Gustine Municipal Code Art. 1 In General

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

Apartment means a room or suite of rooms occupied by at least one family doing its cooking therein.

Authorized representative of industrial user means:

(1) A principal executive officer of at least the level of vice-president, if the industrial user is a corporation;

(2) A general partner or proprietor if the industrial user is a partnership or proprietorship, respectively; or

(3) A duly authorized representative of the individual designated above, if such representative is responsible for the overall operation of the facilities from which the industrial waste originates.

Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) means the quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days at 20 degrees Celsius, expressed in milligrams per liter.

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

Building sewer means the extension from the building drain to the public sewer; also called House connection.

Club means an association primarily organized for some common nonprofit purpose, including lodges and fraternal orders, but not including groups organized primarily to render a service which is customarily carried on as a business.

Discharger means any person that discharges or causes a discharge to a public sewer. The term "industrial discharge" shall mean any person that discharges waste to a public sewer.

Domestic sewage means waste containing human or animal excreta, and other than industrial waste.

Dwelling group means a group or row of detached or semidetached dwellings occupying a parcel of land in one ownership and having a yard or court in common, including bungalow courts, but not including automobile courts.

Industrial plant means a plant or works producing waste material other than domestic sewage.

Industrial user means any user engaged in the business of processing or manufacturing agricultural products, animals, poultry, goods, wares or other products of sale, resale or redelivery in processed or manufactured form.

Industrial waste means liquid and/or solids contained within a liquid, other than domestic sewage.

Mobile home park means land or premises used, or intended to be used, let, or rented for occupancy by or of trailers or movable dwellings, rooms, or sleeping quarters of any kind.

Motel means a group of two or more detached or semidetached buildings containing guestrooms or apartments, and automobile storage space serving such rooms or apartments provided in connection therewith, which group is designed and used primarily for the accommodation of transient automobile passengers.

Multiple dwelling means a building occupied by three or more families, each living independently as a separate housekeeping unit, including apartment houses, apartment hotels, and flats.

NPDES permit means a permit issued pursuant to section 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (33 USC 1251 et seq.).

One-family dwelling means a detached building containing only one kitchen and occupied by at least one family exclusively.

pH means the logarithm of the reciprocal of the hydrogen-ion concentration. The concentration is the weight of hydrogen ions, in grams, per liter of solution. Neutral water, for example, has a pH value of seven and a hydrogen-ion concentration of 1/10 - 7 .

Premises means a lot, parcel of land, building, or establishment.

Public sewer means a sanitary sewer controlled by the city, a governmental agency, or public utility.

Recreational vehicle park means land or premises used for occupancy by campers traveling by automobile or otherwise or for occupancy by trailers, tents, or movable or temporary dwellings, rooms, or sleeping quarters of any kind.

Sewage means a combination of liquid or water-carried human waste conducted away from residences, business buildings, and institutions which is known as domestic sewage, together with the liquid or water-carried waste resulting from a manufacturing process employed in industrial establishments, including the washing, cleaning, or drain water from such process and/or establishment which is known as industrial waste.

Slug means any discharge of water or wastewater 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 flows during normal operation and shall adversely affect the collection system and/or performance of the wastewater facilities.

Suspended solid means total suspended matter which either floats on the surface of, or is in suspension in, water, wastewater, or other liquids and which is removable by laboratory filtering as prescribed in "Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater," and referred to as nonfilterable residue.

Two-family dwelling means a building occupied by at least two families exclusively, living independently of each other.

Wastewater facilities means the pipelines, structures, equipment, and processes required to collect, carry away, and treat domestic and industrial wastes and dispose of the effluent.

(Code 1966, §§ 6-3.101—6-3.116, 6-3.117—6-3.125, 6-3.128—6-3.130)

Any failure to comply with any provision of this chapter shall result in an additional charge against the person or premises so failing to comply in the amount of $1,000.00. In addition, such person or premises shall be liable for any damages which occur to the public sewer as a result of such failure to comply with any provision of this chapter. Each such failure to comply and each day on which a failure to comply shall occur or continue shall be deemed a distinct and separate failure, and charges shall be applied accordingly.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.401)

(a) The director of public works and other duly authorized employees of the city, bearing proper credentials and identification, shall be permitted to enter all properties for the purposes of inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, and testing pertinent to discharges to the sewer system in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

(b) The director of public works 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 proprietary. The industry shall 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 this section, the director of public works 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 injuries 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.

