Wheatland Municipal Code § 13.22.010 Purpose

A. The purpose of this chapter is to facilitate the maximum beneficial use of the city's sewer services and facilities while preventing blockages of the sewer lines resulting from discharges of fats, oils and grease (FOG) into the public sewer, and to specify appropriate FOG discharge requirements for food service establishments (FSEs) as defined herein.

B. This chapter shall apply to both direct and indirect discharge of wastewater containing FOG to the public sewer.

C. The provisions set forth in this chapter are designed to ensure compliance with federal, state and local laws and regulations, and to allow the city to meet applicable standards.

D. This chapter also establishes quantity and quality standards on all discharges containing FOG, which may alone or collectively cause or contribute to FOG accumulation in the sewer facilities causing or potentially causing or contributing to the occurrence of sanitary sewer overflows (SSOs).

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)

Unless otherwise defined herein, terms related to water quality shall be as adopted in the latest edition of Standard Methods for Examination of Water and Wastewater, published by the American Public Health Association, the American Water Works Association and the Water Environment Federation. Testing procedures for waste constituents and characteristics shall be as provided in 40 Code of Federal Regulations at Part 136. Subject to the foregoing, the meaning of the terms used in this chapter shall be as follows:

"Best management practices (BMPs)"

means activities, prohibitions, maintenance procedures and other management practices to prevent or reduce the direct or indirect introduction of FOG into the public sewer that are known in the industry to be the most effective methods and means of practice.

"Change in operations"

means any change in the ownership, food types, or operational procedures that have the potential to change the amount of FOG discharged by FSEs in an amount that alone or collectively causes or creates a potential for SSOs to occur.

"City"

means the City of Wheatland, a municipal corporation.

"Collection system"

means portions of the public sewer consisting of all pipes, sewers and conveyance systems, which convey wastewater to the publicly owned treatment works (POTW), excluding privately owned sewer service lateral line connections.

"Compliance schedule"

means a time scheduled, enforceable under the provisions of this chapter, which contains increments of progress (e.g., milestones, in the form of dates). These milestones shall be for the commencement and/or completion of major events leading to the construction and/or operation of additional pretreatment facilities and/or the implementation of policies, procedures or operational management techniques required for permittees to comply with all applicable federal, state or local environmental regulations, which may directly or indirectly affect the quality of the permittee's wastewater.

"Composite sample"

means a collection of individual samples obtained at selected intervals based on an increment of either flow or time. The resulting mixture (composite sample) forms a representative sample of the waste stream discharged during the sample period.

"Director"

means the public works director or authorized representative. The term "director" shall also be synonymous with the "city."

"Discharger"

means any person who discharges or causes a discharge of wastewater directly or indirectly to the public sewer.

"Effluent"

means any wastewater outflow from a FSE or privately owned sewer service lateral that is discharged into the public sewer.

"Enforcement officer"

means any city employee or agent of the city who, on behalf of the director, has authority to enforce the provisions of this chapter and the authority to take any action required by this chapter.

"Fats, oils and grease (FOG)"

means any substance, such as vegetable or animal product, that is used in, or is a byproduct of, cooking or food preparation processes, and that becomes or may become viscous, or solidifies or may solidify, with a change in temperature or other conditions that has the potential to accumulate in the collection system.

"FOG control program"

means the FOG control program developed by the city, pursuant to State Water Resources Control Board Order No. 2006-0003, and any subsequent modifications.

"FOG wastewater discharge permit (FOG WDP)"

means a permit issued by the city, subject to the requirements and conditions established by the city, authorizing a permittee to discharge wastewater from a FSE into the public sewer.

"Food service establishment (FSE)"

means a facility, including but not limited to, any commercial entity within the boundaries of the city, operating in a permanently constructed structure such as a room, building or place, or portion thereof, maintained, used or operated for the purpose of storing, preparing, serving or manufacturing, packaging or otherwise handing food for sale to other entities, or for consumption by the public, its members or employees, and which has any process or device that uses or produces FOG, grease vapors, steam, fumes, smoke or odors that are required to be removed by an exhaust hood pursuant to California Health and Safety Code Section 114149.1 or in accordance with the California Uniform Retail Food Facilities Law (CURFFL) (California Health and Safety Code Section 113700, et seq.). A limited food preparation establishment is not considered a FSE when it is engaged only in reheating, hot holding, and/or assembly of ready-to-eat food products, provided that there is no wastewater discharge containing a significant amount of FOG.

"Food grinder" or "garbage disposal"

means any device installed in the plumbing or sewage system for the purpose of grinding food or food waste.

"Grab sample"

means a sample taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis without regard to the flow in the waste stream and without consideration of time.

