Ontario Municipal Code Art. 7 Facilities Operation

The City and/or the Inland Empire Utilities Agency shall be responsible for the operation, maintenance and surveillance of all offsite recycled water systems. This includes, but is not limited to, recycled water pipelines, valves, connections, storage facilities, and other related equipment and property up to and including the meter. Only the City and/or the Inland Empire Utilities Agency personnel and their representatives shall operate, adjust, change, alter, move or relocate any portion of their respective offsite recycled water facilities.

(§ 1, Ord. 2689, eff. June 17, 1999, as amended by § 2, Ord. 3197, eff. January 7, 2022, § 3, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)

(a) General.

(1) The operation, surveillance, repair, and maintenance of all customer recycled water facilities are the responsibility of the user and his or her designated Onsite Recycled Water Supervisor.

(i) The Onsite Recycled Water Supervisor shall be responsible for the installation, operation, and maintenance of the onsite recycled water system, enforcing applicable requirements of the City's recycled water use agreement, preventing potential hazards related to such system, maintenance of the system plans in "as- built" form, and distribution of recycled water in accordance with applicable laws and permits held by the City.

(2) The Administrator shall have the right to enter the user's premises to monitor and inspect all onsite recycled water facilities. Where necessary, keys and/or lock combinations shall be issued to the Administrator to provide such access during hours of recycled water system operation.

(b) The Onsite Recycled Water Supervisor shall have the following responsibilities pertaining to operation of onsite facilities:

(1) Ensure that all operations personnel are trained and familiarized with the use of recycled water.

(2) Furnish all operations personnel with maintenance instructions, irrigation schedules, controller charts, and as-built drawings to ensure proper operation in accordance with the onsite facilities design and applicable rules and regulations.

(3) Prepare and submit to the Administrator one (1) reproducible set of as-built drawings.

(4) Notify the Administrator of all updates or proposed changes, modifications, or additions to the onsite facilities and operations for review and approval prior to construction or implementation. All updates and proposed changes shall comply with this chapter, the recycled water use agreement and any other applicable rules and regulations.

(5) Ensure that the operation and maintenance of all recycled water facilities remain in accordance with this chapter, the recycled water use agreement and any other applicable rules and regulations.

(6) Operate and control the system in order to prevent direct human consumption of recycled water and to control and limit runoff. The user or the owner of the property shall be responsible for any and all subsequent uses of the recycled water. Operation and control measures to be utilized in this regard shall include where appropriate, but are not limited to:

(i) Minimizing discharge onto areas not under control of the user so as to minimize public contact. Full circle sprinklers shall not be used adjacent to sidewalks, roadways, and property lines in order to confine the discharge to the use area.

(ii) Operating the onsite recycled water facilities during periods of minimal human use of the service area, and allowing a maximum dry-out time before the irrigated area will be used by the public.

(iii) Providing adequate first aid kits on the premises, and promptly treating all cuts and abrasions to prevent infection. If infection is likely, a physician should be consulted.

(iv) Taking any other precautionary measures to minimize direct contact with recycled water. User's employees, residents, and the public should not be subjected to recycled water sprays.

(v) Applying recycled water at a rate that does not exceed the infiltration rate of the soil. Where varying soil types are present, the design and operation of the recycled water facilities shall be compatible with the lowest infiltration rate of the soils present.

(vi) Reporting to the Administrator any/all failures in the recycled water system that cause an unauthorized discharge of recycled water.

(vii) Protecting all drinking fountains located within the approved use area, by location and/or a structure from contact with recycled water to the maximum extent possible. Windblown spray, direct application through irrigation or other approved uses are considered sources of recycled water. Protection shall be by design, construction practice, or system operation.

(viii) Protecting facilities that may be used by the public, including but not limited to, eating surfaces and playground equipment located within the approved use areas, by locating seating and/or structures from contact with recycled water to the maximum extent possible. Windblown spray, direct contact by irrigation application, or other approved uses are considered sources of recycled water. Protection shall be by design, construction practice, or system operation.

