[Adopted by the Board of Health 5-12-2003]
For the purpose of promoting the health, safety, convenience, morals, and welfare of its inhabitants, the Town of Southwick Board of Health, under the authority granted by the Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40 et seq., does hereby enact this regulation to be hereafter known and designated as the "Board of Health Public Sewer Connection Regulation of the Town of Southwick" (Sewer Connection Regulation). Further purpose of the Sewer Connection Regulation is to benefit the environment for the inhabitants of the Town of Southwick by requiring the owner(s) of any building structure (either on a public or private way) in which there exists an abutting public sewer, to connect the building structure with said sewer.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
AGENT Any authorized representative of the Town of Southwick Board of Health, including but not limited to, the Board of Health Inspector or any police officer of the Town of Southwick.
BOARD The Town of Southwick Board of Health.
FORCE MAIN A sewer line under pressure which begins at the pump station and terminates at a point where gravity flow begins.
NONCRIMINAL METHOD OF DISPOSITION The procedure by which the Board or its agent issues a written citation notice to any violator of the Sewer Connection Regulation in accordance with the Massachusetts General Law Chapter 40, Section 21D.
PRIVATE SEPTIC WASTE WATER DISPOSAL SYSTEM Any on-site, subsurface disposal system constructed and maintained in accordance with all the requirements of the Town of Southwick Board of Health Regulations, Building Code, Zoning Ordinances, Sewer Use Regulations, and any other regulation or law of the Town of Southwick, and/or the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.
PUBLIC SEWER A sewer in which all owners of abutting properties (either on a public or private way) have equal rights and is controlled by public authority.
TOWN The Town of Southwick, Massachusetts.
VARIANCE A departure from the provisions of the Sewer Connection Regulation.
Any person(s) violating any provision of the Sewer Connection Regulation or, any person(s) failing to comply with the Sewer Connection Regulation after a petition for variance has been denied, shall be penalized in the following manner pursuant to the provisions of the Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 40, Section 21D:
A. Authority of person enforcing Sewer Connection Regulation. Any agent as specified hereinabove shall be empowered to enforce a violation of the Sewer Connection Regulation and for purposes of this section shall be referred to as "enforcing person."
B. Notice requirement.
(1) The enforcing person, after becoming cognizant of a violation of the Sewer Connection Regulation, may give to the offender a written notice (the notice) to appear before the Clerk of the Westfield District Court, at any time during office hours, not later than 21 days after the date of such notice.
(2) Form of notice.
(a) The notice shall be in triplicate;
(b) The notice shall be given to the offender, not later than 21 days after the date of such notice;
(c) The notice shall be written and specify the following:
[1] Name and address, if known, of the offender;
[2] Specific offense charged;
[3] Amount of fine for such offense charged;
[4] Time and place for the offender's required appearance; and
[5] Signed by the offender whenever practicable in acknowledgment that such notice has been received.
(3) Manner of service of notice of violation.
(a) The enforcing person shall, if possible, deliver to the offender a copy of said notice at the time and place of the violation.
(b) If not possible to deliver a copy of said notice to the offender as specified in Subsection
B(3)(a), a copy shall be mailed or delivered by the enforcing person, or by his commanding officer, or the head of his department, or by any person authorized by such commanding officer, department or head to the offender's last known address, within 15 days after said violation.
(c) Such notice as so mailed shall be deemed a sufficient notice, and a certificate of the person so mailing such notice that it has been mailed in accordance with this section shall be prima facia evidence thereof.
(4) Recordation of notice of violations and offenders.
(a) The enforcing person shall give the Board those copies of each notice of such violation he has taken cognizance of which have not already been delivered or mailed by him as aforementioned in Subsection
B(3).
(b) The Board shall retain and safely preserve one copy and shall, at a time not later than the next court day after such delivery or mailing, deliver the other copy to the Clerk of Westfield District Court.
(c) The Clerk of the Westfield District Court shall maintain a separate docket of such notices to appear.
(5) Requirement of offender/violator who has received notice.
(a) Any person notified to appear before the Clerk of the Westfield District Court may so appear and confess the offense charged, either personally or through a duly authorized agent; or
(b) Any person notified to appear before the Clerk of the Westfield District Court may, mail to the Town Clerk of the Town of Southwick together with the notice, the specific sum of money as specified on said notice as penalty for violating the Sewer Connection Regulation subject to the following requirements: If such payment is mailed, it shall be in the form of a bank check, money order, or certified funds.
