Title 10
SEWERS
Chapters:
10.01 WASTEWATER TREATMENT SYSTEM – REGULATIONS – FEES
10.01.010 General provisions.
10.01.020 Abbreviations.
10.01.030 Definitions.
10.01.040 Regulations.
10.01.050 Public policy.
10.01.060 Sewer funds.
10.01.070 Sewer rates.
10.01.080 Sewer system development charges.
10.01.090 Collection.
10.01.095 Adjustments, back-billing, credits and refunds.
10.01.100 Public sewers required.
10.01.110 Main extensions.
10.01.120 Service lateral construction.
10.01.130 Service lateral maintenance.
10.01.132 Service lateral replacement.
10.01.133 Assistance in removal of unpolluted waters.
10.01.134 Basement flooding protection loans.
10.01.138 Appeal process.
10.01.140 Protection from damage.
10.01.150 Nuisance.
10.01.160 Notice to abate.
10.01.170 Abatement procedures.
10.01.180 Assessment of costs.
10.01.185 Hauled waste.
10.01.210 Penalties.
10.01.220 Severability.
10.06 WASTEWATER COLLECTION AND TREATMENT SYSTEM – REGULATION OF INDUSTRIAL WASTES
10.06.010 General provisions.
10.06.020 Abbreviations.
10.06.030 Definitions.
10.06.040 Regulations.
10.06.050 Hauled waste.
10.06.060 Administration.
10.06.070 Pretreatment facilities.
10.06.080 Enforcement.
10.06.090 Penalties.
10.06.100 Severability.
10.14 SEWER CONNECTIONS OF UNASSESSED PROPERTIES (Repealed)
10.16 IN-LIEU-OF ASSESSMENTS FOR THE NORTH ALBANY SANITARY SEWER BASIN
10.16.010 Purpose.
10.16.020 Definitions.
10.16.030 Need for this chapter.
10.16.040 Exemption from Chapter 10.14.
10.16.100 In-lieu-of assessment for interceptor sewers, properties outside sewer district.
10.16.110 Interceptor in-lieu-of rate, properties outside sewer district.
10.16.120 In-lieu-of assessment for interceptor sewers, properties inside sewer district.
10.16.130 Interceptor in-lieu-of rate, properties inside sewer district.
10.16.200 In-lieu-of assessment for collector sewers, properties outside sewer district.
10.16.210 Collector in-lieu-of rate, properties outside sewer district.
10.16.220 In-lieu-of assessment for collector sewers, properties inside sewer district.
10.16.230 Collector in-lieu-of rate, properties inside sewer district.
10.16.300 In-lieu-of assessment for interceptor and collector sewers, properties outside interceptor boundary.
10.16.400 Permit requirements.
10.16.500 Sewer Bond Revenue Department.
Chapter 10.01
WASTEWATER TREATMENT SYSTEM – REGULATIONS – FEES1
Sections:
10.01.010 General provisions.
10.01.020 Abbreviations.
10.01.030 Definitions.
10.01.040 Regulations.
10.01.050 Public policy.
10.01.060 Sewer funds.
10.01.070 Sewer rates.
10.01.080 Sewer system development charges.
10.01.090 Collection.
10.01.095 Adjustments, back-billing, credits and refunds.
10.01.100 Public sewers required.
10.01.110 Main extensions.
10.01.120 Service lateral construction.
10.01.130 Service lateral maintenance.
10.01.132 Service lateral replacement.
10.01.133 Assistance in removal of unpolluted waters.
10.01.134 Basement flooding protection loans.
10.01.138 Appeal process.
10.01.140 Protection from damage.
10.01.150 Nuisance.
10.01.160 Notice to abate.
10.01.170 Abatement procedures.
10.01.180 Assessment of costs.
10.01.185 Hauled waste.
10.01.210 Penalties.
10.01.220 Severability.
10.01.010 General provisions.
Pursuant to the general laws of the State and the powers granted in the Charter of the City, the City Council does hereby declare its intention to acquire, own, construct, equip, operate and maintain within or without the City limits, a wastewater treatment plant or plants, sanitary sewers, equipment and appurtenances necessary, useful or convenient for a complete sewerage and treatment system. This chapter provides for the regulation of discharges into the City of Albany wastewater treatment system through the enforcement of administrative regulations.
(1) Purpose and Policy. This chapter sets forth uniform requirements for discharges into the wastewater treatment system and enables the City of Albany (City) to protect public health and the environment in conformity with all applicable State and Federal laws relating thereto.
The objectives of this chapter are:
(a) To protect the health of the City employees working in the City wastewater treatment system;
(b) To facilitate the orderly development and extension of the wastewater treatment system;
(c) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the City wastewater treatment system which will interfere with the normal operation of the system or contaminate the resulting sludge;
(d) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the City wastewater treatment system which do not receive adequate treatment in the POTW and which will pass through the system into receiving waters or the atmosphere or otherwise be incompatible with the system;
(e) To improve the opportunity to recycle and reclaim wastewater and sludge from the system; and
(f) To allow the use of fees and charges to recover the costs of operation, maintenance and administration of the wastewater treatment system.
(2) Policy of Assistance. In achieving the objectives of this chapter, it shall be the policy of the City to actively support the community’s commerce and industry through accommodation, assistance, and cooperation consistent with the City’s responsibility to protect the waters of the State from pollution and to secure the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the service area.
(3) Compliance with Standards. Pollutants shall be accepted into the City wastewater treatment system subject to regulations and requirements as may be promulgated by State and Federal regulatory agencies or the City of Albany for the protection of wastewater facilities and treatment processes, public health and safety, receiving water quality, and avoidance of nuisance. As a minimum, users of the City wastewater treatment system shall comply with the applicable pretreatment standards. Pretreatment standards shall be developed to ensure that at a minimum the City and users comply with Sections 307(b) and 307(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended by the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the regulations promulgated pursuant to these sections of the Act.
(4) This chapter shall apply to the City of Albany and to persons outside the City of Albany who are, by contract or agreement with the City of Albany, users of the City of Albany POTW. Except as otherwise provided herein, the Director of Public Works of the City of Albany shall administer, implement, and enforce the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.020 Abbreviations.
The following abbreviations shall have the designated meanings:
ASTM – American Society for Testing and Materials
BOD – Biochemical Oxygen Demand
CFR – Code of Federal Regulations
COD – Chemical Oxygen Demand
CWA – Clean Water Act
DEQ – Oregon Department of Environmental Quality
EPA – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency
L – Liter
mg – Milligrams
mg/L – Milligrams per liter
NPDES – National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System
O & M – Operation and Maintenance
POTW – Publicly Owned Treatment Works
SIC – Standard Industrial Classification
SWDA – Solid Waste Disposal Act, 42 U.S.C. 6901, et seq.
TSS – Total Suspended Solids
USC – United States Code. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.030 Definitions.
For the purposes of this section, the following words, phrases, abbreviations, terms and their derivatives shall be construed as specified in this section. Words used in the singular include the plural and the plural the singular. Words used in the masculine gender include the feminine, and the feminine the masculine:
(1) Act or “the Act”. The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 U.S.C. 1251, et seq.
(2) Applicant. A person who applies for sewer service or a sewer connection.
(3) Approval Authority. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
(4) Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD). The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure, five days at 20 degrees centigrade expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams per liter (mg/L)).
(5) Building Sewer. A sewer conveying wastewater from the premises of a user to the POTW.
(6) City. The City of Albany, a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon.
(7) City Manager. The person designated by the Albany City Council to act as the administrative head of the City government and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter, or the duly authorized representative.
(8) Commercial Unit. Each portion of a commercial use that has plumbing fixtures connected to the sanitary sewer system and which is designated for occupancy based upon a property right. Property right for the purposes of this definition includes ownership, a leasehold interest, or any contractually based right to occupancy of 12 or more hours in any 24-hour period.
(9) Commercial User. Any person who contributes, causes or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City’s POTW which by nature of the services rendered is of a dissimilar volume or chemical makeup than that of a domestic user. Examples of commercial users may include, but are not limited to, restaurants, grocery stores, and car washes.
(10) Control Authority. The Director of Public Works for the City of Albany.
(11) Cooling Water. The water discharged from any use such as air conditioning, cooling or refrigeration, to which the only pollutant added is heat.
(12) Direct Discharge. The discharge of treated or untreated wastewater directly to the waters of the State of Oregon.
(13) Director/Director of Public Works. The person designated by the City Manager to supervise the Public Works Department and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter, or the duly authorized representative.
(14) Discharge. The discharge or introduction of pollutants into the municipal wastewater treatment system from any user.
(15) Discharger/Industrial Discharger. Any nondomestic user who discharges an effluent into the wastewater treatment system by means of pipes, conduits, pumping stations, force mains, constructed drainage ditches, surface water intercepting ditches, and all constructed devices and appliances appurtenant thereto.
(16) Domestic Sewage or Domestic Wastewater. The liquid and waterborne wastes derived from the ordinary living processes, free from industrial wastes, and of such character as to permit satisfactory disposal, without special treatment, into the public sewer or by means of a private sewage disposal system.
(17) Domestic User. Any person who contributes, causes, or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City’s POTW that is of a similar volume and/or chemical makeup as that of a residential dwelling unit. Discharges from a residential dwelling unit typically include up to 75 gallons per capita per day, 0.20 pounds of BOD per capita per day, and 0.17 pounds of TSS per capita per day. Generally, there are only trace quantities of other organic or inorganic solids or chemicals.
(18) Domestic Water Supply. Any water supply system which serves potable water and may include, for the purposes of this chapter, wells which supply potable water.
(19) Dwelling Unit. For the purpose of calculating fees and charges associated with this chapter, “dwelling unit” shall be defined as any place of human habitation designed for occupancy based upon separate leases, rental agreements, or other written instruments.
(20) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or where appropriate the term may also be used as a designation for the administrator or other duly authorized official of said agency.
(21) Garbage. The residue from the preparation and dispensing of food, and from the handling, storage and sale of food products and produce.