(c) The user shall enforce the following prohibitions:

(1) Cross-connections, as defined by the Cross-Connection Control Policy Handbook, resulting from the use of recycled water or from the physical presence of a recycled water service, whether by design, construction practice, or system operation, are prohibited.

(2) Discharge of recycled water for any purpose, in areas other than those specifically approved in the recycled water use agreement, and without the prior approval of the Administrator, is prohibited.

(3) Use or installation of permanent hose bibs on any customer water system that presently operates or is designed to operate with recycled water is prohibited.

(4) Conditions that directly or indirectly cause recycled water to pond either within or outside of the approved use area, whether by design, construction practice, or system operation are prohibited, unless designed specifically for ponding and approved by the Administrator.

(5) Conditions that directly or indirectly cause runoff of recycled water onto areas outside of approved use areas, whether by design, construction practice, or system operation, are prohibited.

(6) Use of recycled water for any purposes other than those specifically approved in the recycled water use agreement, and without the prior approval of the Administrator, is prohibited.

(7) Conditions that directly or indirectly permit windblown spray to pass outside of the approved use area, whether by design, construction practice, or system operation, are prohibited.

(§ 1, Ord. 2689, eff. June 17, 1999, as amended by § 2, Ord. 3197, eff. January 7, 2022, § 3, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)

(a) The Administrator will periodically monitor and inspect the entire recycled distribution facility, including both offsite and onsite facilities. The Administrator will conduct monitoring programs, maintain records as deemed necessary, inspect onsite facilities for compliance with applicable rules and regulations, and provide reports as requested by the State Board. For these purposes, the Administrator will have the right to enter the user's premises during hours of recycled water system operation to inspect onsite recycled water facilities and approved areas of recycled water use, to ensure compliance with this chapter and Chapter 8E, including the requirement that runoff be controlled and limited (§ 6-8.730(b)(6)) and the prohibition of cross-connections between potable water facilities and recycled water facilities (Chapter 8E).

(b) The approved user shall be responsible for providing access to and cooperation with the City's Cross-Connection Control Specialist or designee so that the City's Cross-Connection Control Specialist or designee can perform periodic cross-connection tests, site inspections and backflow prevention device tests. Site inspections shall include pressure testing of the system(s) as well as a visual check of the entire system to verify that no cross-connections or unapproved connections exist. The approved user shall be responsible for correcting any work which violates the City's regulations, at the user's sole expense, including any costs associated with repair and re-testing the backflow prevention device should the backflow prevention device fail to pass the required test.

(c) If the user or owner changes, the City's Cross-Connection Control Coordinator or designee will perform an inspection and test to verify compliance with this chapter and Chapter 8E.

(§ 1, Ord. 2689, eff. June 17, 1999, as amended by § 2, Ord. 3197, eff. January 7, 2022, § 3, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)

(a) The user or owner is responsible for maintaining all onsite facilities that are under the ownership of parties other than the City.

(b) No person shall place, dispose, deposit or permit the placement, disposal, or deposit of oil, toxic, hazardous or contaminated liquid or waste, trash, soil, building materials, or any other substances, objects, or obstructions in, on, or around meter boxes or other City facilities. No person shall allow or permit meter boxes or other City facilities from becoming obstructed or obscured by trees, shrubs, plants or in any other manner so as to impede their use or access or make their location difficult to determine.

(c) If such substances, objects, or obstructions are not cleaned and removed, or are permitted to obscure or impede use or access to such facilities, the City may accomplish the cleaning and removal at the user's expense. The Administrator will provide reasonable notice to the user before assessing the charge.

(§ 1, Ord. 2689, eff. June 17, 1999, as amended by § 2, Ord. 3197, eff. January 7, 2022, § 3, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)

If a recycled water meter fails to register during any period or is known to register inaccurately, the owner or user shall be charged using a reasonable average daily consumption based on prior consumption or based on other reasonable calculations in the absence of historical consumption data. The City will examine and test the meter through which recycled water is being furnished or determine whether it is correctly registering the amount of recycled water being delivered.

(§ 2, Ord. 3197, eff. January 7, 2022, § 3, Ord. 3297, eff. March 18, 2025)