Brentwood Municipal Code Art. 3 Sewer Use Regulations

A user may not introduce into the POTW any pollutant(s) which causes pass through or interference. These general prohibitions and the specific prohibitions in Sections 13.04.305 through 13.04.315 apply to each user introducing pollutants into the POTW whether or not the user is subject to other Federal Pretreatment Standards or any other federal, state or local pretreatment requirements.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

No person shall discharge wastewater that does not meet the limitations specified in the standard specifications for wastewater discharge limitations.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

A user may not discharge, or cause to be discharged, wastewater into the sanitary sewer system if it contains substances or has characteristics which, either alone or by interaction with other wastewater, cause or threaten to cause:

A. Damage to the sewerage system.

B. Interference or impairment of operation or maintenance of the sewerage system.

C. Obstruction of flow in the sewerage system.

D. Hazard to human life.

E. Interference with wastewater treatment plant or disposal processes, including recycling or any reclamation processes.

F. The wastewater treatment plant's effluent or any other product of the wastewater treatment plant such as residues, sludge, or scum to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse. In no case shall substances discharged to the sewerage system cause the plant to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal criteria, guidelines, or regulations.

G. The city to violate its NPDES permit or the receiving water quality requirements.

H. A flammable or explosive condition.

I. A noxious or malodorous condition, a public nuisance, a hazard to life, or conditions sufficient to prevent normal entry into the sewerage system or other city facilities or maintenance and repair.

J. Objectionable coloration or other condition in the quality of the city's wastewater treatment plant influent which interferes with or passes through the treatment plant.

K. Conditions which violate any statute, rule, regulation, or ordinance of any public agency, relating to releases of hazardous wastes, hazardous substances, or other pollutants to the environment when such release is to the city sanitary sewer.

L. Any alteration or change to the city's NPDES permit or any additional regulatory supervision, intervention, or oversight of the city's operations.

M. Any alteration of the city's wastewater treatment plant processes.

N. Any significant alteration of city operations, including, but not limited to, affecting the ability of the city to procure adequate insurance and/or subjecting the city operations to significantly increased potential liability.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

A user shall not discharge, or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly to the city sanitary sewer any of the following:

A. 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 damage to the sewerage system or to be injurious to human health and safety or to the operation of the sewerage system. At no time shall a waste stream exceed a closed cup flash point of less than one hundred forty degrees Fahrenheit or sixty degrees Centigrade using the test method specified in 40 CFR Part 261.21. Also, at no time shall two consecutive readings on a combustible gas meter, at the point of discharge into the system (or at any point in the system) be more than five percent nor any single reading over ten percent of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of the meter.

1. The combustible gas meter shall be properly calibrated in accordance with the manufacturer's instructions using pentane as the calibration standard.

2. The materials which may be prohibited if they cause explosive or fire dangers as defined herein include, but are not limited to, gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, benzene, toluene, xylene, ethers, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides, chlorates, perchlorates, bromates, carbides, hydrides, sulfides, or any other substance which is a fire or explosion hazard.

B. Any solid or viscous substance in amounts or concentrations which may cause or threaten to cause obstruction to the flow in the sanitary sewer or pass through of, or interference with, the operations of the sewerage system such as, but not limited to, feathers, ashes, cinders, sand, spent lime, stone or marble dust, metal, glass, straw, shavings, grass clippings, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting or machine oils, products of mineral origin, mud, cement grout, glass grinding or polishing wastes, grease, garbage with particles greater than one-half inch in any dimension, animal guts or tissues, paunch manure, bones, hair, hides or fleshings, entrails or whole blood.

C. Any wastewater having a pH less than 5.5 or equal to or greater than 11.5, or wastewater having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, humans, or animals.

D. Any wastewater containing hazardous 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 human or animal health or safety, create an adverse effect on the waters of the state, or to exceed the limitations set forth in a Federal Pretreatment Standard.