(c) Upon receipt of such notice and payment, the Town Clerk shall forthwith notify the Clerk of the Westfield District Court of such payment and the receipt by the Clerk of the Westfield District Court of such notification shall operate as a final disposition of the case. An appearance under this section shall not be deemed a criminal proceeding.
(6) Contest of violation.
(a) If any person so notified to appear, desires to contest the violation alleged in the notice to appear and also to avail himself/herself to the procedure established pursuant to this section, he/she may, within 21 days after the date of the notice, request a hearing in writing.
(b) Said hearing shall be held before a District Court Judge, Clerk, or Assistant Clerk, as the Court shall direct, and if the Judge, Clerk, or Assistant Clerk shall, after hearing, find that the violation occurred and that it was committed by the person so notified to appear, the person so notified shall be permitted to dispose of the case by paying the specific sum of money fixed as penalty as stated in the notice, or such lesser amount as the Judge, Clerk, or Assistant Clerk shall order, which payment shall operate as final disposition of the case.
(c) If the Judge, Clerk, or Assistant Clerk shall, after hearing, find that the violation alleged did not occur or was not committed by the person notified to appear, that finding shall be entered in the docket, which shall operate as a final disposition of the case.
(7) Failure to pay fine/default of offender. If any person so notified to appear before the Clerk of the Westfield District Court, fails to pay the fine provided herein within the time specified, or having appeared, does not confess the offense before the Clerk or pay the sum of money fixed as penalty after hearing and finding as provided in Subsection
B(6), then the Clerk shall notify the enforcing person, who issued the original notice, who shall determine whether to apply for the issuance of a complaint for violation of the Sewer Connection Regulation.
(8) Amount of fine. Any person(s) found to be in violation of the Sewer Connection Regulation by the agent for the Board shall be liable to a fine in the amount of not more than $100 for each violation or offense, pursuant to Massachusetts General Laws Chapter
83, Section 11. Said violation or offense shall be administered in the above-referenced manner.
(9) The Board also reserves the right to file a criminal complaint.
The validity or deletion of any section, provision, clause, sentence, or paragraph of the Sewer Connection Regulation shall not affect the other provisions herein which may be given effect without the invalid or deleted provision, clause, sentence, or paragraph and, to this end, the provisions herein are hereby declared severable.
This regulation shall take effect on May 12, 2003.
[Adopted STM 3-15-2008 by Art. 6]
For the purposes of this by-law, the following shall mean:
AUTHORIZED ENFORCEMENT AGENCY The Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative, its employees or agents designated to enforce this by-law.
BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICE (BMP) An activity, procedure, restraint, or structural improvement that helps to reduce the quantity or improve the quality of stormwater runoff.
CLEAN WATER ACT The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.) as hereafter amended.
DISCHARGE OF POLLUTANTS The addition from any source of any pollutant or combination of pollutants into the municipal storm drainage system or into the waters of the United States or Commonwealth from any source.
GRANDFATHERED Exempt from new legislation, restrictions, or requirements.
GROUNDWATER All water beneath the surface of the ground.
ILLEGAL DISCHARGE Any direct or indirect non-stormwater discharge to the municipal storm drainage system, except as specifically exempted in Section 7 or permitted pursuant to Section 8 of this by-law. The term does not include a discharge in compliance with an NPDES Storm Water Discharge Permit or resulting from fire fighting activities exempted pursuant to Section 7, subsection 4, of this by-law.
ILLICIT CONNECTION Any surface or subsurface drain or conveyance, which allows an illegal discharge into the municipal storm drainage system. Illicit connections include conveyances which allow a non-stormwater discharge to the municipal storm drainage system including sewage, process wastewater or wash water and any connections from indoor drainages sinks, or toilets, regardless of whether said connection was previously allowed, permitted, or approved before the effective date of this by-law.
IMPERVIOUS SURFACE Any material or structure on or above the ground that prevents water from infiltrating the underlying soil.
MUNICIPAL SEPARATE STORM SEWER SYSTEM (MS4) OR MUNICIPAL STORM DRAINAGE SYSTEM The system of conveyances designed or used for collecting or conveying stormwater, including any road with a drainage system, street, gutter, curb, inlet, piped storm drain, pumping facility, retention or detention basin, natural or man-made or altered drainage channel, reservoir, and other drainage structure that together comprise the storm drainage system owned or operated by the Town of Southwick.
