Hillsborough Municipal Code Ch. 13.33 Private Sewer Laterals

The purpose of this chapter is to establish responsibilities and requirements of the town and individual property owners for the inspection and repair of private sewer laterals, which are determined to be causing or contributing to sanitary sewer overflows. It describes the steps the town will be taking to reduce or eliminate infiltration and inflow coming from defective laterals. It also describes incentives that will be offered by the town to encourage homeowners to rehabilitate their sewer laterals, and it revises the Hillsborough Municipal Code as necessary to clarify what will be required when homeowners or private contractors do sewer lateral rehabilitation work.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. Inflow and infiltration (I&I) into the Hillsborough Public Sewer System is a serious public health problem that needs to be addressed system-wide. Excess flows during periods of wet weather and high ground water levels have been overwhelming existing collection and treatment facilities, resulting in sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) and releases of raw sewage to San Francisco Bay.

B. Infiltration from leaking private sewer laterals and connections of private laterals to the public sewer mains is a substantial source of excess flow volume. Video inspections of private sewer laterals have shown that older laterals commonly have some degree of damage.

C. In addition to the increased flow volume due to infiltration, leaking private sewer lateral pipes and connections to the public sewer mains allow intruding roots to build up and cause blockages that result in SSO's at lateral cleanouts and at upstream manholes.

D. During periods of dryer weather, leaking sewer laterals allow exfiltration of raw sewage to contaminate the surrounding ground and to leach down into the underlying aquifer.

E. Smoke testing has demonstrated that inflow from direct connections between rainwater collection systems and private sewer laterals is another substantial cause of excess flows during periods of wet weather.

F. The town owns and operates a sanitary sewer collection system that is regulated by Statewide General Waste Discharge Requirements (Order No. 2006-0003 DWQ), The Order, also referred to as the "General Sanitary Sewer Overflow Waste Discharge Requirements (General SSO WDR), prohibits sanitary sewer overflows (SSO's) that "result in a discharge of untreated or partially treated wastewater to waters of the United States" or that "creates a nuisance as defined in CWC Section 13050 (m)". Additionally, the Regional Water Quality Control Board (RWQCB)'s Water Quality Control Plan for the San Francisco Bay Basin prohibits the "discharge of raw sewage or any waste failing to meet waste discharge requirements to any waters of the Basin".

G. From January 2003 through January 2009, the town experienced 89 SSO events in violation of the above regulations. The SSO events occurred during wet weather and resulted from rainfall entering the town's defective sewer mains and defective privately owned sewer laterals. In response to these events, and on-going SSO's during wet weather, the Town of Hillsborough was issued a Cease and Desist Order (CDO) by the California Regional Water Quality Control Board on March 11, 2009. The CDO requires the elimination of SSO's. It includes requirements and provisions to resolve the causes of SSO's in order to eliminate sewage discharges to storm drains, surface waters and ground water of the State and the United States.

H. In accordance with the CDO requirements, the town has developed a comprehensive plan to eliminate SSO's. In addition to rehabilitating and/or replacing defective public sewers, the plan encourages the repair and rehabilitation of privately owned sewer laterals.

I. Throughout most of the town, SSO's can be eliminated through a combination of system capacity increases and elimination of I&I. In one sub-basin that drains into a trunk main that cannot be increased in capacity, the only option for reducing SSO's is to reduce peak discharges by eliminating I&I. This sub-basin will constitute the initially scheduled phase of the comprehensive program to rehabilitate sewer drainage sub-basins throughout the town.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. "City engineer" means the City Engineer of the Town of Hillsborough, or his/her designated agent.

B. "Cleanout" means a pipe fitting and associated piping connected to a sewer pipeline that provides access to the line for purposes of flushing, rodding, cleaning, and other maintenance and diagnostic purposes. Cleanouts are required at property lines or easement lines, at regular intervals along long laterals, and above joints where laterals branch. They shall be two-way cleanouts as described in the town's standard details, which are available from the city engineer's office or the town's website, and shall be installed so as to allow access by a push-type video camera in both directions. A one-way cleanout is required at the upper end of every sewer lateral, just outside of the structure it serves.

