Redding Municipal Code Div. I Title, Purpose and General Provisions

The purpose and intent of this chapter is to protect and promote the health, safety and general welfare of the city's citizens by controlling non-stormwater discharges to the city's stormwater conveyance system and by reducing pollutants in stormwater discharges to the maximum extent practicable. This chapter is also intended to assist in the protection and enhancement of water quality of watercourses and water bodies in a manner pursuant to and consistent with the Federal Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. §1251 et seq.) and Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and to provide the city with the legal authority to fully implement and enforce provisions set under the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System General Permit No. CAS000004 for Stormwater Discharges from Small Municipal Storm Sewer Systems, Water Quality Order No. 2013-0001-DWQ.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

Any term(s) defined in the Federal Clean Water Act, as amended, and/or defined in the regulations for the stormwater discharge permitting program issued by the United States Environmental Protection Agency, as amended, and which are not specifically defined in this chapter shall, when used in this chapter, have the same meaning as set forth in said Act or regulation. The terms used in this chapter shall have the following meanings:

"Best management practices" or "BMPs" means schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to prevent or reduce to the maximum extent practicable the discharge of pollutants directly or indirectly to the city stormwater conveyance system or receiving waters. BMPs include but are not limited to treatment controls, structural controls, source controls, training requirements, facility management practices, and the prohibition of specific activities, practices, and procedures to control site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or waste disposal, or drainage from raw material storage that the city determines appropriate for the control of pollutants.

"City" means the City of Redding.

"City council" or "council" means the city council of the City of Redding.

"City Public Works Director or Public Works Director" means the person in a supervisory role of the divisions that comprise the public works department: Engineering division, streets division, traffic operations division, stormwater, storm drain utility, wastewater utility, water utility, and Redding Area Bus Authority.

"City stormwater conveyance system" means those public or natural facilities within the city which are owned, operated, maintained or controlled by the city by which stormwater may be conveyed to receiving waters, including, but not limited to, any city roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, catch basins, water quality basins, detention basins, constructed wetlands, natural and artificial channels, aqueducts, canyons, stream beds, gullies, curbs, gutters, ditches, sumps, pumping stations, and storm drains.

"Clean Water Act" or "CWA" means the federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. §1251 et seq.) and any subsequent amendments thereto.

"Construction activity" means activities including, but not limited to, grading, digging, cutting, scraping, stockpiling or excavating of soil, placement of fill materials, paving, pavement removal, demolition, exterior construction, substantial removal of vegetation where soils are disturbed including but not limited to removal by clearing or grubbing, or any activity which bares soil or rock.

"Construction general permit" means the NPDES general permit for stormwater discharges associated with construction and land disturbance activities administered by the State of California in accordance with applicable provisions of the Federal Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act.

"Development" means the construction, building or placement of any structure or portion thereof, or any activity such as excavation or grading to improve site conditions. Development does not include routine maintenance to maintain original line and grade, hydraulic capacity, or the original purpose of the facility, nor does it include emergency construction activities (i.e., land disturbances) required to protect public health and safety.

"Discharge" means the release, threatened release, or placement of any material into the city's stormwater conveyance system or receiving waters, including but not limited to stormwater, wastewater, solid materials, liquids, hazardous waste, raw materials, debris, litter, or any other substance.

"Enforcement agency" means the city is the primary enforcement agency for the purposes of this chapter. The enforcement agency shall coordinate program activities and authorize personnel to serve as enforcement officials to effectuate the purposes of this chapter.

"Enforcement official" means any agent of the city authorized by the enforcement agency to enforce compliance with this chapter. If the city council and the governing body of another public agency enter into an agreement authorizing that agency to administer and/or enforce some or all of the provisions of this chapter, "enforcement official" also shall mean the authorized official(s) of the agency designated in the agreement as the agency responsible for administering and enforcing the provisions of this chapter, as provided in the agreement.

"Hazardous material" means any material, including any substance, waste, or combination thereof, which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics may cause, or significantly contribute to, a substantial present or potential hazard to human health, safety, property, or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of, or otherwise managed (California Health and Safety Code §25117).

"Illicit connection" means either of the following:

1. Any drain or conveyance, whether on the surface or subsurface which allows an illicit discharge to enter the city's stormwater conveyance system including but not limited to any conveyances which allow any non-stormwater discharge including sewage, process wastewater, and wash water to enter the city's stormwater conveyance system and any collections to the city's stormwater conveyance 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 city's stormwater conveyance system which has not been documented in plans, maps, or equivalent records and approved by the city.

"Illicit discharge" means any direct or indirect non-stormwater discharge to the city's stormwater conveyance system or receiving waters, except as exempted in Division II, Section 14.19.100 of this chapter. The term illicit discharge does not include discharges that are regulated by a NPDES permit (other than the NPDES permit for discharges from the MS4).

"Industrial activity" means any activity subject to the NPDES industrial general permit as defined in 40 CFR, Section 122.26(b)(14).

"Industrial general permit" means the general permit for stormwater discharges associated with industrial activities, issued and administered by the State of California in accordance with applicable provisions of the Federal Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act.

"Maximum extent practicable" or "MEP" means the technology-based standard established by Congress in Clean Water Act section 402(p)(3)(B)(iii) for small MS4 stormwater discharges. MEP emphasizes pollution prevention and source control BMPs primarily in combination with treatment methods. The MEP approach is an ever-evolving, flexible and advancing concept, which considers technical and economic feasibility. As knowledge about controlling urban runoff continues to evolve, so does what constitutes MEP.

