Borough of Mount Arlington, NJ Sewer Use

"May" will be considered permissive.

"Shall" will be considered mandatory.

§ 135-3 Use of public sewers.

It shall be unlawful for any person to place or deposit in an unsanitary manner, upon public or private property within the Borough of Mount Arlington, or in any area under the jurisdiction of said borough, any human or animal excrement, garbage or other noxious waste.

It shall be unlawful to discharge to any natural outlet within the borough, or in any area under the jurisdiction of said borough, any sanitary sewage, industrial wastes or other polluted waters, except where suitable treatment has been provided in accordance with the Sanitary Code of the borough.

The owner of each house connection shall be responsible for and make such provisions as he deems necessary to protect his premises against backflow of sewage from the sanitary sewer. Sufficient check valve and appurtenant equipment, shall be installed and maintained by owner as he deems necessary. All such appurtenances and equipment shall be the sole responsibility of the owner and the borough assumes no responsibility for its installation and operation nor for damage caused by sewerage backflow.

[Added 8-18-1999 by Ord. No. 99-8]

§ 135-4 Discharges restricted.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, swimming pool or pool water, individual water softener discharges, sump pump discharges, once-through cooling water or unpolluted industrial process waters to any sanitary sewer.

Stormwater and all other unpolluted processed water or drainage shall be discharged to such sewers as are specifically designated as storm drains or storm sewers or to a natural outlet. Industrial cooling water once through or unpolluted process waters may be discharged, upon approval of the Municipal Engineer, to a storm drain or natural outlet.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged to any public sewer:

Gasoline, benzine, naphtha, fuel oil, lubricating oils and greases, flammable or explosive liquids, gases, paint and lacquers, tars, plastics and other viscous substances.

Improperly shredded garbage.

Abrasives, ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics or woods.

Solid or vicious substances which are capable of causing obstructions in sewers or interference with the proper functioning of the treatment processes.

(5)

Wastes containing viable pathogenic bacteria other than those normal to domestic sewage.

(6)

All wastes containing corrosive matters to toxic or poisonous substances in sufficient quantity to injure or interfere with the sewage treatment process or create any hazard to humans, animals, sewers, structures, equipment or personnel of the sewage treatment works.

(7)

Any noxious, toxic, corrosive or malodorous solids, liquids or gases, which either singly or by interaction with other substances, are capable of creating a public nuisance and hazard to life or preventing entry into sewers for their maintenance and repair.

(8)

Any radioactive isotopes and antibiotic wastes.

(9)

All waters, wastes or deleterious substances which shall be excluded from discharge to intercepting or trunk sewers of the MSA as defined by existing or future regulations of the MSA and existing or future agreements between the borough and the MSA.

(10)

Any waters, wastes or deleterious substances which require pretreatment or dilution before introduction to intercepting or trunk sewers of the MSA as defined by existing or future agreements between the borough and the MSA.

(11)

Any water or wastes having a pH lower than five point five (5.5) or higher than nine point zero (9.0) or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment and personnel of the sewage works.

(12)

Any water or wastes having a five-day biochemical oxygen demand greater than 250 parts per million by weight.

(13)

Any water or wastes containing more than 250 parts per million, by weight, of suspended solids.

(14)

Any water or waste containing levels of total phosphorous as P greater than six point zero (6.0) parts per million.

The following concentrations of additional substances will govern the acceptance of sewage by the MSA:

Substance	Maximum Allowable Parts per Million (ppm)
Total iron	1.0
Copper	1.0
Chromium (hexavalent)	0.05
Cyanides	0.20
Phenols	0.005
Free mineral acid	None
Acetylene generation sludge	None

Permission required for discharge of certain wastes into public sewers.

The admission into the public sewers of any waters or wastes having a five-day biochemical oxygen demand greater than 250 parts per million by weight; or containing more than 250 parts per million, by weight, of suspended solids; or containing any quantity of substances having the characteristics described in Subsection C above; or having an average daily flow greater than 2% of the average daily sewer flow of the borough, shall be subject to the review and approval of the borough.

Where necessary in the opinion of the borough, the owner shall provide, at his expense, such preliminary treatment as may be required to reduce the biochemical oxygen demand to 250 parts per million and the suspended solids to 250 parts per million by weight; or reduce objectionable characteristics or constituents to within the acceptable limits provided for in Subsection C above; or control the quantities and rates of discharge of such waters or wastes.