C. "Code" means the Hillsborough Municipal Code.

D. "Compliance certificate" means a certificate issued by the town indicating that the sewer lateral has passed verification testing and inspection as described in this title.

E. "Easement" means a corridor on privately-owned property, within which the town is granted the rights to enter and to do work for purposes of repair or maintenance of sewer facilities, and the right to remove private landscaping or other physical improvements thereon, and including prescriptive easements.

F. "Emergency" means emergencies may include, but are not limited to: power outages, equipment failure, storms, flood, fire, earthquake, riots, and any extraordinary event that requires a short term change to the requirements of this Title.

G. "Infiltration and inflow" (I&I) means the groundwater and rainwater that enters a sanitary sewer system intended for wastewater flows. "Infiltration" is water that enters the sewer system through openings in the joints or walls of pipes and manholes. "Inflow" is water that enters the sewer system directly, such as through uncapped lateral cleanouts, openings in manhole covers, and connections from area drains, catch basins, foundation drains, roof drains and other sources of non-sewage water.

H. "Lining" means insertion of new material within an existing pipe to form a leak-proof inner shell, including reattachment of branching pipes or otherwise sealing their connection to the liner; also, the material so inserted.

I. "Non-sanitary sewer connection" means prohibited conduits that directly or indirectly convey storm water, surface water, roof runoff, intercepted groundwater or subsurface drainage into sanitary sewers, including, but not limited to, down spouts, yard drains, sump pumps, overflows, or other sources of rain water, surface run-off, or groundwater.

J. "Pipe bursting" means replacement of a pipe by causing the pipe to be broken and expanded outward within the ground, and a new pipe inserted within the expanded pipe, including reattachment of branch and terminal connections in a finished, leak-proof fashion.

K. "Repair" means correction of isolated defects in the sewer lateral; also, the corrections themselves.

L. "Replacement" means substitution of new material for the complete length of the sewer lateral; includes either removal of the existing pipe and placement of new pipe, or pipe bursting or lining of the existing pipe.

M. "Sanitary sewer" means a pipe and appurtenant fittings, cleanouts and manholes, for conveying sanitary sewage and to which stormwater or surface water shall not be admitted.

N. "Sewage" means discarded contaminated water, or a combination of water and other fluids carrying wastes from plumbing fixtures in residences or business, institutional or industrial facilities.

O. "Sewer lateral" means the privately owned pipeline that carries sewage and liquid wastes from the structure or structures served, or a branched pipe network with multiple connections from sewage sources, to and including the connection to the sewer main, manhole or sewer main cleanout, including any portion under streets or within public rights-of-way. A sewer lateral may also be referred to as a "side sewer" or "lateral sewer." A sewer lateral is comprised of two distinct sections:

1. "Lower sewer lateral " means the portion of a sewer lateral extending from the proximity of the property line or right-of-way line or the edge of the easement, to the publicly owned sewer system, including the cleanout at its upstream end and the connection to the sewer main at its downstream end.

2. "Upper sewer lateral" means the portion of the sewer lateral or lateral network extending to the proximity of the property line or right-of-way line or the edge of the easement, from the structure or structures served.

P. "Sewer main" means a publicly-owned sanitary sewer pipe.

Q. "Structure" means any building or ancillary construction, which may include utility and/or landscaping facilities.

R. "Town" or "city" means where the law ascribes certain authorities or responsibilities to a "city" official or governing body, the term "town" may be interchanged with "city" and it refers to the Town of Hillsborough.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. Whenever the town rehabilitates a public sewer main, the provisions of this ordinance apply to all private laterals connected to it.

B. A town-wide rehabilitation of sewer mains and private laterals will be implemented on the basis of sewer drainage sub-basins prioritized by the city engineer according to their volume of I&I. In addition, from time to time individual sewer mains elsewhere in town may be fully rehabilitated if they are too badly degraded for spot repairs to be cost-effective.

C. When a public sewer main is rehabilitated, the town, at its own cost, will upgrade the lower laterals as necessary and will install or upgrade the cleanouts at the edges of the public right of way or easement as needed. At that time, the town will evaluate the upper laterals, and if deficiencies are identified the owners of properties with defective laterals will be encouraged to rehabilitate them. The town will waive certain fees, and the homeowners will be offered the opportunity to coordinate with the town's work, saving significant costs.

