Sutter County Municipal Code Ch. 1750 Use of the Sanitary Sewer System

The purpose of this Chapter is to prescribe and regulate the usage of and discharges to the public wastewater system.

This Chapter shall apply to all persons and service areas within the County of Sutter receiving wastewater services from the County. It will also apply to special publicly-owned districts and agencies electing to adopt this code in its entirety. This Chapter refers to wastewater services only.

Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meanings and terms used in this Chapter shall be as stated in Chapter 1701 of this code.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any unpolluted storm water or surface runoff, or dry weather discharge authorized under the County's NPDES Storm Water Permit or by the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board such as groundwater, roof runoff, basement seepage, water from a swimming pool or spa, subsurface drainage, and/or cooling water, to any sanitary sewer. Storm water and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged to such sewers or drainage courses as are specifically designated for stormwater discharge.

A person may not introduce into the Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) any pollutant(s), which cause pass through or interference. Additionally, specific prohibitions are as follows in this section.

(a) Federal prohibitions. The following pollutants shall not be introduced into a POTW:

(1) Pollutants which create a fire or explosion hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, waste streams with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit or 60 degrees Centigrade using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.2.

(2) Pollutants which will cause corrosive structural damage to the POTW, but in no case, discharges with pH lower than 5.0;

(3) Solid or viscous pollutants in amounts which will cause obstruction to the flow in the POTW resulting in interference;

(4) Any pollutant, including oxygen demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.) released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which will cause interference with the POTW.

(5) Heat in amounts which will inhibit biological activity in the POTW resulting in interference, but in no case heat in such quantities that the temperature at the POTW Treatment plant exceeds 104 degrees Fahrenheit (40 degrees Centigrade).

(6) Petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origin in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;

(7) Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health and safety problems;

(8) Any trucked or hauled pollutants, except at discharge points designated by the POTW.

(b) No person shall discharge into the sewerage system, natural outlet, street or earth surface, wastes which cause, threaten to cause, or are capable of causing, either alone or by interaction with other substances, any of the following:

(1) Fire or explosion or injury in any way to the sewerage system or the operation of the treatment plant. Prohibited materials include, but are not limited to, gasoline, kerosene, alcohols, solvents, sulfides or any other substance with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit (or 60 degrees Celsius) using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21 or which causes two consecutive readings on an explosion hazard meter at any point in the sewerage system to be more than 5%, or any single reading more than 10% of the lower explosive limit (LEL);

(2) Obstruction of flow in a sewerage system or injury of the system or damage to the sewerage collection, or treatment facilities by ashes, cinders, sand, mud, grit, straw, offal, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, sawdust, manure, garbage that has not been properly shredded and screened to one quarter inch or less in diameter, or other solid or viscous substances capable of causing obstruction of the flow or other interference with the proper operation of the sewerage system as determined by the Director;

(3) Corrosive structural damage to the sewerage system or the POTW;

(4) Air pollution by the release of toxic or malodorous gases or malodorous gas-producing substances;

(5) Interference or pass through at the treatment plant affecting wastewater treatment, land disposal or sludge or scum processing and disposal;

(6) A detrimental environmental impact or a nuisance in the waters or wastewaters of the state or a condition unacceptable to any public agency having regulatory jurisdiction over the County;

(7) Discoloration, or any other condition, in the quality of the County's treatment plant effluent and/or storm system discharge in such a manner that receiving water quality requirements established by law or other contracts cannot be met by the County;

(8) Conditions at or near the County's treatment facilities, which violate any statute, rule, regulation or ordinance of any public agency of state or federal regulatory body;

(9) Quantities or rates of flow or pollutants which cause interference or overload the County's sewerage system or treatment facilities or cause excessive County collection or treatment costs or hamper treatment facility operation;

(10) Waters or waste with a pH factor lower than 5.0 or higher than 9.0;

(11) Any discharge which has an average daily concentration exceeding the local limits as established by the Director to meet the limitations of the NPDES wastewater discharge permit issued to the County.

