Wheatland Municipal Code § 13.22.320 Harmful discharge

A. The director may suspend wastewater service or rescind a FOG WDP if the director determines that such suspension or rescission is necessary, in the opinion of the director or city engineer, in order to stop an actual or threatened discharge that presents or may present an imminent and/or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of persons, to the environment, or which may cause or contribute to obstruction of the public sewer and/or the POTW, or causes or could cause the city to violate any condition of its permits.

B. Any person notified of a suspension of the wastewater treatment service and/or revocation of a FOG WDP shall immediately cease all discharges to the public sewer. If a person fails to comply voluntarily with the director's suspension order, then the director or city engineer shall take any action necessary to prevent or minimize damage to the public sewer and/or POTW, including immediate severance of the sewer connection. The director or city engineer shall reinstate the FOG WDP, wastewater treatment service and or sewer connection only upon proof of the elimination of the nonconforming discharge. A detailed written statement submitted by the user, which describes the causes of the harmful discharge and the measures taken to prevent any recurrence of the harmful discharge shall be submitted to the director or city engineer within fifteen days after the date on which the harmful discharge first occurred.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)

A. Sampling and Inspection Procedures.

1. Sampling and inspection of FSEs shall be conducted in the time, place, manner, and frequency determined at the sole discretion of the director or city engineer. The director has discretion to determine the time, place, manner and/or frequency of sampling and inspection of any FSE.

2. Noncompliance with FOG WDP terms or conditions, or any provision of this chapter or any applicable local, state and/or federal statute, regulation and/or agency may be determined by an inspection of the grease control device or other alternative pretreatment technology, any and all associated records, and any sampling, including a grab or composite sample, of the FSE's discharge.

3. The director may determine that any sample of an FSE's discharge taken from a sample point is representative of the director or city engineer is considered representative of the FSE's discharge to the public sewer and/or POTW.

B. Notice of Violation. Any permittee found to be in violation of any FOG WDP term and condition may be issued a warning notice of violation, which shall include a specified time period to correct the violation. If the violation is not corrected within the time period specified in the warning notice, then the permittee may be issued a notice of violation, which shall contain a specified time period to correct the violation. If the violation is not corrected within the time period specified in the notice, then the permittee shall be considered in noncompliance with its FOG WDP and/or this chapter.

C. Noncompliance Fee. Any permittee in noncompliance with its FOG WDP and/or with any provision of this chapter may be required to pay a noncompliance fee. The purpose of the noncompliance fee is to compensate the city for costs of additional inspection and follow-up sampling, monitoring, laboratory analysis, treatment, disposal, and administrative processing that the city incurs or will incur as a result of the permittee's noncompliance. The noncompliance fee shall be in addition to and not in lieu of any penalties imposed on the permittee pursuant to Section 13.22.360. Noncompliance fees shall be in the amount determined by the director or city engineer. If the permittee remains compliant for twelve consecutive months following the notice of noncompliance the fee may be waived at the discretion of the director or city engineer. The director shall have discretion to determine the amount of any noncompliance fee. If, after receiving a notice of noncompliance, the permittee corrects that which served as the basis of noncompliance and remains compliant for twelve consecutive months thereafter, then the director may waive the noncompliance fee.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)

A. If the director determines that a permittee is in noncompliance with the terms and conditions specified in its FOG WDP or any provision of this chapter, or is required to construct and/or acquire and install a grease control device or grease interceptor, then the director or city engineer may require the permittee to enter into a compliance schedule on terms and conditions specified by the director or city engineer.

B. The compliance schedule may include terms and conditions related to installation of a grease control device or alternative pretreatment technology, submission of drawings or reports, auditing of waste hauling records, implementation and/or exercise of any BMPs and waste minimization practices, payment of fees, and/or any other term or condition to ensure compliance with the FOG WDP and/or this chapter.

