ARTICLE II. - SEWERS AND SEWAGE DISPOSAL

DIVISION 1. - GENERALLY#

Sec. 38-31. - Definitions.#

The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Administrator means the director of public works in the city or his authorized deputy or representative, who shall hereinafter be referred to as the director.

Applicant means any person requesting approval to discharge wastewaters into municipal facilities or for a new connection to the public system.

ASTM means the American Society for Testing Materials.

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) means the quantity of dissolved oxygen, expressed in milligrams per liter, used in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter in wastewater in five days at 20 degrees Celsius (68 degrees Fahrenheit) under standard laboratory procedures, as determined by standard methods.

Blackstone Valley District or district means and includes the cities of East Providence, Pawtucket, and Central Falls, and that portion of the Town of Smithfield lying northeast of the Douglas Pike, also called State Route No. 7, the Towns of Lincoln and Cumberland, or such portion or portions thereof as may, from time to time, be designated by the commission.

Building drain means that part of the lowest horizontal piping of a sanitary wastewater system which receives the discharge from soil, waste and other sanitary pipes inside the walls of the building and conveys into the building sewer beginning five feet (1.5 meters) outside from the inner face of the building wall.

Building sewer means a pipe connecting a public sewer with a building for the purpose of conveying sewage of any kind from said building to the public sewer. Building sewers, after completion of construction of a building sewer lateral as defined in this section, shall be maintained by the owners of the property served. That portion of the building sewer which lies within the boundaries of the property served shall be constructed by said property owner.

Building sewer lateral means a pipe or conduit laid incidental to the original construction of a public sewer, from that public sewer to some point at the side of the street, highway or similar location, and there capped, having been provided and intended for extension and for use at some time thereafter as part of a building sewer as defined in this section. When a building sewer lateral has been connected with and extended for the purpose of installing a building sewer, the lateral shall continue to be owned, controlled, and maintained by the city.

Chemical oxygen demand (COD) means the measure of the oxygen consuming capacity of inorganic and organic matter present in water or wastewater. It is expressed as the amount of oxygen consumed from a chemical oxidant in a specific test and does not differentiate between stable and unstable organic matter; thus it does not necessarily correlate with biochemical oxygen demand.

Chlorine demand means the amount of chlorine, expressed in parts per million (ppm) by weight, and is required to produce a residual of 0.5 ppm of chlorine after 15 minutes contact of chlorine with sewage, as determined by standard methods.

Combined sewage or combined wastewater means wastewater, water-carried wastes, or a mixture of them from residences, business buildings, institutions and industrial establishments together with such stormwater as may be present.

Combined sewer means a sewer intended to receive and convey both wastewater and surface runoff from storms.

Commission means the Blackstone Valley District Commission, its executive secretary, or its authorized deputy, agent, or representative.

Contamination means the introduction of pathogenic or potentially pathogenic organisms, or of toxic or potentially toxic substances into a watercourse that will render the water hazardous and, therefore, unfit for human consumption or for domestic usage of any kind.

Contractor means either an individual, partnership or corporation, and the proper agents and representatives thereof, approved by the director and to whom the director shall have issued a license to install and repair sewers, during the period when such license is valid.

Cooling water means the clean wastewater from air-conditioning, industrial cooling, condensing and similar apparatus, and from hydraulically powered equipment. Cooling water includes only water which is sufficiently clean, uncontaminated, and unpolluted to admit of being discharged without treatment or purification, into any natural open stream or watercourse without offense.

Drain. See Storm sewer.

Drainage field means a system of perforated drains laid in trenches and backfilled with broken stone or screened gravel, into which the discharge from a septic tank or tanks flow.

Easement means the acquired legal right to use for a specific purpose land owned by others.

Excessive means the amounts or concentration of a constituent of a wastewater which in the judgment of the municipality: (1)

Will cause damage to any facility;

(2)

Will be harmful to a wastewater treatment process;

(3)

Cannot be removed in the treatment works to the degree required in the limiting stream classification standards of the Blackstone River, upper Narragansett Bay water quality;

(4)

Can otherwise endanger life or property; or

(5)

Can constitute a nuisance.

Executive secretary means the executive secretary of the Blackstone Valley District Commission, or his authorized deputy, agent, or representative.

Floatable oil means oil, fat, or grease in a physical state such that it will separate by gravity from wastewater by treatment in an approved pretreatment facility. A wastewater shall be considered free of floatable fat if it is properly pretreated and the wastewater does not interfere with the collection system.

Garbage shall include the wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking and serving of food, and from handling, storage, and sale of produce. It is composed largely of putrescible organic matter, usually with a high natural moisture content.

Garbage disposal unit means a mechanical device used for the grinding, shredding, or macerating or any kind of material or waste preparatory to disposal thereof into the public sewerage system.

Grease means volatile and nonvolatile residual fats, oils, fatty acids, soaps, waxes, mineral oils, and other materials of like repute.

Grit means heavy inorganic matter such as stones, gravel, cinders, sand, silt, ashes, or other inert materials.

Industrial wastewater or industrial sewage means the liquid or wastewater carrying any quantity of oils, grease, fats, abrasives, chemicals, residues of manufacturing processes, wastes from commercial food preparation, preserving or canning, wastes from slaughter houses or meat processing plants, and similar substances, whether dissolved, in suspension, or mechanically carried by water, as distinct from and not clearly included within the definitions of sanitary sewage, stormwater or cooling water.

Interceptor means a common sewer controlled by the Blackstone Valley District.

May is permissive. (See the term "Shall" in this section.)

Municipal or municipality or any other word in common usage designating a legally constituted unit of local government or pertaining or belonging to said government means the City of Central Falls.

Natural outlet means any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake, or other body of surface or groundwater.

NPDES permit means the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit issued by the director of the enforcement division, Region I, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Boston, Massachusetts.

Person means any individual, firm, company, association, society, corporation, group, trust, municipality, or governmental authority.

pH means the reciprocal of the logarithm (to the base ten) of the hydrogen ion concentration in grams per liter (gm/l) of solution. Neutral water, for example, has a pH value of 7 and a hydrogen ion concentration of 10 -7 .

Pollution means the introduction of substances of such character and of such quantity into a watercourse such that its natural quality is so altered as to impair its usefulness or to render it offensive to the senses of sight, taste, or smell.

Private drain includes any drain located on private property and not under the care and control of the city.

Private sewer means any sewer located on private property that collects and conveys wastewater from two or more building sewers, discharges into a public sewer, and is not under the care and control of the city.

Properly shredded garbage means solid wastes from the preparation, cooking, and dispensing food that has been shredded to such a degree that all particles will be carried freely under the flow conditions normally prevailing in public sewers, with no particle greater than one-half inch (1.27 centimeters) in any dimension.

Property owner or owner of property or owner, as used herein, includes both the owner of fee in any real estate and all tenants, lessees or others in control, or possession and use of the property in question, or having any interest therein, and his, her, its, or their agents or representatives, as the interest, duties, powers or liabilities of each may be.

Public sewer shall be used only with respect to the main line of pipe or conduit including laterals to the property line which are owned, controlled, and maintained by the city for the conveyance of waste or sewage from several properties, and shall not be understood to include the building sewers up to the property line as defined in this section.

Receiving waters means any watercourse, river, pond, ditch, lake, aquifer, or other body of surface water or groundwater receiving discharge of wastewaters.

Relief sewer or relief drain means a sewer or storm drain constructed to supplement the capacity of an existing sewer or drain by conveying part of the wastes which would otherwise be discharged into and be conveyed by said existing sewer or drain. The particular wastes to be conveyed by any such relief sewer or drain shall be determined by the wastes for which it was designed, laid out or intended to receive and convey, as may appear in the records of the city or other body under which it was created.

Sanitary sewer means a sewer intended to convey only sanitary sewage or, if so stipulated with respect to the particular sewer, sanitary sewage plus industrial or other wastes, but excluding stormwaters, surface waters and groundwaters.

Sanitary wastewater or sanitary sewage means the common wastewater and water-carried wastes from residences, and from toilet and lavatory fixtures, commercial and noncommercial kitchens and laundries, car washes, and similar sanitary facilities of business and industrial buildings.

Seepage or subsoil drainage means water from soil percolating into subsoil drains and through foundation walls, basement floors, or underground pipes or from similar sources.

