[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of
the City of Middletown as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 1-7-1980]
The purpose of this article is to make adequate
provision for the development and maintenance of facilities to control
increases in stormwater surface runoff resulting from land development.
The City shall not accept ownership of or responsibility
for maintenance of any facilities for stormwater surface runoff control
or detention, including but not limited to land and improvements thereon
such as roads, curbs, drains, catch basins, culverts, retention ponds,
basins or other facilities or their appurtenances, unless the requirements
of this article are met, all laws applicable to the project being
served by said facilities are complied with and the requirements of
all governmental authorities having jurisdiction, including but not
limited to the Middletown Planning and Zoning Commission and the Middletown
Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency, have been complied with.
If all requirements are met, the City will accept ownership and maintenance
responsibility for such facilities.
A.
Upon written certification to the Common Council by
all governmental authorities having jurisdiction, including but not
limited to the Middletown Planning and Zoning Commission and the Middletown
Inland Wetlands and Watercourses Agency, that all requirements applicable
to the project served by the facilities have been complied with, compliance
with all laws applicable to the project served by the facilities and
compliance with this article, the Common Council shall authorize and
direct the Mayor to accept a deed or deeds conveying to the City title
to such facilities for control and detention of stormwater surface
runoff.
B.
Prior to delivery of a deed to the City, the grantor
shall pay to the City the sum of $100 per acre for each acre or fraction
of an acre in the project. In addition to all other covenants made
by the deed, the deed shall contain a covenant and guaranty to the
City against defective workmanship or materials in the improvements
constructed on the property conveyed for a period of six years from
the recording of the deed. With the deed, the grantor shall deliver
a performance bond with the grantor as principal and an insurance
company authorized to act as a surety in Connecticut as the surety,
as security for the six-year guaranty. Prior to the acceptance and
recording of the deed, the City shall have no responsibility for maintenance
of the facilities. All such facilities shall be constructed at the
cost and expense of the grantor.
C.
The deed or deeds to the City shall provide for adequate
access to the facilities to be maintained and sufficient area to carry
on all necessary and convenient maintenance activities.
D.
The deed shall be a Connecticut warranty deed with
warranty covenants as provided in Chapter 821a of the General Statutes
as amended and in force at the time the deed is delivered to the City,
conveying to the City clear title to the property free and clear of
any encumbrances, liens, claims or defects of title which might affect
the ownership of the City or the use of the property for control or
detention of stormwater or the ability of the City to provide proper
maintenance.
E.
The grantor shall also provide an owner's title insurance
policy in the name of the City insuring the property conveyed with
a title insurer authorized to issue title insurance policies in Connecticut,
in an amount equal to the value of the land and improvements thereon
conveyed to the City.
F.
Each deed shall be immediately recorded in the Middletown
land records, and thereafter the City shall have the responsibility
for maintenance of the drainage facilities.
The Public Works Department shall maintain such
facilities.
[Adopted 6-3-2013 by Ord. No. 16-13]
An illicit discharge is defined as any discharge to the municipal
separate storm sewer system (stormwater drainage system) that is not
composed entirely of stormwater runoff (except for discharges allowed
under a NPDES permit or nonpolluting flows). These nonstormwater discharges
occur due to illegal dumping or illegal connections to the stormwater
drainage system. This article provides the City of Middletown with
the authority to regulate illicit discharges, designates who shall
administer and enforce the provisions of this article, and establishes
enforcement actions for those persons or entities found to be in noncompliance
or that refuse to allow access to their facilities.
It is hereby determined that:
A.
Discharges to the municipal separate storm sewer system that are
not composed entirely of stormwater runoff contribute to increased
nonpoint source pollution and degradation of receiving waters.
B.
These nonstormwater discharges occur due to spills, dumping and improper
connections to the municipal separate storm sewer system from residential,
industrial, commercial or institutional establishments.
C.
These nonstormwater discharges not only impact waterways individually,
but geographically dispersed, small-volume nonstormwater discharges
can have cumulative impacts on receiving waters.
D.
The impacts of these discharges adversely affect public health and
safety, drinking water supplies, recreation, fish and other aquatic
life, property values and other uses of lands and waters; these impacts
can be minimized through the regulation of spills, dumping and discharges
into the municipal separate storm sewer system.
E.
Localities in the State of Connecticut are required to comply with
a number of state and federal laws, regulations and permits which
require a locality to address the impacts of stormwater runoff quality
and nonpoint source pollution due to improper nonstormwater discharges
to the municipal separate storm sewer system.
F.
Therefore, the City of Middletown adopts this article to prohibit
such nonstormwater discharges to the municipal separate storm sewer
system. The Common Council firmly believes that the regulation of
spills, improper dumping, and discharges to the municipal separate
storm sewer system is in the public interest and will prevent threats
to public health and safety and the environment.
