Pacifica Municipal Code Art. 2 Regulation of Wastewater Discharges

Wastewater may be discharged into community sewers for treatment and disposal by the City provided that such wastewater does not contain substances prohibited, or exceed limitations of wastewater strength, set forth in this chapter; and provided further that the discharger pays all City wastewater disposal charges and is in compliance with all terms of this chapter, including the permit provisions if applicable.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

(a) General prohibition. No person shall discharge wastewater into a community sewer which will result in contamination, pollution, or a nuisance.

(b) Prohibited effects. No person shall discharge wastewater into a community sewer if it contains substances or has characteristics which, either alone or by interaction with other wastewaters, cause or threaten to cause:

(1) Damage to City facilities.

(2) Interference with or impairment of the operation or maintenance of City facilities.

(3) Obstruction of flow in sewers.

(4) Danger to life or safety of any person.

(5) Interference with, or overloading of, treatment or disposal processes.

(6) Flammable or explosive conditions at or near City facilities.

(7) Wastewater or any other by-products of the treatment process to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse, or interfere with any processes for reclamation.

(8) Noxious or malodorous gases or odors at or near City facilities.

(9) Discoloration or any other condition in the quality of the City's treatment plant effluent in such a manner that receiving water quality requirements established by law cannot be met by the City.

(10) Conditions at or near City facilities which violate any statute or any rule, regulation, or ordinance of any public agency or State or Federal regulatory body, including the general prohibitions contained in Federal General Pretreatment Regulations.

(11) The presence of toxic gases, fumes, or vapors in quantities injurious to the health and safety of City personnel.

(12) Pass-through of the City's treatment plant, causing a violation of any requirement of the City's NPDES permit.

(c) Prohibited substances. No person shall discharge the following to a community sewer:

(1) Wastewater which is not polluted and meets requirements for and is acceptable for discharge to storm sewers or to receiving waters of the State.

(2) Wastewater which creates a fire or explosion hazard including, but not limited to, discharges with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140° F (60° C) using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21.

(3) Garbage, except ground garbage from residential and commercial premises where food is prepared and consumed.

(d) Prohibited locations. Except for sewer construction and maintenance by public agencies and contractors, no person shall discharge any wastewater directly into a manhole or other opening in a community sewer system other than through side sewers approved by the public agency owning the system; provided that the Director may grant permission for such direct discharges, upon written application, at locations approved by the public agency and upon payment of applicable sewage disposal charges to the City.

(e) Prohibition on use of dilution. Except where expressly authorized to do so by an applicable pretreatment standard or requirement, no user shall increase the use of process water, or in any other way attempt to dilute a discharge as a partial or complete substitute for adequate pretreatment to achieve compliance with a pretreatment standard, requirement or discharge limitation. The City may impose mass limitations on the users which are using dilution to meet applicable pretreatment standards or requirements, or in other cases where the imposition of mass limitations is appropriate.

(f) Prohibition on slug discharges. No user shall discharge any pollutant, including oxygen-demanding pollutants, at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which causes or threatens to cause interference with the wastewater treatment process. For the purposes of this section, any discharge at a flow rate or concentration which could cause a violation of the prohibited discharge standards or limitations in this section or Section 6-13.203 shall be deemed a slug discharge.

(g) Bypass prohibited.

(1) Bypass of pretreatment equipment and/or discharge points is prohibited and the City may take enforcement action against any user for bypass unless:

a. Bypass was unavoidable to prevent loss of life, personal injury, or severe property damage;

b. There were no feasible alternatives to the bypass, as described in 40 CFR 403.17(d) and the industrial user submits the notifications required in 40 CFR 403.17(c).

(2) The City may approve an anticipated bypass, after considering its adverse effects, if the City determines that it will meet the conditions specified in part (g)(1) of this prohibition.

(h) Discharge of petroleum or mineral oil causing pass-through or interference prohibited. Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 6-13.203(a), no user may discharge petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting oil or other products of mineral origin in any amount that causes interference or pass-through.

(i) Discharge of trucked or hauled wastes prohibited. No user shall discharge any trucked or otherwise hauled wastes to the community sewer or to any City facilities unless a permit has been issued by the City.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

(a) Wastewater strength limits. No person shall discharge wastewater from a side sewer into a community sewer if the strength of the wastewater exceeds the following:

(1) 150° F (65.5° C), or any thermal discharge which as a result of temperature and/or volume causes the influent of the wastewater treatment plant to exceed 104° F (40° C)

(b) Additional wastewater strength limits. Wastewater strength limits for constituents not listed in subsection (a) of this section may be established in a wastewater discharge permit based on available treatment technology, existing wastewater conditions in the City's facilities or other factors as determined by the Director. The Director may also establish wastewater strength limits on the wastewater discharge permits at locations within a premises whenever non-process water may dilute the wastewater discharging from side sewers.

(c) Best management practices. The City may require compliance with best management practices (BMPs) as an alternative to numeric limits that are developed to protect the POTW, water quality, and sewage sludge. BMPs imposed pursuant to this subsection (c) must be consistent with the Clean Water Act and this chapter. BMPs may be imposed universally on all dischargers or on a case-by-case basis if the Director determines conditions warrant the use of BMPs instead of the numeric limits.

(d) Quantity and rate of flow limits. No person shall discharge wastewater into a community sewer in quantities or at rates of flow which may have an adverse or harmful effect on or overload City facilities or cause excessive or additional City treatment costs. The Director may establish mass discharge limits in wastewater discharge permits to control the quantity and rate of flow of wastewater discharges.

(e) Radioactive limits. No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any radioactive wastewater into a community sewer except when the person is authorized to use radioactive material by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission or other governmental agency empowered to regulate the use of radioactive materials and when the wastewater is discharged in strict conformity with current Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations and recommendations for safe, disposal and in compliance with all rules and regulations of State and local regulatory agencies.

(f) Deny or condition new or increased contributions. The Director may deny or condition new or increased contributions of pollutants, or changes in the nature of pollutants, to the City's wastewater treatment facility by industrial users where such contributions do not meet applicable pretreatment standards and requirements or where such contributions would cause the City to violate its NPDES permit.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

Upon promulgation of the Federal general and categorical pretreatment standards, the Federal standards, if more stringent than limitations imposed under the chapter for dischargers, shall supersede the limitations imposed under this chapter. The Director shall notify all affected dischargers of the applicable standards and other requirements. National categorical standards, found in 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405-471, are hereby incorporated into these regulations. Effluent limitations promulgated by the Federal Act shall apply in any instance where they are more stringent than those in these regulations.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

The Director shall implement a pretreatment program in accordance with general pretreatment regulations adopted by EPA and in accordance with this chapter.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

The Director shall issue permits to dischargers subject to Federal categorical pretreatment standards and require compliance in accordance with dates established by EPA. The permits shall be issued in accordance with the provisions of Article 3 of this chapter but pretreatment permits may be issued with renewal dates from twelve (12) to sixty (60) months after issuance of the initial pretreatment permits.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)

All information and data obtained from a discharger in connection with Federal pretreatment standards shall be available to the public or other governmental agencies without restriction unless the discharger specifies that the release of such information would divulge information, processes or methods of production entitled to protection as trade secrets, in which case the discharger shall be solely responsible for taking any action necessary to prevent the release of such information. Wastewater constituents and characteristics will not be recognized as confidential information.

(§ 1(Exh. A), Ord. 784 C.S., eff. December 28, 2011)