Septic tank means an approved type of watertight compartment made of concrete or other approved material into which the outflowing sewage from dwellings or other buildings may be discharged.

Septic tank cleanings or solids means contents of a settling tank in which settled sludge is in immediate contact with the wastewater flowing through the tank and the organic solids are decomposed by anaerobic bacterial action.

Sewage shall be held to mean and to include any human or animal or vegetable matter, garbage, offal, filth, waste, chemicals, acid, dyestuff, starch, coloring matter, oil and tar, radioactive substances, and any compound, solution, mixture or product thereof, and every substance which may be injurious to public health or comfort, or which would injuriously affect the natural and healthy propogation, growth, or development of any fish or shellfish in the waters of this state, or of the nourishment of the same, or which would injuriously affect the flavor, taste, or value as food of any such fish or shellfish; or which would defile said waters or injure or defile any vessel, boat, wharf, pier, or any public or private property upon, in or under said waters, or any shore thereof. The preferred term is "wastewater"; see definition of "Wastewater" in this section.

Sewer means the main pipe or conduit, manholes and other structures and equipment appurtenant thereto, provided to carry sewage, industrial wastes, stormwater, cooling water or similar wastes, subject in each particular case to the purposed and limitations imposed upon the particular pipe or conduit.

Shall is mandatory. See May.

Slug means any discharge of water, wastewater, sewage, or industrial sewage which in concentration of any given constituent or in quantity of flow, exceeds for any period of duration longer than 15 minutes, more than five times the average 24-hour concentration, or flow, during normal operation and adversely affect the collection system and/or the performance of the wastewater treatment facility.

Standard methods means the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, as published by the American Public Health Association.

Storm sewer or storm drain or drain means a sewer provided and intended for the conveyance of stormwater with or without other clean wastewaters, as may be stipulated for any particular drain or sewer, but excluding sewage or contaminated or polluted industrial wastes.

Stormwater includes the runoff or discharge of rain and melted snow or other clean water from roofs, surfaces of public or private lands or elsewhere, and only such water which is sufficiently clean, uncontaminated and unpolluted to admit of being discharged, without treatment or purification, into any natural open stream or natural brook, rivulet or stream.

Suspended solids (SS) means the solids that either float on the surface of, or are in suspension in water, wastewater, or other liquids, and which are removable by laboratory filtering, as determined by standard methods.

Toxic means any material lethal to humans, animals, or to aerobic and anaerobic bacteria required for biological treatment processes.

Turbidity includes the following: (1)

Condition in water or wastewater caused by the presence of suspended matter, resulting in the scattering and absorption of light rays;

(2)

Measure of fine suspended matter in liquids; and

(3)

Analytical quantity usually reported in arbitrary turbidity units determined by measurements of light diffraction.

Unpolluted water means water of quality equal to or better than the effluent limitations in effect and/or water that would not cause violation of receiving water quality standards and would not be benefited by discharge to the sanitary sewers and wastewater treatment facilities provided.

Wastes means substances in liquid, solid or gaseous form that can be carried in water.

Wastewater means the spent water of a community. From the standpoint of source, it may be a combination of the liquid and water-carried wastes from residences, commercial buildings, industrial plants, and institutions, together with any groundwater, surface water, and stormwater that may be present.

Wastewater facilities means all public facilities for collecting, pumping, treating and disposing of wastewater and for the control of water pollution.

Wastewater treatment facility means any arrangement of devices and structures used for treating wastewater and for the control of water pollution.

Watercourse means a natural or artificial channel for the passage of water, either continuously or intermittently.

WPCF is the abbreviation for the Water Pollution Control Federation.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. II)

Sec. 38-32. - Purpose.#

In order to ensure proper removal and disposal of sewage wastes and wastewaters within the region; to ensure the proper operation and maintenance of public sewers, drains, treatment facility and other drainage or sewerage works within the region; and to provide for keeping adequate records of sewers, drains and appurtenances and connections thereto, this article regulating the construction, use, repair, alteration and discontinuance or abandonment of sewers, drains and appurtenances; the connections thereto, including drains and pipes discharging directly or indirectly into said sewers or drains; and the substances to be discharged directly or indirectly into and through sewers, drains and appurtenances of the public sewerage system and storm drainage system of the region, cost recovery program, is hereby enacted by the city council, as provided by the Charter of the city, including special acts approved by the state.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. I)

Sec. 38-33. - Amendment to rules and regulations.#

The rules and regulations set down herein may be amended, from time to time, as may, in the opinion of the director, be necessary. Whenever the director shall amend any such rules and regulations, it shall do so and give notice of such in accordance with existing laws.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XII, § 1)

Sec. 38-34. - Vandalism; protection from damage.#

No person shall maliciously, willfully, or negligently break, damage, destroy, uncover, deface, or tamper with any structure, appurtenance or equipment; or dump garbage, refuse, or other objectionable material on land or right-of-way which is a part of the wastewater facilities. Any person violating this provision shall be subject to immediate arrest, charged with the malicious destruction of public property.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. VII, § 1)

Sec. 38-35. - Inspection on private property; powers and authority of director.#

(a)

The director and other duly authorized employees of the city bearing proper credentials and identification shall be permitted to enter all private properties through which the city holds an easement for the purposes of, but not limited to, inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair, and maintenance of any portion of the wastewater works lying within said easement. All entry and subsequent work, if any, on said easement shall be done in full accordance with the terms of the easement pertaining to the private property involved.

(b)

The director or other duly authorized employees are authorized to obtain information concerning industrial processes which have a direct bearing on the kind and source of discharge to the wastewater collection system. The industry may withhold information considered confidential. However, the industry must establish that the revelation to the public of the information in question might result in an advantage to competitors.

(c)

While performing the necessary work on private properties referred to in subsection (a) of this section, the director or duly authorized employees of the city shall observe all safety rules applicable to the premises established by the company, and the company shall be held harmless for injury or death to the city employees, and the city shall indemnify the company against loss or damage to its property by city employees and against liability claims and demands for personal injury or property damage asserted against the company and growing out of the gauging and sampling operation, except as such may be caused by negligence or failure of the company to maintain safe conditions as required in section 38-148.

(d)

The director shall be responsible for the operation and maintenance of the wastewater works, the administration of contracts and agreements between the city and municipalities and industries served by the city, and the administration of this article. He shall make all rules and regulations required to satisfactorily implement and enforce the provisions of this article and the intent thereof.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. VIII, §§ 1—4)

Sec. 38-36. - Violations and penalties.#

(a)

Violation, notification, and time limit. Any person found to be violating any provision of this article, except section 38-34, shall be served by the city with written notice stating the nature of the satisfactory correction thereof. A reasonable time limit shall be determined by the director, depending upon the nature of the violation. The director shall set the reasonable time limit not to exceed 30 days from the date of receipt of the notice to correct. The offender shall, within the period of time stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations and take action as is recommended or necessary to ensure that there will be no recurrence of such violation. All such work in connection therewith shall be performed by said person without delay and without expense to the city.

(b)

Liabilities. Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall become liable to the city for any expense, loss, or damage occasioned the city by reason of such violation, so that if the director shall have caused the disconnection of a building sewer or drain from the public sewerage system, the director may collect the cost of making such disconnection from any person responsible for or willfully concerned in or who profited by such violation of the requirements of this article and may thereafter refuse to permit the restoration of the former connection or of any new connection to the property concerned in the violation of this article until the claim of the city for the cost of making such disconnection shall have been paid in full plus interest and the reasonable cost of any legal expenses incurred by the city in connection therewith.

(c)

Penalties.

(1)

Any person who shall continue any violation beyond the time limit provided for in subsection (a) of this section shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction thereof, shall be fined in an amount not exceeding $100.00. Each day in which such violation shall continue shall be deemed a separate offense for the purpose of applying the above penalties. In addition, the director may direct the person to disconnect or otherwise act to prevent the building sewer, from the premises in which said violation of the requirements of this article shall have occurred, from discharging to the public sewerage system.

(2)

If any person shall construct, install, alter, or repair any sewer or connection to any interceptor in violation of the requirements of these rules and regulations, the director may, in his discretion, order or direct such person to uncover and fully expose any or all portions of such sewer or connection and afford the director and his representatives adequate opportunity for examination and inspection of the work. If the sewer or connection and appurtenances thereof shall be found not to be in full accord with the requirements of these rules and regulations and the standards established under its provisions, then the director may serve the offender with a written notice as provided in subsection (a) of this section.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. X, §§ 1—4)

Sec. 38-37. - Commercial and industrial rates.#

(a)

The director shall establish the user charge and industrial cost recovery system in accordance with appropriate federal and state rules and regulations pertaining to the costs associated to the use of the sewer by an industry.