(22) Grab Sample. A sample which is taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis with no regard to the flow in the waste stream and without consideration of time.
(23) Industrial User. Any person including a waste hauler, that discharges wastewater that is not domestic wastewater.
(24) Industrial Waste. Solid, liquid, or gaseous waste resulting from any industrial, manufacturing, trade, or business process or from the development, recovery, or processing of natural resources.
(25) Interference. A discharge which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources:
(a) Inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes; use or disposal; and
(b) Is a cause of a violation of any requirements of the NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal in compliance with the following statutory provisions and regulations or permits issued thereunder (or more stringent State or local regulations): Section 405 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) (including Title II, more commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and including State regulations contained in any State sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA), the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act.
(26) National Pretreatment Standard. National pretreatment standard is defined in 40 CFR 403.3(j) as any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by EPA under Section 307(b) and (c) of the Clean Water Act applicable to industrial users, including the general and specific prohibitions found in 40 CFR 403.5.
(27) Natural Outlet. Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake, or other body of surface or groundwater.
(28) Other Wastes. Decayed wood, sawdust, shavings, bark, lime, refuse, ashes, garbage, offal, oil, tar, chemicals, and all other substances except sewage and industrial wastes.
(29) Pass Through. The occurrence of an indirect discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the United States in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW’s NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).
(30) Person. Any individual, partnership, copartnership, firm, company, corporation, association, 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; the singular shall include the plural where indicated by the context.
(31) pH. The logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in grams per liter of solution.
(32) Plumbing Fixture. Approved receptacle or devices intended to receive water, liquids or other permissible wastes, and which discharge the same into the soil pipe, waste pipe or special waste pipe with which they are connected and shall include all floor drains.
(33) Pollutant. Any dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, wastewater, garbage, wastewater sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discharged equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water.
(34) Pretreatment. The reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to, or in lieu of, discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into a POTW.
(35) Prohibited Discharges. Absolute prohibitions against the discharge of certain types or characteristics of wastewater as established by EPA, DEQ and/or the Director.
(36) Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW). Any wastewater treatment works and the sewers, conveyances, and appurtenances discharging thereto, owned and operated by the City.
(37) Septage. Either liquid or solid material removed from a septic tank, cesspool, portable toilet, Type III marine sanitation device, or similar treatment works that receives only domestic sewage. Septage does not include liquid or solid material removed from a septic tank, cesspool, or similar holding tank that receives industrial waste and does not include grease removed from a grease trap at a restaurant.
(38) Service Lateral. Any pipe between the main sewer lines of the City and the user’s plumbing facilities.
(39) Sewage. Water-carried human wastes or a combination of water-carried wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions, and industrial establishments, together with such ground, surface, storm, or other waters as may be present.
(40) Sewer. Any pipe, conduit, ditch, or other device used to collect and transport wastewater from the generating source.
(41) Sewerage. The system of sewers and appurtenances for the collection, transportation and pumping of wastewater.
(42) Sewer Connection Permit. A permit issued to connect buildings or structures to a public sewer.
(43) Sewer, Public. A sewer provided by or subject to the jurisdiction of the City. It also includes sewers within or outside the City boundaries that serve one or more persons and ultimately discharge into the City sanitary sewer system, even though those sewers may not have been constructed with City funds.
(44) Sewer, Sanitary. A sewer that conveys only wastewater and into which storm, surface, and groundwaters are not intentionally admitted.
(45) Sewer, Storm. A sewer that conveys storm, surface, and groundwaters and into which wastewaters are not intentionally admitted.
(46) Sewer System Facility Plan. The current version of the facility plan for the development of the wastewater treatment plant and sanitary sewer system as amended or updated.
(47) Sewer Use Charge. The assessment levied on all users of the public sewer system.
(48) Shall, May. “Shall” is mandatory; “may” is permissive.
(49) Storm Water. Any flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation and resulting therefrom.
(50) Total Suspended Solids. The total suspended matter that floats on the surface of, or is suspended in, water, wastewater, or other liquids and which is removable by laboratory filtering.
(51) Toxic Pollutant. One of the pollutants or combination of those pollutants listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the provisions of Section 307 (33 U.S.C. 1317) of the Act.
(52) Treatment Plant. That portion of the municipal wastewater treatment system designed to provide treatment to wastewater.
(53) User. Any person who contributes, causes, or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City’s POTW.
(54) Utility. The City of Albany, a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon.
(55) Wastewater. The liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, and institutions, whether treated or untreated, which is contributed into or permitted to enter the POTW.
(56) Wastewater Treatment System. Any wastewater treatment works and the sewers, conveyances, and appurtenances discharging thereto, owned and operated by the City. Same as publicly owned treatment works (POTW).
(57) Waters of the State. All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through, or border upon the State, or any portion thereof. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.040 Regulations.
(1) Discharge Prohibitions. No user shall contribute or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, any pollutant or wastewater which will cause interference or pass through. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the publicly owned treatment works (POTW) whether or not the use is subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, State, or local pretreatment standards or requirements. Furthermore, no user may contribute the following substances to the wastewater treatment system:
(a) Any liquids, solids, or gases which by reason of their nature or quantity are, or may be, sufficient either alone or by interaction with other substances to cause fire or explosion or be injurious in any other way to the POTW or to the operation of the POTW. Wastewater discharges are prohibited with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit or 60 degrees Celsius using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21.
(b) Any solid or viscous substances which may cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer or other interferences with the operation of the wastewater treatment system facilities, such as, but not limited to: grease, garbage with particles greater than one-half inch in any dimension, animal guts or tissues, paunch manure, bones, hair, hides or fleshings, entrails, whole blood, feathers, ashes, cinders, sand, spent lime, stone or marble dusts, metal, glass, straw, shavings, grass clippings, rags, spent grains, spent hops, waste paper, wood, plastics, gas, tar asphalt residues, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, mud, or glass grinding or polishing wastes.
(c) Any wastewater having a pH less than six or greater than 10, or wastewater having any corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and/or personnel of the City.
(d) Any wastewater containing toxic pollutants in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction, to injure or interfere with any wastewater treatment system process, create a toxic effect on the receiving waters of the POTW, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, or to exceed the limitation set forth in categorical pretreatment standards.
(e) Pollutants which result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health or safety problems.
(f) Any substance which may cause the POTW’s effluent or treatment residues, sludges, or scums to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse or to interfere with the reclamation process. (In no case shall a substance discharged to the POTW cause the POTW to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal criteria, guidelines, or regulations developed under Section 405 of the Act, any criteria, guidelines, or regulations affecting sludge use or disposal developed pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substance Control Act, or State standards applicable to the sludge management method being used.)
(g) Any substance which will cause the POTW to violate its NPDES and/or other disposal system permits.
(h) Any substance with objectionable color not removed in the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions.
(i) Any wastewater having a temperature which will inhibit biological activity in the POTW treatment plant resulting in interference but, in no case, wastewater which causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). If, in the opinion of the City, lower temperatures of such wastes could harm either the sewers, wastewater treatment processes, or equipment; have an adverse effect on the receiving streams; or otherwise endanger life, health, or property or constitute a nuisance, the City may prohibit such discharges.
(j) Any unpolluted water including, but not limited to, storm water, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, parking lot and subsurface drainage, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the Public Works Director.
(k) Any wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half life or concentration as exceed limits established by the Director in compliance with applicable State or Federal regulations.
(l) Any wastewater containing pollutants in sufficient quantity (flow or concentration), either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, to pass through or interfere with the POTW, any wastewater treatment or sludge process, or constitute a hazard to humans or animals.
(m) Wastewater containing substances not amenable to treatment or reduction by the wastewater treatment system processes employed, or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the wastewater treatment plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of other agencies having jurisdiction over discharge to the receiving waters.
(n) Fats, wax, grease, or oils whether emulsified or not, containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32 degrees Fahrenheit and 150 degrees Fahrenheit (zero degrees Celsius and 65 degrees Celsius).
(o) Any sludges, screenings, or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial waste.
(p) Any hauled waste or septage, except at discharge points designated by the City and authorized in writing by the Director.
(q) Any wastewater causing the treatment plant effluent to demonstrate toxicity to test species during a biomonitoring evaluation.
(r) Any wastewater, residual solvents, or solvent-containing waste from dry cleaning machines, as well as solvent-containing wastewater from any auxiliary operation at dry cleaning facilities.
(2) Limitations on Wastewater Strength.
(a) State Requirements. State requirements and limitations on users of the POTW shall be met by all users that are subject to such standards in any instance in which they are more stringent than Federal requirements and limitations, or those in this chapter or any other applicable ordinance.
(b) Right of Revision. The City reserves the right to amend this chapter to provide for more stringent limitations or requirements on discharges to the POTW where deemed necessary to comply with the objectives set forth in AMC 10.01.010.
(c) Dilution. No user shall increase the use of potable or process water in any way for the purpose of diluting a discharge as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with the applicable standards set forth in this chapter. The City may impose mass limitations on users which are using dilutions to meet the applicable pretreatment standards or requirements of this chapter.
(d) Specific Pollutant Limitations. No nondomestic user shall discharge wastewater containing restricted substances into the publicly owned treatment works in excess of limitations specified in its wastewater discharge permit or published by the Director. The Director shall publish and revise from time to time standards for specific restricted substances. These standards shall be developed in accordance with 40 CFR 403.5 and shall implement the objectives of this chapter. Standards published in accordance with this section will be deemed pretreatment standards for the purposes of Section 307(d) of the Act. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.050 Public policy.
It shall be the public policy of the City of Albany that the City Council does not intend to nor will it limit the City to its present boundaries or the wastewater treatment system to its present facilities.
(1) Service Limitation. The Council shall not extend or furnish sewer service facilities to any residential, commercial or industrial property when the property is without the City limits and is contiguous to the City limits and eligible for annexation within the City limits, except pursuant to the health hazard exception set forth in subsection (4) of this section. The health hazard exception and the findings required therefor are unique to this section and shall have no applicability to any other provision of this code nor shall it entitle the affected property owner(s) to any service, benefit, or discount applicable to health hazards as discussed in other sections of the Albany Municipal Code.
