Chapter 6.04
GENERAL SEWER USE REQUIREMENTS
Sections:
6.04.010 Prohibited discharge standards.
6.04.020 National Categorical Pretreatment Standards.
6.04.040 Western’s right of revision.
6.04.060 Industrial water softener policy.
6.04.070 Residential water softener policy.
6.04.080 General water softener policy.
6.04.090 Sewer hookup required.
6.04.100 Authorization to discharge.
6.04.110 Sewer connection rules.
6.04.010 Prohibited discharge standards.
A. General Prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW any pollutant or wastewater which causes pass through or interference. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the POTW whether or not they are subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, state, or local pretreatment standards or requirements.
B. Specific Prohibitions. No user shall introduce or cause to be introduced into the POTW the following pollutants, substances, or wastewater:
1. Pollutants which create a fire or explosive hazard in the POTW, including, but not limited to, wastestreams with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees F (60 degrees C) using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21;
2. Wastewater having a pH less than 6.0 or more than 10.0, or otherwise causing corrosive structural damage to the collection system, POTW or equipment, but in no case discharges with pH lower than 5.0, unless the POTW is specifically designed to accommodate such discharges;
3. Solid or viscous pollutants in amounts which will cause obstruction of the flow in the collection system or POTW resulting in interference, but in no case solids greater than one-half of an inch or 1.2 centimeters in any dimension;
4. Pollutants, including oxygen demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.), released in a discharge at a flow rate and/or pollutant concentration which, either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, will cause interference with the POTW;
5. Wastewater having a temperature greater than 140 degrees F (60 degrees C), or which will inhibit biological activity in the treatment plant resulting in interference, but in no case wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 104 degrees F (40 degrees C);
6. Petroleum oil, nonbiodegradable cutting oil, or products of mineral oil origin, in amounts that will cause interference or pass through, or in amounts that exceed any local limit;
7. Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the POTW or collection system 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 general manager in accordance with WMWDC 6.08.050;
9. Noxious or malodorous liquids, gases, solids, or other wastewater which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are sufficient to create a public nuisance or a hazard to life, or to prevent entry into the sewers for maintenance or repair;
10. Wastewater which imparts color which cannot be removed by the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions;
11. Wastewater which causes or contributes to increased treatment costs or a violation of WRCRWA’s NPDES permit;
12. Wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes except in compliance with applicable state or federal regulations;
13. Storm water, surface water, ground water, artesian well water, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, swimming pool drainage, condensate, deionized water, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the general manager;
14. Sludges, screenings, or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial wastes;
15. Medical wastes, except as specifically authorized by the general manager in an individual wastewater discharge permit;
16. Any infectious waste except where prior written approval for such discharges is given by the general manager;
17. Wastewater causing, alone or in conjunction with other sources, the treatment plant’s effluent to fail toxicity test;
18. Detergents, surface active agents, or other substances that might cause excessive foaming in the POTW;
19. Any solids, liquids, gases, devices, or explosives which by their very nature or quantity are or may be sufficient either alone or by interaction with other substances or sewage to cause fire or explosion hazards, exceed 10 percent of the lower explosive limit (“LEL”) at the point of discharge or in the collection system, or in any other way create imminent danger to Western or contract wastewater personnel, WRCRWA’s POTW, the environment or public health;
20. Any hazardous waste or toxic substance including, but not limited to, those listed in 40 CFR Part 300.5 or any substance designated pursuant to Section 311(b)(2)(A) of the Act, or any element, compound, mixture, solution or substance designated pursuant to Section 102 of the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation And Liability Act, any hazardous waste having the characteristics identified under or listed pursuant to Section 3001 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act, any toxic pollutant listed under Section 307(a) of the Act, any hazardous air pollutant listed under Section 112 of the Clean Air Act, any eminently hazardous chemical toxic substance or mixture which the EPA has taken action pursuant to Section 7 of the Toxic Substances Control Act, or any hazardous waste as defined in 40 CFR Part 261.3 or Title 22 of the California Code of Regulations;
21. Waste recovered from treatment equipment, systems or devices into any private sewer or any drains or other openings leading to the collection system. All recovered waste shall be disposed of in accordance with all applicable federal, state, county and local laws and regulations;
22. Any liquid or solid substance, including without limitation fats, oils, grease, compounds, debris, objects, material or elements that could potentially damage the collection system or receiving POTW, as solely determined by Western, or potentially create excessive operation and maintenance expense to remedy its presence.
