(A) Administration. The Administrator shall administer, implement, and enforce the provisions of this section.
(B) Grease waste interceptor general requirements. Grease waste interceptors shall be required at all service facilities, including, but not limited to, food service facilities, laundry or dry cleaning facilities, pet groomers, and hair salons, in the city. If grease waste is produced in quantities that could otherwise cause line stoppage or hinder grease waste disposal as determined by the Administrator. All fixtures within such service facilities which may introduce fats, oil, grease, silt, sand, or hair into the wastewater collection system must be connected through the grease waste interceptor, including sinks, dishwashers, clothes washers, automatic hood wash units, floor drains, and any other fixture which is determined by the Administrator to be a source of fats, oil, grease, sand, silt, or hair. In no case shall grease waste be introduced into the wastewater collection system.
(C) Grease waste interceptor installation. Grease waste interceptor location, design, and sizing shall be based upon the requirements found in the plumbing provisions of the Florida Building Code and implementing administrative rules.
(1) Existing service facilities. Existing service facilities that do not have a grease waste interceptor shall install a properly sized interceptor(s) in accordance with the plumbing provisions of the Florida Building Code. Plumbing connections shall be modified to accommodate the grease waste interceptor to comply with this section within 365 days from the effective date of this chapter, unless otherwise directed by the Administrator in writing.
(2) Upgrade or replace existing grease waste interceptor. Existing service facilities that have a grease waste interceptor and are not in compliance with this chapter shall be required to upgrade or replace the existing grease waste interceptor in accordance with the Florida Plumbing Code within 365 days of first notification.
(3) New service facilities. All new grease waste interceptors installed at service facilities shall be of the type and capacity required by the plumbing provisions of the Florida Building Code and approved by the Administrator or his or her designee.
(D) Grease waste interceptor maintenance.
(1) Service facilities with interceptors having a greater than 20-gallon capacity are required to utilize a grease waste hauler permitted by Pasco County, Florida, to pump grease waste from the grease waste interceptor. Any discharge, overflow or spill that leaves the confines of the grease interceptor and or sanitary sewer as a result of improper maintenance shall be classified as a “pass through” and shall result in a violation, subject to appropriate penalties, in accordance with § 51.99 until such a time that the situation has been corrected and cleanup process is underway. Furthermore, the business owner or his or her designee must notify the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulations, Division of Hotels and Restaurants, within 24 hours of incident at its current listed telephone number.
(2) The service facility shall report pumping activities within five business days to the Administrator on the form so designated by the city for such purposes.
(3) In-ground grease waste interceptors shall be monitored at a minimum frequency of once for every 90 days to determine if the standard is met. The schedule for pumping shall be established by the Administrator. A registered service facility may file a request for an alternate pumping frequency with the Administrator. Based on the results of the monitoring report and the deviation from the standard, if any, the Administrator may adjust the pumping frequency, but pumping frequency shall not exceed 180 days. If the standard is not met, an increased pumping frequency shall be required.
(4) The Administrator may require that, at the service facility’s expense, appropriate monitoring facilities, such as a control manhole, be installed.
(5) Grease waste interceptor cleaning and maintenance shall include pumping the grease waste interceptor until empty and cleaning the side walls, baffle walls, cross-pipes and inlet and outlet pipes. Internal piping shall be immediately restored to their original design configuration should any damage occur. If multiple grease waste interceptors are installed, all traps in the series must be pumped and cleaned according to the maintenance schedule.
(6) No emulsifiers, grease cutters or other chemicals which could cause grease to pass through the grease waste interceptor may be used in the maintenance of a grease waste interceptor or its drain lines. A live bacterial product which does not contain any enzymes, surfactants, emulsifiers, or substances that act as solvents for fat and does not affect the wastewater collection system may be used in the cleaning and maintenance upon approval by the Administrator and based on formulation and operational criteria, such as safety data sheets.
(7) Grease interceptors must be pumped out completely and left empty. Decanting or pump and return of grease waste are prohibited.
(8) In-ground grease waste interceptors shall be pumped at a frequency that maintains a grease and oil layer of less than six inches on top of the grease waste interceptor and a solids layer of less than eight inches on bottom of the grease waste interceptor. The measurement point for determination of the grease and solids layer shall be adjacent to the outlet pipe.
(9) Undersink grease waste interceptors shall be monitored by the service facility at least once per week. Removal of grease waste and sediments is required when operational capacity is reduced to 80% or less. This is calculated by the volume of the top (grease) layer added to the volume of the bottom (sediment) layer, the sum of the layers is divided by the total operational volume [(Top in3 + Bottom in3)/total operational in3].