(2) Users. No use or benefits of the sanitary sewer system or wastewater treatment plant of the City shall be extended to or made available to any property not within the corporate limits of the City, except under a contractual agreement with another municipality, service district, or the owners of said property and only then when such property is not located so as to be eligible for annexation to the City at the time the sewer service is requested.
(3) Contract. Use and benefits of the wastewater treatment system and wastewater treatment plant may be granted to property outside of the City on a contractual basis only. For individual property owners the contract shall require that the property owner shall annex his property to the City at the earliest date that the same becomes eligible for annexation under the laws of the State. The contract may further require for financing of the sewer extension, termination of service of the contract if any conditions are not met and any other requirements which are to be deemed in the best interest of the City.
(4) Health Hazard Exception. The Council may authorize the extension of sanitary sewer facilities to property outside of the City limits upon finding that all elements of the following criteria have been met:
(a) The extension will serve only existing residential use(s);
(b) The extension is necessary to mitigate an existing hazard to human health resulting from a failing or inadequate sewage disposal system;
(c) The health hazard cannot practicably be mitigated without connection to the City sanitary sewer system;
(d) Provisions have been or will be made to connect a residential user to the sanitary system at no cost to the City;
(e) The owner(s) of the property to be served pursuant to this exception has executed an irrevocable application for annexation, on a form provided by the City, whereby the City may submit the question of annexation to the voters at any election(s). The property must be contiguous to the City limits and within the urban growth boundary. The annexation application shall not require the owner(s) to pay for the cost of the election. The application shall be binding upon the heirs and subsequent assigns of the owner;
(f) The property owner has tendered the required sewer system development charges to the City and waived any objection thereto;
(g) The property owner has waived, in writing, any objection to a sewer rate differential which may exist, or may be subsequently created, whereby sewer users outside the City are charged a reasonable premium over and above that charged to City residents.
(5) Limitation on Subsequent Sewer Utilization in the Event of Health Hazard Exception. Subsequent to the sewer connection subject to a health hazard exception, no additional sewer connections shall be permitted prior to annexation. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5570 § 1, 2004; Ord. 5419 §§ 1, 2, 3, 1999; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.060 Sewer funds.
The “sewer fund” is hereby continued.
(1) Sewer Use Charges. All monies received from sewer users from monthly or quarterly sewer use charges shall be deposited in the sewer fund.
(2) System Development Charges. All monies received from sewer system development charges shall be deposited in the sewer fund. Such funds shall be accounted for separately from those received from sewer use charges. System development charge revenue shall only be spent on capital improvements associated with the sewer system including expenditures relating to repayment of indebtedness; making major emergency repairs; constructing, extending or oversizing sewers, or sewer system appurtenances; or constructing modifications or additions to new or existing treatment plants. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.070 Sewer rates.
There is levied and imposed upon all owners of property just and equitable use charges and rates necessary to acquire, own, construct, equip, operate and maintain within or without the City limits, a wastewater treatment plant or plants, sanitary sewers, equipment and appurtenances necessary, useful or convenient for a complete sewerage and treatment system. Owners of residential property shall be liable for sewer use charges 120 days after the issuance of a building or set-up permit or when occupied, whichever comes first, or in the case of commercial buildings and multifamily units when a temporary or permanent occupancy permit is issued by the Albany Community Development Department.
(1) Setting Rates by Council Resolution. Sewer use charges shall be established by Council resolution. The City shall not enter into agreements with any parties which are inconsistent with the requirements of Section 204(b)(1)(4) of the Clean Water Act (Public Law 95-217).
(2) Rate Adjustment. The Public Works Director shall recommend adjustments in the sewer use charges to the City Council as it becomes necessary. The City Council shall consider such recommendations, and may approve or further adjust the sewer use charges at their discretion.
(3) Method of Adjustment. The City Council shall set, by resolution, the method to be used by the Public Works Director to determine the percentage of change in sewer use charges. As a minimum, the method selected shall include the change in labor costs including payroll, overhead and fringe benefits, changes in the cost of materials and services, and changes in debt service requirements. Such adjustments may also include funds to be set aside for future use.
(4) Excess Charges and Fees. If costs are incurred beyond normal operation through involvement with noncomplying users, the City may charge the noncomplying user for monitoring, laboratory analysis, inspections, and surveillance as required by Federal pretreatment requirements and this chapter.
(5) Effective July 1, 1999, as compensation for the use of City-owned rights-of-way, the sewer fund shall pay to the street fund an in-lieu-of franchise fee in the amount of five percent of the sewer user receipts. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5405 § 1, 1999; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.080 Sewer system development charges.
To establish appropriate provisions for the construction and expansion of the sewerage system of the City and the treatment plant, to provide for the necessary oversizing of the sanitary sewer system, and to be assured that the cost of such construction and expansion is borne by those who receive the benefits thereof, there is hereby established connection permits for all connections made to the sewer system of the City in accordance with this section.
(1) Refund Not Permitted. If properties change from one use to a lower use requiring a lower system development charge, no refund for system development charges shall be made.
(2) Payment of Fees. Before a building permit may be issued, the applicant shall pay to the City the necessary system development charges and any other fees as may be provided by ordinances or resolutions now in effect or hereinafter adopted.
(3) Sewer System Development Charge to Run with Land. A system development charge paid hereunder shall apply to the particular lot or tract for which it is issued. Any change of use which increases the strength or quantity of wastewater to be discharged or which requires additional connections to the wastewater treatment system shall cause an additional fee to be paid. The owner of the property shall be given credit only for those connections theretofore paid involving the same parcel of property. Where a structure which is served by City sewer is destroyed by fire, flood, wind or act of God, no system development charge shall be charged for a replacement of the structure; provided, the use thereof is not intensified.
(4) Base Rates. Sewer system development charges shall be established by Council resolution. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.090 Collection.
The City of Albany is hereby directed to collect the fees and charges provided in this chapter from each owner or tenant of property which disposes of wastewater, whether in the City system or otherwise, and monthly each owner or tenant shall be charged the rates set forth in accordance with the provisions of AMC 10.01.070 and 10.01.080.
(1) Administrative Costs. The administrative costs for collection of all fees and charges shall be paid from the sewer fund.
(2) Delinquency. Such sewer use charges or sewer system development charges levied in accordance with this chapter shall be a debt due to the City and shall be a lien upon the property. If this debt is not paid within 30 days after it is due and payable, it shall be deemed delinquent and may be recovered by civil action in the name of the City against the property owner, the person, or both. Change of ownership or occupancy of premises found delinquent shall not be cause for reducing or eliminating the debt due.
(3) Means of Collection – Interest. Should the City find it necessary to collect any delinquent fees or charges for sewer connection or sewer use, it shall be entitled to use any means provided by the laws of the State or permitted by the Charter and ordinances of the City, or any delinquencies in payment of either sewer system development charges or sewer use charges may be certified to the Tax Assessor of Linn County for collection in the manner and as provided by ORS 454.225. Fees and charges which are delinquent shall draw interest at nine percent per annum. Interest shall not be charged if the account is brought current within 60 days of becoming due and payable. If not so paid, interest shall accrue from the date the debt is due. Any interest charge due hereunder which is not paid when due may be recovered in an action at law by the City.
(4) Penalty for Certification. In the event it becomes necessary to certify the service charges established because of the nonpayment therefor, there shall be added to the charges a penalty in the amount of 10 percent thereof and the same shall bear, when certified, interest at the rate of nine percent per annum from the date of such certification.
(5) Hearing Rights. Customers shall have the opportunity, if they do not agree with the billing, to have a hearing on their account. The hearing shall be held by a hearings officer appointed by the Finance Director. The hearings officer’s decision shall be binding. Notice to the utility by the customer of his/her request for a hearing must be given in writing with an explanation of why the customer feels that the bill is incorrect. If a hearing is held and the hearings officer finds in favor of the customer, any or all appropriate charges may be returned to the customer or customer’s account based upon his/her findings. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5541, 2002; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.095 Adjustments, back-billing, credits and refunds.
(1) The utility may make adjustments, back-bill, apply credits, pay refunds, or waive fees and charges in accordance with City Council policy. If no Council policy exists, the utility may make adjustments where it is deemed necessary for the proper conduct of the business of the utility. A full explanation of the reason for the adjustment or refund must be filed with the office records and will be made available upon request. Refunds are to be made to the party that made the payment.
When the utility determines that a customer has been mistakenly charged too much for sewer services, the utility will apply a credit to the account based on the date the error first occurred, the date the current customer became responsible for the bill, or a period not to exceed six years, whichever is less. If the date cannot be reasonably determined, the utility will estimate the amount of the credit based on a period not to exceed six years.
When the utility determines that a customer has not been charged or has not been charged enough for sewer services, the utility will back-bill the account based on the date the error first occurred, the date the current customer became responsible for the bill, or a period not to exceed six years, whichever is less. If the date cannot be reasonably determined, the utility will estimate the bill for a period not to exceed one year. Customers who receive such a delayed bill will be offered the opportunity to make arrangements for installment payments.
(2) Nonregistering Meters. The utility may bill the customer for water consumed while the meter was not registering. The sewer bill will be calculated using an estimate of consumption based either upon the customer’s prior use during the same season of the year or upon a reasonable comparison with the use of other customers receiving the same class of service during the same period and under similar circumstances and conditions.
(3) Adjustments Due to Leaks. Where a water leak exists underground between the meter and the building during the monitoring period for wastewater flow charges, the utility may allow for an adjustment on the wastewater variable charges. In order to qualify for a credit, the leak must be large enough to cause the total consumption to be greater than one and one-half the average amount that has been previously charged to the premises, and the leak must be repaired within 30 days after the customer has been notified of such leak.