(12) Discharges of new or increased contributions of pollutants, or changes in the nature of pollutants, to the POTW by industrial users where such contributions do not meet applicable pretreatment standards and requirements or where such contributions would cause the POTW to violate its NPDES permit per 40 CFR 403.8(f)(1)(i);

(13) Petroleum oil, non-biodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origins in amounts that will cause interference or pass through;

(14) Discharges which, if otherwise disposed of, would be a hazardous waste under 40 CFR Part 261 and/or 22 CCR 66261.3;

(15) Discharges containing concentrations of tetrachloroethylene (PCE) or trichloroethylene (TCE) exceeding five micrograms per liter for any grab sample;

(16) Waste radiator coolant or any radiator flushing wastewater generated from auto, truck, or equipment maintenance;

(17) Wastewater or other wastes from the cleaning of engines, undercarriages or vehicle parts. Such wastes must be either recycled in a closed-loop recycling system or hauled off-site for proper disposal.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged to a public sewer within the County any of the following described substances, materials, waters, or wastes without first obtaining a written wastewater discharge permit issued by the Director pursuant to this article that specifically permits such waste discharge characteristics:

(a) Any water or waste which contains more than 200 milligrams per liter of fat, oil or grease. The limitation of hexane soluble materials shall not apply to those waste waters from industries processing fats and oils of vegetable or animal origin for which the industry involved supplies at its own expense, satisfactory evidence that the waste waters are transportable in the sewers without causing obstructions to flow;

(b) Any waters or wastes containing strong acid iron pickling wastes, or concentrated plating solutions whether neutralized or not;

(c) Materials, which exert or cause in the sewerage system or receiving waters unusual concentrations of inert suspended solids (such as but not limited to, soil solids, fuller's earth, lime slurries, lime residues, plastics or ash);

(d) Wastewaters from pre-treatment and remediation processes;

(e) Discharges containing phenols or other taste-producing and odor-producing substances in concentrations exceeding limits which may be established by the Director as necessary to meet the requirements of the NPDES wastewater discharge permit issued to the County;

(f) Slug discharges into the collection system at temperatures exceeding 140 degrees Fahrenheit (60 degrees Celsius) or exceeding 110 degrees Fahrenheit (43 degrees Celsius) for any eight-hour period;

(g) Discharges containing fixed total dissolved solids (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride, sodium sulphate or other inorganic salts) in such quantities to cause the effluent total dissolved solids of the treatment plant to exceed 500 milligrams per liter;

(h) Domestic waste discharged from recreational vehicles.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any radioactive waste into a sewerage system except:

(a) When the person is authorized to use radioactive materials by the State Department of Health or other governmental agency empowered to regulate the use of radioactive materials; and

(b) When the waste is discharged in strict conformity with current California Radiation Control Regulations (California Administrative Code, Title 17) and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission regulations and recommendations for safe disposal; and

(c) When the person is in compliance with all rules and regulations of all other applicable regulatory agencies.

Grease, oil, and sand interceptors shall be provided when they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease in excessive amounts (waste containing in excess of 150 milligrams per liter of animal and vegetable origin or 50 milligrams per liter of mineral origin), or any flammable wastes, sand, debris or other harmful ingredients; except that such interceptors shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units. All commercial food service facilities shall comply with this chapter.

(a) All interceptors shall be of a type and capacity approved in writing by the Director, prior to installation, and shall be located as to be readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection.

(b) Grease and oil interceptors shall be constructed of impervious materials capable of withstanding abrupt and extreme changes in temperature. They shall be of substantial construction, watertight and equipped with easily removable covers which, when bolted in place, shall be gastight and watertight.

(c) Where installed, all grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be maintained by the owner, at his expense, in continuously efficient operation at all times. Records of all maintenance, cleaning and hauling of materials shall be maintained by the owner and such records shall be available at all times for inspection by County personnel.

(d) Waste materials collected in an interceptor shall not be reintroduced into the sewerage system.

(e) A dishwasher shall not be connected to an interceptor unless approved by the Director.

(f) Garbage grinders shall not be connected to the sanitary sewer.

A user proposing to discharge holding tank domestic waste into a domestic sewer must secure a permit for each separate discharge. This permit shall state the specific location of discharge, the time of day the discharge is to occur, the volume of the discharge, the wastewater constituents and characteristics and origin of such wastes. Holding tank wastes discharged at the treatment plant facilities may be given a discharge permit, which would apply to more than one separate discharge at the discretion of the Development Services Department Director. If a permit is granted for discharge of such waste into the domestic sewer, the user shall pay the applicable user charges and fees set in accordance with Chapter 1710.

(Ord. 1585, Sec. 2, May 28, 2013)

In addition to other remedies, when the County finds that a discharge of wastewater has taken or is taking place in violation of prohibitions or limitations of this chapter, or the provisions of a wastewater discharge permit, the Director may issue an order to cease and desist, and direct those persons not complying with such prohibitions, limits, requirements or provisions, to:

(a) Comply forthwith;

(b) Comply in accordance with a time schedule set forth by the County; or

(c) Take appropriate remedial or preventive action in the event of a threatened violation.

