Chapter 14.04
GENERAL SEWER REGULATIONS
Sections:
14.04.020 Purpose of rules and regulations.
14.04.040 Sewer service and connection conditions.
14.04.050 Tampering with city property.
14.04.060 Damage to city sewers.
14.04.070 Right to inspect and enter private property for work within sewer easements.
14.04.080 Unlawful to make sewer connection without payment of fee.
14.04.090 Enforcement measures in case of delinquency.
14.04.100 Maintenance of sewer lateral.
14.04.110 Restrictions relating to use of public sewers.
14.04.120 Pumping interceptors/grease traps.
14.04.160 Violation – Penalty.
14.04.010 Title.
This chapter shall be known as the “city of Solana Beach sewer regulations ordinance.” (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.020 Purpose of rules and regulations.
The purpose of these rules and regulations is to set forth the terms and conditions under which the city will authorize connections and provide sewer service to customers. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.030 Sewer system.
The city will furnish a system, works and infrastructure used for and useful for collection of domestic and industrial sanitary sewage, including all parts of the enterprises, all appurtenances to it, and lands, easements, rights in land, contract rights, franchises, and other sewage collection facilities and equipment. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.040 Sewer service and connection conditions.
All applicants for sewer service or sewer connections shall be required to accept such conditions of connection and service as may be provided by the city. The construction, installation, or repair of sewer service laterals and house sewers and connections to the sewer system shall be completed to the satisfaction of the city engineer or his representatives, and in accordance with all existing laws, ordinances, and rules of the city, county of San Diego, and the state of California or any department thereof. The type of sewage discharged into the sewer system shall meet the requirements and restrictions of the San Elijo Joint Powers Authority. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.050 Tampering with city property.
No one except an employee or representative of the city shall at any time in any manner operate the valves, motors, gates, machinery, sewage treatment plant, sewer utility holes, or siphons of the city system or interfere with sewer lines or other parts of the sewer system. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.060 Damage to city sewers.
No person shall willfully break, damage, destroy, uncover, deface or tamper with any structure, appurtenances or equipment which is part of the city’s sewer system. Any person who willfully or negligently damages any city sewer or facility thereto is liable for the cost of repair, including the cost of replacement thereof. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.070 Right to inspect and enter private property for work within sewer easements.
With the permission of the property owner, the officers, employees and agents of the city bearing proper credentials and identification shall have the right to enter upon any premises within the city to inspect and determine if this title is being complied with, and for the purposes of, but not limited to, inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair, replacement and maintenance of any portion of the sewer system within any easements on the property. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.080 Unlawful to make sewer connection without payment of fee.
A. No person shall connect to the city’s sewer system without first submitting an application for sewer connection and obtaining the approval of the city engineer authorizing such connection.
1. Approval of the application shall be given if the applicant is able to deliver sewage to points and elevations designated by the city and has paid all related fees and charges.
2. All applicants for new connections must provide evidence that the property or properties to be served are within the boundaries of the city or shall have submitted a request and “consent to annexation” to the city and paid the prescribed fees and charges for such annexation and complied with all local and state laws related to annexations.
B. It is unlawful for any person:
1. To place, discharge or dispose of any material, solid or liquid, into the sewer system, or any part thereof, without first obtaining a permit from the city pursuant to this title, and without having first paid all fees required by this title; or
2. To place, discharge or dispose of any substance into the sewer system except substances of waste materials originating on the premises to which a sewer connection permit has been issued. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.090 Enforcement measures in case of delinquency.
When any fee or charge imposed by this title becomes delinquent, the enforcement agents are authorized to take any or all of the following actions in accordance with the law:
A. Any steps authorized by law to collect fees and charges;
B. Disconnect the premises from the city’s sewer system; prior to such disconnection, notice of such delinquency shall be given to the occupant of the premises by United States mail with return receipt, or by posting such notice on the premises; the occupant will be given the opportunity for informal hearing with the city manager prior to said disconnection, and, if requested, within five days thereafter appeal to the city council; concurrently with the disconnect, a copy of the city’s notice to occupant will be furnished to the regional office of the county health department. When a premises has been disconnected, it shall not be reconnected until all delinquent fees and charges have been paid, together with a charge for such disconnection and reconnection, as established by resolution of the city council. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.100 Maintenance of sewer lateral.
A. The property owner serviced by a sewer lateral shall be responsible for cleaning, maintaining and repairing the sewer lateral between the sewer main and the lateral connection to the structure.
B. The property owner shall do such work at the property owner’s sole expense and only after the required permits have been issued.
C. When it is necessary for the city to relieve stop-ups in the service laterals, the owner of such property shall reimburse the city for the cost of the removal of such obstruction.
D. For properties determined to be a potential threat to the city’s sewerage system, the city engineer may require the installation of a backflow prevention device to mitigate and/or halt the backflow of sewage into the property owner’s lateral line. At the discretion of the city engineer, the installation of a backflow prevention device may be a condition of approval prior to allowing connection to the city’s sewerage system.
E. For properties that are already connected to the city’s sewerage system, the city engineer may require the installation of a backflow prevention device based on her or his professional opinion that there is a threat of potential harm due to the nature of the location of the property owner’s lateral connection and other related factors. The city engineer may allow the property owner a reasonable period of time to amortize the cost of the backflow prevention device or use other means to assist the property owner to comply with the protection device requirement. Failure of a property owner to install a necessary backflow prevention device shall allow the city engineer to halt service pursuant to SBMC 14.24.140. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.110 Restrictions relating to use of public sewers.
