CHAPTER 13.20
GROUNDWATER ANTI-DEGRADATION POLICY
Sections
13.20.020 Abbreviations and definitions.
13.20.040 Prohibited discharges to the domestic POTW.
13.20.050 Monitoring required.
13.20.070 Bypasses of monitoring device.
13.20.010 Purpose and policy.
A. This chapter establishes uniform requirements for dischargers of wastewaters (dischargers) with high total dissolved solids (TDS), brackish water, brine waste and high silica wastewater to the City’s domestic publicly owned treatment works (domestic POTW) to accomplish the following objectives:
1. To prevent the discharge of dissolved solids into the domestic POTW in amounts that will interfere with the operation of the domestic POTW;
2. To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the domestic POTW which will be inadequately treated and pass through the domestic POTW into groundwater and above limits established by WAC 173-200-040 or 173-200-050;
3. To promote strategies which reduce the amount of pollution generated by dischargers, thereby reducing the associated hazards to the domestic POTW and to groundwater;
4. To prevent scale buildup in the domestic POTW caused by high hardness and silica discharges;
5. To provide for fees for the equitable distribution of the cost of operation, maintenance and improvement of the domestic POTW; and
6. To limit concentrations of constituents in hauled brine waste to concentrations that will not cause constituent concentrations in the brine lagoon system to exceed federal or state standards for solid waste disposal.
B. The regulations established by this chapter are based on the recognition that some industrial users implement evaporative processes (wastewater demineralization systems) that cause TDS in a discharger’s wastewater to increase in concentrations significantly above the concentrations of TDS in a discharger’s source water before it is discharged to the domestic POTW. The domestic POTW can accommodate a base TDS loading of five hundred mg/L and has the capacity to receive and compensate for one thousand five hundred pounds per day of TDS in addition to the base load when the City implements a process of blending demineralized water with wastewater having high TDS. Based on these premises, and in order for the City to optimally implement its capacity to blend demineralized water, this chapter establishes the standards upon which dischargers may discharge wastewater to the domestic sewer system with TDS concentrations greater than five hundred mg/L.
C. Users that implement very low or zero liquid discharge systems for their evaporative processes shall identify those methods to the City and develop alternate disposal methods for the byproducts of technologies used to achieve low or zero discharge. Those byproducts will be evaluated for receipt at the City’s byproduct handling facilities. Byproducts of concern are brackish waters, brines or silica laden wastewaters. (Ord 16-466 §4; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.020 Abbreviations and definitions.
Unless a provision explicitly states otherwise, the following abbreviations, terms and phrases used in this chapter shall have the following meanings:
"Administrator" means the person designated by the Mayor or City Administrator to supervise the operation of the domestic and/or industrial POTW, and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter, including the Administrator’s duly authorized representative.
"Brackish water" means water with elevated concentrations of TDS above the background levels in the City’s domestic water supply, but less than that of brine waste, typically having TDS concentrations between five hundred mg/L and below thirty thousand mg/L.
"Brine lagoon system" means that portion of the industrial POTW specifically intended for the evaporation and concentration of brine waste, and not hydraulically connected to any other portion of the industrial POTW.
"Brine waste" means regeneration waste from wastewater demineralization systems typically having TDS concentrations in excess of thirty thousand mg/L.
"Conductivity" means the measure of electrical conductivity of water in units of microsiemens per meter (µS/m) and is used to determine TDS in water using a conversion factor. The factor generally ranges from 0.6 to 0.8 mg/L TDS per one µS/m.
"Discharger" means any person or source who discharges an effluent into the domestic POTW by means of pipes, conduits, pumping stations, force mains, tank trucks, constructed drainage ditches, intercepting ditches, and all constructed devices and appliances appurtenant thereto.
"Domestic POTW" means that portion of the POTW intended primarily for collecting, pumping, treating, and disposing of domestic wastewater.
"Domestic wastewater" means wastewater of a similar volume and chemical makeup to that from a residential dwelling unit. Discharges from a residential dwelling unit typically include up to nine hundred cubic feet of flow per month, with a concentration of up to three hundred mg/L of BOD, three hundred mg/L of TSS, and sixty mg/L of total ammonia.
"Hauled brine waste" means brine waste introduced into the industrial POTW which has been transported by truck, rail, or any other transport, or piped directly to the brine lagoon system without a hydraulic connection to other portions of the industrial POTW.
"High silica wastewater" means wastewater with silica concentrations greater than two hundred fifty mg/L.
"Monitoring device" means a device approved by the Administrator that measures wastewater flow and wastewater conductivity on a continuous basis. The measurement of conductivity by the monitoring device shall be a surrogate measurement for TDS.
"Publicly owned treatment works (POTW)" means a treatment works, as defined by Section 212 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (also termed the Clean Water Act, 33 USC 1292), which is owned by the City. This definition includes any devices or systems used in the collection, storage, treatment, recycling, and reclamation of sewage or industrial wastes of a liquid nature and any conveyances which convey wastewater to a treatment plant.
"TDS" means total dissolved solids, and is a measurement of the level of solids in wastewater.
"Wastewater demineralization systems" means those systems utilized by dischargers to demineralize wastewater, such systems including, but not limited to, ion exchange water softeners or ion exchange demineralization systems, which utilize a process using an exchange of ions between two electrolytes or between an electrolyte solution and a complex for the purification, separation, or decontamination of an aqueous solution; or a reverse osmosis system, which is a purification, separation, or decontamination process utilizing pressure applied to an aqueous solution on one side of a selective membrane so that osmotic pressure is overcome and the solvent passes through to the nonpressurized side while the solute is retained. (Ord 19-538 §18; Ord 16-466 §5; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.030 Administration.