(b)

The director shall establish the user charge system in accordance with appropriate federal and state rules and regulations pertaining to the costs associated to the use of the sewer by a nonindustrial user.

(c)

The director shall, in establishing the rates referred to in subsections (a) and (b) of this section, make specific reference to the sewer use rate structure in force at the time of any connection.

(d)

Subsections (a), (b) and (c) of this section pertain only to those rates imposed by the city for using city's sewers. This does not abrogate any responsibility the city users have in complying with the current rate structure of the Blackstone Valley District Commission.

(e)

Assessments for use of Blackstone Valley District Commission facilities shall be in accordance with the regulations of the commission in force at the time of the use. Section 38-38 includes relevant portions of the Blackstone Valley District Commission Regulation No. 5, effective January 1, 1976.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XIV, §§ 1—5)

Sec. 38-38. - Blackstone Valley District Commission Regulation No. 5.#

(a)

Assessments for use of project.

(1)

Assessments for use of the Blackstone Valley District Project are hereby made against any person, firm or corporation holding legal title to real estate as of the day and date of the assessment, provided that said real estate had a direct or indirect connection with said project at any time during the use period for which the assessment is made. Assessment for use of the Blackstone Valley District Project are hereby made also against each and every municipality which has a connection with the project for the debt service costs of the Blackstone Valley District Commission based on the flow of inflow and infiltration waters, which is computed as the excess of the total flow of those wastes collected and treated from all indirect and direct connectors with the said project in each municipality. The time and date of making assessments to all indirect connectors and municipalities shall be 12:00 noon on December 31 of each year. For indirect connectors in the city of Pawtucket and also for the said city, the use period shall begin on September 1 of the previous year and terminate on August 31 of the same year as the assessment time and date. For all indirect connectors located in municipalities other than the City of Pawtucket, the use period shall begin on January 1 and end on December 31 of the same year as the assessment time and date. Assessments against all direct connectors whose wastes are metered are hereby made the last day of each month of the year. For direct connectors whose wastes are metered, the use period shall be the calendar month in which the assessment is made. In all cases not explicitly covered in the foregoing, the Blackstone Valley District Commission shall determine the proper date and amount of assessments, and the beginning and terminal dates of use periods.

(2)

The commission will use the official records in each of the municipalities involved for the purpose of determining persons, firms or corporations holding legal title to real estate which is directly or indirectly connected to the project.

(b)

Metered direct connector users. The rate and charge of $319.00 per million gallons of sewage and/or industrial wastes collected and treated shall be assessed against each and every person, firm or corporation whose property has a direct metered connection with said project.

(c)

Municipalities. The rate and charge of $311.00 per million gallons of inflow and infiltration waters collected and treated from each and every municipality in said district shall be assessed against each municipality in said district for that part of the metered flow of wastes from each municipality which is in excess of the total flows of those wastes collected and treated from all indirect and direct connectors in each municipality in accordance with the following formula:

FORMULA Total metered flow of wastes for use period from individual municipality xx

Less: Metered flow of wastes of direct and indirect connectors in that municipality xx

Less: Flows of wastes in that municipality of users of more than 440,000 gallons of water for the use period xx

Less: Average water consumption for each class of classified users in that municipality times number of users in each class xx

Remainder equals flow to be billed to that municipality.

(d)

Classified users. The following table sets forth the rates and charges to be assessed against the direct or indirect connectors with said project who shall be known as classified users. This table includes the schedule of rates and charges to apply to all users of said project, except those whose wastes are metered, whose water consumption is less than 440,000 gallons annually.

CLASSIFIED USER RATE STRUCTURE Type of User Water Use Allowance Minimum Annual Rate per Type

T-1* 8,500 cubic feet $24.00

T-2** 12,750 cubic feet 36.00

T-3 17,000 cubic feet 48.00

T-4 21,250 cubic feet 60.00

T-5 25,100 cubic feet 70.00

T-6 28,500 cubic feet 80.00

T-7 31,900 cubic feet 90.00

T-8 35,300 cubic feet 100.00

T-9 38,700 cubic feet 110.00

T-10 42,100 cubic feet 120.00

T-11 45,500 cubic feet 130.00

T-12 58,700 cubic feet (440,000 gals.) 140.00

* T-1 One-family dwelling or other property having characteristics similar thereto.

** T-2 Two-family dwelling or other property having characteristics similar thereto.

T-3, 4, etc.

TC-1, 2, 3, 4, etc., or C-1, 2, 3, 4, etc. Combinations of users not classifiable as regular T-types. Each to be placed in appropriate T-type classification for billing purposes either by using number of separate units contained in each property or by the use of the property's water use data, whichever results in the higher T-type classification.

Examples: (1)

TC-1 Drug Store: To be billed at T-1 rate or placed in a higher class by use of water consumption data.

(2)

T-1, C-1, Drug Store with one-family dwelling above: To be billed at T-2 rate or placed in a higher class by use of water consumption data.

Commercial and industrial establishments using 440,000 gallons or less of water annually will be classified within an appropriate T-type by use of their water consumption data or by using the number of separate units contained in the property, whichever results in the higher T-type classification.

T-rate applicable to water users of 440,000 gallons or less annually.

(e)

Metered indirect connector users.

(1)

All users of said project who have an indirect connection with the project whose total water use from either public or private sources is more than 440,000 gallons annually shall be assessed at the rate of $319.00 per million gallons of water used or wastes metered. Water meter readings will be the basis for making assessments except where sewage meters are installed. It is recommended that suitable metering devices for measuring sewage be installed whenever and wherever such an installation is practicable. Direct sewage meter readings will be the basis for assessments in all such cases.

(2)

If the installation of sewage meters is not possible or practicable, water meters must be installed in such a fashion and to such an extent that amounts of wastes reaching sewers can be accurately measured. Meters of whatever type must be installed and maintained by the user of the project. All water sources, whether private or public, must be metered by the user except when specifically exempted by the commission. Notification must be given the commission immediately upon installation of any water metering device. The installation must be inspected and approved by the commission. For the purpose of computing bills for those users of the project who will be billed on the basis of metered water consumption as outlined above, the commission will as necessary use the records of the water departments of the various municipalities, and/or meter readings made by the commission's staff.

(3)

When using municipal water consumption records for sewer use, bills will be computed using the one year water consumption period which most nearly approximates the commission's use period, except in cases where the commission's staff makes meter readings, then the commission's meter readings will be used.

(f)

Surcharge user rate structure. All users of the Blackstone Valley District Project whose wastes exceed the designed strength of 378 MG/L BOD and 228 MG/L SS will be assessed in addition to the regular treatment charges a surcharge for the amount in which their wastes exceeds the above designed strength. These surcharges will be computed as additional pounds of BOD and SS over the designed strength as follows;

BOD = Users sewage strength/parts per M.G.

Less: Designed strength/parts per M.G. 378

Excess Strength/parts per M.G.

Multiplied by/lbs. per M.G. × 8.34

Excess/lbs. per M.G.

Rate per lb. × $0.0326

Surcharge amount per M.G. $

Multiplied by users flow ×

Amount of surcharge $

SS = Users sewage strength/parts per M.G.

Less: Designed strength/parts per M.G. 228

Excess strength/parts per M.G.

Multiplied by/lbs. per M.G. × 8.34

Excess/lbs. per M.G.

Rate per lb. × $0.0413

Surcharge amount per M.G. $

Multiplied by users flow ×

Amount of surcharge $

Surcharges shall be assessed quarterly except when the commission shall determine a user should be assessed on some other calendar period.

(g)

Industrial cost recovery rate structure.

