A. Purpose. It is the purpose of this section to establish rules and regulations concerning discharges to the system, including the determination of the acceptability or unacceptability of discharges, the pretreatment of discharges, and establishing specific limitations on certain discharges.
B. Access to premises for inspection of discharge; inspection chamber may be required. The Director shall at all times have free access to the premises of any user of its facilities, and free access to the premises of any person reasonably believed by the Director to be a user or possible user of its facilities, for the purpose of inspecting, sampling, or testing the discharge emanating therefrom, or any discharge which may emanate therefrom in order to determine whether the discharge, or potential discharge, is acceptable or unacceptable to the city. Where necessary, the Director may require the owner of any premises which discharges to the system to install a suitable inspection chamber, together with any necessary meters and other appurtenances in the building sewer to facilitate observation, sampling, and measurement of the discharge, or potential discharge. The chambers, when required, shall be constructed in accordance with plans approved by the Director. The chamber shall be installed at the owner's expense and shall be maintained by him or her so as to be safe and assessable at all times.
C. Acceptability or unacceptability of discharge; determination by Public Works Director. The Director shall determine the acceptability or unacceptability of any discharge to the system. The determination shall be made on the basis of sound engineering and operational evaluations taking into consideration the nature and concentration of the discharge, its point of entry into the system, its compatibility with other discharges in the system, its compatibility with the treatment facility receiving it, and all other factors pertinent to the effect of the discharge on any part of the system or treatment process.
D. Unacceptable discharges. Unacceptable discharges shall include, but not necessarily be limited to, those which have been determined by the Director to:
1. Contain materials or substances which would constitute a hazard to life and limb of personnel engaged in inspection, maintenance, and operation of the system;
2. Contain materials or substances which are toxic, as defined in § 12-5-1;
3. Contain materials or substances which are in any way deleterious to any part of the system;
4. Contain concentrations of any toxic or deleterious materials or substances in excess of any limits set thereon in accordance with these regulations;
5. Cause the city to incur excessive expense in the handling or treatment thereof;
6. Be incompatible with the treatment process or inhibit the performance of the treatment process at a city treatment facility;
7. Be of such volume or contain such BOD, suspended solids, or other material load which could cause the treatment facility to exceed its design capabilities;
8. Cause a treatment facility of the city to fail to meet effluent requirements set by state and federal regulatory agencies or cause the effluent to have a degrading effect on the receiving body of water;
9. Contain viable pathogenic organisms in quantities as to be a hazard to public health; and/or
10. Cause a treatment facility of the city to fail to meet effluent requirements as established under the city's operation permit for its sewage treatment plants.
E. Unacceptable discharges; refusal of service. The Director may refuse the service of the city's facilities to any person whose discharge is determined by the Director to be unacceptable in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
F. Unacceptable discharges; pretreatment permitted. Any person whose discharge has been determined by the Director to be unacceptable in accordance with the provisions of this chapter may apply to the Director for permission to pretreat the discharge by the use of a method of pretreatment designed to render the discharge acceptable.
G. Acceptable methods of pretreatment; review by Public Works Director; refusal of pretreatment method. The acceptability of a pretreatment method for any given discharge, an application for which has been made in accordance with these regulations, and the terms for the installation and use thereof shall be reviewed by the Director. The review shall be made on the basis of sound engineering and operational evaluations taking into consideration all factors pertinent to the effect of the discharge both before and after pretreatment on any part of the system. The federal pretreatment regulations, 40 C.F.R. pt. 403, shall be enforced as applicable.
H. Inspection of pretreatment facilities by Public Works Director. Pretreatment facilities shall at all times be subject to inspection by the Director in order to determine if the facilities are efficiently performing the function for which they are installed.
I. Cost of pretreatment to be borne by user. All costs incident to pretreatment and all expenses incident to the acquisition, installation, operation, maintenance, and repair of pretreatment facilities shall be borne by the user. In addition, any extraordinary administrative or investigative expenses incurred by the city as a result of the installation and use of pretreatment facilities shall be charged to the user.