For most customers, the variable charges will be adjusted to reflect past winter water consumption records for the property. For customers that are billed based on actual monthly water consumption, the variable charges will be calculated using an estimate of consumption based either upon the customer’s prior use during the same season of the year or upon a reasonable comparison with the use of other customers receiving the same class of service during the same period and under similar circumstances and conditions. Where past water consumption records are not available, the variable charges will be adjusted to reflect the average water consumption for similar accounts.
No adjustment to the sewer bill will be allowed where it is determined that excess water consumption is due to the apparent continued waste of water due to a negligent failure to repair a leak. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5541, 2002).
10.01.100 Public sewers required.
(1) Connection Requirements. All property with buildings or structures normally used or inhabited by people and such property is located within 300 feet of a sanitary sewer shall be required to have or make a connection to such sewer.
(2) Malfunctioning or Failing Septic Systems. All property with structures or buildings normally used or inhabited by people that is served by septic tanks, cesspools, or similar private sewage disposal facilities that are found to be failing and/or causing contamination of soil surface, surface water, or groundwater shall connect to any public sanitary sewer system ordered and constructed to alleviate such contamination. When a public sewer becomes available to a property served by a private sewage disposal system, a direct connection shall be made to the public sewer in compliance with this chapter, and any septic tanks, cesspools, or similar private sewage disposal facilities shall be abandoned and filled with suitable materials. No repairs, expansions, or modifications to septic tanks, cesspools, or similar private sewage disposal systems shall be allowed when the property being served by said systems is within 300 feet of sewer system.
(3) Declared Health Hazard. All property with structures or buildings normally used or inhabited by people that is located within territory declared by the Oregon State Health Division or the Linn or Benton County Health Department to contain conditions causing a danger to public health shall connect to any public sanitary sewer system ordered and constructed to alleviate such health hazard. When a public sewer becomes available to a property served by a private sewage disposal system, a direct connection shall be made to the public sewer in compliance with this chapter, and any septic tanks, cesspools, or similar private sewage disposal facilities shall be abandoned and filled with suitable materials.
(4) Polluted Discharges. It shall be unlawful to discharge to any natural outlet within the City or in any area under the jurisdiction of the City, any sanitary sewage, industrial waste, or other polluted water, except where suitable treatment has been provided in accordance with State and Federal laws and any provisions of this chapter.
(5) New Service Connections. The utility may furnish and install a service of such size and at such location as the applicant requests; provided:
(a) The location is such that the utility has in place a sewer main of sufficient size to provide service without detriment to existing customers. In all cases, the final location of the proposed service shall be subject to approval by the utility.
(b) That such a sewer main is adjacent to and extends along the full length of the property frontage along the right-of-way.
(c) Where a parcel has more than 300 feet of frontage along the right-of-way and the parcel is being developed in phases and the sewer main is not immediately needed for the full length of the parcel to facilitate service to other properties or to meet other utility system needs, the requirement of subsection (5)(b) of this section may be reduced, when approved, by delaying the requirement for a sewer main adjacent to that portion of the parcel that remains as an undeveloped portion of a future phase. Such delay, if authorized, is contingent upon the owners of the parcel signing a waiver of remonstrance agreement that commits the parcel to participate in a future local improvement district for the extension of sewer main(s).
(d) Where the property abuts more than one street or right-of-way, sewer mains shall be extended for the full length of the property frontages along the rights-of-way for all frontages, unless it is determined that the extensions on the frontages from which service is not being taken is not currently needed to facilitate service to other properties, and that said sewer mains may be completed at a future time. Such delay, if authorized, is contingent upon the owners of the parcel signing a waiver of remonstrance agreement that commits the parcel to participate in a future local improvement district for the extension of sewer main(s).
(e) The utility shall have sole authority in determining any and all conditions necessary for the provision of service to a property. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.110 Main extensions.
(1) A main extension and/or special facilities shall be required to service all property which cannot obtain service as outlined in AMC 10.01.100(5).
(2) The following rules shall apply to all extensions:
(a) The minimum size of the sewer main to be installed shall be eight inches in diameter where a larger size is not needed to provide an adequate system, conform with the size of existing mains, meet future needs, or conform to the size specified by the utility’s sewer system facility plan.
(b) All sewer mains shall be public, installed in public rights-of-way or public utility easements. The normal routing for the sewer main extension shall be in a dedicated street right-of-way.
(c) In areas of service below the main system service elevation, special facilities (e.g., pump station) will normally be required in addition to main extensions to provide service.
(d) Financing of Extensions. There are two basic means of financing main extensions, as outlined below.
(i) Total Project Cost. Under this method, the developer is required to pay the total cost of the project. An estimate covering approximate total costs related to the project may be supplied by the utility. If developers install the project themselves or through their own contractor and supply materials, a cash advance sufficient to cover the estimated cost for the utility services needed on the project may be required prior to starting the project. Upon completion of the project, actual costs will be computed and an adjustment made to the contractor or to the utility, as appropriate. In the case of complex projects (projects involving disruption of or cutting into existing roadways, utilities, or pedestrian ways, or other projects where partial completion of the project could result in expense to the utility), the developer may be required to supply a bond to cover the estimated cost of engineering and construction.
(ii) Local Improvement Districts. Local improvement districts may be formed and bonds sold to fund main extensions and special facility projects.
(e) Installers of any and all sewer lines or appurtenances must meet minimum standards. These standards shall include, but are not limited to, insurance requirements, bonding requirements, and experience in the field of sewer line installation. The sewer lines must be installed in accordance with the utility’s specifications which are available upon request. Unless the work is being performed under a City contract, all main extensions shall require a “permit to construct public facilities” and the payment of the associated permit fee. The permit fee shall be 2.5 percent of the total construction cost unless otherwise set by Council resolution.
(f) If developers install and purchase the material themselves, they must guarantee the project for a period of one year from the date of acceptance of the project by the utility. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.120 Service lateral construction.
In order to regulate connections to the public sewers, to ensure the proper installation of connections to the public sewers, and to ensure the proper construction of private service laterals, the following regulations shall apply:
(1) Encroachment Permit Required. No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connections with or opening into, use, alter, or disturb any public sewer or appurtenance thereof without first obtaining an encroachment permit.
(2) Application and Fee. The owner of the service lateral or his agent shall make application for an encroachment permit to the Building Department. The permit application shall be supplemented by any drawings, specifications, or other information considered pertinent. A permit and inspection fee shall be paid to the City at the time the application is filed.
(3) Installation Costs. All costs and expense incident to the installation of the service lateral shall be borne by the owner. The owner shall indemnify the City from any loss or damage that may directly or indirectly be occasioned by the installation.
(4) Conformation to State Codes. All service lateral construction shall, at a minimum, meet the requirements of the Plumbing Code and the Occupational Safety and Health Code of the State of Oregon. The City may establish more stringent requirements when it is in the best interest of the City to do so.
(5) Size, Slope, Location, and Length. The size, slope, and location of service laterals within public rights-of-way and easements shall be subject to the approval of the Public Works Director and shall have a diameter of not less than four inches and a slope of not less than one-eighth inch per foot. Where private service laterals will exceed 100 feet in length, as measured from the public main to the structure, the Public Works Director may require extension of public sanitary sewers into the interior of the property.
(6) Inspection. All excavations for service laterals in the public right-of-way shall be open trench unless approved by the Public Works Director; and no backfill shall be placed until the work has been inspected. The owner of the service lateral shall notify the City when the sewer is ready for inspection. The connection to the public sewer shall be made only under the supervision of the Public Works Director or his representatives.
(7) Connection to Public Sewer. The sewer connection shall be made at the “Y” branch. If the “Y” branch is not used or is not available, the owner shall, at his expense, install a “Y” branch in the public sewer or with prior approval of the Public Works Director, a neat hole may be cut into the public sewer and a “sewer boot” connection may be made. Under no circumstances shall the connection pipe extend past the inner surface of the public sewer. All connections shall be made secure and watertight. If necessary in the opinion of the utility, the property owner may be required to connect to a manhole or may be required to install a manhole on the sewer main as a condition of providing service to the property. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.130 Service lateral maintenance.
(1) Each property owner shall be responsible for the maintenance of the building sewer(s) from the structure or facility served to the connection with the POTW. “Maintenance” shall include, but is not limited to, removal of any blockages, debris, grease, tree roots, and other material as required to ensure a free flow of wastewater through the lateral; disconnection of abandoned services from the public sewer; and prevention of unpolluted water from entering the service lateral.
(2) “Unpolluted water” includes, but is not limited to, storm water, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, parking lot and subsurface drainage, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the Public Works Director. Blockages found within the public right-of-way or easement that are the result of structural failure of the pipe shall be the responsibility of the City as detailed in AMC 10.01.132. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.132 Service lateral replacement.
(1) Lateral Replacement within Public Rights-of-Way. The City shall repair or replace structural failures of sanitary sewer service laterals in public rights-of-way when, in the judgment of the Public Works Director, repair or replacement of the service lateral is warranted.
(2) Lateral Replacement on Private Property.
(a) Public Improvement Projects. When, in the judgment of the Public Works Director, replacement of a service lateral is required concurrent with a public improvement project, the City may fund replacement of sanitary sewer service laterals on private property from the property line to the structure. The Public Works Director shall consider such factors as the cause of the failure; the age of the lateral; pipe material, length and condition; ease of repair; conflict with existing structures and improvements; budget authority; and competing priorities in determining the scope and extent of City-funded, private service lateral replacements on private property. City-funded replacements of sanitary sewer laterals on private property shall meet City construction standards and shall be contingent on full and complete consent of the property owner.
(b) Other Replacements. Structural failure of building sewers on private property may be eligible for one-time-only, City-funded replacement. When, in the judgment of the Public Works Director, replacement of a building sewer is required for properties directly fronting a public sanitary sewer, the City may replace the building sewer on private property from the property line to the structure. Properties that do not directly front a public sanitary sewer may only be eligible for City participation in replacement of a portion of the building sewer.