(1)

All industrial users whose wastes are treated by the Blackstone Valley District Commission by works of which federal grant construction assistance was awarded after March 1, 1973, shall be assessed a grant cost recovery surcharge at a rate per thousand gallons of flow based on the following formula:

Amount of Federal Grant

Rate = _____

Average flow of designed works per thousand gallons/day × 365 days/year × 30 years

(2)

In the case of any user of the above mentioned works whose peak to average flow ratio is greater than the design ratio of the works, the grant cost recovery surcharge rate applied in the form of a demand charge on the peak flow of the user is based on the following formula:

Amount of Federal Grant

Rate = _____

Peak to average flow of designed works per thousand gallons/day × 30 years

(3)

The flow from an industrial user is exempt from the above grant cost recovery surcharge if his waste is of a domestic nature only or that portion of waste that is domestic of nature is exempt from the charges if his wastes are segregated.

(4)

An industrial user under the above-mentioned works who contributes greater than ten percent of the design pollutant loading of the works or a peak to average flow greater than the design of the works must submit signed letters of intent to pay that portion of the grant amount allocable to the treatment of its wastes along with a statement of the user's intended period of use of the works.

(h)

Abatements.

(1)

Requests for abatement of assessments or any portion thereof claimed on any basis by users of more than 440,000 gallons of water annually will be considered only upon presentation to the commission within 60 days after the terminal date of the use period of evidence substantiating such claims for abatement of assessments, together with a sworn affidavit attesting to the accuracy and truth of such evidence. Evidence may take form of deduction water meter readings or properly audited production records. No abatement of assessments will be considered affecting users with any private water sources unless the sources are metered or specifically exempted from metering by the commission personnel.

(2)

There will be no abatements for use of the project for vacancies in dwellings and/or commercial units unless said dwellings and/or commercial units have been vacant for the full year's use period or period covered by the billing, and a notarized affidavit so stating is made to the commission within 30 days of the date of the bill covering the assessment relating to said unit or units.

(i)

Proration. Classified users who are new connectors to the project or who cease to be users of the project shall be assessed from or to the closest full month for use of the project by proration of the annual charges for the type of user involved.

(j)

Buildings assessed individually. For the purpose of assessing classified users, each building shall be classified and assessed individually.

(k)

Billing; due date; lien.

(1)

Assessments are due and payable net within 30 days of the date of the invoice. An interest penalty at the rate of six percent per annum will be added from 30 days after date of the invoice to date of payment.

(2)

The commission reserves the right, for the purposes of billing, to use the official records of water consumption of any real estate as obtained from the water departments of the municipalities of the district.

(3)

The commission has a lien upon the real estate of each and every user of the project for all unpaid charges, which lien operates as liens resulting from failure to pay real estate taxes. This lien is effective at the time of the establishment of an indirect or direct connection between the real estate of any person, firm or corporation and the project.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XVII, §§ 1—14)

Secs. 38-39—38-60. - Reserved.#

DIVISION 2. - BUILDING SEWERS AND CONNECTIONS#

Sec. 38-61. - Local building and plumbing codes.#

The requirements of local building and plumbing codes shall be observed with respect to fixtures inside of and immediately adjacent to buildings and within the areas of jurisdiction of said several codes, subject only to the general requirements of this article. Pipe more than five feet (1.5 meters) outside from the inner face of the building walls shall conform to the requirements of this article as to permits, materials and workmanship.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, § 1)

Sec. 38-62. - Permits.#

(a)

No person shall uncover, make any connections with or opening into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer or drain or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining an appropriate written permit from the director. Applicants shall apply for separate permits for sewers and drains.

(b)

There shall be two classes of building sewer permits: class A permits, which shall authorize the connection of establishments generating essentially sanitary wastewater, as defined in section 38-31, to the public sewer; and class B permits, which shall authorize the connection of establishments producing industrial wastewater, as defined in section 38-31, to the public sewer.

(c)

Application for a building sewer permit shall be made by a licensed plumber and/or licensed drain layer for the building to be connected and shall be made on an application form provided by the director. Each application shall be supplemented with the plans and specifications for the sewer connection and such other information relating to the building and the wastes to be discharged as may be considered pertinent by the director. At his discretion, the director may also require that all plans, specifications, and data so submitted shall bear the seal and signature of a professional engineer registered in the state. A permit and inspection fee of $50.00 for a class A permit and of $100.00 for a class B permit shall be paid to the city at the time the application is filed.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 2—4)

Sec. 38-63. - Notification of discharge.#

(a)

Any person proposing a new discharge into the system or a substantial change in the volume or character of pollutants that are being discharged into the system shall notify the director at least 45 days prior to the proposed change or connection.

(b)

The director shall be notified by the owner of the proposed discharge of water from a swimming pool to the public sewer. The director shall have the right to approve or deny the request, designate the time and rate of flow permitted, and to enter upon the premises to inspect the project prior to and during the operation. If an owner fails to provide such notification or disregards instructions whether accidental or intential, the owner will be held responsible for any damage that may be caused from such discharge subject to the enforcement powers contained in these rules and regulations, and the director shall not be held liable for said violation.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 5, 6)

Sec. 38-64. - Installation, maintenance, repair or replacement charges.#

All costs and expenses incidental to the installation, connection, maintenance, repair, or replacement of a building sewer shall be borne by the owner, and the issuance of a building sewer permit shall be contingent upon the owner indemnifying the city against any loss or damage that may be caused directly or indirectly by the installation of the building sewer.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, § 7)

Sec. 38-65. - Independent building sewers.#

A separate and independent building sewer shall be provided for every building, except where one building stands at the rear of another on a single lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed to the rear building through an adjoining alley, court, yard, or driveway. Under these circumstances, and upon approval of the director, the building sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear building and the whole considered as one building sewer. Any such approval shall be by written agreement and shall be recorded in the county registry of deeds.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, § 8)

Sec. 38-66. - Reuse of existing building sewers.#

Old building sewers may be used in connection with new buildings only when they are found, on examination and test by the director, to meet all requirements of this article.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, § 9)

Sec. 38-67. - Construction requirements for building sewers and private sewers; inspection.#

(a)

The size, slope, alignment and materials of construction of a sewer, and the methods to be used in excavating, placing of the pipe, jointing, testing, and backfilling the trench, shall conform to the applicable rules and regulations of the city. The private sewer or building sewer shall not be connected to the public sewer prior to certification by the director that the entire sewer has been properly constructed, inspected for conformance, and tested, and is ready for use. In the absence of specific rules and regulations or in amplification thereof, the materials and procedures set forth in appropriate specifications of the latest edition of the ASTM and WPCF Manual of Practice No. 9, shall apply. All such connections shall be made gastight and watertight and verified by proper testing Any deviation from the prescribed procedures and materials must be approved by the director before installation.

(b)

Whenever possible, the building sewer shall be brought to the building at an elevation below the basement floor. In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the public sewer, sanitary sewage carried by such building drain shall be lifted by an approved means and discharged to the building sewer.

(c)

All excavations for sewer installation shall be adequately guarded by the licensed contractor with barricades and lights so as to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways, and other public property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a manner satisfactory to the director. All such excavations shall not be performed without obtaining a permit for such work from the director.

(d)

No building sewer or connection to a public sewer shall be covered until it has been inspected by the director and found to conform to the requirements and established standards of the city in all respects and be satisfactory as to the quality of the workmanship and materials.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 10—12)

Sec. 38-68. - Connection of building sewer to public sewer; records.#

(a)

No connection shall be made between any private sewer or building sewer and any public sewer, or between a private drain and any public drain unless it is of such size, material, construction, depth and location, as the director may direct, and until the appropriate permit has been obtained from the director and all fees, charges, and assessments have been paid.

(b)

The applicant for the building sewer permit shall notify the director when the building sewer is ready for inspection and connection to the public sewer. The director shall be notified not less than 48 hours in advance of the time any connection is to be made to any public sewer or drain of the city, or to any existing drain, pipe or similar structure to so discharge, and such connection shall be made only in the presence of the director and according to his instructions. The director shall be afforded all reasonable opportunity to oversee the construction of all parts of any sewer connected directly, or indirectly, or intended to be connected, to any public sewer or drain of the city and to obtain and record the location and other pertinent facts with respects to such drain and sewer. This requirement also shall apply to repairs or alterations to sewers, drains or pipes discharging thereto.

(c)

All private sewers and drains laid by private parties in any street, court or way, open, or proposed to be opened for public travel and accommodation, shall become public sewers or drains when connected to public sewers or drains. After the adoption of the ordinance from which this article is derived, no such sewer shall be connected with a public sewer and no such drain shall be connected with a public drain until plans showing size, material, construction, depth and location are approved by the director and until the owner shall convey in writing to the director exclusive control over the same, with the right to enter such street, court or way and dig up the same so far as necessary for repairing and controlling such sewer or drain and making connections therewith.