D. Because the problem of I&I is of such severity and importance, every property owner or resident shall allow access to the town's personnel or contractors to conduct the testing and inspections described below. They will be asked to minimize their use of their sewer lateral while the work is underway.

E. Individual properties are already required to have their laterals upgraded upon certain transfers of title as described in the Hillsborough Municipal Code. If an owner has upgraded their lateral through this program they will be exempted from that requirement for a number of years as described below.

F. Smoke or dye testing.

1. In order to locate sources of inflow and infiltration, as defined below, the town will systematically test private sewer laterals by pumping low-pressure, non-toxic smoke into isolated segments of public sewer mains, and then observing where the smoke is released on the properties with laterals feeding into that segment. Properly installed plumbing and storm drainage fixtures will not allow the smoke to escape into the structures served.

2. Prior to conducting a smoke test, the owners and residents of the affected properties will be notified with written explanations of what is to be done and what they should do to prepare for it. They will be provided with contact information for obtaining additional information or answers to specific questions. Information will also be posted on the town's website.

3. When a segment of sewer main is being tested, the town's personnel or contractors will need to thoroughly examine each property with laterals connected to that segment. The inspectors will observe the grounds between the sewer main and all structures as well as the area around each structure. They will photograph and make note of any smoke observed at any locations on the grounds and particularly at drains and roof gutters.

4. If necessary to confirm a source of inflow, a non-toxic dye may be poured into a suspected source while an observer at a downstream manhole watches for it. The dye used for this is non-polluting and has no harmful effects on the system.

5. If illegal sources of inflow are observed, the property owner shall be required to correct the conditions.

G. Video inspections of private laterals by the town's contractors.

1. When the town rehabilitates a segment of public sewer main, the private laterals connected to it will be examined at the same time unless they are specifically exempted as provided in Section 13.33.080 below.

2. Prior to examining a lateral, the owner and residents of the property will be notified with written explanations of what is to be done and what they should do to prepare for it. They will be provided with contact information for obtaining additional information or answers to specific questions. Information will also be posted on the town's website.

3. A closed circuit television (CCTV) camera designed specifically for this purpose will be inserted into the lateral from wherever access can be obtained (i.e. a cleanout, or a roof vent), and a digital video record will be made of the inspection.

4. If a proper two-way cleanout (see the definitions section above) does not currently exist at the property line or the edge of the easement, the town will have one installed; during that procedure the lateral above and below that point will be video-inspected.

5. If a lateral is too badly clogged for a reliable video inspection, an attempt may be made to clean it.

6. The digital video, showing any defects and their measured locations, will be shared with the property owner, and the owner will be informed of their responsibilities regarding the upper portion as well as the incentives offered by the town through this program.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. When private sewer laterals are repaired or rehabilitated, they must be inspected and approved by the town. Inspection shall consist of external visual examination by a town inspector during construction and a closed circuit television (CCTV) inspection of the interior recorded on digital video. Final approval shall be contingent upon passing a pressure test as described in the California Plumbing Code.

B. Standards for visual approval of a sewer lateral: any of the following may be cause for failure and require correction:

1. Intrusion of roots.

2. Offsets of more than half the pipe wall thickness at joints.

3. Cracks clearly evident in video.

4. Any breaks or holes through pipe wall.

5. Excessive corrosion of iron pipe.

6. Interior spalling of vitrified clay pipe.

7. Tears, holes or loose edges of previously applied pipe liners.

8. Accumulations of grease, encrustations, sediment or any debris or material that could not be removed by conventional cleaning.

9. Sags that retain liquid to a depth exceeding approximately ten percent of the pipe diameter.

10. Bends that prohibit the passage of an inspection camera.

11. Lack of an approved cleanout proximate to the point where the pipe enters the structure, and at the property line or easement line, as well as intermediately at branches, changes of direction and along long laterals as required, or lack of any other required backflow prevention or overflow device in good working condition.

12. Non-water-tight connections between the lateral and the sewer main, as indicated by root intrusion, visible gaps or cracks in the main adjacent to the connection.