J. Discharge of certain materials and substances prohibited. No person shall release or cause to be released, or allow to run, leak, or escape into the Authority's sewerage system, any discharge containing any materials or substances considered by the Public Works Director to be toxic, as defined in § 12-5-1, or to be in any way deleterious to any part of the Authority's sewerage system or treatment process. Certain materials shall by their nature be considered by the Public Works Director to be toxic or deleterious, except in small quantities or concentrations. The materials or substances shall include, but not necessarily be limited to:
1. Construction materials, ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metals, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastic, wood, paunch manure, fur, wax, or any solid or viscous substance capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference with the proper operation of the sewerage system;
2. Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil, or other flammable or explosive liquids, solids, or gases;
3. Steam or hot water above 150°F (65°C);
4. Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease, or oils, whether emulsified or not, in excess of 100 mg/l, or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 33°F and 150°F (1°C and 65°C);
5. Any water or wastes having a pH lower than five and one-half or higher than ten, or having any other corrosive property apt to cause damage or hazard to structures, equipment of the sewerage system, or personnel employed in its operations;
6. Any water or waste containing readily-releasable cyanide (cyanide released at a temperature of 150°F (65°C) and pH = two and one-half) in excess of two mg/l; any water or waste containing total cyanide in excess of five mg/l;
7. Coal tar and its derivatives and waste; and/or
8. Any liquids or wastes containing toxic or poisonous substances in sufficient quantities or rate of flow as to injure or interfere with any of the sewage treatment process, to constitute a hazard to human beings or animals, or to create any hazard in the receiving waters.
K. Discharge of certain materials permitted conditionally.
1. Certain toxic substances and pathogenic bacteria, admission of which into the system would otherwise be prohibited, shall be acceptable in a discharge if they are:
a. Reduced by treatment at the source to a point that will meet the general purposes of these rules and regulations or come within any applicable standards set thereon now or hereafter in accordance with these regulations; or
b. Discharged in such small concentrations so as to not be injurious to personnel, sewers, any biochemical, biological, or other sewage treatment process, or receiving waters.
2. The substances shall include, but not necessarily be limited to:
a. Any alcohols, antibiotics, arsenic, arsenicals, bromine, iodine, chlorine, copper, copper salts, cresols, creosotes, fluorine, formaldehydes, mercury, mercuricals, phenols, phenol derivatives, silver, silver compounds, silvermides, toxic dyes (organic and mineral), or zinc;
b. Any strong oxidizing agents such as chromates, dichromates, permanganates, or peroxides;
c. Any chemical compounds producing toxic, flammable, or explosive gases, either upon acidification, alkalization, oxidation, or reduction;
d. Any strong reducing agents such as nitrates, sulphides, sulfites, and thiosulphates; and/or
e. Any waste from industrial processes, hospital procedures, or commercial processes containing viable pathogenic organisms.
L. Specific limitations on certain materials and substances in discharges; compatibility with regulatory agency requirements.
1. Table A lists the maximum allowable values for certain materials in, or characteristics of, wastewater entering the city's sewerage systems. The city reserves the right to establish standards for substances not contained in this list. In setting additional standards, the city will generally follow the standards of the Water Pollution Control Federation. In defining and interpreting the values in Table A, reference shall be made to Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, American Water Works Association, latest edition.
Table A | |
Material or Characteristic | Maximum Allowable Value |
Table A | |
Material or Characteristic | Maximum Allowable Value |
Boron | 1.0 ppm |
Chromium, total | 10.0 ppm |
Copper | 10.0 ppm |
Cyanides | 2.0 ppm |
Cadmium | 2.0 ppm |
Lead | 0.1 ppm |
Mercury | 2.0 ppm |
Nickel | 10.0 ppm |
Zinc | 10.0 ppm |
Iron | 25.0 ppm |
Phenols | 0.5 ppm |
BOD | 210.0 ppm |
Suspended Solids | 210.0 ppm |
pH | 5.5—10 |
Temperature | 150°F |
2. The above limitations are intended to apply generally to all industrial users within the city's sewerage system. If and when state or federal regulatory agency regulations require a specific pretreatment concentration for a specific industry, whichever is the more stringent concentration level between these regulations and those regulations will apply.
