or to adversely affect the palatability of fish or aesthetic quality or impair the receiving waters for any designated uses;
(12) Any wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes except as specifically approved by the POTW Director in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations;
(13) Storm water, surface water, ground water, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, swimming pool drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted industrial wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the POTW Director;
(14) Fats, oils, or greases of animal or vegetable origin in concentrations greater than 100 mg/l;
(15) Any sludges, screenings, or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;
(16) Any medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the POTW Director in a wastewater discharge permit;
(17) Any material containing ammonia, ammonia salts, or other chelating agents which will produce metallic complexes that interfere with the municipal wastewater system;
(18) Any material that would be identified as hazardous waste according to 40 C.F.R. Part 261 if not disposed of in a sewer except as may be specifically authorized by the POTW Director;
(19) Any substance causing the POTW treatment plant effluent to violate its NPDES permit or state water quality standards for toxic substances as described in 15A NCAC 2B.0200;
(20) Wastewater causing, alone or in conjunction with other sources, the treatment plant’s effluent to fail a toxicity test;
(21) Recognizable portions of the human or animal anatomy;
(22) Any wastes containing detergents, surface active agents, or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the municipal wastewater system; and
(23) 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 any single reading over 10% of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of the meter.
(C) Processing and storing pollutants. Pollutants, substances, wastewater, or other wastes prohibited by this section shall not be processed or stored in such a manner that they could be discharged to the municipal wastewater system. All floor drains located in process or materials storage areas must discharge to the industrial user’s pretreatment facility before connecting with the system.
(D) Procedure when interference occurs. When the POTW Director determines that a user(s) is contributing to the POTW, any of the above enumerated substances in such amounts which may cause or contribute to interference of POTW operation or pass through, the POTW Director shall:
(1) Advise the user(s) of the potential impact of the contribution on the POTW in accordance with § 52.105; and
(Prior Code, § 5-2002)