Plans, specifications and any other pertinent information relating to proposed preliminary treatment facilities shall be submitted for the approval of the borough and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and Energy (NJDEPE). Under no circumstances can any construction of such facilities commence until said approvals/permits are obtained in writing.

Where preliminary treatment facilities are provided for any water or wastes, they shall be maintained continuously in satisfactory and effective operation by the owner at his expense.

When required by the borough, the owner of any property served by a building sewer carrying industrial wastes shall install a control manhole in the building sewer to facilitate observation, sampling and measurement of the wastes. Such manhole, when required, shall be accessible and safely located and shall be constructed in accordance with plans approved by the borough. The manhole shall be installed by the owner at his expense and shall be maintained by him so as to be safe and accessible at all times.

No statement contained in this section shall be construed as prohibiting any special arrangement between the borough and any persons whereby an industrial waste of unusual strength or character may be admitted to the sewerage system, whether before or after pretreatment, provided that there is no impairment of the functioning of the sewerage system or any sewerage treatment plant by reason of the administration of such wastes.

The borough may, on a routine basis, randomly grab discharge samples from individual generators and once a particular discharge is found to exceed the maximum limits specified previously, the qualitative surcharge will be imposed. Additionally, a minimum frequency of quarterly grab sampling will be conducted by the borough for determining any excessive constituents or characteristics, and the additional charges for the same shall be reflected and payable by the owner or occupant in his quarterly sewer building.

Any violation of the aforementioned standards set forth above shall permit the borough to issue a cease and desist notification of that discharge. The borough may thereafter proceed by all appropriate methods in enforcement of such cease and desist notification.

All measurements, tests and analysis of the characteristics of waters or wastes to which reference is made herein shall be determined by a New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection and Energy (NJDEPE) certified laboratory for water and wastewater analysis and in accordance with the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage. Samples will be collected at the most representative point of collection deemed by the borough.

In no event shall the achievement of any acceptable limits as pertains to this section be accomplished by any form of dilution.

§ 135-5 (Reserved)

[Repealed 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 02-10]

§ 135-6 Powers and authority of inspectors.

The Supervisor of Water and Sewer and other duly authorized employees of the borough bearing proper credentials and identification shall be permitted to enter on all properties for the purpose of inspection, observation, measurements, sampling and testing in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.

§ 135-6.1 Determination of service units.

The annual sewer use and maintenance charge for all sewage discharged into the MSA Regional Sewerage Treatment Works shall be based upon the MSA charges prorated per equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) and the borough's use maintenance fees. There shall be a separate sewer use and maintenance charge for each service unit served by the wastewater treatment system according to the number and type of service units attributable to the subject real property. In determining service units relative to each parcel of land, the estimated average daily flow of sewage shall be divided by the average daily flow of sewage from the average single-family residence in the borough, and the quantity will be deemed to be one dwelling unit. The service unit mentioned herein shall be otherwise known and designated as an "equivalent dwelling unit" (EDU).

§ 135-6.2 Payment of charges.

The effective date for new buildings for the beginning of the annual service charge shall be the date of the issuance of a temporary or permanent certificate of occupancy; and for existing buildings, the service charge shall begin 90 days after date of official notice to connect with the sewer.

The annual sewer service charge hereby imposed shall be payable in four equal quarterly installments when billed by the borough. Failure to pay the bill, when received within 30 days shall result in the billing being considered delinquent, and interest shall be charged as set forth in Subsection C below.

Delinquent quarterly service charges shall bear interest in the same manner and rate as unpaid real property taxes until fully paid.

Charges to be lien upon property. Unpaid sewer service charges and other costs, expenses, penalties and interest thereon shall become a lien upon the house, building, lot or premises to which they relate. When any bill for sewer service charges remains in arrears for two months or more from the due date thereof, the municipal employee charged with the duty of collection shall file a statement of the unpaid balance and all interest accruing thereon with the Tax Collector of the municipality. From the time of said filing, the sewer charges shall constitute a lien upon the real estate served in connection with which the charges were incurred. Such lien shall be superior to all other interests, except the lien for municipal taxes, and shall be on a parity with any liens of water service. Such lien shall be removed when sewer service charges and the interest accruing therein shall have been fully paid to the municipality.

§ 135-7 Rates.

