Sec. 17-159. - General discharge prohibitions.

(a)

No user shall contribute or cause to be contributed, directly or indirectly, any pollutant to wastewater which will cause pass through or interfere with the operation or performance of the POTW. These general prohibitions apply to all such users of a POTW, whether or not the user is subject to national categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, state, or local pretreatment standards or requirements.

(b)

No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW the following pollutants, substances, or wastewater:

(1)

Any liquids, solids or gases which by reason of their nature or quantity are, or may be, sufficient, either alone or by interaction with other substances, to cause fire or explosion or to be injurious in any other way to the POTW or to the operation of the POTW including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21. At no time, shall two successive readings on an explosion hazard meter, at the point of discharge into the system (or at any point in the system) be more than five percent nor shall any single reading be over ten percent of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of the meter. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, benzene, toluene, xylene, ethers, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides, chlorates, perchlorates, bromates, carbides, hydrides and sulfides and any other substances with the city, and the state or EPA has notified the user is a fire hazard or a hazard to the system;

(2)

Solid or viscous substances that may cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer or other interference with the operation of the wastewater treatment facilities such as, but not limited to: Grease, fats and oils containing more than 100 ppm by weight, garbage with particles greater than one-half inch, or 1¼ centimeters, in any dimension, animal guts or tissues, paunch manure, bones, hair, hides, or fleshings, entrails, whole blood, feathers, ashes, cinders, sand, spent lime, stone or marble dust, metal, glass, straw, shavings, grass clippings, rags, spent grains, spent hops, waste paper, wood, plastics, gas, tar, asphalt residues, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, mud, or glass grinding or polishing wastes;

(3)

Any wastewater having a pH less than 6.0, or greater than 10.0, unless the POTW is specifically designed to accommodate such wastewater, or wastewater having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and/or personnel of the POTW;

(4)

Any wastewater containing toxic pollutants in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, to injure or interfere with any wastewater treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, create toxic effect in the receiving waters of the POTW, or to exceed the limitation set forth in a categorical pretreatment standard. A toxic pollutant shall include, but not be limited to, wastes containing cadmium, copper, nickel, chromium, cyanide and mercury ions and any pollutant identified pursuant to section 307(a) of the Act;

(5)

Any noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, or solids, which either singly or by interaction with other wastes are sufficient to create a public nuisance or hazard to life or are sufficient to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance and repair;

(6)

Any substance that may cause the POTW's effluent or any other product of the POTW such as residues, sludges, or scums, to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse or to interfere with the reclamation process. In no case shall a substance discharged to the POTW cause the POTW to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal criteria, guidelines, or regulations affecting sludge use or disposal developed pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances control Act, or state criteria applicable to the sludge management method being used;

(7)

Any substance that will cause the POTW to violate its NPDES and/or R.I.P.D.E.S. permit or the receiving water quality standards;

(8)

Wastewater which imparts color which cannot be removed by the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions, which consequently imparts color to the treatment plant's effluent thereby violating the city's R.I.P.D.E.S. permit;

(9)

Any wastewater having a temperature that will inhibit biological activity in the POTW treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater with a temperature at the point of introduction into the POTW which exceeds 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit);

(10)

Any pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.) released at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which a user knows or has reason to know will cause interference to the POTW. In no case shall a slug load have a flow rate or contain concentration or qualities of pollutants that exceed for any time period longer than 15 minutes more than five times the average 24-hour concentration, quantities, or flow during normal operation;

(11)

Any wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration as may exceed limits established by the superintendent in compliance with the applicable state or federal regulations;

(12)

Any wastewater which causes a hazard to human life or creates a public nuisance or containing any medical or infectious wastes;

(13)

Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;

(14)

Pollutants which results in the presence of toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;

(15)

Trucked or hauled pollutants, except at discharge points designated by the superintendent in accordance with section 8-399;

(16)

Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the superintendent in a wastewater discharge permit;

(17)

Sludges, screens, or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;

(18)

Stormwater, surface water, groundwater, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the superintendent.

(c)

Pollutant substances, or wastewater prohibited by this section shall not be processed or stored in such manner that they could be discharged to the POTW.

(Rev. Ords. 1987, § 17-159; Ch. 446, § VII, 8-12-97; Ch. 891, § I, 8-29-23)