When a discharge of wastewaters or any other substance causes an obstruction, damage, or any other impairment to the County's sewerage system, the County may assess a charge against the user for the work, materials and services required to clean or repair the affected portions of the sewerage system.

No person shall maliciously, willfully or negligently damage, destroy, uncover, deface or tamper with any structure, appurtenance or equipment that is part of the POTW. Persons doing so shall be liable for damages.

In addition to the termination provisions as stated in Chapter 1701 of this code, the County may revoke any wastewater discharge permit, or terminate or restrict or cause to be terminated or restricted wastewater service to any premises, which may include termination or restriction of the water service if warranted, if a violation of any provisions of this chapter is found to exist or if a discharge of wastewater causes or threatens to cause a condition of contamination, pollution or nuisance as defined in this chapter.

No person intending to discharge anything except domestic sewage shall make a connection to the sewer system without first applying to and receiving from the office of the Director a wastewater discharge permit. This permit shall be in addition to all other permits required by the Director. All significant industrial users proposed to connect or to discharge into a sewerage system after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this Chapter must obtain a wastewater discharge permit before connecting to, or discharging into, a sewerage system. All existing significant users connected to, or discharging into, a sewerage system must apply for a wastewater discharge permit within 180 days after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this Chapter. All persons desiring to discharge holding tank wastes, and/or wastes requiring interceptors must also obtain a discharge permit prior to discharging.

(a) Persons seeking a wastewater discharge permit shall complete and file with the Development Services Department Director an application in the form prescribed by the Director, and accompanied by any applicable fees. The applicant may be required to submit, in units and terms appropriate for evaluation, the information on the volume, constituents, and timing of the discharge; and applicable site plans. Applicants will be required to certify the accuracy of the information submitted.

(b) The Director will evaluate the data furnished by the user and may require additional information before permit is issued. A permit may be issued subject to terms and conditions provided in this article. Persons discharging under a permit must reapply to the Director for a new permit if the person desires to make significant changes to their operations or systems which might alter the nature, quality, or volume of its wastewater.

(Ord. 1585, Sec. 2, May 28, 2013)

Wastewater discharge permits shall be expressly subject to all provisions of this Chapter and all other regulations, permit charges and fees established by the County Board of Supervisors. The conditions of wastewater discharge permits shall be uniformly enforced by the Director in accordance with this Chapter, and applicable state and federal regulations. Permits will generally contain discharge limits, pretreatment requirements, reports, and record keeping requirements.

Permits shall be issued for a specified time period, not to exceed five years. A permit may be issued for a period less than one year or may be stated to expire on a specific date. A user discharging after the expiration date of the permit shall be considered in violation of this chapter. It is the responsibility of the user to apply for a new discharge permit at least 90 days before the expiration date of their existing permit. The terms and conditions of the permit may be subject to modification and change by the County during the life of the permit, as limitations or requirements stipulated in this chapter are modified and changed. The user shall be informed of any proposed changes in user's permit at least 30 days prior to the effective date of change. Any changes or new conditions in the permit shall include a reasonable time schedule for compliance.

Wastewater discharge permits are issued to a specific user for a specific operation. A wastewater discharge permit shall not be assigned, transferred or sold to a new owner, new user, different premises or a new or changed operation without prior written approval of the Director.

A permit may be temporarily suspended at any time if it is the Director's opinion that the continued discharge of the waste or water into the sewerage system would substantially jeopardize the ability of the treatment facilities or sewerage system to meet water quality requirements or would cause an unsafe condition to occur. In lieu of temporary suspension of permits, the Director may impose such temporary restrictions, conditions or limitations upon the quantities, qualities and rates of discharge made thereunder as deemed necessary to assure that the receiving water quality requirements will not be violated or to alleviate the unsafe condition. Notice of the temporary suspension or the imposition of temporary restrictions, conditions or limitations shall be given in writing by the Development Services Department Director to the permittee at least 24 hours prior to their effective date. Delivery of the notice to the permittee's place of business shall constitute delivery of notice to permittee.