[Amended 12-21-1994 by Ord. No. 94-11; 3-20-1996 by Ord. No. 96-5; 12-18-1996 by Ord. No. 96-16; 7-11-2005 by Ord. No. 17-05]

The annual sewer use and maintenance charge for all sewage hereinafter generated shall be as follows:

All residential single-family dwelling units, including detached houses, multifamily dwellings, garden apartment units and townhouse or condominium units, all containing two or more bedrooms, are deemed to be one equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) for each service, and the sewer use and maintenance charge for this service unit shall be $240 per quarter, per equivalent dwelling unit (EDU). Any dwelling unit, except for detached houses, containing one bedroom shall pay a sewer use and maintenance charge for each one-bedroom unit of .71 of the service use and maintenance charge imposed herein for each EDU.

[Amended 7-6-1998 by Ord. No. 98-14A; 12-17-2001 by Ord. No. 01-22; 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

For all other customers: $0.0087 per gallon of sewage generated per quarter per service unit, with a minimum quarterly billing of $240 per structure for any structure in which one or more service units are located. The amount of sewage generated in a calendar quarter shall be determined by the following method:

[Amended 3-11-2002 by Ord. No. 02-10; 4-8-2002 by Ord. No. 02-14; 3-22-04 by Ord. No. 04-04; 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

All uses other than those residential uses set forth herein shall be based upon the following formula: The total square footage of the building representing a nonresidential use, measured by the outside perimeter of the same multiplied by the number of floors occupied by said service unit, times the factor of .125 gallons per day of wastewater flow divided by the estimated average daily flow for an equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) of 265 gallons per day yielding the total number of equivalent dwelling units for the structure and any fraction thereof, rounded out to the nearest 1/10. The total number of equivalent dwelling units for the structure shall be multiplied by the amount of $240 per equivalent dwelling unit and any fraction thereof rounded out to the nearest 1/10 in order to determine the quarterly use charge for the structure. The formula is otherwise stated as follows:

[Amended 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

Quarterly Sewer Use Charge = .125 gal. per day x square footage of building x $240\265 gallons per day

Example. In order to illustrate the operation and implementation of the sewer use rate formula, as applied to different types of buildings and uses, the following examples are given:

(a)

Single-family detached house containing four bedrooms: one equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) equals a sewer use charge of $240 per quarter.

[Amended 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

(b)

A three-family house: three equivalent dwelling units (EDUs) equals $720.

[Amended 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

(c)

A two-story commercial building of 1,250 square feet each floor (all uses in the building being commercial):

Quarterly Sewer Use Charge = .125 gal. per day x 2,500 sq. ft. x $240/265 gallons per day = $283.03

[Amended 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

(d)

A two-story commercial/residential mixed-use building with 2,000 square feet of commercial usage on the first floor plus three residential apartments on the second floor:

Quarterly Commercial Sewer Use Charge = .125 gal. per day x 2,000 sq. ft. x $240/265 gallons per day = $226.42

(subject to quarterly minimum charge per service unit of $240) plus

3 EDU = $720

Total: $240 + $720 = $960

[Amended 3-23-2009 by Ord. No. 05-09; 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 02-11]

Once the sewage generation flows for a quarter are established for nonresidential customers, these flows will continue to be used for billing purposes unless there is a change in the type or intensity of the use of the structure. If this should happen, then the sewage generation data will be recalculated based upon the methods specified in this Subsection B.

The charge for use and maintenance herein imposed shall be payable quarterly to the borough on January 1, April 1, July 1 and October 1 and shall be due and payable whether or not the sewer facilities are used during the entire quarter. If a structure is vacant for the entire quarter, there shall be a minimum sewer maintenance charge of 80% of the established bill. It shall be the obligation of the owner or occupant of the service unit to notify the borough during any period of vacancy during that quarter in order to qualify for a reduction in charge.

[Amended 2-10-2003 by Ord. No. 02-03]

§ 135-7.1 Discontinuance of sewer service.

[Added 4-6-1998 by Ord. No. 98-10]

In the event that any property containing a structure or structures receiving sanitary sewer service shall be demolished or otherwise removed from the property site, the owner of said property may apply to the borough to discontinue sewer service to said property. The property owner shall pay a permit fee of $150 for the discontinuance of sanitary sewer service to any such property. The property owner shall also be responsible to cap the sewer service line, which had provided sanitary sewer service to the property, which capping shall be inspected and approved by the borough. The quarterly service charge for sanitary sewer service to any such property being disconnected from the municipal sewer system shall continue in effect through the end of the quarter in which the borough issues its final approval of the disconnection of the property from the municipal sewer system. Nothing in this section shall relieve the property owner from obtaining any and all permits required by Chapter 67 or any other provision of this Code.