E. Any wastewater having a temperature which will inhibit biological activity in the wastewater treatment plant resulting in interference or pass through, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the wastewater treatment plant to exceed eighty-five degrees Fahrenheit or with a temperature at the point of discharge to the sewerage system which exceeds one hundred forty degrees Fahrenheit.

F. Any pollutants, including oxygen-demanding pollutants (e.g., BOD, chemical oxygen demand), released at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration that alone or in combination with others, may cause interference or pass through. Regardless of whether a slug load causes or will cause interference or pass through, in no case shall a slug load have a flow rate or contain concentrations or quantities of pollutants that exceed for any time period longer than fifteen minutes, more than five times the average twenty-four-hour concentration, quantities, or flow during normal operation.

G. Any discharge which results in toxic pollutants in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems within any sewerage system.

H. Any storm water, ground water, rainwater, street drainage, subsurface drainage, yard drainage, diatomaceous earth filter backwash, or swimming pool drainage, unless a specific permit is issued by the director.

I. Any unpolluted water, including, but not limited to, cooling water, process water or blow-down from cooling towers or evaporative coolers, or any other unpolluted water unless a permit for such has been obtained from the director prior to the discharge. The director may approve the discharge of such water only when no reasonable alternative method of disposal is available or such alternative, in the determination of the director, is unacceptable.

J. Any septic tank waste, holding tank waste, portable toilet waste, grease interceptor waste, or oil and sand interceptor waste, unless a permit is issued by the director.

K. Any waste defined as hazardous, by any definition set forth in federal and/or state statutes or regulations. (See Section 13.04.365 of this chapter.)

L. Any substance, waste, wastewater, or constituent thereof which may by itself or in combination with other discharges cause the city to violate any permit conditions related to toxicity of the effluent or otherwise cause or contribute to the potential for toxic pollutants being released from the sewerage system into the environment.

M. The following constituents are subject to a discharge prohibition standard in lieu of setting numeric discharge limits. The presence of these constituents documented through approved analytical methods shall be a violation of this section and be subject to corrective actions by the user to control the discharge of the constituent present. Wastewater permits may establish discharge prohibition(s) for constituents not included in this section for specific industrial users.

1. Cyanide for unpermitted users;

2. Dioxin compounds;

3. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs);

4. Tributyltin (TBT);

5. Dieldrin;

6. 4,4'-DDE;

7. Perchloroethylene wastes and wastewaters from dry cleaner operations.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

It is unlawful to discharge any waste or wastewater into any storm sewer, storm drain or natural outlet unless the user has obtained an NPDES permit and the user is in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations of all agencies having jurisdiction over such discharge.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

No user shall ever increase the use of process wastewater or, in any other way, attempt to dilute a discharge as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with the limitations contained in the Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards (see Section 13.04.360 of this chapter), or in any other limitation developed by the city or state.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

No user shall, and it is unlawful to, discharge, cause to be discharged, or permit to be discharged, any radioactive waste into the sanitary sewer; provided, however, that:

A. Users authorized to use radioactive materials by the State Department of Health or other governmental agency empowered to regulate the use of radioactive materials may discharge, cause to be discharged, or permit to be discharged such wastes, provided that such wastes are discharged in strict conformance with the then current State of California Code of Regulations Title 17, 10 CFR 20.2003, any federal laws and regulations pertaining to radioactive materials, and any recommendations for safe disposal of such wastes as they now exist or may hereafter be amended; and

B. The user so acting does so in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations of all other regulatory agencies having jurisdiction over such discharges.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

No user shall discharge any substance directly into a manhole or other opening in a sanitary sewer other than through an approved building sewer, unless upon written application by the user and payment of the applicable user charges and fees, the director issues a permit for such discharges.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

Waste from garbage grinders shall not be discharged into the sanitary sewer except where:

A. Wastes are generated in preparation of food normally consumed in a residence; or

B. The user has an existing garbage grinder and has approval for that specific use from the director. Such grinders must be repaired or replaced as necessary in order to at all times ensure that the waste is shredded to a degree that all particles will be carried freely under normal flow conditions prevailing in the city sanitary sewer. Garbage grinders shall not be used for grinding plastic, paper products, inert materials, garden refuse, and waste products resulting from the handling, storage and sale of equipment; and