(d)

The director shall keep a record of all connections made to public sewers under this article and all repairs and alterations made to sewers and building sewers connected to or discharging into public sewers of the city or intended to so discharge. All persons concerned shall assist the director in securing data needed for such records.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 13—16)

Sec. 38-69. - Sanitary building sewer restrictions.#

(a)

No person shall make connection of roof downspouts, foundation drains, areaway drains, or other sources of surface runoff or groundwater to a building sewer or building drain which in turn is connected directly or indirectly to a public sanitary or combined sewer unless such connection is approved.

(b)

In all new construction, and in all reconstruction and remodeling involving building sanitary facilities, as directed by the director, separate piping systems shall be provided for wastewater and for stormwater and shall be extended from the building as separate systems to the public sewer and each, in turn, connected to the appropriate sanitary sewer or storm sewer. Where the public sewer is presently a combined sewer, the requirements for separate wastewater and stormwater system shall apply also, even though the separate systems will connect to the same combined sewer.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 17—18)

Sec. 38-70. - Sealing abandoned or unused drains.#

When any building or other structure previously served by a connection to any public sewer or drain is demolished, destroyed, abandoned or altered so that any drain or portion of any abandoned plumbing system which is directly or indirectly connected to any public sewer or drain is no longer connected to the drainage system of the building or structure, the open end of such drain which discharges, directly or indirectly, into a public sewer or drain shall be promptly closed and sealed to the satisfaction of the director, so that no water or wastes not otherwise permitted to enter the public sewer or drain shall be so discharged thereinto. The director shall be notified of such drain, and shall be afforded an opportunity to see such work performed. All said work shall be done by the person or party who demolishes the building or structure or who alters the drainage of the premises so as to make such closing and sealing necessary, and, in the event of failure of such person to do so, shall be done by the owner, lessee or tenant of the premises to the satisfaction of the director, all without expense to the city.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, § 19)

Sec. 38-71. - Private sewers and drains.#

(a)

A private sewer for the collection of two or more building sewers shall be constructed only upon receipt of written approval by the director and shall be recorded in the county registry of deeds.

(b)

A copy of such approval and a plan prepared in accordance with all the requirements of this article shall be kept on file in the office of the director, department of public works.

(c)

The requirements of public drains, section 38-64, sections 38-66 through 38-68, and this section shall also apply to private drains.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. III, §§ 20—21)

Secs. 38-72—38-110. - Reserved.#

DIVISION 3. - PUBLIC SEWERS AND DRAINS#

Sec. 38-111. - Requiring building sewer or drain connection.#

(a)

The city council, and the director are each hereby authorized, in all cases where there is a public sewer or drain in any street of the city or easement held by the city, to cause every owner of land adjoining such street, or easement, his agent or tenant to provide, subject to the provisions of this article, a sufficient building sewer or drain from his house, yard, or lot, to and into such public sewer or drain, whenever, in the opinion of the city council and the director the same shall be necessary for the protection of the public health, and shall, thereupon, give such owner, agent, or tenant notice in writing, specifying the time within which such building sewer or drain shall be constructed. The city council and the director may, whenever, in their opinion, the protection of the public health requires, prohibit the maintenance of any privy or cesspool on any premises connected with a public sewer or drain. Any person who neglects to construct a building sewer or drain under the provisions of this article within the time specified in such notice to do so, or maintains a privy in violation of such prohibition, shall forfeit and pay a penalty as provided in section 38-36(c).

(b)

The owner of any house, building or property used for human occupancy, employment, recreation, or other purpose, situated within the city and abutting on any street, alley, or right-of-way in which there is now located or in the future may be located a public sanitary sewer of the city, is hereby required at his expense to install suitable sanitary facilities therein, and to connect such facilities directly with the proper public sewer in accordance with the provisions of this article, within 90 days after the date of official notice to do so, provided that said public sewer is determined to be accessible and available by the director and located within 100 feet (30.5 meters) from the property line. Extensions greater than 90 days may be granted by the director to individual property owners upon appeal. Said extension shall be granted only when it can be demonstrated that the connection to the public sewer system would create an undue financial hardship upon the owner and that an agreement between the owner and the director be enacted. Said agreement shall be conditioned on the following:

(1)

That the wastewater from the subject property not be discharged directly to receiving waters.

(2)

That the property is served by an acceptable subsurface disposal system, as determined by the director.

(3)

That the agreement is nontransferable; that is, a new owner must connect up to the sewer system within 90 days of the passing of papers.

(4)

That the owner agrees to pay the city sewer assessment charge as determined by the city's cost recovery program.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IV, §§ 1, 2)

Sec. 38-112. - Procedure for laying out or constructing new public sewers and drains by the city.#

(a)

Whenever the laying out or construction of a new public sewer or drain by city is wanted, application therefor shall be made by petition in writing to the mayor signed by not less than six inhabitants of the city or by the city planning director or by the city engineer. Upon filing of said petition, the mayor may refer the petition to the department of public works for investigation, hearing and report thereon. After hearing all interested parties, the department of public works shall report to the mayor whether, in the director's opinion, the public convenience or the public health require the layout out or construction of a new public sewer or drain by the city. (See also subsection (b) of this section.)

(b)

No new public sewer or drain shall be constructed by the city unless the question of such construction or making shall first be referred to the department of public works, who shall report to the mayor an estimate of its cost, the materials of which, and the manner in which the same should be constructed or made, and an estimate of the damage likely to be occasioned by construction, taking land, or encroachment of watercourses, and if the sewer or drain or any portion thereof shall be outside the limits of the streets, it shall not be constructed or made otherwise then by the consent of all persons interested, without the same proceedings being followed as are required for laying out streets as required by the department of public works.

(c)

Whenever any public drain or sewer is to be built, the director shall make or cause to be made a plan of the same, showing the form, mode of construction, depth below the surface, relation of the sewer invert elevations to the city base, the alignment and general direction of the drain or sewer relative to the street lines or neighboring property, and the sill elevations of all houses to be served, which plan shall be kept on file in his office. This plan shall be the basis of the evaluation and report by the director required under subsection (b) of this section.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IV, §§ 3—5)

Sec. 38-113. - Construction requirements.#

(a)

All public sewers which shall be ordered by mayor and city council in any street or highway shall, whenever practical, be laid out in such a way as to not hinder traffic and utilities in such street or highway, and shall be constructed of such materials and of such dimensions as the director shall direct.

(b)

Whenever any street shall be opened for the laying of pipes for water, gas or other purposes, or for the performance of any works of construction or repairs, such laying of pipes and repairs and work connected therewith, or such work of construction shall be executed so as not to obstruct the course, capacity or construction of a public sewer or drain, and whenever pipes for any purpose or any work of construction shall hereafter be found to exist at such depth or in such location as to interfere with any existing sewer or with the building of any public sewer of the required size, and at the proper depth and grades, the person maintaining the same shall, upon notice thereof, at once remove, change and alter such pipes or other works in such manner as the director may direct. If such person neglects to immediately remove, change or alter such pipes in accordance with the terms of notification, then the director may make such removal, change or alteration, and the cost thereof shall be paid by such person.

(c)

It shall be unlawful for any person to place, deposit or permit to be deposited in any unsanitary manner on public or private property within the city, or in any area under the jurisdiction of said city, any human or animal excrement, garbage, or other objectionable waste.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IV, §§ 6—8)

Secs. 38-114—38-140. - Reserved#

DIVISION 4. - USE OF PUBLIC SEWERS#

Secs. 38-141. - Unpolluted discharges.#

(a)

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any unpolluted waters such as stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, uncontaminated cooling water, or unpolluted industrial process waters to any sanitary sewer other than such discharge as is present at the time of passage of the ordinance from which this article is derived. All new or altered connections, excluding ordinary repairs, to the sanitary wastewater system shall conform with the provisions of this article.