§ 135-8 Connection fee.

[Amended 12-21-1994 by Ord. No. 94-11; 3-20-1996 by Ord. No. 96-5]

The Borough of Mount Arlington does hereby establish a connection fee or tapping fee to be imposed for a connection of any property to the Borough of Mount Arlington sanitary sewer system. Said fee shall be imposed upon the owner or occupant of the property seeking approval for such connection or such person or entity authorized in writing by the owner or occupant to apply for and obtain a sewer connection.

The Borough Council finds that it is in the best interests of the borough to establish a priority list so that proposed users of the system desiring to connect to the system can pay for said connections and receive priority in and to the allocation of capacity available; subject, however, to the rights and interests of the borough to control the allocation of said capacity in the best interests of the borough and its residents in order that said reservation of capacity is not irrevocably committed to a proposed user who may not construct and/or build a project using part of the capacity available for distribution.

The connection or tapping fees imposed shall be uniform with each class of users, and the amount of the connection fee or tapping fee shall not exceed the actual cost of the physical connection, if made by the Borough of Mount Arlington, plus an amount computed in the following manner to represent a fair payment towards the cost of the system:

The amount representing all debt service, including but not limited to sinking funds, reserve funds, the principal and interest on bonds and the amount of any loans and the interest therein, paid by the borough to defray the capital cost of developing the system as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year of the borough shall be added to all capital expenditures made by the borough not funded by a bond ordinance or debt for the development of the system as of the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year of the borough.

Any gifts, contributions or subsidies to the borough received from and not reimbursed or reimbursable to any federal, state, county or municipal government or agency or any private person, and that portion of amounts paid to the borough by a public entity under a service agreement or service contract which is not repaid to the public entity by the borough, shall then be subtracted.

The remainder shall be divided by the total number of service units served by the borough at the end of the immediately preceding fiscal year of the borough, and the results shall then be apportioned to each new connector according to the number of service units attributed to that connector. In attributing service units to each connector, the estimated average daily flow of sewage for the connector shall be divided by the average daily flow of sewage from the average single-family residence in the borough's district to produce the number of service units to be attributed. The service unit mentioned herein shall be otherwise known as an "equivalent dwelling unit (EDU)."

The owner or occupant or such other person or entity authorized in writing by the owner or occupant to apply for and obtain a connection to the municipal sewage treatment system shall pay a connection or tapping fee to the Borough of Mount Arlington based upon the number of equivalent dwelling units (EDU's) attributable to that connector.

An equivalent dwelling unit (EDU), or otherwise referred to herein as "service unit," is hereby defined as a unit of measure which estimates sewage flow generated equivalent to that generated by a single-family residential dwelling unit. For the purpose of this section, an equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) shall be deemed to be a sewage flow of 265 gallons per day (gpd).

The sewer connection fees to be imposed by the Borough of Mount Arlington for connection to the municipal sanitary sewer system shall be as follows:

All detached houses and all residential dwelling units, including multifamily dwellings, garden apartment units and townhouse or condominium units, all containing two or more bedrooms, are deemed to be one equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) for each service unit, and the one-time sewer connection fee for this service shall be $800 per equivalent dwelling unit (EDU). Any dwelling unit, except for detached houses, containing one bedroom shall pay a connection fee for each one-bedroom unit of .71 of the hook-up fee for an equivalent dwelling unit (EDU). Said fee shall be payable in full at the time of making application for a sewer connection permit.

[Amended 8-21-1996 by Ord. No. 96-10]

All stores, shopping centers, office buildings, commercial and other business type shall pay a connection fee based upon the following formula: The connection fee shall be equal to that portion of the building representing the nonresidential use, measured by the outside perimeter of the same multiplied by the number of floors occupied or used by said service unit, times the factor of .125 gallons per day of wastewater flow for an equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) of 265 gallons per day yielding the total number of equivalent dwelling units for the structure and any fraction thereof, rounded out to the nearest 1/10. The total amount of equivalent dwelling units for the structure shall be multiplied by the current equivalent dwelling unit (EDU) fee set forth in Section 135-8.1 of this Article I and any fraction thereof rounded to the nearest 1/10 in order to determine the connection fee for the structure. The formula is otherwise stated as follows:

[Amended 11-11-2003 by Ord. No. 28-03]

Connection fee = .125 gal/day x sq. ft. of the building x EDU fee in Section 135-8.1/265 gallons per day

