Town of West Hartford, CT Stormwater Management

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged into the municipal storm drain system or watercourses any materials, including but not limited to pollutants or waters containing any pollutants that cause or contribute to a violation of applicable water quality standards, other than stormwater. The commencement, conduct or continuance of any illegal discharge to the storm drain system is prohibited except as described as follows:

The following discharges are exempt from discharge prohibitions established by this chapter: water line flushing or other potable water sources, landscape irrigation or lawn watering, diverted stream flows, rising groundwater, groundwater infiltration to storm drains, uncontaminated pumped groundwater, foundation or footing drains (not including active groundwater dewatering systems), crawl space pumps, air conditioning condensation, springs, noncommercial washing of vehicles, natural riparian habitat or wetland flow, swimming pools (if dechlorinated, typically less than one PPM chlorine), firefighting activities, and any other water source not containing pollutants;

Discharges specified in writing by the authorized enforcement agency as being necessary to protect public health and safety;

(4)

Dye testing is an allowable discharge, but requires a verbal notification to the authorized enforcement agency prior to the time of the test; or

(5)

The prohibition shall not apply to any nonstormwater discharge permitted under an NPDES permit, waiver, or waste discharge order issued to the discharger and administered under the authority of the Federal Environmental Protection Agency, provided that the discharger is in full compliance with all requirements of the permit, waiver, or order and other applicable laws and regulations, and provide that written approval has been granted for any discharge to the storm drain system.

Prohibition of illicit connections.

The construction, use, maintenance or continued existence of illicit connections to the storm drain system is prohibited.

This prohibition expressly includes, without limitations, illicit connections made in the past regardless of whether the connection was permissible under law or practices applicable or prevailing at the time of connection.

A person is considered to be in violation of this chapter if the person connects a line conveying sewage to the MS4, or allows such a connection to continue.

§ 148-9 Suspension of MS4 access.

Suspension due to illicit discharges in emergency situations. The Community Development Department may, without prior notice, suspend MS4 discharge access to a person when such suspension is necessary to stop an actual or threatened discharge which presents or may present imminent and substantial danger to the environment, or to the health or welfare of persons, or to the MS4 or waters of the United States. If the violator fails to comply with a suspension order issued in an emergency, the authorized enforcement agency may take such steps as deemed necessary to prevent or minimize damage to the MS4 or waters of the United States, or to minimize danger to persons.

Suspension due to the detection of illicit discharge. Any person discharging to the MS4 in violation of this chapter may have their MS4 access terminated if such termination would abate or reduce an illicit discharge. The authorized enforcement agency will notify a violator of the proposed termination of its MS4 access. The violator may petition the authorized enforcement agency for a reconsideration and hearing.

A person commits an offense if the person reinstates MS4 access to premises terminated pursuant to this section without the prior approval of the authorized enforcement agency.

§ 148-10 Industrial or construction activity discharges.

Any person subject to an industrial or construction activity NPDES stormwater discharge permit shall comply with all provisions of such permit. Proof of compliance with said permit may be required in a form acceptable to the Community Development Department prior to the allowing of discharges to the MS4.

§ 148-11 Monitoring of damages.

Applicability. This section applies to all facilities that have stormwater discharges associated with industrial, commercial, and construction activities.

Access to facilities.

The Community Development Department shall be permitted to enter and inspect facilities subject to regulation under this chapter as often as may be necessary to determine compliance with this chapter. If a discharger has security measures in force which require proper identification and clearance before entry into its premises, the discharger shall make the necessary arrangements to allow access to representatives of the authorized enforcement agency.

Facility operators shall allow the Community Development Department ready access to all parts of the premises for the purposes of inspection, sampling, examination and copying of records that must be kept under the conditions of an NPDES permit to discharge stormwater, and the performance of any additional duties as defined by state and federal law.

The Community Development Department shall have the right to set up on any permitted facility such devices as are necessary in the opinion of the authorized enforcement agency to conduct monitoring and/or sampling of the facility's stormwater discharge.

