Lake County Municipal Code Art. I General Provisions

(a) Authorized Non-Storm Water Discharges: Categories of discharges that are not composed entirely of storm water but are not found to pose a threat to water quality as defined in the Storm Water Management Plan.

(b) Best Management Practices (BMPs): Schedules of activities, prohibition of practices, general good housekeeping practices, pollution prevention and educational practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to prevent or reduce to the maximum extent practicable the direct and indirect discharge of pollutant to the County storm drainage system and to natural surface waters. BMPs shall also be defined to include, but not limited to, structural controls, source controls, treatment controls, training requirements, operating and maintenance procedures, practices to control plant site runoff, erosion and sediment control reduction practices, spillage or leaks, sludge or waste disposal or drainage from raw materials storage.

(c) Beneficial Uses: Existing or potential uses of receiving waters as defined in a State of California Water Quality Control Plan.

(d) Board: The Board of Supervisors of the County of Lake.

(e) Clean Water Act: The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. 125 et seq.) and any subsequent amendments thereto.

(f) County: The County of Lake.

(g) County Storm Drainage System: Those publicly owned facilities within the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System designated unincorporated area of the County which are owned, operated, maintained or controlled by the County by which storm water may be collected and/or conveyed to natural surface waters, including, but not limited to, any roads with drainage systems, County roads, catch basins, water quality basins, detention basins, constructed wetlands, drainage channels, aqueducts, curbs, gutters, ditches, sumps, pumping stations, storm drain inlets, storm drains and other drainage structures which are not part of a publicly owned treatment works.

(h) Construction Activity: Activities subject to the NPDES Construction General Permits or successor permit issued by the State of California or any instrument of the County that established pollutant control provisions for construction activities. These include construction projects typically resulting in land disturbance of one (1) acre or more. Such activities include, but are not limited to, clearing and grubbing, grading excavating and demolition.

(i) Director: The Director of Community Development or such other department head designated by the Board to enforce the provisions of this chapter.

(j) Discharge: Any addition or introduction of any pollutant, storm water, or any other substance whatsoever into the County storm water drainage system or natural surface waters.

(k) Discharger: Any person who discharges, or causes to discharge, either directly or indirectly storm water or any other material into the County storm drainage system or natural surface waters.

(l) Illegal Discharge: Any direct or indirect non-storm water discharge to the storm drain system, except as exempted in Article II of this chapter.

(m) Illicit Connection means one (1) of the following:

(1) Any drain or conveyance, whether on the surface or subsurface, which allows an illegal discharge to enter the storm drain system, including, but not limited to, any conveyances which allow any non-storm water discharge including sewage, process wastewater, backwash water, and wash water to enter the storm drain system and any connections to the storm drain system from indoor drains and sinks, regardless of whether said drain or connection had been previously allowed, permitted, or approved by a government agency; or

(2) Any drain or conveyance connected from a commercial or industrial land use to the storm drain system which has not been documented in plans, maps, or equivalent records and approved by County.

(n) Implementing Agency: The department designated by the Board to enforce the provisions of this chapter with respect to a particular site, person, facility or industry category.

(o) Industrial Activity: Activities subject to NPDES Industrial Permits as defined in 40 CFR, Section 122.26(b)(14).

(p) Municipal Storm Water Permit means NPDES Permit No. CAS000004, including any amendments thereto or successor permit, issued by the Regional Water Board to the County.

(q) National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES): A permit issued by either the Regional Water Board or the State Water Quality Control Board pursuant to Chapter 5.5 (commencing with Section 13370) of Division 7 of the Water Code to control discharges from point sources to natural surface waters.

(r) Natural Surface Water: Any rivers, creeks, unnamed tributaries, natural ponds or lakes, wetlands, or navigable waters and shall include any waters of the State and of the United States contained within the boundaries of the State. Natural Surface Waters does not mean any wet or dry detention basin, constructed wetland or storm water treatment facility.

(s) Non-Storm Water Discharge: Any discharge to the County storm drainage system, or to natural surface waters that is not composed entirely of storm water.

(t) Person. Any natural person as well as any corporation, partnership, public agency, trust, estate, cooperative association, joint venture, business entity or other similar entity, or the agent, employee or representative of any of the above.

(u) Pollutant: Anything that causes or contributes to pollution. Pollutants may include, but are not limited to, solid waste, sewage, garbage, medical waste, wrecked or discarded equipment, radioactive material, dredged soil, rock and sand, industrial waste, feces, volatile organic carbon, surfactants, oil and grease, petroleum, hydrocarbon, organic solvents, metals, phenols, pesticides, nutrients, suspended or settable solids, materials causing an increase in biochemical or chemical oxygen or total organic carbon, substances which alter pH, and those pollutants defined in Section 501(6) of the Federal Clean Water Act.

(v) Pollution: Human made or human induced alteration of the quality of waters by waste or pollutants to a degree which unreasonably affects, or has potential to unreasonably affect, either the waters for beneficial uses or the facilities which serve these beneficial uses.

(w) Premises: Any building, lot, parcel or land, or portion thereof and any appurtenant structures or facilities, whether improved or unimproved.

(x) Publicly Owned Treatment Works: Facility owned, operated or maintained by a public entity.

(y) Receiving Water Limitations: Those restrictions defined and listed in the State General Permit or Municipal Storm Water permit or any successor document.

(z) Receiving Waters: Surface bodies of water, as defined by the Municipal Storm Water Permit, including, but not limited to, lakes, creeks, rivers, and other waters of the State or the United States which serve as discharge points for the County storm drainage system.

(aa) Regional Water Board: The California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Central Valley Region and/or California Regional Water Quality Control Board, North Coast Region.

(ab) State Construction General Permit: The State Water Resources Control Board's Order No. 99-08-DWQ, National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) General Permit No. CAS000002 Waste Discharge Requirements (WDRS) for Discharges of Storm Water Runoff Associated with Construction Activity, and any successor documents.

(ac) Storm Water: Surface runoff and drainage resulting from storm events and snowmelt.

(ad) Storm Water Management Plan: The County's documented strategy of how the discharge of pollutants to storm water will be reduced to the maximum extent practicable through the implementation of BMPs designed to protect water quality and requirements of the Municipal Storm Water Permit.

(ae) Water Quality Control Plan: A basin plan required by the California Water Code (Section 13240) that consists of a designation or establishment of beneficial uses to be protected in waters within a specific area (i.e., basin), water quality objectives to protect those uses, and a program of implementation needed for achieving the objectives.

(af) Waters of the United States: Surface watercourses and water bodies as defined at 40 CFR 122.2, including all natural waterways and definite channels and depressions in the earth that may carry water, even though such waterways may only carry water during rains and storms and may not carry storm water at and during all times and seasons.

(Ord. No. 2772, § 1, 5-16-2006)