(c) The Public Works Director shall consider criteria given in subsection (2)(a) of this section in determining the scope and extent of the building sewer replacements. City replacement of building sewer replacements shall be contingent upon prior application and approval by the Public Works Director. Any costs incurred or work completed prior to filing an application and receiving approval for replacement shall be ineligible for reimbursements. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999).
10.01.133 Assistance in removal of unpolluted waters.
It is the policy of the City to work with property owners in a cooperative manner to remove extraneous flows listed in AMC 10.01.040(1)(j) from the sanitary sewer collection system.
(1) Separation of Roof, Footing and Other Unpolluted Water. The City shall assist property owners disconnecting roof, footing, area and other unpolluted water sources from the sanitary sewer through funding and installation of curb cuts, and drain lines from the face of curb to the property line. The property owner shall be responsible for connection to the drain line at the property line, permit fees and all improvements on private property. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999).
10.01.134 Basement flooding protection loans.
The City hereby adopts the following loan program to assist property owners protect their basements from occasional damages due to surcharges within the sanitary sewer system:
(1) Loan Program. A 10-year loan may be available to property owners at an interest rate established by City Council resolution. The purpose of the loan is to assist property owners in financing improvements that will protect basements from damage that may occur as a direct result of surcharging of the public sanitary sewer system. The loan program shall not be available to properties subject to basement flooding for causes unrelated to surcharging of the public sanitary sewer system, including, but not limited to, groundwater seepage and localized storm- and surface-water flooding.
(2) Application. The owner of the property or authorized agent shall make application for a basement flooding protection loan to the Public Works Department. The application shall be supplemented by any drawings, specifications, or other information as requested by the City.
(3) Loan Requirements. Applicants must have fee title ownership of the property, or equitable interest in the property under an instrument of trust or installment purchase contract. To qualify for the loan, improvements on the property must have been constructed prior to January 1, 1999, property taxes must be current at the time of loan closing, and the property owner shall provide evidence of sufficient hazard insurance to cover all City loans and superior liens.
(4) Loan Security. The obligation to repay the loan shall be secured by a lien being placed against the property to be improved. Owners purchasing under contract and title holder(s) shall jointly execute lien agreements.
(5) Loan Repayment. The loan shall be repaid over 10 years, monthly or semiannually, from the date of entry of the lien into the lien docket. The interest rate for the loan shall be established by City Council resolution. A basement flooding protection loan shall be repaid in full if the property is sold or refinanced before the loan is repaid and may be repaid in part or in full at any time without penalties. The lien shall not be subject to subordination.
(6) Collection of Delinquent Loan Payments. The method and schedule for collection of delinquent loan payments shall be established by City Council resolution.
(7) Eligible Costs. Eligible loan expenses shall be determined by the City on a case-by-case basis and shall be limited to only the work necessary to protect a basement from flooding that is directly related to surcharging of the public sanitary sewer system. Expenses incident to the installation of basement flooding protection, including title reporting fees, lien filing fees, permit fees, and improvement expenses to install a backwater valve, ejector pump, sump pump, yard leaders for rain gutters, rerouting of basement plumbing, and related expenses may be eligible for a basement flooding protection loan. Loans shall be available only after completion of all work, final approval of eligible loan costs, and placement of a lien securing the loan.
(8) Maximum Loan Amount. The maximum loan amount shall be established by City Council resolution.
(9) Indemnification. The owner shall indemnify the City from any loss or damage that may directly or indirectly be occasioned by the installation.
(10) Service Lateral Replacement. When, in the judgment of the Public Works Director, replacement of a building sewer is required concurrent with basement flooding protection, the City may replace the building sewer in accordance with AMC 10.01.132(2)(b). The Public Works Director shall consider criteria given in AMC 10.01.132(2)(a) in determining the scope and extent of replacement of the building sewer. City-funded replacements of sanitary sewer laterals on private property shall meet City construction standards and shall be contingent on full and complete consent of the property owner. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999).
10.01.138 Appeal process.
Appeals to policy issues concerning sewer lateral maintenance, including the basement flooding loan protection program and service lateral replacements, shall be made to the City Council. The City Council defers final decision authority for technical issues relating to sewer lateral maintenance to the Public Works Director. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5415 § 1, 1999).
10.01.140 Protection from damage.
No unauthorized person shall maliciously, willfully, or negligently break, damage, destroy, uncover, deface, or tamper with any structure, appurtenance or equipment which is a part of the City of Albany’s wastewater treatment system. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.150 Nuisance.
(1) Any property with buildings and structures normally used or inhabited by people and which buildings or structures are not connected to a public sewer system and such property is located within 300 feet of a public sanitary sewer and for which a nonconnection permit has not been issued is declared a nuisance and may be abated as hereinafter set forth.
(2) The abatement procedures set forth herein are not exclusive but are in addition to abatement procedures provided by other ordinances, statutes, and common law. Nor are these abatement procedures a penalty for violating this code. Rather, these procedures are a supplement to all existing penalties. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.160 Notice to abate.
(1) If the Director or his designate determines that a nuisance exists pursuant to AMC 10.01.150(1) and, in the exercise of his discretion, that the nuisance should be abated, he shall cause a notice to be posted on said property directing the property owner to abate said nuisance.
(2) At the time of posting, the Director or his designate shall cause a copy of the aforesaid notice to be forwarded by registered or certified mail, postage prepaid, to the record owner or owners of said property, or their agent at the address designated on the Linn County real property tax assessment rolls.
(3) The notice to abate shall contain:
(a) A description of the real property, by street address or otherwise, upon which the nuisance exists.
(b) A direction to abate the nuisance by a specified time which may be set by the Director or his designate. Said time shall be at least 30 days and at most 180 days.
(c) A description of the nuisance.
(d) A statement that unless the nuisance is corrected, the City may abate the nuisance and the cost of abatement, including but not limited to, the costs of all permits, system development charges, construction fees and material costs shall be assessed against the real property.
(4) Upon completion of the posting and mailing, the persons doing said posting and mailing shall execute and file certificates stating the date and place of mailing and posting respectively.
(5) An error in the name or address of the property owner/owners/agent shall not make the notice void and in such case the notice shall still be sufficient. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.170 Abatement procedures.
(1) In the event that the property in question has not been lawfully connected to a public sanitary sewer nor obtained a nonconnection permit within the time specified in the notice of abatement, the Director or his designate may cause said property to be connected to the public sewer.
(2) The aforesaid connection may be completed by the City or by private contractors hired by the City for the completion of said work.
(3) The City, or the aforesaid private contractor and all authorized employees and agents thereof, shall have the right at reasonable times to enter into or upon the property in question as necessary to complete said connection.
(4) Notwithstanding the foregoing, if the Director or his designate finds that the property has not been connected to the public sewer within the time specified in the notice, but finds that the property owner/owners are making a good faith effort to complete said connection, the Director or his designate may grant one or more 30-day extensions upon the written request from the property owner/ owners in question. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.180 Assessment of costs.
(1) Upon completion of the connection pursuant to the foregoing abatement procedures, the Director or his designate shall prepare a recap of all costs incurred in construction of the sewer connection in question. Said costs shall include the costs of all permits and system development charges customarily charged by the City at the time of said connection. To this sum shall be added 15 percent to help defer the City’s engineering, legal and administrative expenses incurred in the aforesaid connection.
(2) A summary of costs shall be mailed by registered or certified mail to the same person or persons to whom the notice of abatement was sent as per AMC 10.01.160(2), or their successors in title, and shall advise of the City’s intent to assess said costs against the real property and shall further advise the owner/owners of their right to a hearing before the City Council prior to assessment upon receipt by the Director, within 30 days of the date of mailing, of a written request for hearing.
(3) If the costs of abatement are not paid to the City within 30 days from the date of the mailing of the summary of costs, said summary shall be presented to the City Council and if the Council finds said costs to be reasonable, the Council shall pass an ordinance directing the amount of said costs be entered in the docket of City liens; and upon such entry being made, said costs shall constitute a lien upon the property in question. Prior to passing said ordinance, the Council will afford the property owner/owners a right to be heard by the Council if a written request for hearing has been received by the Director within 30 days of the date of mailing of the aforesaid summary of costs.
(4) The lien shall be enforced in the same manner as liens for street improvements and shall bear interest at a rate to be determined by the Council at the time of the ordinance referred to above. The interest shall commence from the date of entry of the lien in the lien docket and shall have priority over all other liens and assessments to the maximum extent permitted by law.
(5) An error in the name of the property owner/ owners/agents shall not void the assessment, nor will a failure to receive the notice of the proposed assessment render the assessment void, but it shall remain a valid lien against the property. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.185 Hauled waste.
All hauled waste must be discharged at the City of Albany wastewater treatment plant in accordance with rules and regulations shown in Chapter 10.06 AMC. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5165 § 2, 1994).
10.01.210 Penalties.
Willful or continued violation of any of the provisions herein established shall be deemed a misdemeanor and anyone convicted of such misdemeanor shall be subject to penalties as provided in AMC 1.04.010. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
10.01.220 Severability.
If any provision, paragraph, word, section, or article of this chapter is invalidated by any court of competent jurisdiction, the remaining provisions, paragraphs, words, sections, and chapters shall not be affected and shall continue in full force and effect. (Ord. 5636, 2006; Ord. 5016, 1992).
Chapter 10.06
WASTEWATER COLLECTION AND TREATMENT SYSTEM – REGULATION OF INDUSTRIAL WASTES
Sections:
10.06.010 General provisions.
10.06.020 Abbreviations.
10.06.030 Definitions.
10.06.040 Regulations.
10.06.050 Hauled waste.
10.06.060 Administration.
10.06.070 Pretreatment facilities.
10.06.080 Enforcement.
10.06.090 Penalties.
10.06.100 Severability.
10.06.010 General provisions.
This chapter provides for the orderly and efficient functioning of the City of Albany publicly owned treatment works, through regulation of discharges into the wastewater treatment system by enforcement of administrative regulations.
