[Adopted 11-25-1991 by Ord. No. 570 (Ch. XVIII, Part 3, of the 1975 Borough Code)]
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the meanings indicated:
ACCIDENTAL DISCHARGE
Any discharge of water or wastewater which is inadvertent and which results in or increases pollution or contains a pollutant or is not in compliance with the requirements of any Borough ordinance.
AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF INDUSTRIAL USER
An authorized representative of an industrial user may be: a principal executive officer of at least the level of vice president, if the industrial user is a corporation; a general partner or proprietor if the industrial user is a partnership or proprietorship, respectively; a principal executive officer or director having responsibility for the overall operation of the discharging facility if the industrial user is a governmental entity, charitable organization or other such unincorporated entity; a duly authorized representative of the individual designated above if such representative is responsible for the overall operation of the facilities from which the discharge originates.
DISCHARGE
The conveyance of any water or wastewater into the sewer system.
INDUSTRIAL USER (IU)
Any person who discharges industrial waste into the sewer system.
INDUSTRIAL WASTE
Any solid, liquid or gaseous substance or form of energy which is produced as a result, whether directly or indirectly, of any industrial, manufacturing, trade or business process or activity or in the course of developing, recovering or processing natural resources, but not sanitary sewage.
INTERFERENCE
A discharge which, alone or in conjunction with discharges from other sources:
A. 
Inhibits or disrupts the processes or operations of the sewage treatment plant or the sewer system or sludge handling processes, including end use or disposal; or
B. 
Is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the Borough's national pollutant discharge elimination system (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 provisions of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Act[1] or which results in or increases the severity of a violation of state or federal environmental statutes, rules or regulations.
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.
POLLUTANT
Any substance, including, but not limited to, dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discharged equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal and agricultural wastes, which, when discharged into water, results in pollution or increases pollution.
POLLUTION
The contamination of any waters of the state such as will create or is likely to create a nuisance or to render such waters harmful, detrimental or injurious to public health, safety or welfare, or to domestic, municipal, commercial, industrial, agricultural, recreational or other legitimate beneficial uses, or to livestock, wild animals, birds, fish or other aquatic life; or contamination of the air, soil, or environment so as to produce or be likely to produce similar deleterious effects.
SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT (STP)
That portion of the sewer system owned and operated by the Borough, which is designed to provide treatment of wastewater and discharge of treated effluent to the environment.
SEWER SYSTEM
The sewage collection system, sewage treatment plant and any sewers that convey wastewater to the sewage treatment plant. For the purposes of this article, "sewer system" shall also include any sewers that convey wastewater to the sewage treatment plant from persons who are, by contract or agreement with the Borough, users of the sewer system.
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER (SIU)
An industrial user who has a discharge flow of 15,000 gallons or more per day, or has an organic or suspended solids loading greater than 30 pounds per average workday based on any composite sample collected over a twenty-four-hour period or period of discharge if less than 24 hours, or has the potential, as determined by the Borough, to exert impact or cause interference, either singly or in combination with other contributors, on the operation of the sewer system, the quality of the sludge or air emissions generated by the sewer system.
SLUG LOAD
Any discharge of water or wastewater in which the concentration of any constituent or the rate of flow exceeds for any period of time longer than 15 minutes, five times the average concentration or flow rate from that source during a normal working day.
USER
Any person who contributes, causes or permits the discharge of wastewater into the sewer system.
WASTEWATER
Industrial wastes or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities and institutions together with any groundwater, surface water and stormwater that may be present, whether treated or untreated, which enters the sewer system.
WASTEWATER DISCHARGE PERMIT
As set forth in § 288-2 of this article.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6018.101 et seq.
A. 
Permit required. All significant industrial users proposing to connect to or discharge to the Palmyra sewer system (SS) shall obtain a wastewater discharge permit at least 90 days before connecting to or discharging to the SS. All existing significant industrial users connected to or discharging to the SS shall apply for a wastewater discharge permit within 45 days after notification from the Borough. Following its review of the information provided, including any additional information which may be requested by the Borough, the Borough will issue or deny the issuance of a wastewater discharge permit to the SIU.
B. 
Permit application.
(1) 
Any SIU required to obtain a wastewater discharge permit shall complete and file with the Borough an application in the form and containing information as prescribed by the Borough, and shall submit an administrative fee as established from time to time by the Borough. The application shall be executed by an authorized representative of the SIU.
(2) 
The Borough will evaluate the data furnished by the SIU and may require additional information. After evaluation and acceptance of the data furnished, the Borough may issue a wastewater discharge permit subject to terms and conditions provided therein.
C. 
Permit modifications. The wastewater discharge permit of an SIU may be revised by the Borough when:
(1) 
Necessitated to protect public health, welfare and safety.