13. The lateral protruding into the sewer main beyond the main's inner surface.

C. Video inspection standards.

1. The television camera used shall be one specifically designed and constructed for such inspection. It must have integrated lighting and be capable of producing a clear image in reasonably accurate color, even when submerged or operating in one hundred percent humidity conditions.

2. Lighting shall be sufficient to provide clear illumination of the entire perimeter of the pipe for several feet ahead.

3. The camera shall be pushed or pulled in as nearly continuous a motion as practicable, without skipping any portions of the pipe, at no greater than thirty feet per minute. It shall be stopped at any observed features, such as joints, defects, branch connections or irregularities of any kind, and shall be slowly advanced back and forth as needed to provide as full a view of the feature as possible. The video shall show the area around the point of entry of the camera in order to confirm the location, as well as a clear image, of the cleanout or the sewer main at the end of the survey.

4. The video shall include a text description of the time, date and direction of the survey, and the address of the property inspected; the metered length of the survey must be accurately displayed on the video as the survey progresses. If full inspection of a private lateral or branched lateral system is done in multiple surveys, the specific location of each video shall be clearly identified.

5. The video must include an accompanying audio track containing descriptive comments from the operator.

6. Digital recordings submitted to the town must be in a format that can be read by the town's computers running Microsoft Windows operating systems and Windows Media Player software without requiring file conversion. Alternate video file specifications may be approved by the city engineer.

7. Digital recordings submitted to the town must be on DVD discs, indelibly labeled with the time and date of the recording session and the address of the property inspected. Digital files shall be named in a fashion that uniquely identifies each inspection record, and a full description of the time, date, location and direction of survey shall also be included as a common text or HTML file. Multiple inspection records may be placed on a single DVD disc as long as they are uniquely identifiable and an index is included as a common text or HTML file.

8. Videos may be rejected if they are not sufficiently clear to the satisfaction of the city engineer, and they will have to be redone and resubmitted.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. Whenever the town installs or replaces a clean-out at the property line or the easement line, or tests, inspects, repairs or replaces any portion of the lateral, the property owner shall remain responsible for ongoing maintenance of the entire lateral down to and including the connection to the sewer main.

B. Property owners must allow access, onto and across their properties, by town employees or agents or contractors doing sewer testing, repairs or maintenance for the town, and they must cooperate to allow the work to be done. If necessary to gain access to an easement, town crews or contractors must be allowed to pass over private property as well as the easement.

C. The town's crews and contractors will make every attempt to avoid causing damage to landscaping and private improvements overlying public facilities (sewer mains, cleanouts and manholes) and/or private laterals being repaired or rehabilitated, and will make reasonable efforts to restore the landscaping and improvements upon completion of the work. However, the ultimate responsibility for removal and protection of the landscaping and improvements, and for replacement afterward to their own satisfaction, shall remain with the property owner. Landscaping or improvements may not be placed over manholes or cleanouts, nor in such proximity as to make the manhole or cleanout inaccessible. Any such private obstacles may be removed and shall not be put back.

D. Properties owned by institutions or organizations:

1. Public schools: The town will work cooperatively with school officials to reduce I&I, in recognition that both parties serve the interests and well-being of the same constituents.

2. Privately-owned schools, private institutions, facilities and meeting places: Non-public organizations owning property served by lateral connection(s) to the public sewer system shall be subject to the same requirements and responsibilities as private property owners.

3. Properties owned by partnerships or corporations: For properties owned by partnerships or corporations, including properties with structures occupied by one or multiple tenants, responsibility for compliance with this title shall fall upon the party or parties responsible for ownership.

E. In situations where more than one property share a common private lateral, the property owners shall equally share responsibility for work required on the shared portion, and shall be individually responsible for work required on their separate portions. Individual cleanouts shall be installed just above each connection to a shared lateral if feasible.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. When the town performs I&I rehabilitation on a segment of a sewer main it will also repair or rehabilitate all of the lower laterals as needed, including the cleanouts proximate to the property lines, right-of-way lines or easement lines.