(b)

Stormwater and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged to such drains as are specifically designated as storm drains or to a natural outlet approved by the director. Industrial cooling water or unpolluted process waters may be discharged, on approval of the administrator, to a storm drain, combined sewer, or natural outlet. However, no materials, the discharge of which into natural streams, ponds, lakes, or other natural bodies of water is prohibited by state or federal law or regulations, shall be discharged into any storm drain.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 1)

Secs. 38-142. - Discharges to a natural outlet.#

(a)

The owner of any house, building or property situated within the city and presently discharging, either directly or indirectly, to any river, canal, stream, lake or other surface or subsurface watercourse within the city, any industrial wastewater, as defined in section 38-31, or any polluted discharges described in sections 38-144 and 38-145(a) shall, within 90 days after the passage and adoption of the ordinance from which this article is derived, file a permit with the state division of water supply and pollution control and the Environmental Protection Agency and send a copy of the permit to the department of public works. The permit shall be in conformance with the NPDES requirements.

(b)

To ensure subsequent compliance with this article, it is intended that all industrial, business, and commercial establishments within the city file such a permit, even though they now may not specifically discharge such industrial wastewater.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 2)

Secs. 38-143. - Separate sewer usage.#

(a)

No person shall discharge into or put into any public sewer or drain of the city, or into any sewer, drain, or fixture which thereafter discharges into any public sewer, drain or appurtenance thereof, any waste or substance other than such kinds or types of waters or water-carried wastes for the conveyance of which the particular sewer, drain or appurtenance is intended, designed, and provided.

(b)

Except as specifically provided with reference to some particular sewer, sanitary sewers shall be used only for the conveyance and disposal of sanitary wastewater, as defined in section 38-31, and for diluted, water-carried industrial sewage which are not objectionable as hereinafter provided. No sanitary sewer shall be used to receive and convey or dispose of any storm or surface water (as defined in section 38-31), subsoil drainage, any large continuous flow of water seeping into buildings or excavations from soils or other underground sources, flows of natural springs or groundwaters, surplus from flowing wells, the discharges from roofs, roof conductors, yard drains, street or highway drains, or of cooling water (as defined in section 38-31).

(c)

If the original proceedings for the layout and construction of any particular sewer or for its acquisition by the city did not indicate what kind of sewer or drain it was intended to be, or what wastewaters could or could not be discharged therein, the director shall consider the pertinent facts and shall determine the kind of sewer or drain said sewer is for the purposes of this article and what waste or wastewaters shall be permitted to be discharged thereinto or be excluded therefrom.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, §§ 3—5)

Secs. 38-144. - Polluted discharges prohibited.#

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any of the following described waters or wastes to any public sewers: (1)

Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil, or other flammable or explosive liquid, solid, or gas.

(2)

Any waters containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids, or gases in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, to injure or interfere with any waste treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, create a public nuisance, or create any hazard in the receiving waters of the wastewater treatment facility.

(3)

Any waters or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5, or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and personnel of the wastewater works.

(4)

Solid or viscous substances in quantities or of such size capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers, or other interference with the proper operation of the wastewater facilities such as, but not limited to, ashes, bones, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, unground garbage, whole blood, paunch manure, hair and fleshings, entrails, and paper dishes, cups, milk containers, fats and shortening, etc., either whole or ground by garbage grinders.

(5)

Any septic tank solids or pumpings.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 6)

Secs. 38-145. - Polluted discharges restricted.#

(a)

Limitations. The following described substances, materials, waters, or waste shall be limited in discharges to public sewers to concentrations or quantities which will not harm either the sewers, wastewater treatment process or equipment, will not have an adverse effect on the receiving stream, or will not otherwise endanger lives, limb, public property, or constitute a nuisance. the director may set limitations lower than the limitations established in the regulations below if in its opinion such more severe limitations are necessary to meet the above objectives. In forming its opinion as to the acceptability, the director will give consideration to such factors as the quantity of subject waste in relation to flows and velocities in the sewers, materials of construction of the sewers, the wastewater treatment process employed, capacity of the wastewater treatment facility, degree of treatability of the waste in the wastewater treatment facility, and other pertinent factors. The limitations or restrictions on materials or characteristics of waste or wastewaters discharged to the sanitary sewer which shall not be violated without approval of the director are as follows:

(1)

Wastewater having a temperature higher than 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65 degrees Celsius).

(2)

Wastewater containing more than 25 milligrams per liter of petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oils, or product of mineral oil origin, or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32 and 150 degrees Fahrenheit (0 and 65 degrees Celsius).

(3)

Wastewater from industrial plants containing floatable oils, fat, or grease in excess of 100 milligrams per liter.

(4)

Any garbage that has not been properly shredded (see definition in section 38-31). Garbage grinders may be connected to sanitary sewers from homes, hotels, institutions, restaurants, hospitals, catering establishments or similar places where garbage originates from the preparation of food in kitchens for the purpose of consumption on the premises or when served by caterers. The installation and operation of any garbage grinder equipped with a motor of three-fourths horsepower (0.76 hp metric) or greater shall be subject to the review and approval of the director.

(5)

Any waters or wastes containing strong acid iron pickling wastes, or concentrated plating solutions, whether neutralized or not.

(6)

Any waters or wastes having concentrations of objectionable or toxic substances including, but not necessarily limited to, those in excess of the limits listed below; or wastes exerting an excessive chlorine demand, to such degree that any such material received in the composite sewage at the wastewater treatment facility exceeds the limits established by the director as necessary, after treatment of the composite sewage, to meet the requirements of the state, federal, or other public agencies of jurisdiction for such discharge to the receiving waters.

Max. Limit Concentration (mg/l)

Cadmium 0.8

Chromium (trivalent) 3.0

Chromium (hexavalent) 1.0

Copper 1.0

Gold 3.0

Iron 15.0

Lead 0.1

Nickel 3.0

Silver 0.03

Tin 0.0

Zinc 1.2

Metals (not mentioned above) 2.0

Cyanides 0.5

Floating Oil 0.0

Fluroide 5.0

Mercuric Chloride (As mercury, Hg) 0.5

Phenols (not to exceed) 1.0

Solvents 0.0

Sulfates 500.0

Sulfides 100.0

(7)

Any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration as may exceed limits established by the director in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations.

(8)

Any noxious or malodorous gas or substance which is, in the opinion of the director, capable of creating a public nuisance.

(9)

Any waters or wastes containing phenols or other taste or odor producing substances in such concentrations as to exceed the limits established by the director and/or the requirements of the state, federal or other public agencies or jurisdictions for such discharge to the receiving waters.

(10)

Any waters or wastes having a pH in excess of 9.0.

(11)

Materials which exert or cause:

a.

Unusual concentrations of inert suspended solids (such as, but not limited to, fuller's earth, lime slurries, and lime residues) or dissolved solids (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate), and wastewaters having suspended solids concentrations in excess of 228 mg/l.

b.

Color or turbidity in such an amount that it will prevent the city from discharging a treated effluent in compliance with its NPDES permit (such as, but not limited to, dyewastes and vegetable tanning solutions).

c.

Wastewaters having BOD concentrations in excess of 378 mg/l, and unusual, chemical oxygen demand, or chlorine demand in such quantities as to constitute a significant load on the sewage treatment facilities and/or may cause the effluent limitations of the commission's NPDES permit to be exceeded.

d.

Quantities of flow, concentrations, or both which constitute a "slug" as defined herein (see section 38-31).

(12)

Waters or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment or reduction by the wastewater treatment processes employed, or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the wastewater treatment plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of other agencies having jurisdiction over discharge to the receiving waters.

(13)

Any water or wastes which, by interaction with other water or wastes in the public sewer system, release obnoxious gases, form suspended solids which interfere with the collection system, or create a condition deleterious to structures and treatment processes.

(b)

Options of director. If any waters or wastes are discharged or are proposed to be discharged to the public sewers, which waters contain the substances or posses the characteristics enumerated in subsection (a) of this section, and which, in the judgment of the director, may have a deleterious effect upon the wastewater facilities, processes, equipment, or receiving waters, or which otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the director may:

(1)

Reject the wastes,

(2)

Require pretreatment to an acceptable condition for discharge to the public sewers.

(3)

Require control over the quantities and rates of discharge, and/or

(4)

Require payment to cover added cost of handling and treating the waste.

If the director permits the pretreatment or equalization of waste flows, the design and installation of the plants and equipment shall be subject to the review and approval of the director and/or other regulatory agencies.