(1) Purpose and Policy. This chapter sets forth uniform requirements for discharges into the wastewater treatment system and enables the City of Albany (City), to protect public health and the environment in conformity with all applicable State and Federal laws relating thereto.
The objectives of this chapter are:
(a) To protect the health of the City employees working in the City wastewater treatment system;
(b) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the City wastewater treatment system that will interfere with the normal operation of the system, or contaminate the resulting sludge;
(c) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the City wastewater treatment system that do not receive adequate treatment in the publicly owned treatment works (POTW) and that will pass through the system into receiving waters or the atmosphere or otherwise be incompatible with the system;
(d) To improve the opportunity to recycle and reclaim wastewater and sludge from the system; and
(e) To allow the use of fees and charges to recover the costs of operation, maintenance, and administration of the wastewater treatment system.
(2) Policy of Assistance. In achieving the objectives of this chapter, it shall be the policy of the City to actively support the community’s commerce and industry through accommodation, assistance, and cooperation consistent with the City’s responsibility to protect the waters of the State from pollution and to secure the health, safety, and welfare of the residents of the service area.
(3) Compliance with Standards. Pollutants shall be accepted into the City wastewater treatment system subject to regulations and requirements as may be promulgated by State and Federal regulatory agencies or the City of Albany for the protection of wastewater facilities and treatment processes, public health and safety, receiving water quality, and avoidance of nuisance. As a minimum, users of the City wastewater treatment system shall comply with the applicable pretreatment standards. Pretreatment standards shall be developed to ensure that at a minimum the City and users comply with Sections 307(b) and 307(c) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended by the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the regulations promulgated pursuant to these sections of the Act.
(4) Permit Conditions. Wastewater discharge permit conditions shall be predicated on federal, state, and local regulations and requirements and on the results of analysis of the type, concentration, quantity, and frequency of discharge including the geographical relationship of the point of discharge to the POTW. These permit conditions shall be reevaluated upon expiration of the permit and may be revised from time to time as required to remain consistent with local, state, or federal laws, regulations, and requirements or to meet any emergency. Wastewater discharge permits may include, but shall not be limited to, conditions pertaining to discharge standards, self-monitoring requirements, treatment methods, housekeeping practices, inventory storage, manufacturing methods, etc., that are intended to protect the waters of the State.
(5) This chapter shall apply to the City of Albany and to persons outside the City of Albany who are, by contract or agreement with the City of Albany, users of the City of Albany POTW. Except as otherwise provided herein, the Director of Public Works of the City of Albany shall administer, implement, and enforce the provisions of this chapter. (Ord. 5637, 2006).
10.06.020 Abbreviations.
The following abbreviations shall have the designated meanings:
ASPP – Accidental Spill Prevention Plan;
ASTM – American Society for Testing and Materials;
BOD – Biochemical Oxygen Demand;
CFR – Code of Federal Regulations;
COD – Chemical Oxygen Demand;
CWA – Clean Water Act;
DEQ – Oregon Department of Environmental Quality;
EPA – U.S. Environmental Protection Agency;
L – Liter;
mg – Milligrams;
mg/L – Milligrams per liter;
NDCIU – Nondischarging Categorical Industrial User;
NPDES – National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System;
O & M – Operation and Maintenance;
POTW – Publicly Owned Treatment Works;
SIC – Standard Industrial Classification;
SWDA – Solid Waste Disposal Act, 42 U.S.C. 6901, et seq.;
TSS – Total Suspended Solids;
USC – United States Code. (Ord. 5637, 2006).
10.06.030 Definitions.
For the purposes of this section, the following words, phrases, abbreviations, terms and their derivatives shall be construed as specified in this section. Words used in the singular include the plural and the plural the singular. Words used in the masculine gender include the feminine, and the feminine the masculine:
(1) Act or “the Act.” The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 U.S.C. 1251, et seq.
(2) Applicable Pretreatment Standards. For any specified pollutant, City prohibitive discharge standards, City’s specific limitations on discharge, State of Oregon Pretreatment Standards, or Categorical Pretreatment Standards (when effective), whichever standard is most stringent.
(3) Applicant. A person who applies for sewer service or a sewer connection.
(4) Approval Authority. The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ).
(5) Authorized Representative of Industrial User. An authorized representative of an industrial user shall be:
(a) A principal executive officer of at least the level of vice-president, if the industrial user is a corporation;
(b) A general partner or proprietor if the industrial user is a partnership or proprietorship, respectively; or
(c) A duly authorized representative of the individual designated above if such representative is responsible for the overall operation of the facilities from which the indirect discharge originates.
(6) Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD). The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure, five days at 20 degrees centigrade expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams per liter (mg/L)).
(7) Building Sewer. A sewer conveying wastewater from the premises of a user to the POTW.
(8) Categorical Pretreatment Standard. Any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by the EPA in accordance with Section 307(b) and (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1317) that applies to a specific category of industrial users and that appears in 40 CFR Chapter 1, Subchapter N, Parts 405-471, incorporated herein by reference.
(9) City. The City of Albany, a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon.
(10) City Manager. The person designated by the Albany City Council to act as the administrative head of the City government and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter or the duly authorized representative.
(11) Commercial User. Any person who contributes, causes or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City’s POTW that by nature of the services rendered is of a dissimilar volume or chemical makeup than that of a domestic user. Examples of commercial users may include but are not limited to restaurants, grocery stores, and car washes.
(12) Control Authority. The Director of Public Works for the City of Albany.
(13) Cooling Water. The water discharged from any use such as air conditioning, cooling, or refrigeration, to which the only pollutant added is heat.
(14) Direct Discharge. The discharge of treated or untreated wastewater directly to the waters of the State of Oregon.
(15) Director/Director of Public Works. The person designated by the City Manager to supervise the Public Works Department and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter or the duly authorized representative.
(16) Discharge. The discharge or introduction of pollutants into the municipal wastewater treatment system from any nondomestic user.
(17) Discharger/Industrial Discharger. Any nondomestic user who discharges an effluent into the wastewater treatment system by means of pipes, conduits, pumping stations, force mains, constructed drainage ditches, surface water intercepting ditches, and all constructed devices and appliances appurtenant thereto.
(18) Domestic Sewage or Domestic Waste. The liquid and waterborne wastes derived from the ordinary living processes, free from industrial wastes, and of such character as to permit satisfactory disposal, without special treatment, into the public sewer or by means of a private sewage disposal system.
(19) Domestic User. Any person who discharges only domestic waste.
(20) Domestic Water Supply. Any water supply system that serves potable water and may include for the purposes of this chapter, wells that supply potable water.
(21) Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or where appropriate the term may also be used as a designation for the administrator or other duly authorized official of said agency.
(22) Garbage. The residue from the preparation and dispensing of food, and from the handling, storage, and sale of food products and produce.
(23) Grab Sample. A sample that is taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis with no regard to the flow in the waste stream and without consideration of time.
(24) Hauled Waste. Waste including septage, wastewater, or chemical toilet waste that is hauled for discharge into the City wastewater treatment system.
(25) Indirect Discharge. The discharge or the introduction of pollutants from an industrial user into a POTW.
(26) Industrial User. Any person, including a waste hauler, that discharges wastewater that is not domestic waste.
(27) Industrial Waste. Solid, liquid, or gaseous waste resulting from any industrial, manufacturing, trade, or business process or from the development, recovery, or processing of natural resources.
(28) Interference. A discharge that, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources:
(a) Inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes, use or disposal; and
(b) Is a cause of a violation of any requirements of the NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal in compliance with the following statutory provisions and regulations or permits issued thereunder (or more stringent State or local regulations): Section 405 of the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) (including Title II, more commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and including State regulations contained in any State sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA), the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the Marine Protection Research and Sanctuaries Act.
(29) National Pretreatment Standard. National pretreatment standard is defined in 40 CFR 403.3(j) as any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by EPA under Section 307(b) and (c) of the Clean Water Act applicable to industrial users, including the general and specific prohibitions found in 40 CFR 403.5.
(30) Natural Outlet. Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake, or other body of surface or groundwater.
(31) New Source.
(a) Any building, structure, facility, or installation from which there is or may be a discharge of pollutants, the construction of which commenced after the publication of proposed pretreatment standards under Section 307(c) of the Act that will be applicable to such sources if such standards are thereafter promulgated in accordance with that section, provided that:
(i) The building, structure, facility, or installation is constructed at a site at which no other source is located; or
(ii) The building, structure, facility, or installation totally replaces the process or production equipment that causes the discharge of pollutants at an existing source; or
(iii) The production of wastewater generating processes of the building, structure, facility, or installation are substantially independent of an existing source at the same site. In determining whether these are substantially independent, factors such as the extent to which the new facility is integrated with the existing plant and the extent to which the new facility is engaged in the same general type of activity as existing source should be considered.
(b) Construction on a site at which an existing source is located results in a modification rather than a new source if the construction does not create a new building, structure, facility, or installation meeting the criteria of subsections (a)(ii) or (a)(iii) of this definition but otherwise alters, replaces, or adds to existing process or production equipment.
(c) Construction of a new source as defined herein has commenced if the owner or operator has:
(i) Begun, or caused to begin as part of a continuous on-site construction program:
(A) Any placement, assembly, or installation of facilities or equipment; or
(B) Significant site preparation work including clearing, excavation, or removal of existing buildings, structures, or facilities that is necessary for placement, assembly, or installation of new source facilities or equipment; or
(ii) Entered into a binding contractual obligation for the purchase of facilities or equipment that is intended to be used in its operation within a reasonable time. Options to purchase or contracts that can be terminated or modified without substantial loss, and contracts for feasibility, engineering, and design studies do not constitute a contractual obligation.
(32) Nondischarging Categorical Industrial User (NDCIU). Any facility or industry having a connection to the City sewer system and having industrial processes that would otherwise be subject to national categorical pretreatment standards, but having no process wastewater discharge.
(33) Other Wastes. Decayed wood, sawdust, shavings, bark, lime, refuse, ashes, garbage, offal, oil, tar, chemicals, and all other substances except sewage and industrial wastes.