(Ord. 1585, Sec. 2, May 28, 2013)

Any permittee who violates the following conditions of the permit or of this chapter, or applicable state and federal regulations, is subject to having this permit revoked:

(a) Failure of a user to factually report the wastewater constituents and characteristics of their discharge;

(b) Failure of the user to request in advance significant changes in operations or wastewater constituents and characteristics;

(c) Refusal of reasonable access to the user's premises and/or records for the purpose of inspection or monitoring of all possible sources of pollution;

(d) Failure to pay County utility bills;

(e) Violation of conditions of the permit.

(a) Each industrial user shall provide protection from accidental discharge of prohibited materials or other wastes regulated by this chapter. Such facilities shall be provided and maintained at a level of operation comparable to that of the original construction at the user's expense. Detailed plans showing facilities and operating procedures to provide this protection shall be submitted to the Director before construction of the facility.

(b) The review of such plans and operating procedures by the Director will in no way relieve the user from the responsibility of modifying the facility to provide the protection necessary to meet the requirements of this chapter.

(c) If any wastewater is spilled onto any surface or area in such a manner where there is the possibility of contact with any person, that wastewater shall be cleaned up at the expense of the property owner or a designate within a reasonable time as determined by the County, or the County will clean up the spilled wastewater and bill the property owner or designate for the cleanup. If warranted, or as directed by the County, property management must adequately notify tenants and post area of spill with warning signs.

The disposal of sludges, chemicals, and other pollutants generated shall be done in accordance with Section 405 of the Clean Water Act, 40 CFR 261 subtitles C and D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 403.12 and all other applicable regulations. Accordingly, the user shall notify the Director, the EPA Regional Waste Management Division director, and state hazardous waste authorities (Department of Toxic Substances Control) in writing of any discharge into the wastewater collection system of a substance which, if otherwise disposed of, would be a hazardous waste under 40 CFR part 261. Under no circumstances shall hazardous waste, as defined by the California Code of Regulations (CCR), 22 CCR 66261.3, be discharged to the POTW.

Users in industrial categories are subject to the categorical pretreatment standards developed by the EPA under the Clean Water Act of 1977 (PL 95 217) 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq. Users must comply with pretreatment standards promulgated pursuant to section 307 and the Federal Register 40 CFR Subchapter IV. Dilution of any discharge may not be used to comply with any pretreatment standards. Categorical industrial users must submit baseline monitoring reports, compliance schedule reports, 90-day compliance reports, and periodic reports on continued compliance as required including identifying information per 40 CFR 403.12(1) and such reports must be signed by an authorized representative of the industrial user and meet certification requirements of 40 CFR 403.6(a)(2)(ii) and 403.12(b)(6) and be retained for a minimum of three years (or period of litigation, whichever is longer). The Development Services Department Director may issue standards more stringent than the federal standards if he/she determines that the limitations in the federal standards are not sufficient to:

(a) Protect the operation of the County's treatment facilities; or

(b) Comply with water quality standards, sludge disposal or effluent limitations specified in the County's National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit;

(c) Meet technically based local limits, which must be calculated per federal pretreatment program guidelines.

(Ord. 1585, Sec. 2, May 28, 2013)

A wastewater pretreatment system or device may be required by the Director to treat flow prior to discharge to the sewer when it is necessary to restrict or prevent the discharge to the sewer of certain waste constituents not in compliance with 1750-050, "prohibited polluted discharges," to distribute more equally over a longer time period any peak discharges of wastewaters or to accomplish any pretreatment result required by the Director, such that, in conjunction with treatment at the POTW, the system operates within the requirements of the NPDES permit.

(a) All pretreatment systems or devices shall be approved and permitted by the Director; but such approval shall not absolve the discharger of the responsibility of meeting any effluent limitation required by the Director. All pretreatment systems judged by the Director to require engineering design shall have plans prepared and signed by an engineer of suitable discipline licensed in the State of California.

(b) Normally, a gravity separation interceptor, equalizing tank, neutralization chamber and control manhole will be required, respectively, to remove prohibited settleable and floatable solids, to equalize wastewater streams varying greatly in quantity and/or quality, to neutralize low or high pH flow and to facilitate inspection, flow measurement and sampling.

Where preliminary treatment or flow equalizing facilities are provided for any waters or wastes, they shall be maintained continuously in satisfactory and effective operation by the owner at his or her expense.

(a) The Director may require the user to construct and maintain, at the user's expense, monitoring facilities such as a control maintenance hole to allow inspection, sampling and flow measurement of the building sewer or internal storm drainage systems and may also require sampling or metering equipment to be provided, installed, operated and maintained at the user's expense. The monitoring facility should normally be situated on the user's premises, but the Director may, when such a location would be impractical or cause undue hardship on the user or the County, allow the facility to be constructed in the public right-of-way and located so that it will not be obstructed by landscaping or parked vehicles.