C. At any time the premises or business changes ownership, excluding residential property, the existing garbage grinders on the premises must be removed and no new garbage grinders may be installed as a condition of continued city sanitary sewer service to the premises.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

Hospitals, clinics, offices of medical doctors, and convalescent homes shall not discharge to the sanitary sewer:

A. Equipment, instruments, utensils, hypodermic needles, syringes and associated articles.

B. Any article that may harbor or transmit pathogenic organisms and that are used in the rooms of patients having a suspected or diagnosed communicable disease which by the nature of the disease is required to be isolated.

C. Recognizable portions of the human anatomy.

D. Wastes excluded by other provisions of these regulations. Nothing in this section shall be construed to limit the authority of appropriate health agencies to define wastes as being infectious and to prohibit discharge to the sanitary sewer.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

The most stringent discharge limitation or prohibition, whether state, federal, or local, shall apply.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

The limitations on wastewater strength and prohibitions in these regulations may be supplemented with more stringent limitation if:

A. The director determines that the limitations may not be sufficient to protect the operation of the POTW; or

B. The director determines that the limitations may not be sufficient to enable the POTW to comply with water quality requirements, or effluent limitations specified in the POTW's NPDES permit; or

C. The discharge is of such a nature that it reduces or impairs the POTW's recycle, reclamation or disposal options; or

D. In the director's evaluation, the discharge, alone or in combination with any other discharge, poses a threat or unreasonable risk to the POTW or personnel.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

Upon promulgation of the Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards for a particular industrial subcategory, the new Federal Standard shall immediately supersede, unless there is a more stringent state or local limitation. The applicable reporting requirements are provided in Section 13.04.605(F). Regardless of notification, industrial users are required to comply with all applicable pretreatment requirements.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

The disposal of sludge, spent chemicals and hazardous materials generated shall comply with all applicable state, federal and local laws, regulations and ordinances including: Section 405 of the Act (33 USC Section 1345); Subtitles C and D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act; and Title 22, Division 4.5, of the California Code of Regulations. A record of disposal shall be maintained and available for review by city staff.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

Users shall make wastewater acceptable under the limitations established in these regulations before discharging to the sanitary sewer. Any pretreatment facility required to pretreat wastewater to a level acceptable to the director shall be provided and maintained at the user's expense. In the event pretreatment or special facilities are required to make the industrial wastes acceptable, the user shall be required to furnish a compliance schedule and plans, approved prior to construction, showing the schedule of activities, time frame and method of pretreatment proposed. The pretreatment facility or measures shall be installed in conformity with the approved plans and other city codes or regulations. The approval of the pretreatment method will in no way relieve the user from the responsibility of modifying the facility as necessary to produce an effluent acceptable to the director under the provisions of these regulations. Any subsequent changes in the pretreatment facility or method of operation shall be reported to the director and is subject to a permit or permit modifications. The effectiveness of the pretreatment unit discharging to the sanitary sewer will be monitored by the director at the user's expense.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

In order that employees of users be informed of city requirements, users shall make available to their employees copies of these regulations together with such other wastewater and effective water pollution control information and notices which may be furnished by the city from time to time.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)

Industrial users can employ BMPs to effectively control the discharge of pollutants to the city's facilities. The director may establish BMPs for specific industrial users through condition(s) in the permit or permit contract. The director may establish BMPs for a business activity that would apply to entire groups of businesses such as vehicle service facilities or food service facilities. BMPs for business activities will be communicated to the affected industrial users through informational materials distributed during inspections, direct mailing, or the city's website. Industrial users shall comply with the business activity BMPs after being informed by the director of their applicability to the industrial users operations. Industrial users subject to BMPs as a means of complying with the standards of this chapter shall maintain documentation to demonstrate compliance with the applicable BMP standards.

(Ord. 941 § 2, 2015)