(34) Pass Through. The occurrence of an indirect discharge that exits the POTW into waters of the United States in quantities or concentrations that, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW’s NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).
(35) Person. Any individual, partnership, copartnership, firm, company, corporation, association, 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; the singular shall include the plural where indicated by the context.
(36) pH. The logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in grams per liter of solution.
(37) Plumbing Fixture. Approved receptacle or devices intended to receive water, liquids or other permissible wastes, and that discharge the same into the soil pipe, waste pipe or special waste pipe with which they are connected and shall include all floor drains.
(38) Pollutant. Any dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, wastewater, garbage, wastewater sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discharged equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water.
(39) Pretreatment. The reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to, or in lieu of, discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into a POTW.
(40) Pretreatment Requirement. Any substantive or procedural requirement, other than a national pretreatment standard, imposed on an industrial user.
(41) Prohibited Discharges. Absolute prohibitions against the discharge of certain types or characteristics of wastewater as established by EPA, DEQ and/or the Director.
(42) Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW). Any wastewater treatment works and the sewers, conveyances, and appurtenances discharging thereto, owned and operated by the City.
(43) Septage. Either liquid or solid material removed from a septic tank, cesspool, portable toilet, Type III marine sanitation device, or similar treatment works that receives only domestic sewage. Septage does not include liquid or solid material removed from a septic tank, cesspool, or similar holding tank that receives industrial waste and does not include grease removed from a grease trap at a restaurant.
(44) Service Lateral. Any pipe between the main sewer lines of the City and the user’s plumbing facilities.
(45) Sewage. Water-carried human wastes or a combination of water-carried wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions, and industrial establishments, together with such ground, surface, storm, or other waters as may be present.
(46) Sewer. Any pipe, conduit, ditch, or other device used to collect and transport wastewater from the generating source.
(47) Sewerage. The system of sewers and appurtenances for the collection, transportation, and pumping of wastewater.
(48) Sewer Connection Permit. A permit issued to connect buildings or structures to a public sewer.
(49) Sewer, Public. A sewer provided by or subject to the jurisdiction of the City. It also includes sewers within or outside the City boundaries that serve one or more persons and ultimately discharge into the City sanitary sewer system, even though those sewers may not have been constructed with City funds.
(50) Sewer, Sanitary. A sewer that conveys only wastewater and into which storm, surface, and groundwaters are not intentionally admitted.
(51) Sewer, Storm. A sewer that conveys storm, surface, and groundwaters and into which wastewaters are not intentionally admitted.
(52) Sewer System Facility Plan. The current version of the facility plan for the development of the wastewater treatment plant and sanitary sewer system as amended or updated.
(53) Sewer Use Charge. The assessment levied on all users of the public sewer system.
(54) Shall, May. “Shall” is mandatory; “may” is permissive.
(55) Significant Industrial User. Except as provided in subdivision (c) of this subsection, the term “significant industrial user” shall mean:
(a) All industrial users subject to categorical pretreatment standards under 40 CFR 403.6 and 40 CFR I, Subchapter N; and
(b) Any other industrial user that:
(i) Discharges a process waste stream that makes up five percent of the average dry weather hydraulic or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant; or
(ii) Discharges to the POTW a process wastewater flow of 25,000 gallons or more per average work day (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling, and boiler blowdown wastewater); or
(iii) Is designated as significant by the City on the basis that the industrial user has a reasonable potential for causing pass through or interference.
(c) Upon finding that an industrial user meeting the criteria in subsection (b) of this definition has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the municipal wastewater treatment system’s operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user, and in accordance with 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6), determine that such industrial user is not a significant industrial user.
(56) Significant Noncompliance. An industrial user is determined to be in significant noncompliance if its violation meets one or more of the following criteria:
(a) Chronic violations of wastewater discharge limits, defined here as those in which 66 percent or more of all the measurements taken during six-month period exceeded (by any magnitude) the daily maximum limit or the average limit for the same pollutant parameter;
(b) Technical review criteria (TRC) violations, defined here as those in which 33 percent or more of all of the measurements for each pollutant parameter taken during a six-month period equaled or exceeded the product of the daily maximum limit or the average limit multiplied by the applicable TRC (TRC = 1.4 for BOD, TSS, fats, oil, and grease, and 1.2 for all other pollutants except pH);
(c) Any other violation of a pretreatment effluent limit (daily maximum or longer-termed average) that the City determines has caused, alone or in combination with other discharges, interference or pass through (including endangering the health of City personnel or the general public);
(d) Any discharge of a pollutant that has caused imminent endangerment to human health, welfare, or to the environment or has resulted in the City’s exercise of its emergency authority to halt or prevent such a discharge;
(e) Failure to meet, within 90 days after the scheduled date, a compliance schedule milestone contained in a local control mechanism or enforcement order for starting construction, completing construction, or attaining final compliance;
(f) Failure to provide within 30 days after the due date, required reports such as baseline monitoring reports, 90-day compliance reports, periodic self-monitoring reports, and reports on compliance with compliance schedules;
(g) Failure to accurately report noncompliance;
(h) Any other violation or group of violations that the City determines will adversely affect the operation or implementation of the City’s pretreatment program.
(57) Slug Load. Any pollutant (including BOD) released in a nonroutine, episodic, or noncustomary batch discharge at a flow rate or concentration that has the potential to cause a violation of the specific discharge prohibitions in AMC 10.06.040.
(58) Storm Water. Any flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation and resulting therefrom.
(59) Total Suspended Solids. The total suspended matter that floats on the surface of, or is suspended in, water, wastewater, or other liquids and that is removable by laboratory filtering.
(60) Toxic Pollutant. One of the pollutants or combination of those pollutants listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the provision of Section 307 (33 U.S.C. 1317) of the Act.
(61) Treatment Plant. That portion of the municipal wastewater treatment system designed to provide treatment to wastewater.
(62) Upset. An exceptional incident in which an industrial user unintentionally and temporarily is in a state of noncompliance with the standards set forth in AMC 10.06.080(6)(a) due to factors beyond the reasonable control of the industrial user, and excluding noncompliance to the extent caused by operational error, improperly designed treatment facilities, inadequate treatment facilities, lack of preventive maintenance, or careless or improper operation thereof.
(63) User. Any person who contributes, causes, or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City’s POTW.
(64) Utility. The City of Albany, a municipal corporation of the State of Oregon.
(65) Wastewater. The liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities, and institutions, whether treated or untreated, that is contributed into or permitted to enter the POTW.
(66) Wastewater Discharge Permit. As set forth in AMC 10.06.060.
(67) Wastewater Treatment System. Any wastewater treatment works and the sewers, conveyances, and appurtenances discharging thereto, owned and operated by the City. Same as publicly owned treatment works (POTW).
(68) Waters of the State. All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, that are contained within, flow through, or border upon the State, or any portion thereof. (Ord. 5637, 2006).
10.06.040 Regulations.
(1) Discharge Prohibitions. No user shall contribute or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, any pollutant or wastewater that will cause interference or pass through. These general prohibitions apply to all users of the publicly owned treatment works (POTW) whether or not the use is subject to categorical pretreatment standards or any other national, State, or local pretreatment standards or requirements. Furthermore, no user may contribute the following substances to the wastewater treatment system:
(a) Any liquids, solids, or gases that by reason of their nature or quantity are, or may be, sufficient either alone or by interaction with other substances to cause fire or explosion or be injurious in any other way to the POTW or to the operation of the POTW. Wastewater discharges are prohibited with a closed cup flashpoint of less than 140 degrees Fahrenheit or 60 degrees Celsius using the test methods specified in 40 CFR 261.21.
(b) Any solid or viscous substances that may cause obstruction to the flow in a sewer or other interferences with the operation of the wastewater treatment system facilities, such as, but not limited to: grease, garbage with particles greater than one-half inch in any dimension, animal guts or tissues, paunch manure, bones, hair, hides or fleshings, entrails, whole blood, feathers, ashes, cinders, sand, spent lime, stone or marble dusts, metal, glass, straw, shavings, grass clippings, rags, spent grains, spent hops, waste paper, wood, plastics, gas, tar asphalt residues, residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating oil, mud, or glass grinding or polishing wastes.
(c) Any wastewater having a pH less than six or greater than 10, except under conditions of continuous pH monitoring as specified in the City’s enforcement response plan. In no case shall a user be permitted to discharge wastewater having a pH of less than five, or wastewater having any corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment, and/or personnel of the City.
(d) Any wastewater containing toxic pollutants in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction, to injure or interfere with any wastewater treatment system process, create a toxic effect on the receiving waters of the POTW, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, or to exceed the limitation set forth in categorical pretreatment standards.
(e) Pollutants that result in the presence of toxic gases, vapors, or fumes within the POTW in a quantity that may cause acute worker health or safety problems.
(f) Any substance that may cause the POTW’s effluent or treatment residues, sludges, or scums to be unsuitable for reclamation and reuse or to interfere with the reclamation process. (In no case shall a substance discharged to the POTW cause the POTW to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal criteria, guidelines, or regulations developed under Section 405 of the Act, any criteria, guidelines, or regulations affecting sludge use or disposal developed pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substance Control Act, or State standards applicable to the sludge management method being used.)
(g) Any substance that will cause the POTW to violate its NPDES and/or other disposal system permits.
(h) Any substance with objectionable color not removed in the treatment process, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions.
(i) Any wastewater having a temperature that will inhibit biological activity in the POTW treatment plant resulting in interference but, in no case, wastewater that causes the temperature at the introduction into the treatment plant to exceed 40 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit). If, in the opinion of the City, lower temperatures of such wastes could harm either the sewers, wastewater treatment processes, or equipment; have an adverse effect on the receiving streams; or otherwise endanger life, health, or property or constitute a nuisance, the City may prohibit such discharges.
