(A) Responsibility. The Tontitown Water Committee is hereby authorized to implement and administer a Cross Connection and Backflow Prevention Program to protect potable water supplied in the municipal system of the city. By virtue of this authority, the Tontitown Water and Sewer Committee and its authorized agents shall become the Administrative Authority responsible for the implementation and administration of a Cross Connection and Backflow Prevention Program for the city. The Administrative Authority is further authorized and delegated the responsibility to enforce provisions contained in this subchapter and future amendments hereto.
(B)
Enforcement.
If in the judgment of the Administrative Authority, an approved backflow prevention device is required to protect the quality of potable water supplied in the municipal system from nonpotable sources in the user's water system, the water user shall be given written notice to install an approved backflow prevention device or devices at one or more specified locations in the user's water system. The water user shall be required to immediately install such approved backflow device(s) at one or more specified locations at the water user's expense. Failure, refusal, or inability of the water user to install, have tested and maintain said backflow-prevention devices shall constitute grounds for discontinuing water service until such requirements have been adequately satisfied.
(C) Policy. No water service connection to any premises shall be installed or maintained by the Water and Sewer Committee unless the water supply is protected as required by federal and state laws and regulations, and provisions of this subchapter. Service of water to any premises shall be discontinued by the Water and Sewer Committee if a backflow-prevention assembly required by this subchapter is not installed, tested, and maintained, or if it is found that a backflow-prevention assembly has been removed, bypassed or if an unprotected cross connection exists on the premises. Services will not be restored until such conditions or defects are corrected.
(1) Inspection. The user's system shall be open for inspection at all reasonable times to authorized representatives of the Administrative Authority to determine the existence of cross connections or other structural or sanitary hazards, including violations of this subchapter. When such a condition becomes known, the Tontitown Water Committee shall have the authority to deny or immediately discontinue service to the premises by providing for a physical break in the service line until the user has corrected the condition or conditions in conformance with federal and state statutes and regulations, city ordinances, standards relating to plumbing and water supplied and the regulations adopted pursuant thereto.
(2) Auxiliary water supply. Municipal water service shall not be provided to any premises when the user's water system is interconnected to an auxiliary water supply. When such a condition becomes known, the Water and Sewer Committee shall have the authority to deny or immediately discontinue service to the premises until such time the user has installed an approved air-gap separation to provide a physical break between the user's auxiliary water supply and the municipal water system An air-gap separation shall be the only acceptable means to protect the backflow of auxiliary water through the service connection to the municipal water system, thereby limiting the degree of hazard that exists.
(3) Type of backflow-prevention assembly required. An approved backflow-prevention assembly shall be installed on each service line to a user's water system at or near the property line or immediately inside the building to be served, but in all cases, before the first branch line leading off the service line wherever the following conditions exist:
(a) In the case of premises on which any industrial fluid systems or any other objectionable substances are handled in such a fashion as to create an actual or potential hazard to the municipal water system, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by installing an approved backflow-prevention assembly in the service line, appropriate to the degree hazard. This shall include the handling of process water and waters originating from the municipal water system that have been subjected to deterioration in quality.
(b) In the case of premises having internal cross connections that cannot be permanently corrected and controlled, or intricate plumbing and piping arrangements or where entry to all portions of the premises is not readily accessible for inspection purposes, making it impractical or impossible to ascertain whether or not dangerous cross connections exist, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by installing an approved backflow-prevention assembly in the service line.
(4) Type of backflow-prevention assembly required. The type of backflow-prevention assembly required under division (C)(3) shall depend upon the degree of hazard that exists as follows:
(a) In the case of premises where there are water and/or substances(s) that would be objectionable but not hazardous to health if introduced into the municipal water system, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow by an approved double check valve assembly.
(b) In the case of premises where there is material danger to health that is handled in such a fashion as to create an actual or potential hazard to the municipal water system, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow by an approved air-gap separation or an approved reduced- pressure backflow-prevention assembly. Examples of premises where such conditions exist include sewage treatment plants, sewage pumping stations, chemical manufacturing plants, and metal plating facilities.
(c) In the case of premises where there are cross connections, either actual or potential, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow by an approved air-gap separation or an approved reduced-pressure principle backflow-prevention assembly at the service connection.
(d) In the case of premises where, because of security requirements or other prohibitions or restrictions, it is impossible or impractical to make a complete in-plant cross connection survey, the municipal water system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by either an approved air-gap separation or an approved reduced-pressure backflow-prevention assembly on each service connection to the premises.
(e) In the case of premises where, in the opinion of the Administrative Authority, an undue health threat is posed because of the presence of extremely toxic substances, the Administrative Authority may require an air-gap at the service connection to protect the municipal water system. This requirement will be at the discretion of the Administrative Authority and is dependent on the degree of hazard.
(5) Approved backflow-prevention assembly. Any backflow-prevention assembly required herein shall be a model and size approved by the Administrative Authority. The term
APPROVED BACKFLOW-PREVENTION ASSEMBLY
shall mean an assembly that has been manufactured in fill conformance with the standards established by the American Water Works Association and approved by the Arkansas Department of Health.
(6) Certified inspections and operational tests. It shall be the duty of the user at any premises where backflow-prevention assemblies are installed to have certified inspections and operational tests made at least once per year, and the unit overhauled at least every five years. In those instances where the Administrative Authority deems the hazard great enough, certified inspections may be required at more frequent intervals. These inspections are tests that shall be at the expense of the water user and shall be performed by the assembly manufacturer's representative or by a certified tester approved by the Arkansas Department of Health. Is shall be the duty of the water user to see that these tests are made in a timely matter. The user shall notify the Administrative Authority in advance when the tests are to be undertaken so that representatives of the Administrative Authority may witness these tests if so desired. These assemblies shall be repaired, overhauled, or replaced at the expense of the water user whenever said assemblies are found to be defective. Records of such certified tests, repairs, and overhaul shall be kept for no less than five years, and a copy submitted to the Administrative Authority within ten working days of the tests or repairs.
(7) Notification. It shall be the duty of the water user at any premises being provided water service by the Water and Sewer Committee to notify the Administrative Authority of the installation of a new backflow-prevention assembly. Certified inspections and operational tests shall be made within ten working days of the date the new backflow-prevention assembly is placed into operation. The installation of all new backflow-prevention assemblies shall be inspected and their operation tested by the assembly manufacturer's representative, or by a certified tester approved by the Arkansas Department of Health All fees and expenses for tests and inspections shall be at the expense of the water user.
(8) Exclusion from requirements. All presently installed backflow-prevention assemblies that do not meet the requirements of this subchapter but were approved assemblies for the purpose described herein at the time of installation and that have been properly maintained shall, except for the inspection and maintenance requirements under division (C)(6), be excluded from the requirements of these rules so long as the Administrative Authority is assured that they will satisfactorily protect the municipal water system. Whenever the existing assembly is moved from the present location, requires more than minimum maintenance, or when the Administrative Authority finds that the maintenance constitutes a hazard to health, the unit shall be replaced by an approved backflow-prevention assembly, meeting the requirements of this subchapter.
(9) Annual fee. The Administrative Authority is hereby authorized to collect an annual fee from each user of water maintaining a backflow-prevention assembly. The annual fees collected shall be used to offset the cost of establishing and maintaining a record system to permit and track backflow- prevention assemblies and their annual certification. The annual permit fee collected by the Administrative Authority shall not exceed the sum as set forth in § 155.01 for each backflow-prevention assembly maintained by each user of water.
(Ord. 2014-11-484, passed 11-4-14)