Except as otherwise provided, the Administrator shall administer, implement, and enforce provisions of this chapter. (Ord 19-538 §19; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.040 Prohibited discharges to the domestic POTW.
Discharges of brackish water or brine waste having a TDS concentration exceeding five thousand mg/L are prohibited. (Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.050 Monitoring required.
A. Dischargers operating wastewater demineralization systems shall install, properly operate, clean, and maintain a monitoring device approved by the Administrator, and shall otherwise ensure the monitoring device accurately measures wastewater flow and conductivity, as set out in Chapter 13.50.
B. For each discharger, the Administrator will establish a mathematical relationship between conductivity and TDS based on laboratory testing. Testing will be conducted once per year, at a minimum.
C. The Administrator may, at times, test for conductivity outside the discharger’s premises, as infrastructure access allows, or at the nearest downstream access point in the sewer system. (Ord 19-538 §20; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.060 Reporting required.
A. Dischargers operating wastewater demineralization systems shall submit reports to the Administrator reporting average and maximum wastewater flows and average and maximum dissolved solids loadings. The Administrator will specify the sampling and reporting frequencies, which will be no more frequently than monthly and no less frequently than twice a year.
B. Dischargers shall sign, certify and submit all monitoring reports no later than the fifteenth day of the month following the end date of the reporting period. Reports submitted by mail shall be postmarked no later than this date.
C. Reporting shall otherwise be subject to the requirements of Chapter 13.50. (Ord 19-538 §21; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.070 Bypasses of monitoring device.
Dischargers shall not allow wastewater to bypass a monitoring device. Bypasses shall be reported to the Administrator within twenty-four hours after the discharger discovers the bypass. (Ord 19-538 §22; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.080 Provisions for prior contracts.
A. The monitoring requirements in this chapter shall not replace or supersede any TDS monitoring requirements established by ordinances or agreements with dischargers in effect prior to February 14, 2012. Where monitoring requirements have been previously established, the discharger shall continue to conform to the established requirements.
B. Where a provision for TDS discharges by a discharger has been established by an ordinance or agreement prior to the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter, the discharger shall not be subject to the fines and penalties in this section unless those fines and penalties are also part of the established ordinance or agreement. The fines and penalties in this chapter shall not replace or supersede any fines and penalties for TDS discharges established by ordinance or agreement effective prior to this chapter. Standard sewer connections where TDS is not specifically addressed by ordinance or agreement are not considered to be established provisions for TDS discharges. (Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.090 Hauled brine waste.
A. Hauled brine waste is not subject to monitoring or reporting as set out in this chapter.
B. Hauled brine waste may be discharged only at locations designated by the Administrator and with the prior consent of the Administrator. The Administrator may collect samples of hauled brine waste to ensure compliance with applicable standards, and halt the discharge of hauled brine waste at any point in order to take additional samples or hold the load pending analysis.
C. Haulers of hauled brine waste must provide a waste tracking form for every load of hauled TDS waste that will be discharged into facilities owned by the City, which will include information required by the Administrator including, without limitation, the following:
1. The name and address of the hauler of the hauled brine waste;
2. Hauler permit number;
3. Truck and driver identification;
4. The names and addresses of the sources of the hauled brine waste;
5. For each pickup, the type of industry, volume, brief description, known characteristics, and presumed constituents of the hauled brine waste; and
6. Any wastes which are hazardous wastes under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act, 42 USC 6901 et seq.
D. Prior to discharge and at regular intervals thereafter, users or other persons discharging to the brine lagoon system shall furnish discharge quantity volumes and sampling results characterizing hauled brine waste. Characterization shall include at minimum the TDS and the constituents for which hauled brine waste limits are established in subsection (E) of this section. Metering and sampling intervals and additional sampling constituents shall be described in the written customer agreement described in Section 13.12.195. Metering and sampling intervals and additional sampling constituents for users without a written customer agreement shall be determined on a case-by-case basis, as determined by the Administrator.
E. No user or other person may discharge hauled brine waste having constituents exceeding any of the following concentrations:
|
Constituent |
Constituent Concentration (mg/L) |
|
|---|---|---|
|
|
Pct of the hauled brine waste TDS concentration |
But no greater than: |
|
Arsenic |
.5% |
0.71 mg/L |
|
Barium |
.5% |
14 mg/L |
|
Cadmium |
.0001% |
0.14 mg/L |
|
Chromium |
.5% |
0.71 mg/L |
|
Copper |
.001% |
NA |
|
Lead |
.01% |
0.71 mg/L |
|
Mercury |
.0001% |
0.3 mg/L |
|
Nickel |
.001% |
NA |
|
Selenium |
.1% |
0.14 mg/L |
|
Silver |
.0001% |
0.71 mg/L |
|
Zinc |
.01% |
NA |
(Ord 16-466 §6; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))
13.20.100 Rates.
Rates for the discharge of brine waste and brackish water into the domestic POTW, and the discharge of hauled brine waste to the City’s facilities, shall be established in the City’s rate resolution. Users discharging quantities in excess of those established in Section 13.12.160 or in a written customer agreement as described in Section 13.12.195 shall be subject to a surcharge also established in the City’s rate resolution. (Ord 16-466 §7; Ord 12-297 §1 (Ex A))