(2) 
In response to a change in process or discharge by the SIU.
(3) 
In response to a change in Borough, county, state and federal regulations.
(4) 
In response to a change in the Borough's NPDES permit or any other permit or a change in state and federal regulations governing sludge disposal, air quality or water quality.
D. 
Permit conditions. Wastewater discharge permits shall be expressly subject to all provisions of any Borough ordinance and all other applicable regulations, charges and fees established by the Borough. Permits may contain the following:
(1) 
Limitations on the average and maximum wastewater constituents and characteristics, including but not limited to flow, pollutant concentrations and mass limits.
(2) 
Limitations on average and maximum rate and time of discharge or requirements for flow regulation and equalization.
(3) 
Requirements for installation and maintenance of inspection, sampling and monitoring facilities.
(4) 
Specifications for monitoring programs which may include sampling locations, frequency of sampling, number, types and standards for tests and reporting schedule.
(5) 
A compliance schedule and reporting requirements.
(6) 
Requirements for submission of technical reports or discharge reports.
(7) 
Requirements for maintaining and retaining records relating to wastewater discharge as specified by the Borough and affording Borough access thereto.
(8) 
Requirements for notification of the Borough of any new discharge of wastewater constituents or any substantial change in the volume or character of the wastewater constituents being discharged to the STP.
(9) 
Requirements for notification of slug loads and accidental discharges.
(10) 
Other conditions as deemed appropriate by the Borough to ensure compliance with any Borough ordinance or state and federal regulations.
E. 
Permit duration. Permits shall be issued for a time period not to exceed five years and will expire on a specific date. The SIU shall apply for permit reissuance a minimum of 180 days prior to the expiration of the SIU's existing permit. The terms and conditions of the permit may be subject to modification by the Borough during the term of the permit as described in Subsection C of this section. The SIU shall be informed of any proposed change in its wastewater discharge permit at least 30 days prior to the effective date of change. Any changes or new conditions in the wastewater discharge permit shall include a reasonable time schedule for compliance.
F. 
Permit transfer. Wastewater discharge permits are issued to a specific SIU for a specific operation. A wastewater discharge permit shall not be reassigned or transferred or sold to a new owner, new user, different premises or a new or changed operation without the approval of the Borough.
A. 
Compliance schedule. If a compliance schedule is required to be contained or included with the application for a wastewater discharge permit or if under any other circumstances a compliance schedule is required to be submitted to the Borough, the following criteria shall govern the preparation of the compliance schedule:
(1) 
The compliance schedule shall clearly show by line items or clearly describe by numbered categories all the major phases or steps which the applicant reasonably believes will be involved in order, within the shortest possible period of time, to place a new pretreatment facility or process into operation and to achieve compliance on a consistent basis, to bring an existing facility or process into compliance on a consistent basis or to achieve compliance in some other respect or under some other circumstance.
Example. The line item phases or steps which could be involved might include: a phase for the selection and retention of a consulting engineer; a phase for the preparation of preliminary design plans; a phase for the review and evaluation by the Borough of the preliminary design plans; a phase for the preparation of final design plans; a phase for the preparation of technical specifications, project manuals and bid documents; a phase for the invitation and receipt of bids; a phase for the acceptance of bids and the award and execution of contracts; a phase for construction or installation; and a phase for testing the facility or process.
(2) 
A commencement date and a completion date shall be assigned to each line item phase or step or to each numbered category phase or step referred to in Subsection A(1) of this section. The period from commencement to completion of a particular phase or step shall be the shortest possible period of time. In no event, however, shall any phase or step exceed nine months in duration from commencement to completion. There shall be no hiatus or interval between one phase or step and the next.
(3) 
The compliance schedule shall show a final date by which compliance will be achieved on a consistent basis. Under no circumstances, however, shall this final date be later than any mandatory compliance date fixed by the United States Environmental Protection Agency for compliance with a national categorical pretreatment standard; any mandatory compliance date fixed by the Borough for compliance with a prohibition, control, limit, flow equalization standard, pretreatment standard or regulation issued or prescribed by the Borough; or any mandatory compliance date fixed by a governmental agency of the commonwealth for compliance with a prohibition, control, limit, standard or regulation issued or prescribed by the agency.
B. 
Compliance schedule reports. If a compliance schedule is approved by the Borough, the applicant shall submit to the Borough periodic compliance schedule reports. The content and frequency of these reports shall be prescribed by the Borough.
Any person, including the industrial user, may petition the Borough to reconsider the terms of a wastewater discharge permit within 30 days of its issuance. Such an appeal shall be directed to the Sanitation Committee of the Borough Council for its review. Upon consideration of the petition, the Committee shall make its recommendation to the Borough Council, whose decision regarding the appeal will be final.