Pollutants, substances, or wastewater prohibited by this section shall not be processed or stored in such a manner that they could be discharged to the POTW. (Ord. 387 § 2.1, 2017)
6.04.020 National Categorical Pretreatment Standards.
Users must comply with the categorical pretreatment standards found at 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405–471.
A. Where a categorical pretreatment standard is expressed only in terms of either the mass or the concentration of a pollutant in wastewater, the general manager, with the approval of WRCRWA as the control authority, may impose equivalent concentration or mass limits in accordance with 40 CFR 403.6(c).
B. When the limits in a categorical pretreatment standard are expressed only in terms of mass of pollutant per unit of production, the general manager, with the approval of WRCRWA as the control authority, may convert the limits to equivalent limitations expressed either as mass of pollutant discharged per day or effluent concentration for purposes of calculating effluent limitations applicable to individual industrial users.
C. When wastewater subject to a categorical pretreatment standard is mixed with wastewater not regulated by the same standard, the general manager shall impose an alternate limit in accordance with 40 CFR 403.6(e). (Ord. 387 § 2.2, 2017)
6.04.030 Local limits.
A. WRCRWA shall establish qualitative or other limitations or restrictions applicable to wastewater or sanitary wastes when, in its judgment, it is necessary to protect the regional sewerage system. Wastewater or sanitary waste discharges in excess of the limits established by WRCRWA or any state of California law or applicable federal categorical pretreatment standard shall constitute excessive concentrations or quantities prohibited by WMWDC 6.04.010. WRCRWA shall promulgate and maintain a list of limitations established for restricted wastes which are generally applicable to all member agencies or domestic waste haulers.
WRCRWA may establish qualitative limitations for member agencies such as Western, domestic waste haulers, or users that are not within the jurisdiction of a member agency, such as Western, that is implementing a pretreatment program pursuant to a regional pretreatment agreement which, because of their location, quantity, or quality of discharge, can degrade the quality of wastewater treatment plant effluent or residue or air quality to a level that prevents or inhibits efforts to reuse or dispose of the water or residue or cause any unusual operation or maintenance problems in the regional sewerage system or Western’s collection system.
B. The pollutant limits provided in Attachment A are established to protect against pass through and interference. No user shall discharge wastewater containing an excess of the daily maximum limit as specified in Attachment A.
Attachment A
|
|
Column 1 |
Column 2 |
|---|---|---|
|
Constituents |
Local Limits Concentration (mg/L) |
Local Limits Maximum Threshold Loadings (lbs/day)1 |
|
Ammonia |
106 |
--- |
|
Arsenic |
1.5 |
--- |
|
BOD |
283 |
11.80 |
|
Boron |
1.04 |
0.04 |
|
Cadmium |
0.33 |
--- |
|
Chloride |
510 |
21.27 |
|
Chromium (total) |
0.7 |
--- |
|
Copper |
2.8 |
--- |
|
Cyanide |
0.12 |
--- |
|
Fluoride |
1 |
0.04 |
|
Iron |
200 |
--- |
|
Lead |
1.7 |
--- |
|
Mercury |
0.1 |
--- |
|
Nickel |
8.9 |
--- |
|
Oil and Grease |
150 |
--- |
|
Selenium |
0.008 |
--- |
|
Silver |
1.4 |
--- |
|
Sodium |
141 |
5.88 |
|
Sulfate |
300 |
--- |
|
Surfactants |
15 |
--- |
|
TDS |
751 |
31.32 |
|
Total Hardness |
5600 |
--- |
|
TSS |
433 |
18.06 |
|
Zinc |
18.64 |
--- |
1 Industrial users may discharge at any concentration up to the daily threshold loadings specified in Column 2 for the seven constituents shown. Discharges exceeding Column 2 daily loadings limits shall comply with concentration limits specified in Column 1.