PERSON Any individual, partnership, association, firm, company, trust, corporation, and, any agency, authority, department or political subdivision of the Commonwealth or the federal government, to the extent permitted by-law, and any officer, employee, or agent of such person.
POLLUTANT Any element or property of sewage, agricultural, industrial or commercial waste, runoff, leachate, heated effluent, or other matter whether originating at a point or nonpoint source, that is or may be introduced into any sewage treatment works or waters of the Commonwealth. Pollutants shall include:
A. paints, varnishes, and solvents;
B. oil and other automotive fluids;
C. liquid and solid wastes and yard wastes;
D. refuse, rubbish, garbage, litter, or other discarded or abandoned objects, ordnances, accumulations and floatables;
E. pesticides, herbicides, and fertilizers;
F. hazardous materials and wastes; sewage, fecal coliform and pathogens;
G. dissolved and particulate metals;
J. construction wastes and residues;
K. and noxious or offensive matter of any kind.
PROCESS WASTEWATER means any water which, during manufacturing or processing, comes into direct contact with or results from the production or use of any material, intermediate product, finished product, or waste product.
RECHARGE The process by which groundwater is replenished by precipitation through the percolation of runoff and surface water through the soil.
STORMWATER Runoff from precipitation or snow melt.
TOXIC OR HAZARDOUS MATERIAL OR WASTE Any material, which because of its quantity, concentration, chemical, corrosive, flammable, reactive, toxic, infectious or radioactive characteristics, either separately or in combination with any substance or substances, constitutes a present or potential threat to human health, safety, welfare, or to the environment. Toxic or hazardous materials include any synthetic organic chemical, petroleum product, heavy metal, radioactive or infectious waste, acid and alkali, and any substance defined as Toxic or Hazardous under M.G.L. Ch.21C and Ch.21E, and the regulations at 310 CMR 30.000 and 310 CMR 40.0000.
WATERCOURSES A natural or man-made channel through which water flows or a stream of water, including a river, brook or underground stream.
WATERS OF THE COMMONWEALTH all waters within the jurisdiction of the Commonwealth, including, without limitation, rivers, streams, lakes, ponds, springs, impoundments, estuaries, wetlands, costal waters, and groundwater.
WASTEWATER any sanitary waste, sludge, or septic tank or cesspool overflow, and water that during manufacturing, cleaning or processing, comes into direct contact with or results from the production or use of any raw material, intermediate product, finished product, byproduct or waste product.
This by-law shall apply to all flows entering the storm drainage system in the Town of Southwick.
The Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative shall administer, implement and enforce this by-law. Any powers granted to or duties imposed upon the Director of the Department of Public Works may be delegated in writing by the Director of the Department of Public Works to employees or agents of the Department of Public Works.
The Director of the Department of Public Works may promulgate rules and regulations to effectuate the purposes of this by-law. Failure by the Director of the Department of Public Works to promulgate such rules and regulations shall not have the effect of suspending or invalidating this by-law.
The Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative may suspend storm drainage system access to any person or property without prior written notice when such suspension is necessary to stop an actual or threatened illegal discharge that presents or may present imminent risk of harm to the public health, safety, welfare or the environment. In the event any person fails to comply with an emergency suspension order, the Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative may take all reasonable steps to prevent or minimize harm to the public health, safety, welfare or the environment.
Notwithstanding any other requirements of local, state or federal law, as soon as any person responsible for a facility or operation, or responsible for emergency response for a facility or operation has information of any known or suspected release of materials at that facility operation which is resulting or may result in illegal discharge of pollutants that person shall take all necessary steps to ensure containment, and cleanup of the release. In the event of a release of oil or hazardous materials, the person shall immediately notify the municipal fire and police departments, the Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative, and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (if release is reportable as defined by 310 CMR 40.00). In the event of a release of non-hazardous material, said person shall notify the Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative no later than the next business day. Written confirmation of all telephone, facsimile or in person notifications shall be provided to the Director of the Department of Public Works or designated representative within three business days thereafter. If the discharge of prohibited materials is from a commercial or industrial facility, the facility owner or operator of the facility shall retain on-site a written record of the discharge and the actions taken to prevent its recurrence. Such records shall be retained for at least three years.
If any provision, paragraph, sentence, or clause, of this by-law shall be held invalid for any reason, all other provisions shall continue in full force and effect.
Property owners shall have 120 days from the effective date of the by-law to comply with its provisions provided good cause is shown for the failure to comply with the by-law during that period unless local, state, or federal agencies deem that immediate actions are warranted.