B. When the town inspects, and repairs or replaces if necessary, the lower portion of a lateral, the town will also evaluate the upper portion of the lateral unless evidence satisfactory to the city engineer is provided that documents that the upper lateral has been newly installed, has been fully replaced in accordance with town standards within the preceding five years, or the property owner has a current Compliance Certificate.

C. If the town's inspection of an upper lateral indicates the need for repair or replacement, the town will notify the property owner of the owner's responsibilities under the Hillsborough Municipal Code, and will provide documentation of the conditions that require attention. The contractor performing work for the town will be directed to provide the owner with a price quote for the necessary work.

D. The town will maintain a list of plumbing contractors known to be qualified to perform the work, although providing names from that list to a property owner shall not be construed as recommendations or endorsements of those contractors.

E. If the property owner chooses to contract with the town's contractor, the town shall not participate in any way in that agreement or that work other than to inspect the work as it would with any other contractor doing private improvements. If the owner chooses to have the work done by anyone else, they may not begin until the town's work at the cleanout and downstream to the main is completed, including backfilling any excavations on the subject property.

F. The town will waive permit fees for repair or replacement work done on an upper lateral if it is done by the contractor working for the town rehabilitating the lower lateral and/or cleanout, or if it is completed by another contractor within ninety days of completion of work on the lower lateral and/or cleanout.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. General provisions.

1. A private sewer lateral for which a compliance certificate has been granted shall be exempted from the testing and inspection requirements presented elsewhere in this title for the duration of the certificate's term, as described below, unless it has been physically altered.

2. If a homeowner wishes to obtain a compliance certificate at any time other than when the town is rehabilitating the public sewer main serving the property, the owner shall provide documentation demonstrating compliance or shall arrange for a pressure test to be conducted; the pressure test must be observed and approved by the town's inspector.

3. After a fully repaired or replaced private sewer lateral has been inspected and has passed the required tests, and has been approved by the town, or after satisfactory evidence has been provided documenting that the lateral was newly and legally installed within the previous five years, a compliance certificate with a term described below will be issued to the property owner.

4. If a compliance certificate had already been obtained prior to the town's rehabilitation of a public sewer main, it will continue to run its original term.

B. Term of compliance certificate.

1. New, or entirely replaced, laterals—Twenty years from the date of installation.

2. Repaired laterals, or existing laterals that pass an approved pressure test—Ten years.

3. If evidence satisfactory to the city engineer is provided that documents that the upper lateral had been newly installed or fully replaced in accordance with town standards within the preceding five years, a compliance certificate will be provided to the property owner with a term of twenty years from the documented date of installation.

4. Once a compliance certificate is issued to the property owner it shall be the property owner's responsibility to renew the certificate before expiration of its term.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. The city engineer shall be the authority with regard to questions or disputes arising under this title.

B. Private sewer laterals that are found to be leaking may be declared a public health nuisance subject to abatement as provided for in Section 1.08.010 of the Code.

C. If a property is found to be out of compliance with this title, the town will attempt to contact and inform the property owner or responsible party, either directly or through an agent of the owner, by mail, telephone, email or other common means. If, after all reasonable efforts are made, no response is received, the town's crews or contractors shall be authorized to enter the property for testing or inspection or for abatement or remedial work.

D. If a property owner refuses to grant access to town crews or contractors to test or inspect their private sewer lateral, the town shall obtain an inspection warrant, as provided for in Section 1822.50 et seq. of the California Code of Civil Procedure, to allow the work to proceed.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

A. The town may implement a program for providing financial loans to property owners upon whom the burden of the town's I&I elimination program would impose a financial hardship.

B. Details of the loan amounts and repayment terms and conditions will be established by the city council and will be reviewed and updated from time to time as appropriate.

C. Information on the current available loan amount and repayment terms and conditions will be posted on the town's website and will also be available from the city clerk.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)

In the event of an emergency, the city engineer shall have the authority to temporarily suspend any or all of the provisions of this title until the next meeting of the city council, at which time a report will be given to the council explaining the reasons for the suspension and making recommendations regarding revisions or conditions for the reinstatement of the provision(s). During such suspensions, any remaining provisions shall continue in effect.

(Ord. No. 702, § 2, 6-11-2012)