(d) The director of public works 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 a duly negotiated easement for the purposes of, but not limited to, inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair, and maintenance of any portion of the wastewater facilities lying within such easement. All entry and subsequent work, if any, on such easement, shall be done in full accordance with the terms of the duly negotiated easement pertaining to the private property involved.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.305)

(a) 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 the city, any human or animal excrement, garbage, or objectionable waste.

(b) It shall be unlawful to discharge to any natural outlet within the city, or in any area under the jurisdiction of the city, any wastewater or other polluted water,

(c) Except as otherwise provided in this chapter or chapter 3-3, it shall be unlawful to construct or maintain any onsite wastewater treatment system, privy, privy vault, septic tank, cesspool, or other facility intended or used for the disposal of wastewater.

(d) The owner of any house, building, or property used for human occupancy, employment, recreation, or any other purpose, situated within the city and abutting on any street, alley, or right-of-way in which there is located or may in the future be located a public sanitary or combined sewer of the city, is hereby required, at the owner's expense, to install suitable toilet facilities therein, and to connect such facilities directly with the proper public sewer in accordance with the provisions of this chapter, within 90 days after the date of official notice to do so, provided such public sewer is within 100 feet (30.5 meters) of the property line.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.209; Ord. No. 508, § 3, 12-15-2020)

(a) Every person having a one-family dwelling with a sewer connection connecting with the sewer system of the city is hereby granted a permit to discharge domestic sewage from such one-family dwelling into the city sewer system. Every person whose premises, other than a one-family dwelling, in the city are now served, or which shall require service, by a connection with the city sewer system whereby the domestic sewage or industrial waste, or both, are disposed of by the city shall obtain from the city manager or authorized representative a permit to discharge such sewage and/or industrial waste.

(b) The application for a permit to discharge such domestic sewage or industrial waste shall be in writing and shall contain, among other things, the following information:

(1) The name and address of the applicant;

(2) The proposed location of the connection;

(3) The character of the waste or sewage proposed to be discharged; and

(4) Any other information which may be deemed necessary by the city manager.

(c) The city manager shall issue a permit to discharge sewage into the city sewer system if he finds and determines the following:

(1) That such sewage and waste will not result in damages to the sewer system; and

(2) That the pipeline in which the connection has discharged or is to discharge has sufficient capacity for the disposition of such sewage and wastes.

(3) During any period of threatened or actual shortage of essential services that are provided by the city, the city shall have the right to apportion its available sewage capacity among consumers in such manner as appears most equitable under the circumstances then prevailing and with due regard to public health and safety. Such apportionment shall grant priority to housing with units affordable to lower income housing.

(d) Any person who shall be dissatisfied with the action of the city manager in denying a permit, granting a permit wherein conditions are imposed, or in modifying or revoking a permit, or with any other order of the city manager in which such person may be affected, within 30 days after the date of such action of the city manager, may appeal to the council by giving notice thereof to the city manager and to the city clerk. In the event of such appeal, the city manager shall transfer to the council a report setting forth the reasons for denying the permit, requiring a change in the permit, imposing conditions prior to granting the permit, or modifying or revoking the permit, or the reasons for any other order made by the city manager affecting the person appealing. The council shall have the full power to review any action on the part of the city manager or any order made by him, and the determination of the council shall be final.