(c)

Excluding polluted discharges from public sewers. In determining whether any waste discharged or proposed to be discharged into any public sewer or drain would have a deleterious effect as described in subsection (b) of this section, and therefore, should be excluded from the public sewers, consideration shall be given to the quantity, time, or times of discharge; rate and manner of discharge; dilution; the biological, chemical, and physical composition of the wastewater in question; the size of the sewer or drain into which it is or is to be discharged; the probable quantity of other sewage or objectionable wastes in said sewer or drain at the time of discharge; and other pertinent facts. Minute quantities of a waste which would be objectionable in larger quantity may be permitted upon specific permission of the director if sufficiently diluted when and as discharged, or if the quantity discharged is very small in comparison to the receiving sewer and the flow therein at the time of discharge. Any permission to discharge minute quantities of an otherwise excluded waste shall be revocable at any time by the director.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, §§ 7—9)

Secs. 38-146. - Pretreatment.#

(a)

Where necessary, in the opinion of the director, the owner shall, at his expense, provide such preliminary treatment as may be necessary to reduce such objectionable characteristics or constituents to within the maximum limits provided for in this division, or to control the quantities and rates of discharge of such waters or wastewaters. Plans, specifications, and any other pertinent information relating to proposed preliminary treatment facilities shall be submitted to the director for review and approval and no construction of such facilities shall be commenced until said approval is obtained in writing.

(b)

In all premises where wastes or substances specified to be excluded from sewers or drains by this article are customarily present and liable to be discharged directly or indirectly into any public sewer or drain, suitable and sufficient piping layouts, oil or grease traps or separators, screens, sedimentation chambers, diluting devices, storage and regulating, treatment, cooling or condensing equipment and similar devices or equipment shall be provided, maintained and operated, as required by the director to ensure that no waste, substance, or water required to be excluded from said sewer or drain shall be discharged thereinto in violation of the requirements of this article.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, §§ 10, 11)

Secs. 38-147. - Accessibility, operation and maintenance of pretreatment facilities.#

(a)

Where preliminary treatment or flow-equalizing facilities are provided for any waters or wastes, they shall be maintained continuously in a condition satisfactory to the director and be effectively operated by the owner at the owner's expense.

(b)

Grease, oil and sand removal facilities (traps, etc.) shall be provided when, in the opinion of the director, they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing floatable grease in excessive amounts, as specified in section 38-145(a)(3), or any flammable wastes, sand, or other harmful ingredients; except that such facilities shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units. All facilities shall be of a type and capacity approved by the director, and shall be located as to be readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection. In the maintaining of these facilities the owner shall be responsible for the proper removal and disposal by appropriate means of the captured material and shall maintain records of the dates, and means of disposal which are subject to review by the director. Any removal and hauling of the collected materials not performed by the owner must be performed by currently licensed waste disposal firms.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, §§ 12, 13)

Secs. 38-148. - Measuring, sampling and other devices.#

At premises where any of the substances or wastes prescribed as being or to be excluded for any sewer or drain are present and liable to be discharged contrary to the limitations of this article, the director may require that the owner of said premises provide, operate, and maintain a sampling well or wells, a flow measuring device, manholes, catch basins, or other suitable devices or treatment facilities on any or all building sewers or drains from said premises near the point or points where said sewers connect to any public sewer or drain. By means of said sampling well or wells, or other devices, the owner of said premises and the director or any public officer charged with the duty of supervising the disposal of wastewaters, may secure samples of or examine the wastes and wastewaters discharged into said public sewer and measure the quantities thereof for the purpose of ascertaining the compliance or noncompliance with the requirements of this article. All such devices and facilities shall be installed by the owner at his expense, and shall be maintained by him so as to be safe and accessible at all times.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 14)

Secs. 38-149. - Description of pretreatment facilities and measuring or sampling devices in building sewer permit.#

To facilitate compliance with the requirements of this division, the director shall require that the owner applying for a permit to install a new connection to any sewer or drain, or to alter or extend an existing building sewer, in any case, where a sampling well, oil or grease trap or separator, diluting device or similar appurtenance is or may be required, to furnish the director as part of the application for said permit a plan or satisfactory description, or both, of the device of whatever kind it is proposed to provide, and a description of the proposed operation thereof. Said plan, description, or both shall become part of said application and the installation of the device in accordance therewith shall be a condition attached to the granting of said permit.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 15)

Secs. 38-150. - Analyses of industrial wastewaters.#

(a)

All measurements, tests and analyses of the characteristics of water and wastes to which reference is made in this article shall be determined in accordance with the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, published by the American Public Health Association, and shall be determined at the control manhole provided, or upon suitable samples taken at said control manhole. In the event that no special manhole has been required, the control manhole shall be considered to be the nearest downstream manhole in the public sewer or private sewer to the point at which the building sewer is connected.

(b)

Sampling shall be carried out by customarily accepted methods to reflect the effect of constituents upon the wastewater works and to determine the existence of hazards to life, limb, and property. The particular analyses involved will determine whether a 24-hour composite of all outfalls of a premise is appropriate or a grab sample or samples should be taken. Normally, but not always, BOD and suspended solids analyses are obtained from 24-hour composites of all outfalls, whereas pH is determined from periodic grab samples.

(c)

Furnishing required analyses, flow data, etc. shall be the responsibility of the applicant. The director will stipulate the minimum analyses and other data that shall be obtained. At the request of the applicant, the director shall conduct wastewater sampling and measuring programs. Expenses thus incurred by the city shall be assessed to the applicant.

(d)

All industries discharging into a public sewer shall perform such monitoring of their discharges as the director and/or other duly authorized employees of the city may reasonably require, including installation, use, and maintenance of monitoring equipment, keeping records and reporting the results of such monitoring to the director. Such records shall be made available upon request by the director or by other agencies having jurisdiction over discharges to the receiving waters.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, §§ 16—18)

Secs. 38-151. - Treatment of industrial wastewaters by city.#

No statement contained in this division shall be construed as preventing any agreement or arrangement between the city and any industrial concern whereby an industrial waste of unusual strength or character may be accepted by the city for treatment, subject to payment therefor, by the industrial concern. Such agreement or arrangement shall first be approved by the director, provided that arrangements do not contravene any requirements of existing federal laws and are compatible with any user charge and industrial cost recovery system in effect.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 19)

Secs. 38-152. - Cesspool and septic tank cleanings.#

Cesspool and septic tank cleanings may be discharged to the wastewater facilities at septic waste dumping stations designated and in a manner approved by the Blackstone Valley District Commission (BVDC). The composition of these wastes shall be subject to those limitations enumerated in section 3, article IV of the BVDC ordinance, with no industrial wastes, wastes considered to be detrimental to the treatment process, or wastes from chemical tanks permitted. Hauling and unloading of cleanings shall be performed by currently licensed waste disposal contractors. Unloading shall be made according to the arrangements and methods designated by the BVDC and the area shall be cleaned after each unloading. An unloading slip shall be turned in to the BVDC office for each unloading. The slips, provided by the BVDC, shall show the date, time, hauler's name, origin of load, capacity of truck, approximate gallons being unloaded, names and addresses where collected and signature of the driver. The capacity of the contractor's truck may be calculated by the BVDC and any part of a load will be billed as a full load. The BVDC may assess such fees or charges as it may deem reasonable and proper for the acceptance, handling, and treating of such wastes.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 20)

Secs. 38-153. - Request for information.#

The director may require a user of sewer services to provide information needed to determine compliance with this article. These requirements may include: (1)

Wastewaters discharge peak rate and volume over a specified time period.

(2)

Chemical analyses of wastewaters.

(3)

Information on raw materials, processes, and products affecting wastewater volume and quality.

(4)

Quantity and disposition of specific liquid, sludge, oil, solvent, or other materials important to sewer use control.

(5)

A plot plan of sewers of the user's property showing sewer and pretreatment facility location.

(6)

Details of wastewater pretreatment facilities.

(7)

Details of systems to prevent and control the losses of materials through spills to the municipal sewer.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. V, § 21)

Secs. 38-154—38-180. - Reserved.#

DIVISION 5. - GARBAGE DISPOSAL UNITS#

Sec. 38-181. - Permit.#

(a)

No garbage disposal unit as defined in section 38-31 shall be installed in a commercial or industrial establishment without first having obtained a permit from the director. Persons desiring to install a domestic garbage disposal unit in a one- or two-family dwelling unit do not need a permit unless the director has previously, by legal public notice in a newspaper of general circulation, declared that the capacity of the public sewerage system in that particular sewer district is insufficient and that the installation of garbage disposal units is likely to impair such sewerage system.