C. If compliance is not achieved in accordance with the terms and conditions of a compliance schedule, then the director or city engineer may issue an order suspending or revoking the FOG WDP, pursuant to Section 13.22.350 of this chapter.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)

The city may suspend and/or revoke any FOG WDP if the director or city engineer determines that a permittee:

A. Failed or fails to comply with any term and/or condition of a compliance schedule order;

B. Knowingly prepared, produced and/or submitted a false statement, representation, record, report, or other documents to the city and/or the director or city engineer;

C. Refused or refuses to submit any record, report, plan, or other document required or requested by the city and/or director or city engineer to determine appropriate FOG WDP terms and/or conditions, discharge compliance and/or compliance with this chapter;

D. Falsified, tampered with or knowingly rendered inaccurate any monitoring device and/or sample collection method;

E. Refused or refuses to provide the director, an inspector and/or an enforcement officer reasonable access to the FSE for the purpose of inspection and monitoring;

F. Fails to make timely payment of all fees and charges owed to the city, including but not limited to user charges, FOG WDP fees and/or any other fees imposed pursuant to this chapter;

G. Caused or causes obstruction, sewer blockages or SSOs in the public sewer and/or otherwise adversely affects the public sewer and/or POTW;

H. Violates grease interceptor, grease trap, or alternative pretreatment technology maintenance requirements, any term, condition and/or limit of its FOG WDP;

I. Fails to report significant changes in operations, and/or wastewater constituents and characteristics; and/or

J. Violates any provision contained in this chapter, or any local, state and/or federal statute, regulation and/or agency.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)

A. Every person who violates any provision or who fails to comply with any of the requirements of this chapter is guilty of a misdemeanor unless the city prosecutor reduces the charge to an infraction in the interests of justice, in which case the person shall be guilty of an infraction. Each such person shall be deemed guilty of a separate offense for each and every day or any portion thereof during which any violation of any provision of this chapter is committed, continued or permitted by such person and shall be deemed punishable therefor as provided in this code.

B. The director may order any user, discharger and/or permittee in violation of this chapter and/or any order, rule, regulation and/or permit issued pursuant to this chapter, may be ordered by the director or city engineer to cease and desist all discharges until the violation is cured. Continuance of operations after notice to cease and desist has been furnished to the user and/or permittee shall be unlawful and an infraction or misdemeanor determined by the city attorney. Each day in which any such violation shall continue shall be deemed a separate offense.

C. The violation of any of the provisions of this chapter, or the orders, rules, regulations and permits issued under this chapter, or the doing of any act prohibited or the failure or omission to do any act required by this chapter, or the orders, rules, and regulations and permits issued under this chapter, is a public nuisance and may be enjoined by the city attorney.

D. If any violation of this chapter, or the orders, rules, regulations and permits issued under this chapter, causes damage to the POTW, the director or city engineer may seek to recover civil damages from the user causing such damage.

E. The director or city engineer is authorized to levy against any person administrative fines of up to ten thousand dollars per day for each violation of the rules, regulations, and permits issued under this chapter. The notice shall provide information as to the reason for the administrative fine and the authority and the notice shall also specify the person's right to appeal.

F. The director or city engineer shall provide written notice of such levy to the person by certified mail. If a user, discharger and/or permittee fail to comply with any cease and desist order issued pursuant to this chapter after being provided notice of said cease and desist order, then that failure shall be unlawful and shall constitute an infraction or misdemeanor as determined by the city attorney. Each day of noncompliance with the cease and desist order shall constitute a separate offense.

G. The violation of any of the provisions of this chapter, or any order, rule, regulation and/or permit issued pursuant to this chapter, or the commission of any act prohibited by, or the failure perform any act required by, this chapter or any order, rule, regulation and/or permit issued pursuant to this chapter, shall constitute a public nuisance and the city attorney may seek an injunction of said public nuisance on behalf of, and at the direction of, the city.

H. If any violation of this chapter, or any order, rule, regulation and/or permit issued pursuant to this chapter, causes damage to the public sewer and/or POTW, then the city may seek to recover civil damages from the user, discharge and/or permittee responsible, in whole or in part, for that damage.

I. The director is authorized to issue administrative citations and levy penalties pursuant to Chapter 1.18 as a means to enforce any violation of this chapter.

J. The remedies and provisions of this section are cumulative, and are in addition to any other remedy or provision of law.

(Ord. 417 § 2, 2009)