(Code 1966, §§ 6-3.301—6-3.304; Ord. No. 481, § 2, 3-6-2018)

(a) No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged directly or indirectly to a public sewer the following wastes:

(1) Any water or waste having a temperature exceeding 150 degrees Fahrenheit (65 degrees Celsius);

(2) Any water or waste having a pH lower than six or higher than nine or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damages or hazards to pipelines, structures, or equipment of the wastewater facilities or to personnel who operate and maintain the system;

(3) Any water or waste containing synthetic detergents in sufficient quantity to injure or interfere with any sewage treatment process or create problems in the receiving waters of the sewage treatment plant;

(4) Any water or waste containing BOD, suspended solids, fats, oil, or grease of such character and quantity which would harm the wastewater facilities or cause unusual attention or expense to be required to handle such materials at the sewage treatment plant;

(5) Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, solvent, or fuel oil or any liquid, solid, or gas which would cause, or tend to cause, flammable or explosive conditions to result in the wastewater facilities;

(6) Any waste containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids, or gases or pollutants in such quantities which, alone or in combination with other waste substances, may create a hazard for humans, animals, or the local environment, interfere detrimentally with or jeopardize the integrity of the wastewater facilities, cause a public nuisance, cause any hazardous condition to occur in the wastewater facilities or endanger public safety, cause violations of effluent or water quality limitations, or preclude the selection of the most cost-effective alternative for wastewater treatment and sludge disposal;

(7) Any solid or viscous substance of such quantity which may cause obstructions to flow in the sewer or be detrimental to proper wastewater facilities operations. Such objectionable substances include, but are not limited to, asphalt, dead animals, offal, ashes, sand, mud, straw, industrial process shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, whole blood, paunch manure, bones, hair and fleshings, entrails, paper dishes, paper cups, milk containers, and other similar paper products, either whole or ground;

(8) Any rainwater, stormwater, groundwater, street drainage, subsurface drainage, roof drainage, yard drainage, water from yard fountains, ponds, or lawn sprays, cooling water, or any other uncontaminated water;

(9) Any water added for the purpose of diluting wastes which would otherwise exceed applicable maximum concentration limitations;

(10) Any nonbiodegradable cutting oil, commonly called soluble oil, which forms persistent water emulsions;

(11) Any excessive concentration of nonbiodegradable oil, petroleum oil, or refined petroleum product;

(12) Any dispersed biodegradable oil or fat, such as lard, tallow, or vegetable oil, in excessive concentrations which would tend to cause adverse effects on the wastewater facilities;

(13) Any waste with an excessively high concentration of cyanide;

(14) Any substance promoting or causing the promotion of toxic gases;

(15) Any waste containing excessive quantities of iron, boron, chromium, phenol, plastic resin, copper, nickel, zinc, lead, mercury, cadmium, selenium, arsenic, or any other objectionable material toxic to humans, animals, the local environment, or to biological or other wastewater treatment processes;

(16) Any quantity of radioactive material waste;

(17) Any water or waste containing odor-producing substances exceeding limits established by the city manager;

(18) Quantities of flow or pollutant concentrations, or both, which constitute a slug; or

(19) Waters or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment or reduction by the wastewater treatment process employed or are amenable to treatment only to the degree that the wastewater treatment plant effluent cannot meet effluent quality limitations established by the Regional Water Quality Control Board.

(b) If waters or wastes are discharged or are proposed to be discharged to the public sewers, which waters contain the substances or possess the characteristics set forth in subsection (a) of this section and which, in the judgment of the city manager, 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 city manager may:

(1) Reject the wastes;

(2) Require pretreatment of 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 capital, operating, and maintenance costs of handling and treating the wastes.

If the city manager 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 city manager. Where pretreatment or flow-equalizing facilities are provided or required for any water or waste, such facilities shall be maintained continuously in satisfactory and effective operation by the owner at his expense. No statement contained in this chapter shall be construed as preventing any special 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.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.208)

It shall be unlawful for any person to place, or permit to be placed, any bulky substance in any sewer opening or in the house connection or drain connecting with any public main or lateral sewer. It shall be unlawful for any person to place, or permit to be placed, any substance having a tendency to obstruct the free flowage of such sewers or to damage them in any way.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.210)

State or federal requirements and limitations on discharges shall apply in any case where they are more stringent than the requirements and limitations of this chapter. These shall include federal categorical pretreatment standards for a particular industrial subcategory when promulgated.

(Code 1966, § 6-3.308)