(b)

Any person desiring to install a garbage disposal unit shall first make application in writing to the director upon a form provided by him for that purpose, which application shall state the name and address of the applicant, the address of the premises in which such installation is desired, and a general description of the premises and the existing sewerage system within the premises affected.

(c)

Upon the filing of such application, the director shall, within a reasonable time, cause the premises and the available sewer system to be inspected and surveyed and, from the findings so obtained, determine upon such change or alteration in such system as, in his opinion, shall be necessary before issuing an approval of the application. No such approval shall be issued in any instance where the capacity of the public sewerage system, within the particular sewer district, shall be insufficient, or where the additional demand and service caused by the use of such garbage disposal unit shall be likely to impair the efficiency of such sewerage system. A reasonable time in this case, shall be considered to mean no more than two weeks from the date of application.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. VI, §§ 1—3)

Secs. 38-182—38-200. - Reserved.#

DIVISION 6. - SEWER CONSTRUCTION AND REPAIRS#

Secs. 38-201. - Effect of division on plumbers and others.#

The limitations as to person who may construct, alter or repair public sewers and drains, as provided in section 38-203(c) and (d) shall not restrict the usual work of plumbers or others when operating in accordance with the plumbing and building codes of the city; provided no plumber or other person shall make any connection to a public sewer or drain of the city without a permit therefor, even if said sewer or drain is located under or immediately adjacent to any building or similar structure; and provided all drains and fixtures within said building or structures and all use made of them shall conform to the requirements of this article as to what may and may not be permitted to be discharged into public sewers and drains.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IX, § 1)

Secs. 38-202. - Building sewer application and permit.#

(a)

Every application for building sewer permit shall be made in writing on forms to be provided by the director for that purpose and shall be signed by the licensed plumber. The application shall state the location and ownership of the property to be served by the sewer or drain in question, the post office address of said property owner, a brief description of the work to be done, and shall contain an agreement that the permittee will do the work in accordance with the local laws, ordinances, regulations and permits of the city as those local laws may apply to the particular location or work, and will save the city and others harmless from damages, loss, or damage claims of every name and nature, all in such form and detail as may be directed by the director on the form provided. The director in his discretion, may require, as a prerequisite to the issuance of any permit, that he be furnished:

(1)

Evidence that any and all permissions and necessary permits to open public streets, public or private grounds or property have been or will be issued;

(2)

Evidence that the agent of the applicant is properly authorized to sign the application in question;

(3)

Evidence that the devices or provisions to prevent the entry into public sewers or drains of any substances forbidden entry by this article will be provided, maintained and operated as required by this article; and

(4)

Any other information or proof pertinent to the particular job in question.

(b)

Each permit to construct, alter or repair any sewer, building sewer, or drain under this division shall be issued only after an application as hereinbefore provided has been made. It shall state the limit of time within which the work must be performed and at the expiration of which the privileges for construction under the permit shall terminate, unless such time limit shall have been extended in writing by the director. Permits shall not be transferable or assignable by the permittee.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IX, §§ 2, 3)

Secs. 38-203. - Authorized persons.#

(a)

To ensure compliance with this article and to faciliate the supervision of the construction, operation, and repair of sewers and drains and the keeping of records thereof, no person other than those described in this division, shall construct, repair, alter or remove any sewer, building sewer or drain connected to or with, or discharging directly or indirectly to or into any public sewer or drain of the city or intended to discharge thus, at some future time, regardless of whether said work is located in a public street or in public or private land.

(b)

No person, other than those working for and under the direction of the director, shall make any excavation for or construct, install, lay, repair, alter or remove any sewer, drain, sewer connection, or appurtenances thereof within the city which is in any way connected to or discharge directly or indirectly to or into any public sewer or drain of the city, or is intended at some future time to be so connected or to so discharge, until said person shall have applied for and secured from the director a permit for doing such work. Such permits may be issued only to those qualified to perform such work as provided in subsections (c) and (d) of this section.

(c)

The following persons may, as indicated, construct, repair, alter or remove public sewers and drains, except building sewers, subject to supervision and approval by the director:

(1)

Regular forces of a contractor employed by the city operating under orders of the director and in the performance of work for the city.

(2)

Regular forces of the city or the state department of health operating under and subject to permit for the particular job to be issued by the director.

(3)

Regular forces of any public utility corporation authorized by state law to construct, maintain and operate pipes or ducts within public highways within the city, while engaged in work incidental to the regular structures of said utility company and operating under and subject to the conditions of the permit for the particular job issued by the director.

(4)

Any contractor or person who shall have been duly licensed by the director to perform work of the type in question during the period provided in such license and when operating under and subject to the conditions of a permit for the particular job issued therefore, by the director. Such licenses shall be valid for one year and subject to revocation for cause. Fees for such licenses shall be established by the director and approved by the city council.

(5)

Building sewers must be constructed by a licensed plumber as outlined in section 38-62(c).

(d)

The connection of all private drains or sewers within the street limits and all connections to any public drain or sewer shall be performed by the director, or his agent, and all material therefore shall be furnished by the city, and the cost thereof and of the labor of laying the same shall be included in the sum paid for the permit.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IX, §§ 4—6)

Secs. 38-204. - Duties and responsibility of the contractor.#

Each contractor or person shall be responsible for the faithful performance of all work performed under the license or permits issued and for the conduct of all work and all materials furnished on work by his employees or agents. No work shall be sublet by a contractor or person under any permit issued under such license in any manner to divest said contractor or person of full control and responsibility for all parts of said work. Only competent persons shall be employed on work performed under such license and only suitable material conforming to the standards established by the director shall be furnished or used on such work.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IX, § 7)

Secs. 38-205. - Revoking contract or license.#

Should the director find that any contractor or person has failed to conform to the requirements of this article and to the conditions of any permit issued thereunder, or that such contractor has not been faithful in the performance of work or furnishing of materials under his license, the director may suspend, cancel or revoke such license and/or permit, and may extend the suspension of such license and/or permit for such period, or limit the activities of such contractor or person in such manner a may appear to be to the public interest after a duly conducted hearing before the director and upon their direction. Suspension, cancellation, or termination of a permit shall not entitle the permittee to any compensation or reimbursement from the city or its agents for any alleged loss or expense incurred thereby, and licenses and permits shall be issued only on this condition.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. IX, § 8)

Secs. 38-206—38-230. - Reserved.#

DIVISION 7. - PRIVATE WASTEWATER DISPOSAL#

Sec. 38-231. - Permit.#

(a)

Where a public sanitary or combined sewer is not available under the provisions of division 3 of this article, the building sewer shall be connected to a private wastewater disposal system complying with the provisions of this division. The term "director" in this division shall refer to the director of the state department of health or his authorized representative.

(b)

Before commencement of construction of a private wastewater disposal system, the owners shall first obtain a written permit signed by the director. The application for such permit shall be made on a form furnished by the city, which the applicant shall supplement by any plans, specifications, and other information as are deemed necessary by the director, state department of health, including application fee.

(c)

A permit for a private wastewater disposal system shall not become effective until the installation is completed to the satisfaction of the director. The director shall be allowed to inspect the work at any stage of construction, and, in any event, the applicant for the permit shall notify the director when the work is ready for final inspection, and before any underground portions are covered. The inspection shall be made within 96 hours of the receipt of notice by the director.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XV, §§ 1—3)

Sec. 38-232. - Compliance with state recommendations.#

The type, capacities, location, and layout of a private wastewater disposal system shall comply with all recommendations of the department of health of the state.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XV, § 4)

Sec. 38-233. - Requiring building sewer connection to public sewer.#

At such time as a public sewer becomes available to a property served by a private wastewater disposal system, as provided in division 3 of this article, a direct connection shall be made to the public sewer within 60 days in compliance with this article, and any septic tanks, cesspools and similar private wastewater disposal facilities shall be cleaned of sludge and filled with suitable material.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XV, § 5)

Sec. 38-234. - Operation and maintenance of private wastewater disposal facilities.#

The owner shall operate and maintain the private wastewater disposal facilities in a sanitary manner at all times, at no expense to the city.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XV, § 6)

Sec. 38-235. - Additional requirements.#

No statement contained in this article shall be construed to interfere with any additional requirements that may be imposed by the director, and by the state department of health.

(Ord. of 6-14-1982, art. XV, § 7)