Soledad Municipal Code Ch. 13.12 General Provisions

This division sets uniform requirements for discharges into the wastewater collection and treatment system and enables the city to comply with the administrative provisions of the Clean Water Grant Regulations, the water quality requirements set by the Regional Water Quality Control Board and the applicable effluent limitations, national standards of performance, toxic and pretreatment effluent standards, and any other discharge criteria which are required or authorized by state or Federal law, and to derive the maximum public benefit by regulating the quality and quantity of wastewater discharged into the city sewer system. This division provides a means for determining wastewater volumes, constituents and characteristics, the setting of charges and fees, and the issuance of permits to certain users. Revenues derived from the application of this division shall be used to defray the city's cost of operating and maintaining adequate wastewater collection and treatment systems and to provide sufficient funds for capital outlay, bond service costs, capital improvements, and depreciation.

(Prior code § 26-36-10)

Unless otherwise defined in this division, terms shall be as adopted in the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, published by the American Public Health Association, the American Water Works Association and the Water Pollution Control Federation. Waste constituents and characteristics shall be measured by Standard Methods unless expressly stated, or as established by federal or state regulatory agencies.

A. "Building sewer" means a sewer conveying wastewater from the premises of a user to a community sewer.

B. "Beneficial uses" means uses of the waters of the state that may be protected against quality degradation, including domestic, municipal, agricultural and industrial supply, power generation, recreation, aesthetic enjoyment, navigation and the preservation and enhancement of fish, wildlife and other aquatic resources or reserves, and other uses , both tangible or intangible as specified by Federal or state law.

C. "City" means the city of Soledad.

D. "City manager" or "manager" means the manager of the city or his designated representative.

E. "Community sewer" means a sewer owned and operated by the city tributary to a treatment facility operated by the city.

F. "Compatible pollutant" means biochemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, pH and fecal coliform bacteria, plus additional pollutants identified in the city's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit if the city's treatment works was designed to treat such pollutants, and in fact does remove such pollutants to a substantial degree.

G. "Contamination" means an impairment of the quality of the waters of the state by waste to a degree which creates a hazard to the public health through poisoning or through the spread of disease. Contamination shall include any equivalent effect resulting from the disposal of wastewater, whether or not waters of the state are affected.

H. "Federal Act" means the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, PL 92-500, and any amendments thereto; as well as any guidelines, limitations and standards promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to the Act.

I. "Holding tank waste" means any waste from holding tanks such as vessels, chemical toilets, campers, trailers, septic tanks and vacuum pump tank trucks.

J. "Incompatible pollutant" means any pollutant which is not a "compatible pollutant" as defined in this section.

K. "Major contributing industry" means any wastewater contributor identified in the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Manual in any of Divisions A, B, D, E and I that:

1. Has a discharge flow of twenty thousand gallons or more per average work day (if seasonal, the average shall be computed on the period of use); or

2. Has a flow or pollutant loading greater than five percent of the design capacity of the city's treatment works; or

3. Has in its wastes toxic pollutants in toxic amounts as defined in the standards issued under Section 307(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendments of 1972; or

4. Is found by the city's authorized representative to have significant impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industries, on the treatment works or upon the quality of effluent from the treatment works.

L. "Mass emission rate" means the weight of material discharged to the community sewer system during a given time interval. Unless otherwise specified, the mass emission rate shall mean pounds per day of a particular constituent or combination of constituents.

M. "Person" means any individual, firm, company, partnership, association, private or public corporation, districts and all political subdivisions, governmental agencies and mandatories thereof.

N. "Pollution" means an alteration of the quality of the waters of the state by waste to a degree which unreasonably affects such waters for beneficial use or affects the facilities which serve such beneficial uses. Pollution may include contamination.

O. "Premises" means a parcel of real estate or portion thereof including any improvements thereon which is determined by the city to be a single user for purposes of receiving, using and paying for service.

P. "Reclaimed water" means water which, as a result of treatment of waste, is suitable for direct beneficial use or a controlled use that would not otherwise occur.

Q. "Treatment works" means any devices and systems used in the storage, treatment, recycling, and reclamation of municipal sewage or industrial wastes of a liquid nature or necessary to recycle or reuse water at the most economical cost over the useful life of the works, including intercepter sewers, outfall sewers, sewage collection systems, pumping, power, and other equipment and appurtenances; extensions, improvements, remodeling, additions and alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a reliable recycled supply, such as standby treatment units and clear well facilities; and any works, including site acquisition of the land that will be an integral part of the treatment process or is used for ultimate disposal of residues resulting from such treatment; or any other method or system for preventing, abating, reducing, storing, treating, separating or disposing of municipal waste, including stormwater runoff, or industrial waste, including waste in combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems.

R. "Unpolluted water" means water to which no constituent has been added, either intentionally or accidentally, which would render such water unacceptable to the agency having jurisdiction thereof for disposal to storm or natural drainages or directly to surface waters.

S. "User" means any person that discharges, causes or permits the discharge of, wastewater into a community sewer.

T. "User classification" means a classification of user based on the 1972 edition of the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) Manual prepared by the Executive Office of Management and Budget, as it may be amended from time to time.

U. "Waste" means and includes sewage and any and all other waste substances, liquid, solid, gaseous or radioactive, associated with human habitation, or of human or animal origin, or from any producing, manufacturing or processing operation of whatever nature, including such waste placed within containers of whatever nature prior to, and for purposes of, disposal.