(j) Any unpolluted water including, but not limited to, storm water, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, parking lot and subsurface drainage, noncontact cooling water, and unpolluted wastewater, unless specifically authorized by the Public Works Director.
(k) Any wastewater containing any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half life or concentration as exceed limits established by the Director in compliance with applicable State or Federal regulations.
(l) Any wastewater containing pollutants in sufficient quantity (flow or concentration), either singly or by interaction with other pollutants, to pass through or interfere with the POTW, any wastewater treatment or sludge process, or constitute a hazard to humans or animals.
(m) Wastewater containing substances not amenable to treatment or reduction by the wastewater treatment system processes employed, or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the wastewater treatment plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of other agencies having jurisdiction over discharge to the receiving waters.
(n) Fats, wax, grease, or oils whether emulsified or not, containing substances that may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32 degrees Fahrenheit and 150 degrees Fahrenheit (zero degrees Celsius and 65 degrees Celsius).
(o) Any sludges, screenings, or other residues from the pretreatment of industrial waste.
(p) Any hauled waste or septage, except at discharge points designated by the City and authorized in writing by the Director.
(q) Any wastewater causing the treatment plant effluent to demonstrate toxicity to test species during a biomonitoring evaluation.
(r) Any wastewater, residual solvents, or solvent-contaminated waste from dry cleaning machines, as well as solvent-contaminated wastewater from any auxiliary operation at dry cleaning facilities.
(2) Limitations on Wastewater Strength.
(a) Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards. Users subject to categorical pretreatment standards are required to comply with applicable standards as set out in 40 CFR Chapter 1, Subchapter N, Parts 405-471 and incorporated herein.
(b) State Requirements. State requirements and limitations on users of the POTW shall be met by all users that are subject to such standards in any instance in which they are more stringent than Federal requirements and limitations, or those in this chapter or any other applicable ordinance.
(c) Right of Revision. The City reserves the right to amend this chapter to provide for more stringent limitations or requirements on discharges to the POTW where deemed necessary to comply with the objectives set forth in AMC 10.06.010.
(d) Dilution. No user shall increase the use of potable or process water in any way for the purpose of diluting a discharge as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with the applicable standards set forth in this chapter. The City may impose mass limitations on users that are using dilutions to meet the applicable pretreatment standards or requirements of this chapter.
(e) Specific Pollutant Limitations.
(i) No nondomestic user shall discharge wastewater containing restricted substances into the publicly owned treatment works in excess of limitations specified in its wastewater discharge permit or published by the Director. The Director shall publish and revise from time to time standards for specific restricted substances. These standards shall be developed in accordance with 40 CFR 403.5 and shall implement the objectives of this chapter. Standards published in accordance with this section will be deemed pretreatment standards for the purposes of Section 307(d) of the Act.
(ii) The Director may impose mass limitations in addition to or in place of the concentration limits referenced above.
(3) Accidental Discharges. As appropriate, industrial users shall provide protection from accidental discharge of prohibited or regulated materials or substances established by this chapter. Where deemed necessary by the City, facilities to prevent accidental discharge of prohibited materials shall be provided and maintained at the industrial user’s cost and expense. An accidental spill prevention plan (ASPP) showing facilities and operating procedures to provide this protection shall be submitted to the City for review and approval before implementation. The City shall determine which industrial users are required to develop an ASPP and require said industrial users to submit the ASPP within 60 days after notification by the City. Each industrial user shall implement its ASPP as submitted after such ASPP has been reviewed and approved by the City. Review and approval of such plans and operating procedures by the City shall not relieve the industrial user from the responsibility to modify its facility as necessary to meet the requirements of this chapter.
(a) Any user required to develop and implement an accidental spill prevention plan shall submit a plan that addresses, at a minimum, the following:
(i) Description of discharge practices, including nonroutine batch discharges;
(ii) Description of stored chemicals;
(iii) Procedures for immediately notifying the POTW of any accidental or slug discharge. Such notification must also be given for any discharge that would violate any of the standards in AMC 10.06.040(1);
(iv) If necessary and applicable, procedures to prevent adverse impact from any accidental or slug discharge. Such procedures include, but are not limited to, inspection and maintenance of storage areas, handling and transfer of materials, loading and unloading operations, control of plant site runoff, worker training, building of containment structures or equipment, measures for containing toxic organic chemicals (including solvents), and/or measures and equipment for emergency response.
(b) Industrial users shall notify the City (wastewater treatment plant) immediately upon the occurrence of an accidental or other discharge that may cause potential problems for the POTW. The notification shall include location of discharge, date and time thereof, type of waste, concentration and volume, and corrective actions. Any industrial user that discharges prohibited materials shall be liable for any incurred expense, loss, or damage to the POTW, in addition to the amount of any fines imposed on the City on account thereof under State or Federal law.
(c) Written Notice. Within five days following an accidental discharge, the user shall submit to the Director a detailed written report describing the cause of the discharge and the measures to be taken by the user to prevent similar future occurrences. Such notification shall not relieve the user of any expense, loss, damage, or other liability that may be incurred as a result of damage to the POTW, fish kills, or any other damage to person or property; nor shall such notification relieve the user of any fines, civil penalties, or other liability that may be imposed by this chapter or other applicable law.
(d) Signs shall be permanently posted in conspicuous places on industrial user’s premises, advising employees who to call in the event of a discharge described in subdivision (a) of this subsection. Employers shall instruct all employees who may cause or discover such a discharge with respect to emergency notification procedure.
(4) Special Agreements. The City reserves the right to enter into special agreements with users setting out special terms under which the industrial user may discharge to the wastewater treatment system. In no case will a special agreement waive compliance with a pretreatment standard. However, the industrial user may request a net gross adjustment to a categorical standard in accordance with 40 CFR 403.15. Industrial users may also request a variance from the categorical pretreatment standard from U.S. EPA. Such a request will be approved only if the user can prove that factors relating to its discharge are fundamentally different from the factors considered by U.S. EPA when establishing that pretreatment standard. An industrial user requesting a fundamentally different factor variance must comply with the procedural and substantive provisions in 40 CFR 403.13. (Ord. 5637, 2006).
10.06.050 Hauled waste.
All hauled waste including septage must be discharged at the City of Albany wastewater treatment plant. All discharges at any other point within the wastewater treatment system, including sanitary sewer manholes, are hereby prohibited. Administration and enforcement of hauled waste permits shall be the same as industrial permits, AMC 10.06.060 and 10.06.080.
(1) Permit Required. Any waste hauler must apply for and be issued a hauled waste discharge permit prior to discharge and/or use of treatment plant services.
(2) In addition to the following administration and enforcement requirements, hauled waste dischargers must have the following to obtain a permit:
(a) A valid Oregon Department of Environmental Quality septage hauling permit if applicable; and
(b) Proof of liability insurance with coverage limits as required by the City of Albany Finance Director; and
(c) Indemnity bond, deposit or other payment guarantee sufficient to guarantee payment of treatment fees as determined by the Finance Director.
(3) Permit fees and treatment rates for hauled waste shall be established by Council resolution. (Ord. 5637, 2006).
10.06.060 Administration.
(1) Wastewater Discharges. It shall be unlawful to discharge industrial wastes to the POTW without having first complied with the terms of this chapter, or without having first obtained the City’s approval of a compliance schedule submitted by the industrial user.
(2) General Disclosure. All industrial users proposing to connect to or to discharge sewage, industrial wastes, and other wastes to the POTW shall comply with all terms of this chapter within 30 days after the effective date of this chapter.
(3) Wastewater Discharge Permit Requirement. No significant industrial user shall discharge wastewater into the POTW without first obtaining a wastewater discharge permit from the Director. Any violation of the terms and conditions of a wastewater discharge permit shall be deemed a violation of this chapter and subjects the wastewater discharge permittee to the sanctions set forth in this chapter. Obtaining a wastewater discharge permit does not relieve a permittee of its obligation to comply with all Federal and State pretreatment standards or requirements or with other requirements of Federal, State, and local law.
The Director may require other users, including liquid waste haulers and nondischarging categorical industrial users (NDCIUs) to obtain wastewater discharge permits (as necessary) to carry out the purposes of this chapter.
(4) Disclosure Forms. Significant industrial users shall complete and file with the City a data disclosure declaration in the form prescribed by the City, and accompanied by the appropriate fee. Existing significant industrial users shall file a disclosure form within 60 days after the notification by the City and any proposed industrial user that is a new source shall file a disclosure form a minimum of 90 days prior to connecting to the POTW. This data disclosure form satisfies the requirements of the baseline monitoring report as described in 40 CFR 403.12(b). The disclosure to be made by the industrial user shall be made on written forms provided by the City and shall include the following information:
(a) Name, address, and location of the industrial user.
(b) Standard industrial classification (SIC) number according to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, Bureau of the Budget, 1972, as amended.
(c) Wastewater constituents and characteristics including but not limited to those mentioned in this chapter, including standards contained in AMC 10.06.040(1) and (2) as appropriate, as determined by bona fide chemical and biological analyses. Sampling and analysis shall be performed in accordance with procedures established by the EPA and contained in 40 CFR, Part 136, as amended.
(d) Time and duration of discharges.
(e) Average daily and instantaneous peak wastewater flow rates, in gallons per day, including daily, monthly, and seasonal variations, if any. All flows shall be measured unless other verifiable techniques are approved by the City due to cost or nonfeasibility.
(f) Site plans, floor plans, plumbing plans, and details to show all sewers, sewer connections, inspection manholes, sampling chambers, and appurtenances by size and location.
(g) Activities, facilities, and plant processes on the premises, including all materials that are or may be discharged to the sewers or works of the City, and a brief description of the nature, average rate of production, and standard industrial classification of the operation.
(h) A statement regarding whether or not compliance is being achieved with this chapter on a consistent basis and, if not, whether additional operation and maintenance activities and/or additional pretreatment is required for the industrial user to comply with this chapter.
(i) Where additional pretreatment and/or operation and maintenance activities will be required to comply with this chapter, the industrial user shall provide a compliance schedule c