"Municipal separate storm sewer system" or "MS4" means a conveyance or system of conveyances (including roads with drainage systems, municipal streets, catch basins, curbs, gutters, ditches, man-made channels, or storm drains) owned by a state, county, city, town, or other public body, that is designed or used for collecting or conveying stormwater, which is not a combined sewer, and which is not a part of a publicly owned treatment works.

"National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System" or "NPDES" means the primary permitting program under the Clean Water Act (33 U.S.C. Section 1251 et seq.) which regulates most discharges to receiving waters.

"National Pollution Discharge Elimination System permit" or "NPDES permit" means a permit issued by either the Regional Board or the State Water Resources Control Board pursuant to Chapter 5.5 (commencing with Section 13370) of Division 7 of the California Water Code to control discharges to waters of the United States.

"Phase II municipal general permit" means the general permit for stormwater discharges from small municipal separate storm sewer systems (MS4s), issued and administered by the State of California in accordance with applicable provisions of the Federal Clean Water Act and the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act.

"Pollutant" means anything which causes or contributes to pollution. Pollutants may include, but are not limited to, paints, varnishes, and solvents; soil, sand, or sediment; oil and other automotive fluids; non-hazardous liquid, solid wastes and yard wastes; floatables; pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers; hazardous substances and wastes; biological and fecal waste; dissolved and particulate metals; wastes and residues that result from constructing a building or structure (including but not limited to sediments, slurries, and concrete rinsates); and noxious or offensive matter of any kind.

"Pollution" means the human-made or human-induced alteration of the quality of waters which unreasonably affects, or has the potential to unreasonably affect, either the waters beneficial uses or the facilities which serve these beneficial uses (California Water Code §13050).

"Porter-Cologne Act" means the Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act and as amended (California Water Code §13000 et seq.). Under the Porter-Cologne Act, the State Water Resources Control Board has the ultimate authority over State water rights and water quality policy. Porter-Cologne also establishes nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards to oversee water quality on a day-to-day basis at the local/regional level.

"Premises" means any building, lot, parcel of land, or portion of land whether improved or unimproved including adjacent sidewalks and parking strips.

"Property owner" means any person, entity, company, and/or authorized representative having title to real property within the geographic area affected by this article.

"Receiving water limitations" means water quality standards contained in a Statewide Water Quality Control Plan, the California Toxics Rule, or in the applicable Regional Water Quality Control Board Basin Plan.

"Receiving waters" means natural surface bodies of water, as defined by the Phase II municipal general permit, including, but not limited to, creeks and rivers, which serve as discharge points for the city stormwater conveyance system.

"Regional Water Quality Control Board" or "Regional Board" means the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board.

"Stormwater" means any surface flow, runoff, and drainage consisting entirely of water from storm events and/or snow melt.

"Stormwater pollution prevention plan" or "SWPPP" means a document that describes the BMPs to be implemented by the owner or operator to eliminate prohibited non-stormwater discharges and/or reduce to the MEP pollutant discharges to the city stormwater conveyance system as required by the construction general permit and industrial general permit.

"Waters of the United States" means surface watercourses and water bodies as defined in 40 CFR Section 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 stormwater at and during all times and seasons.

Any term(s) defined in the Federal Clean Water Act, as amended, and/or defined in the regulations for the stormwater discharge permitting program issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, as amended, and which are not specifically defined in this section, shall, when used in this article, have the same meaning as set forth in such Act or regulation.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

The provisions of this chapter are applicable to all users and potential users located within the city and all users that discharge either directly or indirectly into the city stormwater conveyance system. Within the city this chapter shall also apply to stormwater and non-stormwater discharges made to receiving waters. This chapter does not apply to facilities operated by the State of California or by agencies of the federal government.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

The city's public works director shall administer, implement, and enforce the provisions of this chapter. Any powers granted or duties imposed upon the public works director may be delegated by the public works director to persons or entities acting in the beneficial interest or in the employ of the city.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

The provisions of this chapter are hereby declared to be severable. If any section, subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this chapter is for any reason held to be invalid or unconstitutional by a decision of any court of competent jurisdiction, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining sections, subsections, subdivisions, paragraphs, sentences, clauses or phrases of this chapter.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

This chapter shall be construed to assure consistency with the requirements of the Clean Water Act and Porter-Cologne Water Quality Control Act, and acts amendatory thereof or supplementary thereto, or any applicable implementing regulations. In the event of any conflict between this chapter and any federal or state law or regulation, that requirement which establishes the higher standard for public health shall govern. To the extent permitted by law, nothing in this chapter shall preclude enforcement of any other applicable law, regulation, order, permit, or city ordinance.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

Compliance by any person with the provisions of this chapter shall not preclude the need to comply with other local, state or federal statutory or regulatory requirements relating to the control of pollutant discharges or protection of stormwater quality, or both.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)

The degree of protection required by this chapter is considered reasonable for regulatory purposes and is based on scientific, engineering and other relevant technical considerations. The standards set forth herein are minimum standards and this chapter does not intend nor imply that compliance will ensure that there will be no unauthorized discharge of pollutants into receiving waters. This chapter shall not create liability on the part of the city, or any agent or employee thereof for any damages that result from reliance on this chapter or any administrative decision lawfully made thereunder.

(Ord. No. 2527, § I, 5-29-2015)