A. 
Failure to submit a timely petition for review shall be deemed to be a waiver of the administrative appeal.
B. 
In its petition, the appealing party must indicate the wastewater discharge permit provisions objected to, the reasons for this objection and the alternative condition, if any, it seeks to place in the wastewater discharge permit.
C. 
The effectiveness of the wastewater discharge permit shall not be stayed pending the appeal.
D. 
If the Borough fails to act within 60 days following presentation of the petition to the Sanitation Committee, a request for reconsideration shall be deemed to be denied. Decisions not to reconsider a wastewater discharge permit, not to issue a wastewater discharge permit or not to modify a wastewater discharge permit shall be considered final administrative action for purposes of judicial review.
E. 
Aggrieved parties seeking judicial review of the final administrative wastewater discharge permit decision must do so by filing a complaint with the court of competent jurisdiction.
A. 
Monitoring facilities location. The Borough may require an SIU to provide and operate at the SIU's own expense monitoring facilities to allow inspection, sampling and flow measurement of the discharge from the SIU. The monitoring facility should normally be situated on the SIU's premises, but the Borough may, when such a location would be impractical or cause undue hardship on the SIU, allow the facility to be constructed in the public street or sidewalk area and located so that it will be not be obstructed by landscaping or parked vehicles.
B. 
Monitoring facilities construction and maintenance. Whether constructed on public or private property, the monitoring facilities shall be provided in accordance with the Borough's requirements and all applicable local construction standards and specifications. There shall be ample room in or near the monitoring facility to allow accurate sampling and preparation of samples for transport. Construction shall be completed within 90 days after construction plans have been approved by the Borough, in accordance with Subsection C of this section. The monitoring facility shall be maintained at all times in a safe and proper operating condition at the expense of the SIU.
C. 
Detailed plans. Detailed plans showing the intended facilities shall be submitted to the Borough for review within the time period approved by the Borough and shall be acceptable to the Borough before construction of the facility. The Borough shall notify the user, in writing, when the detailed plans are acceptable for construction.
The Borough may inspect the facilities of any user to ascertain whether the purpose of any Borough ordinance is being met and all requirements are being complied with. Persons or occupants of premises where wastewater is created or where there is a wastewater discharge shall allow the Borough or its representative ready access at all reasonable times to all parts of the premises for the purpose of inspection, sampling, records examination or in the performance of any of its duties. The Borough shall have the right to set up on the user's property such devices as are necessary to conduct sampling, inspection, compliance monitoring and/or metering operations. Where a user has a security measure in force which would require proper identification and clearance before entry into its premises, the user shall make necessary arrangements with its security guards so that upon presentation of suitable identification, the Borough will be permitted to enter, without delay, for the purpose of performing its specific responsibilities.
A. 
Protection from discharge. Each IU shall provide protection from accidental discharge and slug loads. Facilities, when required by the Borough to prevent an accidental discharge or slug load, shall be provided and maintained at the IU's cost and expense.
B. 
Facility plan. Detailed plans showing facilities and operating procedures to provide this protection shall be submitted to the Borough for review and shall be approved by the Borough before construction of the facility and implementation of the proposed procedures. All existing IU's shall complete a plan or provide evidence that such a plan is not necessary for their facility. No IU who commences discharge to the sewer system after the effective date of this article shall be permitted to discharge into the sewer system until this requirement has been fulfilled. Review and approval of such plans and operating procedures shall not relieve the IU from the responsibility to modify the IU's facility as necessary to meet the requirements of this article.
C. 
Notification of discharge. In the case of an accidental discharge or slug load, it is the responsibility of the IU to immediately telephone and notify the Borough of the incident. The notification by the IU shall include location of discharge, type of waste, concentration and volume and corrective actions to mitigate the accidental discharge or slug load.
D. 
Written notice. Within five days following an accidental discharge or slug load, the IU shall submit to the Borough a detailed written report describing the cause of the discharge and the measures to be taken by the IU to prevent similar future occurrences. Such notification shall not relieve the IU of any expense, loss, damage or other liability which may be incurred as a result of damage to the sewer system, fish kills or any other damage to person or property; nor shall such notification relieve the IU of any fines, civil penalties or other liability which may be imposed by this section or other applicable law.
E. 
Notice to employees. A notice shall be permanently posted on the IU bulletin board or other prominent place advising employees whom to call in the event of an accidental discharge or slug load. Employers shall insure that all employees who may cause or suffer such an accidental discharge or slug load to occur are advised of the emergency notification procedure.