In all other nonresidential uses, the provisions of N.J.A.C. 7:9-1 et seq., as applied to design flow for small plants for various establishments, shall be used in order to determine the anticipated gallons per day of wastewater flow which shall then be computed at the rate of $800 per 265 gallons of wastewater flow per day [one equivalent dwelling unit (EDU)]. For example, if the design flow as established for a small plant servicing a church, as determined by the provision of N.J.A.C. 7:9-1 et seq., shall be three gallons per day (gpd) of flow per seat in the worship area and the use or proposed use indicates that there shall be 300 seats in the worship area of the church, then the connection fee shall be computed as follows:

Connection Fee = 3 (gpd) x 300 (seats) x $800/265 gallons per day = $2,716.98

In no event shall the minimum connection fee as outlined above for any nonresidential building be less than $800.

Any person may apply for a connection permit to the municipal sewage system under the following terms and conditions:

The application for a connection permit shall be on a form as provided by the borough.

The applicant must conform to all other regulations set forth in this section and all other applicable ordinances of the borough, and nothing herein shall be deemed to alter, change or amend the various provisions of the Borough of Mount Arlington ordinances or other general laws of the State of New Jersey involving the use of public sewers.

No sewer connection permit shall be traded, sold, transferred or otherwise entitle any person to connect, except for the specific lot and block or unit or building number for which said permit was issued. In the event of the sale of the lot, unit, subdivision and/or site plan for which a sewer connection permit has been issued but not yet connected, the applicant shall notify the borough and request an amended permit listing the new owner, to be issued to the new owner of record.

A sewer connection permit may aggregate all of the proposed lots in a subdivision and/or units in a site plan, but the specific number of connections sold shall be set forth on said permit.

(5)

Payment of any sewer connection fee is expressly in addition to any other costs for constructing or installing any lateral, sewer extension, main or appurtenance to the sewer system and inspection fees or other governmental charges required of the applicant in order to make said connection.

(6)

Sewer connection permits.

(a)

Subject to the right of the borough to repurchase any sewer connection permit, as set forth in Subsection F(7) below, the owner of any lot, parcel or tract of land in the borough where construction or extension of public sewer is permitted by law may purchase sewer connection permits for said lot, parcel or tract. The maximum number of permits which may be purchased shall not exceed the maximum number of residential equivalent dwelling units (EDU's) or nonresidential equivalent dwelling units (EDU's) which could be constructed on the lot, parcel or tract under the applicable density, zoning, use and performance standards and provisions of said Development Ordinance. The number of sewer connection permits necessary to equal said maximum number of dwelling units shall be calculated in accordance with the provisions of this section of this article, and in the event of a dispute as to said number, the Borough Engineer shall determine the maximum number of sewer connection permits which may be purchased, and said determination shall be final.[1]

[1]

Editor's Note: See Ch. 17, Land Development.

(b)

The issuance of said sewer connection permits does not in any way constitute approval to construct said units, and the borough by issuing said permits does not warrant or guarantee that the use proposed will in fact be approved or that the applicant will receive approval to construct the number of units for which permits have been purchased, nor does the issuance of any permit replace, alter or supersede any approval, without limitation, otherwise required or which may in the future be required for the construction, development or use of said lot, parcel or tract.

(c)

If not previously purchased in accordance with the provision above, it shall be a condition of minor or preliminary major subdivision and/or minor or preliminary major site plan, or any other approval required pursuant to the Borough of Mount Arlington Land Use Ordinance, for any use or development of land in the borough that proposes or is required to construct or connect units or structures to the public sewer system, including all other residential and nonresidential units which may not require land use approval pursuant to the provision of N.J.S.A. 40:55D-1 et seq. or any other applicable law, and including single-family residential dwelling units, that within 30 days of the date of said approval, if required, but in no event prior to the issuance of a building permit for the subject property as to all proposed uses, the applicant shall purchase the number of sewer connection permits to equal the number of residential equivalent dwelling or nonresidential equivalent units for which approval has been granted. Any sewer connection permits so issued are expressly subject to the right of the borough to repurchase said permits as set forth in Subsection F(7) below.[2]

[2]

Editor's Note: See Ch. 17, Land Development

(7)

At such time as the committed allocation of the municipal sanitary sewage system equals 75% of the total permitted allocation available for the borough sanitary sewage system, and at any time thereafter, the borough may elect, at the borough's sole option, to repurchase any connection permit which has been sold. This repurchase shall be accomplished by giving written notice to the record owner of said permit, stating the borough's intention to repurchase within six months from the date of said notice. In the event that the unit or units for which the connection permits were issued are not physically connected to the sewage system within said six-month period, said repurchase shall be completed by the payment by the borough of the original sewer connection fee paid by the applicant, together with interest on said connection based on lowest rate of interest received by the borough from its Sewer Operating Money Market Account during the time period said connection fee amount was held on deposit by the borough, but in no event greater than 51/4% per annum. At the time the borough tenders said payment, the sewer connection permits repurchased shall be null, void and of no legal effect, and the borough shall be free to sell new permits covering the capacity which had been reserved under the repurchased permits.