(10) The service facility shall be responsible for opening access covers or manhole covers to the grease waste interceptor for inspection by the city.
(11) The grease waste interceptor area and monitoring facilities shall be maintained safe, clear of debris, and accessible at all times for observation, inspection, sample collection and flow measurement of the service facility’s discharge to the wastewater collection system.
(12) Manholes shall be maintained at least to finish grade and will be maintained to prevent inflow.
(13) Upon discovery of a problem or damaged interceptor, the service facility manager shall notify the Administrator within 72 hours of the discovery. A maintenance response by the service facility is required within five days.
(E) Service facility identification. It is unlawful for any service facility that generates grease or produces grease waste to discharge same into the city’s wastewater facilities without authorization from the Administrator.
(1) Authorization shall be given in the form of a grease waste registration certificate. Application for a grease waste registration certificate shall be made to the Administrator or his or her designee. If, after examining the information contained in the application, the Administrator determines that the proposed service facility does comply with the provisions of this chapter, a grease waste registration certificate shall be issued, allowing the discharge of grease waste into the city’s wastewater collection system. If the Administrator denies a service facility’s application for a grease waste registration certificate, the owner of the service facility may appeal the Administrator’s decision to the City Manager. To ripen the appeal, the owner of the service facility must submit a written request to the City Manager stating the grounds for the appeal. The City Manager’s determination shall be final.
(2) Each grease waste registration certificate shall be issued for a five-year period commencing from the date of the issuance.
(3) The service facility shall apply for grease waste registration certificate re-issuance a minimum of 60 days prior to the expiration of the service facility’s existing grease waste registration certificate.
(4) The term and conditions of the grease waste registration certificate may be subject to modification by the city during the term of the grease waste registration certificate as limitations or requirements as identified in this chapter are modified or other just causes exist.
(5) The service facility shall be informed of any proposed changes in the issued grease waste registration certificate at least 60 days prior to the effective date of the changes. Any changes or new conditions in the grease waste registration certificate shall include a reasonable schedule for compliance.
(6) As condition precedent to the granting of a grease waste registration certificate, the recipient under this paragraph shall agree to hold harmless the City of Zephyrhills and the city’s officers and employees from any liabilities arising from the recipient’s operations under the grease waste registration certificate.
(F) Grease waste interceptor monitoring and reporting.
(1) Pumpage from a grease waste interceptor shall be tracked by a manifest that confirms pumping, hauling and disposal of waste. The manifest shall contain the following information:
(a) Grease waste interceptor information:
1. Name;
2. Contact person;
3. Address;
4. Telephone number;
5. Volume pumped and interceptor capacity;
6. Date and time of pumping; and
7. Name and signature of service facility manger verifying the service facility information.
(b) Grease waste hauler information:
1. Company name;
2. Address;
3. Telephone number;
4. Pasco County permit;
5. Driver name and signature of grease waste hauler verifying grease waste hauler information and service;
6. Truck decal issued by Pasco County;
(c) Destination information disposal site or facilities:
1. Company name/permit number(s);
2. Contact person(s);
3. Address;
4. Telephone number;
5. Location of disposal site/facility;
6. Volume received;
7. Date and time of delivery; and
8. Signature of operator verifying disposal site and facility information.
(2) A log of pumping and maintenance activities shall be maintained by the service facility manager for the previous 12 months. The log of pumping activities shall be posted in a conspicuous location for immediate access by city personnel. The log shall include the date, time, maintenance performed or volume pumped, name of person performing the maintenance (hauler, plumber or vendor), and a Pasco County decal number applicable to all work performed to the interceptor or associated plumbing.
(3) The service facility shall maintain a file on-site of the records and other documents pertaining to the facility’s grease waste interceptor. The file contents shall include, but not be limited to, the record, as-built drawings, record of inspections, log of pumping activities and receipts, and log of maintenance. The file shall be available at all times for inspection and review by the Administrator. Documents in the file shall be retained and preserved in accordance with the city’s public records retention policy.
(G) Additional requirements. In addition to those facilities noted under § 51.21, every building or premises used or occupied by any sewer user where any commercial or industrial operations are conducted or permitted which result in the discharge into the sewer system of the city of any of the products, waste products, or other substances in the manner and to the extent prohibited in this chapter shall be equipped with an adequate and suitable catch basin, grease trap, filter, or other interceptor, installed in such a manner that the products, waste products, or other substances herein set forth will not flow into or be discharged into the sewer system.
(Ord. 1388-19, passed 10-28-19)