Industrial users shall provide necessary wastewater treatment as required to comply with all Borough ordinances. Any facilities required to provide pretreatment of wastewater to a level acceptable to the Borough shall be provided, operated and maintained at the IU's expense. Detailed plans showing the pretreatment facilities and operating procedures shall be submitted to the Borough for review and shall be acceptable to the Borough before construction of the facility. The review of such plans and operating procedures shall in no way relieve the IU from the responsibility of modifying the facility as necessary to produce an effluent acceptable to the Borough under the provisions of all Borough ordinances. Any subsequent changes in the pretreatment facilities or method of operation shall be reported to and be acceptable to the Borough prior to the IU's initiation of the changes. All records relating to compliance with all Borough ordinances shall be made available to officials of the Borough upon request.
A. 
Availability of information. Information and data on an IU obtained from reports, questionnaires, permit applications, permits and monitoring programs and from inspections shall be available to the public or other governmental agency without restriction unless the IU specifically requests and is able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Borough that the release of such information would divulge information, processes or methods of production entitled to protection as trade secrets of the IU. The portions of a report which would disclose trade secrets or secret processes shall not be made available for inspection by the public but shall nevertheless be made available upon written request to governmental agencies for uses related to all Borough ordinances, the NPDES permit, any state disposal system permit and/or the programs under applicable categorical standards or for use by the Borough, any state, the United States or any state or federal agency in judicial review or enforcement proceedings involving the user or the person furnishing the report. Wastewater constituents and characteristics will not be recognized as confidential information.
B. 
Industrial user notification. Before information accepted by the Borough as confidential is transmitted to any governmental agency by the Borough, a notification to the industrial user shall be provided listing the confidential information to be transmitted and the governmental entity requesting such information.
A. 
Harmful contributions.
(1) 
The Borough may suspend services provided by the STP and/or may suspend a wastewater discharge permit when such suspension is necessary, in the opinion of the Borough, in order to stop an actual or threatened discharge which presents or may present an imminent or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of persons or to the environment, causes interference to the sewer system or causes the Borough to violate any condition of its NPDES permit.
(2) 
Any user notified of a suspension of the services provided by the STP and/or suspension of the wastewater discharge permit shall immediately stop or eliminate the discharge. In the event of a failure of the user to comply voluntarily with the suspension order, the Borough shall take such steps as it may deem necessary, including, without limitation, immediate severance of the sewer connection, to prevent or minimize damage to the sewer system or endangerment to any individuals.
(3) 
The Borough shall reinstate the wastewater discharge permit and/or the service provided by the STP upon proof of the elimination of the noncomplying discharge. A detailed written statement submitted by the IU describing the causes of the noncomplying discharge and the measures taken to prevent any future occurrence shall be submitted to the Borough within 15 days of the date of the occurrence.
B. 
Revocation of permit. The wastewater discharge permit of any SIU may be revoked in accordance with the procedures of this section upon the occurrence of any of the following:
(1) 
Failure of the SIU to factually report the wastewater constituents and characteristics of the discharge as required by Borough ordinance or the wastewater discharge permit;
(2) 
Failure of the SIU to report significant changes in operations or wastewater constituents and characteristics as required by any Borough ordinance or by the wastewater discharge permit;
(3) 
Failure of an SIU to provide pretreatment facilities as required by § 288-8 of this article.
(4) 
Refusal of reasonable access to the SIU's premises for the purpose of inspection or monitoring; or
(5) 
Violation of conditions of the wastewater discharge permit.
C. 
Notification of violation. Whenever the Borough finds that any user has violated or is violating this or any Borough ordinance, the wastewater discharge permit or any prohibition, limitation or requirement contained in this or any Borough ordinance, the Borough shall serve upon such user a written notice stating the nature of the violation. Within 30 days of the date of the notice, a plan for the satisfactory correction thereof shall be submitted to the Borough by the user, provided that this provision shall not affect or limit the Borough's rights and powers to immediately suspend service.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original Subsection D, Additional enforcement provisions to be added, which immediately followed this subsection, was repealed at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
[Amended 7-25-1994 by Ord. No. 599]
A. 
Civil penalties. Any user who is found to have failed to comply with any provision of this article and the rules, regulations and permits issued hereunder may be fined not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each offense. Each day during which a violation shall occur or continue shall be deemed a separate and distinct offense. In addition to the penalties provided herein, the Borough may recover reasonable attorneys' fees, court costs, court reporters' fees and other expenses of litigation by appropriate suit at law against the user who is found to have violated this article or the rules, regulations and permits issued hereunder.
B. 
Falsifying information. Any person who knowingly makes any false statements, representation or certification in any application, record, report, plan or other document produced, filed or required to be maintained pursuant to this article or the wastewater discharge permit or who falsifies, tampers with or knowingly renders inaccurate any monitoring device or method required under this article shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000 or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or by both.