(8)

In no event shall a connection permit be issued unless and until payment in full for the same has been received by the borough.

Priority list. The borough shall maintain a sewer priority list, which shall list by name and, in the order in which said permits were granted, by date the owners of said permits, lots and blocks and unit numbers involved and the estimated gallons per day of the sewage anticipated to be generated by said connection or connections. While said permits are in effect, capacity shall be reserved for said connection or connections, subject to the right of the borough to repurchase said permits in accordance with Subsection F(7) above.

Permit form. The sewer connection permit shall be on a form as established by the borough, which shall contain the provisions of this chapter, consented to and signed by the applicant.

Prior sewer connection permits unaffected. The provisions of this section shall not affect the rights of any person to whom a sewer connection permit has been granted prior to the effective date of this section. However, in the event that capacity is being reserved for a lot or lots but the sewer connection fee has not been paid and the sewer connection permit has not been issued, the owner shall pay the sewer connection for all said lots or units within 90 days of the effective date of this section, otherwise said capacity shall no longer be reserved for said development.

Mandatory connection fee requirements. Where the borough has jurisdiction and has provided for the installation of a sanitary sewer collection and transmission system through any public or private street, roadway, highway or easement (public sewer system), all owners of any property, including, but not limited to, residential, commercial or otherwise, lying on or adjacent to a said public or private street, roadway, highway or easement where said main and/or lateral exists, shall disconnect from and cease utilization of any existing on-site individual sewage disposal system and shall cause any on-site sewage collection and transmission facilities to be connected to the above-referenced public sewer system, and disconnection from the on-site sewage disposal system shall be done in a manner that is in compliance with the ordinances, rules and regulations of Borough Health and Construction Code Departments, such departments and agencies having jurisdiction and authority in the matter, as well as any and all other federal, state, county or local laws and regulations which may be applicable.

The disconnection of an existing individual on-site sewage disposal system shall be done in the following manner and within six months of the connection to the public sewer system:

All septic tanks, seepage pits and distribution boxes shall have the contents removed or properly disposed of in a manner approved the Borough Health and Construction Code Departments.

The Borough Health and Construction Code Departments, upon notification by the property owner, will provide for an official inspection of the abandonment and filling of the septic tanks, seepage, pits and distribution boxes.

All septic tanks, seepage pits and distribution boxes shall be closed and abandoned in accordance with the National Standard Plumbing Code in force in the borough.

After the official inspection of the filling and compacting shall commerce until all voids have been completely filled and a soil density equal to that of the surrounding soil has been achieved.

(5)

Under no circumstances shall alternative uses for septic tanks or related appurtenances be permitted. Those prohibited uses shall include, but not be limited to, connection of roof leaders or any source of water runoff, rainwater or waste water from any and all sources and shall also include the discharge or storage of any type of chemical or waste materials.

Where any house, building or structure of any type is constructed after the date of the commencement of operations of the public sewer system, any house, building or structure must connect to the public sewer system prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy by the borough.

Whenever a sewer main and/or lateral is installed in any public or private street, roadway, highway or easement, all owners of any property, including, but not limited to, residential, commercial or otherwise, lying on or adjacent to said public or private street, roadway, highway or easement shall connect to the sewer main and/or lateral within 180 days after service of notice of availability of sewer service provided by the borough, in writing, which shall be served upon the owner of the property personally or by leaving it at his usual place of abode with a member of his family above the age of 18 years or by mailing such notice by first class mail to the owner's last known post office address as shown on the tax records of the borough.

Should the owner of any property fail or neglect to connect to public sewer system pursuant to §§ 135-1, 135-2 and 135-3 herein above, the owner of the property shall be provided a delinquent notice by the borough. Connection to the public sewer system shall thereafter be made within 30 days after service of the delinquent notice. The delinquent notice shall be served upon the owner of the property personally, by leaving it at his usual place of abode with a member of his family above the age of 18 years or by mailing such notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, to the owners last known post office address as shown on the tax records of the Borough of Mount Arlington.

