§ 20-111. Use of public sewers.

(a)

Discharge of stormwater, surface water, etc., to sanitary sewers prohibited. No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, ground water, reclaimed ground water, roof runoff, swimming pool water, subsurface drainage, uncontaminated cooling water, or unpolluted industrial process waters to any sanitary sewer.

(b)

Discharge to storm sewers and natural outlets. Stormwater and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged to such sewers as are specifically designated as storm sewers, or to a natural outlet approved by the director. Industrial cooling water and unpolluted process waters may be discharged on approval of the director to a storm sewer or natural outlet. Under no conditions will the discharge of domestic, sanitary, industrial, or commercial waste be permitted into the storm sewer system.

(c)

Waters or wastes prohibited from discharge to public sewers. No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged the following described substances, materials, waters, or wastes; or any other substance, which in the opinion of the director might harm any portion of the sewers, wastewater treatment process or equipment, adversely affect the receiving stream, pass-through untreated, or otherwise endanger life, limb, public property, or constitute a nuisance. In forming his opinion as to the acceptability of these wastes, the director will give consideration to such factors as the quantities of the subject wastes in relations to flows and velocities in the sewers, materials of construction of the sewers, the toxicity of the wastes, nature of the wastewater treatment process, capacity of the wastewater treatment plant, degree of treatability of wastes in the wastewater treatment plant, and other pertinent factors. The substances prohibited are:

(1)

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

(2)

Any pollutants which create a fire or explosion hazard in the treatment works, including but not limited to, waste streams with a closed cup flashpoint of less than one hundred forty (140) degrees Fahrenheit or sixty (60) degrees Centigrade using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21.

(3)

Any waters or wastes having a PH lower than 5.0 or greater than 9.0, or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and personnel of the sewage works.

(4)

Solid or viscous substances in quantities or of such size (greater than one-half (0.5) inch in any dimension) capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference with the proper operation of the sewage works such as, but not limited to, petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting oil or products of mineral oil origin, ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, underground garbage, whole blood, paunch manure, hair and fleshings, entrails, paper dishes, cups, milk containers, etc., either whole or ground by garbage grinders.

(5)

Any liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than one hundred four (104) degrees Fahrenheit (forty (40) degrees Centigrade).

(6)

Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease, or oils whether emulsified or not, in excess of two hundred thirty (230) mg/l or containing substances which solidify or become viscous at temperatures between thirty-two (32) and ninety-five (95) degrees Fahrenheit (zero (0) and thirty-five (35) degrees Centigrade).

(7)

Any garbage that has not been property shredded. The installation and operation of any garbage grinder equipped with a motor of three-fourths horsepower (.76 hp metric) or greater shall be subject to the review and approval of the director. Garbage grinders which release particles greater than one-half inch shall be prohibited.

(8)

Any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations.

(9)

Materials which exert or cause:

a.

Unusual concentrations or inert suspended solid (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).

b.

Excessive discoloration (such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions).

c.

Chlorine demand requirement in such quantity as to constitute a significant load on the wastewater treatment works. An unusual chlorine demand is considered one which requires an increase of more than twenty-five per cent (25%) in chlorine over that used prior to entry of the waste into the treatment plant.

d.

Unusual volume of flow or concentration of wastes constituting "slugs", as defined herein.

(10)

Waters or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment by 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. Such substances include, but are not limited to, pesticides, fungicides and herbicides.

(11)

Any water or waste containing toxic substances in quantities in excess of the following limits and measured at the point of discharge into the sewer system:

Substance	Mg/l
Arsenic	0.75
Cadmium	0.54
Chromium total	3.8
Copper, total	1.0
Cyanides	0.04
Lead	2.8
Mercury, total	0.004
Nickel	3.2
Selenium	1.1
Silver	0.81
Zinc, total	7.6

 

or

a.

Any substance that will pass-through the waste treatment facilities and exceed the state and federal requirements for receiving waters;

b.

Or preclude the beneficial use of wastewater effluent; or

c.

Preclude the beneficial use of wastewater sludge either in land-spreading or in marking the sludge in a treated form.

An industrial or commercial user identified as having discharged a prohibited waste or a waste in excess of the allowable limits as established in this agreement shall pay for all damages and expenses incurred as a result of that discharge. This penalty is separate from any other defined in this agreement. The continued discharge of prohibited wastes shall subject the user to the penalties defined in section 20-117.

(12)

Pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (CBOD, etc.), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, will cause interference with the municipal sewer system.

(13)

Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors or fumes within the sewer system in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems.

(14)

Any trucked or hauled pollutants.

(15)

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

(16)

Sludges, screenings or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes.

(17)

Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized in written form by the city.

(18)

Wastewater causing, alone or in conjunction with other sources, effluent to fail a toxicity test.

(19)

Detergents, surface-active agents or other substances which may cause excessive foaming in the wastewater system.

(d)

Rejection, pretreatment or control over quantities or rates of discharge. If any waters or wastes are discharged, or are proposed to be discharged to the public sewers, which waters contain the substances or possess the characteristic enumerated in this agreement and which, in the judgment of the director, may have a deleterious effect upon the sewage works, 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.

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 subject to the requirements of all applicable codes, ordinances, and laws. In addition, any contributing industry as defined by 40 CFR 403 shall comply with 40 CFR 403, the Clean Water Act, and any other regulation as shall from time to time be established by EPA or other appropriate regulating governmental agency.

(e)

Grease, oil and sand interceptors. Grease, oil, and sand interceptors shall be provided when, in the opinion of the director, they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease in excessive amounts or any flammable wastes, sand, or other harmful ingredients; except, such interceptors shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units. All interceptors 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.

(f)

Maintenance of treatment facilities. Where preliminary treatment, flow-equalizing facilities, or grease, oil, and sand interceptors are provided for any waters or wastes, they shall be maintained continuously in satisfactory and effective operation by the owner at his expense.

(g)

Federal categorical pretreatment standards. Upon the promulgation of the federal categorical pretreatment standard for a particular industrial subcategory, the federal standard, if more stringent than limitations imposed under this article for sources in that subcategory, shall immediately supersede the limitations imposed under this article. The city shall notify all affected users of the applicable reporting requirements under 40 CFR, Section 403.12.

(h)

Right of entry. The director, or their designee, may enter upon any land and make inspections, examinations and surveys as necessary in the administration and enforcement of this article.

(Ord. No. 84-16, § 2, 7-24-84; Ord. No. 91-11, § 1, 6-11-91; Ord. No. 10-10, § 1, 10-26-10; Ord. No. 18-01 , § 2, 2-13-18)