A. No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any storm water, surface water, groundwater, unpolluted industrial process water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, or any waters from an uncontaminated cooling system, swimming pool, decorative fountain or pond, into any public sewer or any private sewer which is connected to the public sewer without written permission from the city engineer in conformance with adopted regulations.
B. No person shall enter, obstruct, uncover, or tamper with any portion of the public sewer, or connect to it, or dispose septic tank/cesspool wastes, or dispose of anything into any sewer and/or sewer utility hole without the written permission of the city engineer.
C. No person shall remove or demolish any building or structures with plumbing fixtures connected directly or indirectly to the public sewer as follows:
1. The person shall notify the city engineer prior to commencing work;
2. The person shall ensure that all openings in or leading to the public sewer line or lines caused by such work shall be sealed watertight;
3. The person shall ensure that the city engineer or his representative inspects the work before being backfilled; and
4. The backfill or fill material intended to cover the improvements shall be of the quality, compaction level and quantity approved by the city engineer.
D. No person shall fill or backfill over, or cause to cover, or obstruct access to, any sewer utility hole.
E. No person shall erect any improvements, structures, or buildings over public sewers or sewer easements without the written permission of the city engineer.
F. Except as hereinafter provided in this section, no person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any of the following described substances, waters or wastes into any public sewer:
1. Liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than 140 degrees Fahrenheit;
2. Water or waste which may contain more than 200 mg/l for inorganic or 400 mg/l of organic concentration of fats, oils, grease, or waxes, or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32 degrees and 150 degrees Fahrenheit;
3. Gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil, or other flammable or explosive liquid, solid or gas;
4. Toxic, noxious or malodorous liquid, solid, or gas deemed a public hazard and nuisance;
5. Paints, or waste products from paint manufacture;
6. Garbage that has not been properly shredded to a size of one-fourth inch or less so that all particles will be carried freely under normal flow conditions in the public sewers;
7. Ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, paunch manure, paper substances or normally dry, solid wastes capable of causing obstruction to the flow in or damage to sewers or other interference with the proper operation of the sewerage works;
8. Water or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5 or higher than 11.0 or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and personnel of the sewerage works;
9. Water or wastes containing any substance in sufficient quantity to discolor, injure, disrupt or interfere with the normal operation of any sewage treatment process, constitute a hazard to human or animal life, create a public nuisance, or significantly lower the quality of the receiving waters;
10. Water or wastes containing suspended solids of such character or quantity that unusual attention or expense is required to handle such materials at the sewage treatment plant;
11. Unusual volume of flow or concentration of wastes constituting “slugs” as defined in SBMC 14.01.030;
12. Radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration that may exceed limits established by the city engineer in compliance with the applicable state or federal regulations;
13. Water added for the purpose of diluting wastes which could otherwise exceed applicable maximum concentration limitations; or
14. Water or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment or reduction by the treatment processes normally employed.
G. No person shall connect a lateral from private property directly to a trunk line.
H. All connections made to the sewer system shall be located at a connection point approved by the city engineer. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.120 Pumping interceptors/grease traps.
A. No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any fats, greases, and waxes to the sewer system if their concentration and physical dispersion results in separation and adherence to sewer structures and appurtenances. If there is evidence of adherence of such materials to said structures, or if such materials cause blockage in the sewer system, then the wastewater carrying such materials must be effectively pretreated by a process or device to effect removal from the flow before its discharge to the sewer system. Grease, oil, and sand interceptors shall be installed when deemed necessary by the city engineer for the proper handling of liquid waste containing grease in excessive amounts, and flammable materials, sand, and other harmful ingredients. All interceptors shall be of a type and capacity acceptable to the city engineer and shall be located as to be readily 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. All grease, oil, and sand interceptors shall be maintained in continuously efficient operation at all times by the owner at his expense. In the maintaining of these interceptors, the owner shall be responsible for the costs and the proper removal and disposal by appropriate means of the captured material and shall maintain records of the dates, amounts, and means of disposal which are subject to review by the city engineer. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.130 Surcharge.
Any person who discharges or causes to be discharged into the public sewers any water or wastes having more than 200 mg/l of inorganic or 400 mg/l of organic grease or oil shall be obligated to pay a surcharge, occasioned by the extent to which such water or waste contains an excess over the foregoing limitation of concentration, or by the estimated cost of the city services required to remedy the effect of the discharge. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.140 Self-regenerating or automatic water softeners prohibited.
Repealed by Ord. 373. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.150 Septic tanks.
Title 6, Division 8, Chapter 3 (Septic tanks and seepage pits) and Title 6, Division 8, Chapter 6 (Septic tanks and cesspool cleaners) of the San Diego County Code of Regulatory Ordinances, as amended, is hereby adopted by reference and applicable to all septic systems within the city of Solana Beach. The city council may adopt policies and regulations of septic systems by resolution. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)
14.04.160 Violation – Penalty.
For the failure to comply with all or any part of this title, any ordinance, resolution or order of the city pertaining to the delivery of public sewer services, in addition to any other penalty or remedy provided by law, the city may discontinue sewer service in accordance with an order of court. Any person violating any of the provisions of this title is liable to the city for any expense, loss or damage, and for any increase in the cost of maintenance or repair, occasioned by the city as a result of such violation. (Ord. 338 § 1, 2005)