"Grease control device"

means any grease interceptor, grease trap or other mechanism, device or process which attaches to, or is applied to, wastewater plumbing fixtures and lines, the purpose of which is to trap, collect and/or treat FOG prior to it being discharged into the public sewer. A grease control device may also include any other proven method to reduce FOG, subject to the approval of the director.

"Grease disposal mitigation fee"

means a fee charged to a permittee when there are physical limitations that make installation of the usual and customary grease control device for the FSE impossible or impractical. The grease disposal mitigation fee is intended to cover the costs of increased maintenance of the public sewer as well as for the increased inspection and cleaning of FOG that a usual, customary and properly maintained grease control device would otherwise prevent from entering the public sewer.

"Grease interceptor"

or interceptor means a multi-compartment device that the California Plumbing Code generally requires to be located underground, on private property between an FSE and the connection to the public sewer. These devices primarily use gravity to separate FOG from the wastewater as it moves from one compartment to the next. To be effective, these devices must be regularly cleaned, maintained and have the FOG removed and disposed of in a proper manner, by the property owner at regular intervals.

"Grease trap"

means a grease control device that is used to serve individual pluming fixtures and should only be used in those cases where the director determines the use of a grease interceptor or other grease control device is impossible and/or impracticable. A grease trap is typically installed indoors, under or near a dishwashing sink.

"Hot spot"

means a point on a sewer line that has experienced SSOs or that must be cleaned or maintained frequently to avoid blockages of the public sewer.

"Inflow"

means water entering the public sewer system through a direct stormwater or runoff connection, which may cause an almost immediate increase in the wastewater flows in the public sewer.

"Infiltration"

means water entering the public sewer from the ground through such means as defective pipes, pipe joints, connections or manhole walls.

"Inspector"

means a person authorized by the director to inspect any existing or proposed wastewater generation, conveyance, processing and/or disposal facilities.

"Manifest"

means that receipt which is retained by a permittee for the disposal of FOG, recyclable wastes and/or liquid wastes.

"New construction"

means any structure planned or under construction for which a sewer connection fee has not been paid.

"Obstruction"

means any discharge which, alone or in combination with discharges from other sources, inhibits or disrupts the public sewer, operations or is otherwise a violation of the Wheatland Municipal Code, including, but not limited to its waste discharge requirements.

"Permittee"

means a FSE that has received a FOG WDP and is subject to the requirements and conditions of this chapter, or as otherwise established by the director.

"Person"

means any individual, partnership, co-partnership, firm, company, association, society, corporation, joint stock company, trust, estate, governmental entity or any other legal entity, or their legal representatives, agents or assigns. The masculine gender shall include the feminine and the singular shall include the plural where indicated by context.

"Publicly owned treatment works (POTW)"

means the wastewater treatment plant that is owned or operated by the city to treat and dispose of its sewage, including any devices or systems used in the collection, storage, treatment, recycling, and reclamation of sewage and/or industrial wastes of a liquid nature and any conveyances which convey wastewater to the POTW.

"Public sewer"

means a sewer which is controlled by a public authority and includes the POTW.

"Remodeling"

means any physical and/or operational change to a FSE causing a change in FOG quantity or consistency and/or that involves any one or a combination of the following:

Under slab plumbing in the food processing area;

A thirty percent increase in the net public seating area;

A thirty percent increase in the size of the kitchen area; and/or

Any change in the size or type of food preparation equipment.

"Sanitary sewer"

means a sewer which carries sewage and to which storm, surface and ground waters are not intentionally admitted.

"Sewage"

means a combination of the water carried waste from residences, business buildings, institutions and industrial establishments, together with such inflow and infiltration as may be present.

"Sewer facilities or system"

means any and all facilities used for collecting, conveying, pumping, treating and disposing of sewage, wastewater and/or sludge.

"Sewer lateral"

means a building sewer as defined in the latest edition of the California Plumbing Code. It is the wastewater connection between the building's wastewater facilities and a public sewer.

"Sludge"

means any solid, semi-solid and/or liquid decant, subnate or supernate from a manufacturing process, utility service, or pretreatment facility.

"Storm drain"

means a pipe or conduit for carrying storm and surface waters and drainage, but excludes sewage and industrial wastes, other than unpolluted cooling water.

"User"

means any person who contributes to, causes, or permits the contribution of wastewater into, the POTW.

"Waste"

means sewage and any and all other waste substances, liquid, solid, gaseous or radioactive, associated with human habitation or of human or animal nature, including such wastes placed within containers or whatever nature prior to and for the purpose of disposal.

"Wastewater"

means the liquid and water carrying industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, FSEs and institutions, whether treated or untreated, which is discharged into or permitted to enter the POTW.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)