M. Discharges containing ground garbage; approval of certain size grinders required. Any discharge to the city's sewerage system containing garbage may be made acceptable by means of grinding and dilution, provided, however, that the installation of and operation of any garbage grinder equipped with a motor of three-fourths horsepower (0.76 h.p. metric) or greater shall be subject to review and approval by the Public Works Director prior to the installation and operation and to periodic inspection by the city thereafter.
N. Discharges containing acids and bases; neutralization required. Any water or wastes which are unacceptable pursuant to these regulations shall be neutralized, diluted, or subjected to some other acceptable method of pretreatment in order to render it acceptable to the city, in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, prior to its discharge to the system. If necessary, the use of automatically operating, diluting, or neutralization and monitoring equipment shall be required. If, upon neutralization, the discharge is sufficiently high in ionic strength as to continue to be unacceptable, further pretreatment shall be required.
O. Discharge of odors; control by owner required. It shall at all times be the responsibility of the owner to eliminate or control the emission of offensive odors from building sewers to the system or the development of offensive odors in the system as the result of a discharge. Whenever the Director determines that offensive odors emanating from building sewers or resulting from a discharge are present in the system, he or she shall require the owner to take whatever steps are necessary to eliminate the odors from the system. The cost of any devices which may be necessary to eliminate or control the odors and all attendant expenses shall be borne by the owner.
P. Prevention of accidental release of unacceptable substances. There shall be no connection to the system from any vessel, tank, container, or receptacle of any kind used to receive, hold, store, or in any other way handle any toxic or deleterious materials or substances, the discharge of which is prohibited by these regulations through which quantities of the materials or substances could accidentally or otherwise be discharged directly or indirectly into the system. Persons who in the course of their business or otherwise transport, store, receive, ship, or in any other way handle or process any such materials or substances shall take precautions to prevent accidental spillage of the substances to any connection to the system by way of floor drains, basins, catch basins, downspouts, gutters, manholes, or any other such connection. Whenever the Director determines that accidental spillage has occurred through any connection to the system as described above, he or she shall require the owner to eliminate the connection.
Q. Accidental release of unacceptable discharge; notification; charges. In the event of any accidental release to the system of any unacceptable discharge or of any substances or materials considered by the Public Works Director to be toxic or deleterious, as provided in this chapter, it shall be the responsibility of the user to notify the Public Works Director immediately, and in no case later than one hour following such a discharge, so that remedial action can be taken. Costs incurred to correct any damage resulting from such a discharge shall be charged to the user and failure to report the discharge shall result in an additional charge of $1,500 in addition to costs of correction. Each discharge shall be considered separately and costs and charges levied accordingly. Each day on which there is such a discharge shall be and is hereby deemed to be a separate discharge and charges shall be levied accordingly. The charges shall be collected by the city in the same manner as all other charges set by the city.
R. Special agreements; application to district. Whenever necessary or expedient in order to carry out the provisions of these regulations, the Public Works Director may enter into special agreements with users of the city's facilities setting forth terms under which the discharge of the users will be acceptable to the city. The agreements shall be made only in accordance with an application therefor made to the Board of Review pursuant to these regulations.
S. Discharge of unpolluted water where storm sewer is available. Whenever separate storm and sanitary sewers are provided, required, or in use in any area of the city, all unpolluted water, including all storm water, surface water, ground water, roof runoff, uncontaminated cooling water, subsurface drainage, or unpolluted industrial process water, shall be discharged to the storm sewer. Whenever in such areas any such unpolluted water is found to be discharged to sanitary sewer, the Director shall require the discharge to be connected to the storm sewer at the expense of the user.
T. Appeal from determination regarding discharge. Any industrial user whose discharge has been determined by the Director to be unacceptable in accordance with these regulations or who disagrees with any other determination of the Director hereunder may apply to the City Common Council for a review thereof in accordance with these regulations.
U. Failure to comply with discharge regulations; charges. Any failure to comply with any provision of this chapter shall result in an additional charge against the person or premises so failing to comply in the amount of $500. In addition, the person or premises shall be liable for any damages which occur to the system as a result of the failure to comply with any provision of these regulations, and each such failure to comply shall be and is hereby deemed to be a distinct and separate failure and charges shall be applied accordingly. The charges shall be collected by the city in the same manner as all other charges set by the city.
(Ord. 121, passed 12-4-1979) Penalty, see Article 1-8