(4)

The Community Development Department has the right to require the discharger to install monitoring equipment as necessary. The facility's sampling and monitoring equipment shall be maintained at all times in a safe and proper operating condition by the discharger at its own expense. All devices used to measure stormwater flow and quality shall be calibrated to ensure their accuracy.

(5)

Any temporary or permanent obstructions to safe and easy access to the facility to be inspected and/or sampled shall be promptly removed by the operator at the written or oral request of the Community Development Department and shall not be replaced. The costs of clearing such access shall be borne by the operator.

(6)

Unreasonable delays in allowing the Community Development Department access to a permitted facility is a violation of a stormwater discharge permit and of this chapter. A person who is the operator of a facility with a NPDES permit to discharge stormwater associated with industrial activity commits an offense if the person denies the authorized enforcement agency reasonable access to the permitted facility for the purpose of conduction any activity authorized or required by this chapter.

(7)

If the Community Development Department has been refused access to any part of the premises from which stormwater is discharged, and he/she is able to demonstrate probable cause to believe that there may be a violation, or that there is a need to inspect and/or sample as part of a routine inspection and sampling program designed to verify compliance with this chapter or any order issued hereunder, or to protect the overall public health, safety and welfare of the community, then the authorized enforcement agency may seek issuance of a search warrant from any court of competent jurisdiction.

§ 148-12 Requirement to prevent, control, and reduce stormwater pollutants by use of best management.

The Community Development Department will adopt requirements identifying best management practices (BMP) for any activity, operation, or facility which may cause or contribute to pollution or contamination of stormwater, the storm drain system, or waters of the United States. The owner or operator of a commercial or industrial establishment, including those under construction, shall provide, at their own expense, reasonable protection from accidental discharge of prohibited materials or other wastes into the municipal storm drain system or watercourses through the use of these structural and nonstructural BMPs. Further, any person responsible for a property or premises, which is, or may be, the source of an illicit discharge may be required to implement, at said person's expense, additional structural and nonstructural BMPs to prevent the further discharge of pollutants to the municipal separate storm sewer system. Compliance with all terms and conditions of a valid NPDES permit authorizing the discharge of stormwater associated with industrial activity, to the extent practicable, shall be deemed compliance with the provisions of this section. The BMPs shall be part of a stormwater pollution prevention plan (SWPP) as necessary for compliance with requirements of the NPDES permit.

§ 148-13 Watercourse protection.

Every person owning property through which a watercourse passes, or such person's lessee, shall keep and maintain that part of the watercourse within the property free of trash, debris, excessive vegetation, and other obstacles that would pollute, contaminate, or significantly retard the flow of water through the watercourse. In addition, the owner or lessee shall maintain existing privately owned structures within or adjacent to a watersource, so that such structures will not become a hazard to the use, function, or physical integrity of the watercourse.

§ 148-14 Notification of spills.

Notwithstanding other requirements of 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 which are resulting or may result in illegal discharges or pollutants discharging into stormwater, the storm drain system, or water of the United States, said person shall take all necessary steps to ensure the discovery, containment and cleanup of such release. In the event of such a release of hazardous materials, said person shall immediately notify emergency response agencies of the occurrence via emergency dispatch services. In the event of a release of nonhazardous materials, said person shall notify the authorized enforcement agency in person or by phone or facsimile no later than the next business day. Notifications in person or by phone shall be confirmed by written notice address to the Community Development Department within three business days of the phone notice. If the discharge of prohibited materials emanates from a commercial or industrial establishment, the owner or operator of such establishment shall also retain an on-site written record of the discharge and the actions taken to prevent its recurrence. Such records shall be retained for at least three years.

§ 148-15 Enforcement.

Notice of violation. Whenever the Community Development Department finds that a person has violated a prohibition or failed to meet a requirement of this chapter, the authorized enforcement agency may order compliance by written notice of violation to the responsible person. Such notice may require without limitation:

The performance of monitoring, analyses, and reporting;

The elimination of illicit connections or discharges;