V. "Wastewater" means waste and water, whether treated or untreated, discharged into or permitted to enter a community sewer.

W. "Wastewater constituents and characteristics" means the individual chemical, physical, bacteriological and radiological parameters, including volume and flow rate and such other parameters that serve to define, classify or measure the contents, quality, quantity and strength of wastewater.

X. "Waters of the state" means any water, surface or underground, including saline waters, within the boundaries of the state.

(Prior code § 26-36-11)

Toilet and other sanitary sewage facilities must be installed and maintained in every house or building within the city in which any plumbing arrangements are constructed, and in every place of work within the city which operates for more than thirty days in a calendar year and in which one or more persons are employed. For purposes of this division, "place of work" includes premises which are not enclosed within a building, as well as premises which are wholly or partially so enclosed.

(Prior code § 26-36-12)

Except as otherwise specifically provided in Section 13.08.050:

A. Every house, building, and place of work within the city which under Section 13.08.030 is required to have toilets and other sanitary sewage facilities must be separately and independently connected with an accepted community sewer when such sewer is constructed in the street, alley or sewer right-of-way on which the property on which the house, building or place of work is situated, fronts or abuts.

B. It is unlawful for any person or persons, after thirty days' notice as provided in Section 13.08.050, to use or occupy any house, building or place of work not having toilets and other sanitary sewage facilities therein properly connected with an accepted community sewer, as required by this division.

C. It is unlawful for any person to maintain or use, or permit or cause to be maintained or used, a cesspool, septic tank, privy, privy vault or outhouse (including portable toilet facilities) on any premises within the city which are required to be connected to a community sewer under the provisions of subsection A of this section.

D. The use or occupancy of any house, building or place of work not having toilets and other sanitary sewage facilities therein properly connected to an accepted community sewer, as required by this division, is hereby declared to be a public nuisance and may be abated as such.

(Prior code § 26-36-13)

Notwithstanding the provisions of Section 13.08.040, whenever the city manager, after consulting with the city engineer and receiving his report and recommendation, and after considering the report and recommendation and such other information and evidence as may be available, finds and determines that the discharge of wastewater from a particular premises would not be in the best interests of the city, or that it would be inimical to the public health, safety and general welfare, he may deny the issuance of a permit and order that such waste not be discharged into a community sewer. The findings and order of the city manager shall be in written form and a copy thereof shall be served upon the owner or occupant of the premises, either personally or by mail at the last-known address of such owner or occupant as disclosed by city records. Reasons justifying such a finding and order include, but are not limited to, the following:

A. That such discharge is prohibited by Chapter 13.16 of this title;

B. That the volume or mass emission rate of such discharge would exceed the designed or available capacity of the community sewer or the treatment facility to which it is connected; or

C. That a particular constituent or combination of constituents of such discharge would be harmful to the community sewer or to the treatment works to which the sewer is connected, or would exceed one or more of the limitations contained in Chapter 13.16, or would adversely affect the ability of the community sewer or of the treatment works to meet required standards of performance; or

D. That an industrial user has or will provide adequate on-premises facilities for the treatment and disposal of wastewater in accordance with all applicable federal, state and local laws, rules and regulations, and it is determined that the introduction of such discharge into the community sewer would substantially increase the load upon the sewer and the treatment works to which it is connected; or

E. That in a particular case there are unusual circumstances relating to the location, character, or use of the property or improvements thereon, not generally applicable to other properties in the city, which make it impracticable to connect to the community sewer, and that a waiver of the connection requirement in such case would be in the best interests of the city and not detrimental to the public health, safety and general welfare.

(Prior code § 26-36-14)

It is the duty of the building inspector to notify every person using or occupying any house, building or place of work not having sanitary plumbing facilities therein properly connected with an accepted public sewer in accordance with the requirements of this division, that such person must, within thirty days after the date of service of such notice, install sanitary plumbing in such house, building, or place of work and connect the plumbing with the accepted public sewer in the street, alley or sewer right-of-way, on which the property on which the house, building or place of work is situated, fronts or abuts.

(Prior code § 26-36-15)

A. No connection shall be made with any public sewer in the city until a permit therefor is first obtained from the building inspector, and no connection shall be made with any public sewer in the city except as provided in this division. An application for such permit shall be made on blanks furnished by the building inspector to the owner of the premises sought to be served by the connection, or to his duly authorized agent, and it shall certify the location of the premises, by lot and block or other accurate description, the character of the building with which the connection is desired, and its condition as to plumbing.

B. It is the duty of the building inspector to satisfy himself that the plumbing of the building to be served by the proposed connection conforms to the requirements of this code or other ordinances of the city and to all applicable laws of the state, and he shall then issue the permit. If the plumbing does not substantially conform to the requirements , the applicant for the permit shall be notified wherein it is defective, and upon the defects being corrected, the permit for the sewer connection shall be issued.

C. Permits for sewer connections shall be granted only upon conditions to be inserted therein that the drainage and plumbing connections therewith shall be installed, and at all times maintained and used, strictly in accordance with the provisions of this code, and amendments to this code, and upon the further condition that the permit may be revoked and forfeited by the city council at any time after due notice given upon the failure, refusal or neglect of the owner or any tenant or occupant of the premises to observe the provisions of this division, including amendments to this division.

(Prior code § 26-36-16)