The provisions of this chapter shall be enforceable by the borough through its respective designee(s), which shall include, but not be limited to, the Health Officer and the Supervisor of Water and Sewer.[3]

[3]

Editor's Note: Former Subsection P, which immediately followed this subsection and pertained to sewer surcharges, was repealed 2-9-1998 by Ord. No. 98-1.

§ 135-8.1 Connection fee subsequent to January 1, 2022.

[Added 4-6-1998 by Ord. No. 98-10; amended 5-20-2002 by Ord. No. 02-19; 12-16-2002 by Ord. No. 02-33; 12-15-2003 by Ord. No. 32-03; 12-13-2004 by Ord. No. 19-04; 12-13-2004 by Ord. No. 20-04; 12-13-2004 by Ord. No. 25-04; 12-12-2005 by Ord. No. 24-05; 12-11-2006 by Ord. No. 30-06; 12-10-2007 by Ord. No. 22-07; 12-8-2008 by Ord. No. 17-08; 12-14-2009 by Ord. No. 24-09; 2-14-2010 by Ord. No. 14-10; 2-21-2012 by Ord. No. 01-12; 12-18-2012 by Ord. No. 15-12; 12-3-2013 by Ord. No. 12-13; 12-2-2014 by Ord. No. 12-2014; 12-15-2015 by Ord. No. 14-2015; 11-1-2017 by Ord. No. 15-2017; 12-4-2018 by Ord. No. 19-18; 12-3-2019 by Ord. No. 15-19; 12-1-2020 by Ord. No. 09-2020; 12-7-2021 by Ord. No. 16-2021]

Any property owner receiving a notice, issued by the Borough of Mount Arlington, subsequent to January 1, 2022, to connect their property to the municipal sewer system or any property owner with a formerly vacant property or property not connected to the municipal sewer system, seeking to connect their property to the municipal sewer system subsequent to January 1, 2022, shall pay a connection fee in accordance with the provision of § 135-8 based upon a fee of $9,800 per equivalent dwelling unit. In calculating the connection fee for any aforesaid properties, the fee shall be calculated on the basis per equivalent dwelling unit and all references to any fee set forth in § 135-8E, as amended, shall be read to be $9,800. Connection fees established in developers’ agreements providing financial contributions for sewer capacity shall prevail.

§ 135-8.2 Installment payments of sewer connection fees.

[Added 2-15-2011 by Ord. No. 01-11]

Any property owner who received a notice to connect his or her property to the municipal sewer system may pay the connection fee to the borough in installments over a four-year period from the date of the said notice to connect, with no interest or penalty accruing thereon only during that four-year period if he or she shall timely meet all payment requirements. The borough will bill the property owners for payments of such fee on a quarterly basis, on March 1, June 1, September 1 and December 1 of each year. There will be a ten-day grace period for payment. No partial payments will be accepted. Any default in payments of the quarterly installment will result in the acceleration of the owners' obligation, requiring payment of the remainder of the connection fee immediately. Except as provided for herein, interest will accrue thereafter at a rate of 18% per annum.

§ 135-9 Construction requirements.

The diameter of the building sewer and building sewer lateral shall not be less than four inches. The slope of such pipes shall not be less than 1/4 inch per foot. Where necessary, in the opinion of the Plumbing Inspector, if the above sizes and slope are not adequate, he shall have the right to require a larger diameter pipe or an increased slope that is adequate.

Whenever possible, the building sewer shall be brought to the building at an elevation not exceeding that of the existing building drain. If the building sewer is brought to the existing building at a lower elevation than the existing building drain, suitable fittings and cleanouts shall be installed, subject to inspection and approval of the Plumbing Inspector. No building sewer shall be laid parallel and within three feet of any bearing wall which might thereby be weakened. The depth shall be sufficient to afford protection from frost. The building sewer shall be laid at uniform grade and in straight alignment insofar as possible. Changes in direction shall be made only with properly curved pipe and fittings and shall be subject to the approval of the Plumbing Inspector. Cleanouts shall be installed at all changes of directions and every 75 feet of straight run.

In all buildings in which any building drain is too low to permit gravity flow to the public sewer, sanitary sewage carried by south drain shall be lifted by approved artificial means and discharged to the building sewer.

Building sewers and building sewer laterals shall be Schedule 40 PVC pipe.

Grease, oil and sand interceptors.

Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be provided when, in the opinion of the borough, they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease in excessive amounts or any flammable wastes, sand and other harmful ingredients, except that such interceptors shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units. All interceptors shall be of a type and capacity approved by the borough and shall be located as to be readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection.

Grease and oil interceptors shall be constructed or impervious materials capable of withstanding abrupt and extreme changes in temperature. They shall be of substantial construction, watertight and equipped with easily removable covers which, when bolted in place, shall be gastight and watertight.

Where installed, all grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be maintained by the owner, at his expense, in continuously efficient operation at all times.

Before any portion of the building drain outside of the house is connected to the building sewer, the owner shall prove to the satisfaction of the borough that the building drain is clean and conforms in every respect to the requirements of this chapter. Before any portion of the building sewer is connected to the building sewer lateral, the Plumbing Inspector shall be satisfied that the building sewer is in good order and conforms in every respect to the requirements for construction thereof.

Where there is no existing building sewer or building sewer lateral available that connects to a public sewer, the property owner shall, prior to the issuance of a certificate of occupancy, apply to the borough for a building sewer permit for the installation of a building sewer lateral and/or building sewer for connection to the public sewer.

Maintenance of the public sewer and the building sewer lateral shall be performed by the borough.

The building sewer laterals may not be installed or the public street disturbed therefor by any person or concern who is not a responsible contractor. Such contractor shall provide the borough with satisfactory evidence of his capacity to perform the work.

The connection of the building sewer lateral in to the public sewer shall be made at the Y branch, if such branch is available at suitable location. If no Y-branch is available, the owner shall install a saddle on the sewer main, of such type as approved by the borough.

Each sewer pipe shall be laid so as to have a continuous bearing on the bedding material, true to line and grade and in such manner as to form a close concentric joint with the adjoining pipe and to prevent sudden offsets of the flow line. As the work progresses, the interior of the pipe shall be cleared of all dirt and superfluous materials of every description. A suitable swab or drag shall be kept in the pipe and pulled forward past each joint immediately after the joining has been completed. Trenches shall be kept free from water, and pipe shall not be laid when the condition of the trench or the weather is unsuitable for such work. At times when work is not in progress, open ends of pipe and fittings shall be securely and satisfactorily closed so that no trench water, earth or other substance will enter the pipe or fittings.

Excavations for building sewers and building sewer laterals.

Excavation for building sewers and building sewer laterals shall follow lines parallel to and equidistant from the location of the pipe center line. Trenches shall be excavated to the depths and widths required to accommodate the construction of the sewers. Excavation shall not be carried below the approved grade. Any excavation made below grade for any reason shall be backfilled with the granular material specified hereinafter. Excavation in trenches in rock shall extend to a depth of six inches below the outside bottom of the pipe barrel and brought to required elevation with granular bedding material.

Excavation and trenches in earth shall extend a depth of four inches below the outside bottom of the pipe barrel and shall be brought to required elevation with granular bedding material. Where unsatisfactory foundation material is found in earth trenches, such material shall be removed to the extent directed by the Supervisor of Water and Sewer or Construction Code Official.

In backfilling trenches, loose fine earth, free from clods, stones larger than two inches in greatest dimension and debris shall be used to a depth of two feet of the top of the pipe. The backfill material shall be carefully tamped under the pipe haunches, on the side and above the pipe in layers not more than six inches deep before compaction. The remainder of the trench shall contain not more than 20% stone by volume, and no one stone shall be more than six inches in its greatest dimension. This material shall be thoroughly tamped in layers not to exceed 10 inches in thickness after compaction. Backfilling and compaction up to two feet over the pipe shall be done by hand. Paddling of trench backfill will not be permitted. Compaction of each layer of backfill shall be to a density at least equal to that of the surrounding earth and to a degree which will prevent settlement of restored or proposed future pavement. The surface shall be mounded over and left in a uniform and neat condition satisfactory to the borough.

Excavated materials shall be piled in compact heaps, so placed as to cause the least possible inconvenience to the public. Extreme care shall be taken to prevent any dirt, stones or other undesirable material from entering the public sewer system through the building sewer during these operations.

Safety precautions.

Blasting operations for excavation will be subject to the approval of the borough and shall conform to the requirements of all laws, ordinances and regulations having jurisdiction over such work.

Trenches shall be protected by such sheeting, shoring, bracing and the like as may be required to perform the excavations for safety, including the protection of persons, structures, utilities, etc., and to conform to existing laws.