(b) When the monitoring facility is inside the user's fence, there shall be accommodations to allow access for the Director or designated representative.

(c) Plans and specifications for monitoring facilities shall be approved by the Director and be in accordance with all applicable County construction standards and specifications. Construction shall be completed within 60 days following written notification by the County, unless a time extension is otherwise granted by the County.

(d) All user discharge records shall be retained for a minimum of three years per 40 CFR 403.12(o).

All measurements, tests and analyses of the characteristics of waters and wastes to which reference is made in this Chapter shall be determined in accordance with the latest edition of "standard methods for the examinations of water and wastewater," published by the American Public Health Association, and shall be determined at the monitoring facility provided, or upon suitable samples taken at said monitoring facility. In the event that no special facility has been required, the test shall be taken at the nearest downstream maintenance hole in the public sewer to the point at which the building sewer is connected. Sampling shall be carried out by customarily accepted methods to reflect the effect of constituents upon the sewage works and to determine the existence of hazards to life, limb, and property.

In addition to the federally required reports, the Director may require that any high-strength user discharging, or proposing to discharge, wastewater into a sewerage system, file a periodic discharge report. The discharge report may include, but not be limited to, nature of process, volume, rates of flow, mass emission rate, temperature, pH, production quantities, hours of operation, number and classification of employees, chemicals and materials stored or used, or other information which relates to the generation of waste including characteristics in the wastewater discharge. Such reports shall also include the chemical characteristic and quantity of liquid or gaseous materials used annually as well as those stored on site, even though the latter may not normally be discharged. All reports are due 14 days after the conclusion of monitoring or receipt of the laboratory analysis report and must be signed by an authorized representative of the industrial user. All such reports shall be retained for a period of three years (or period of litigation, whichever is longer), and shall be made available for inspection and copying by the County. In addition to discharge reports, the County may require information in the form of wastewater discharge permit applications and self-monitoring reports.

If, for any reason, a user does not comply with the provisions of this chapter or releases an accidental discharge or slug load, whether intentionally or accidentally, the user shall immediately notify the County's Water Resources Department so that corrective action may be taken to protect the POTW. This requirement is extended to any discharge that could cause interference, upset or damage to the POTW or cause a pass-through, overflow, public nuisance or other hazard, either alone or in combination with other discharges and whether or not such discharges are specifically identified in the chapter. Such notification shall be by a telephone call to the County's Water Resources Department, followed, within five days of the occurrence, by a written report addressed to the Director detailing the date, time and cause of the discharge, the quantity and characteristics of the discharge, actions taken to mitigate the discharge, and corrective action taken to prevent such future discharges. Such notification will not relieve the responsible party of liability for any expense, loss, or damage to the wastewater system or for any fines imposed on or by any governmental agency resulting from such discharge.

Nothing contained in this Chapter shall be construed to limit any additional requirements that may be imposed by the County health officer, by the Regional Water Quality Control Board, Fish and Game, or by other governmental agencies having jurisdiction.

Violation of any of the provisions of this Chapter is unlawful and an offense. In addition to any other remedies provided in this Title, any violation of the provisions of this Chapter may be enforced using remedies for violations of this Chapter. In any such action, the County may seek any or all of the following remedies:

(a) Injunctive relief;

(b) Assessment against the violator for the costs of any investigation, inspection, or monitoring survey which led to the discovery of the violation, and for the reasonable costs incurred in preparing and prosecuting the legal action as a result of violations of this Chapter;

(c) Recovery for costs incurred in removing, correcting, terminating, or preventing adverse effects resulting or likely to result from the violation;

(d) Compensatory damages for loss or damage to the POTW and/or

(e) Such other relief as the court may authorize. Any person who violates any provision of this Chapter, who discharges or causes pollution, or who violates any cease and desist order, state or national law or regulation, or any other order of the Director shall be civilly liable to the County in a sum not to exceed $25,000.00 per violation per day. In addition, the County may require the user to pay any excess costs to the system for supplementary treatment result of allowing the entry of such discharges into the wastewater system. Remedies imposed pursuant to this section are in addition to and do not supersede or limit any and all other administrative, civil, or criminal remedies available at law.

(Ord. 1528, Sec. 3, July 13, 2010)