The general manager may impose mass limitations in addition to the concentration based limitations. (Ord. 387 § 2.3, 2017)
6.04.040 Western’s right of revision.
Western reserves the right to establish, by ordinance or in individual wastewater discharge permits, more stringent standards or requirements on discharges to the POTW consistent with the purpose of this division. (Ord. 387 § 2.4, 2017)
6.04.050 Dilution.
No user shall ever increase the use of process water, or in any way attempt to dilute a discharge, as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with a discharge limitation unless expressly authorized by an applicable pretreatment standard or requirement. The general manager may impose mass limitations on users who are using dilution to meet applicable pretreatment standards or requirements or in other cases when the imposition of mass limitations is appropriate. (Ord. 387 § 2.5, 2017)
6.04.060 Industrial water softener policy.
No user shall install, replace, enlarge or use any apparatus for softening all or any part of the water supply to any premises when such apparatus is an ion-exchange softener or demineralizer of the self-regenerating type, with the regeneration wastes being discharged to the ground, storm drain or Western’s collection system unless:
A. The brine solutions generated during the backwash cycles of the water softener are segregated from the fresh water rinses for disposal to a legal brine disposal site;
B. The backwash equipment shall be equipped with an electrical conductivity controlled discharge valve that controls the wastewater discharged to the POTW. The electrical conductivity valve shall be calibrated at a minimum, annually, or as often as necessary to control and prevent any wastewater from being discharged to the POTW that exceeds the maximum electrical conductivity, total dissolved solids, or associated sodium and chloride concentrations established in the local limits.
C. The user shall maintain the electrical conductivity controlled discharge valve in proper operating condition at all times. The user shall notify the general manager within 24 hours in the event of a valve failure and immediately cease the discharge of all wastewater to the collection system associated with the soft water regenerating process. A written report documenting the cause of the failure and the corrective actions taken shall be submitted to Western within five calendar days after discovery of the electrical conductivity valve failure. (Ord. 387 § 2.6, 2017)
6.04.070 Residential water softener policy.
Residential water softening shall be regulated in accordance with California Health and Safety Code Sections 116775 – 116795 and amendments thereto, which are hereby incorporated by reference. (Ord. 387 § 2.7, 2017)
6.04.080 General water softener policy.
A. Any person installing or operating a water conditioning apparatus of any kind shall make such apparatus available to the general manager for inspection at reasonable times.
B. Western may limit the availability, or prohibit the installation, of residential water softening or conditioning appliances that discharge to the collection system if the general manager makes all of the following findings:
1. The receiving POTW is not in compliance with the discharge or water reclamation requirements specified in the waste discharge requirements (“WDR”) or NPDES permit issued by the applicable Regional Water Quality Control Board (“regional board”);
2. Limiting the availability, or prohibiting the installation, of the appliances is the only available means of achieving compliance with WDRs issued by the regional board; and
3. All nonresidential sources are limited to the volumes and concentrations of saline discharges to the POTW to the extent technologically and economically feasible. (Ord. 387 § 2.8, 2017)
6.04.090 Sewer hookup required.
A. When required by the local building authority to connect to the collection system, the user shall make application to Western for sewer service.
B. No user shall make any connection to Western’s collection system, or appurtenance thereof, without obtaining Western authorization. The authorization shall be in addition to any and all permits required by Western.
C. No user, public agency or entity outside the boundaries of Western shall discharge into any Western collection system or POTW without an interagency agreement and/or permit issued by Western. (Ord. 387 § 2.9, 2017)
6.04.100 Authorization to discharge.
A. To provide maximum public benefit from Western’s collection system, written authorization to use said facilities is required. Authorization may be issued subject to the following conditions:
1. All required Western fees and charges, as adopted by ordinance or resolution by Western’s board of directors, and which may be modified from time to time, have been paid;
2. An industrial wastewater discharge permit application has been submitted, where applicable;
3. The applicant agrees to comply with federal, state, and Western requirements including this division governing user discharges. (Ord. 387 § 2.10, 2017)
6.04.110 Sewer connection rules.
A. The connection to Western’s collection system shall conform to the requirements of applicable building and plumbing codes and current Western rules and regulations. All such connections shall be gas and watertight, and shall be tested as described in Western’s Developer Handbook and Standard Drawings for Water and Sewer Facilities. Any deviation from such codes and/or Western rules and regulations must be approved, in writing, by Western prior to the installation of the connection.
B. Following issuance of authorization to connect to the collection system, the discharger shall notify Western when the building’s sewer is ready for connection to the collection system. Western reserves the right to inspect any physical connection of the building’s sewer to Western’s collection system.
C. Whenever, in the opinion of Western, there exists the possibility of sewage from Western’s public sewer main flooding through the connection into the connected structure as a result of hydraulic characteristics in Western’s collection system, a backwater overflow prevention device, approved by Western, shall be installed in the user’s lateral at the user’s expense.
D. All excavations for a building sewer installation and connection thereof to Western’s collection system shall be adequately guarded to protect the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways, and other public property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in a satisfactory manner as determined by Western at the user’s expense. (Ord. 387 § 2.11, 2017)