G.
If any provision of this article or the application thereof to any
person or circumstances is held to be invalid, such invalidity shall
not affect other provisions or applications of any other part of this
article that can be given effect without the invalid provisions or
applications; and to this end, the provisions of this article and
the various applications thereof are declared to be severable.
The purpose of this article is to protect the public health,
safety, environment and general welfare through the regulation of
nonstormwater discharges to the municipal separate storm sewer system
to the maximum extent practicable as required by federal and/or state
law. This article establishes methods for controlling the introduction
of pollutants into the municipal separate storm sewer system in order
to comply with requirements of the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination
System (NPDES) permit process. The objectives of this article are
to:
A.
Regulate the contribution of pollutants to the municipal separate
storm sewer system by any person;
B.
Prohibit illicit discharges and illegal connections to the municipal
separate storm sewer system;
C.
Prevent nonstormwater discharges, generated as a result of spills,
inappropriate dumping or disposal, to these separate storm sewer systems;
and
D.
Establish legal authority to carry out all inspection, surveillance,
monitoring and enforcement procedures necessary to ensure compliance
with this article.
The provisions of this article shall apply throughout the City
of Middletown.
This article is not intended to modify or repeal any other ordinance,
rule, regulation, or other provision of law. The requirements of this
article are in addition to the requirements of any other ordinance,
rule, regulation, or other provision of law, and where any provision
of this article imposes restrictions different from those imposed
by any other ordinance, rule, regulation, or other provision of law,
whichever provision is more restrictive or imposes higher protective
standards for human health or the environment shall control.
If the provisions of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision
or clause of this article shall be adjudged invalid by a court of
competent jurisdiction, such judgment shall not affect or invalidate
the remainder of any section, subsection, paragraph, subdivision or
clause of this article.
The Director of Public Works, hereafter referred to as "Director,"
shall administer, implement, and enforce the provisions of this article.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
A discharge prohibited by this article, which occurs by chance
and without planning or thought prior to occurrence.
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. § 1251
et seq.), and any subsequent amendments thereto.
Activities subject to the Connecticut Soil Erosion and Sedimentation
Control Act[1] or General Permit for the Discharge of Stormwater and
Dewatering Wastewaters from Construction Activities. These include
construction projects resulting in land disturbance. Such activities
include but are not limited to clearing and grubbing, grading, excavating,
and demolition.
The Director of Public Works for the City of Middletown or
his/her authorized deputy, agent, or representative.
Either of the following:
Any pipe, open channel, drain or conveyance, whether on the
surface or subsurface, which allows an illicit discharge to enter
the storm drain system, including but not limited to any conveyances
which allow any nonstormwater discharge, including sewage, process
wastewater, and wash water to enter the storm drain system, regardless
of whether such pipe, open channel, drain or conveyance has been previously
allowed, permitted, or approved by an authorized enforcement agency;
or
Any pipe, open channel, drain or conveyance connected to the
municipal separate storm sewer system which has not been documented
in plans, maps, or equivalent records and approved by an authorized
enforcement agency.
Any direct or indirect nonstormwater discharge to the municipal separate storm sewer system, except as exempted in § 258-13, Prohibitions; exceptions, of this article.
Activities subject to NPDES Industrial Permits as defined
in 40 CFR 122.26(b)(14) or C.G.S. 22a-430b.
A permit issued by the Connecticut DEP under authority delegated
pursuant to 33 U.S.C. § 1342(b) that authorizes the discharge
of pollutants to waters of the United States, whether the permit is
applicable on an individual, group, or general area-wide basis.
Any facility designed or used for collecting and/or conveying
stormwater, including but not limited to any roads with drainage systems,
highways, municipal streets, curbs, gutters, inlets, catch basins,
piped storm drains, pumping facilities, structural stormwater controls,
ditches, swales, natural and man-made or altered drainage channels,
reservoirs, and other drainage structures, and which is:
Any discharge to the storm drain system that is not composed
entirely of stormwater.
Except to the extent exempted from this article, any individual,
partnership, firm, association, joint venture, public or private corporation,
trust, estate, commission, board, public or private institution, utility,
cooperative, city, county or other political subdivision of the state,
any interstate body or any other legal entity.
Anything that causes or contributes to pollution. Pollutants
may include, but are not limited to: paints, varnishes, and solvents;
petroleum hydrocarbons; automotive fluids; cooking grease; detergents
(biodegradable or otherwise); degreasers; cleaning chemicals; nonhazardous
liquid and solid wastes and yard wastes; refuse, rubbish, garbage,
litter, or other discarded or abandoned objects and accumulations,
so that same may cause or contribute to pollution; floatables; pesticides,
herbicides, and fertilizers; liquid and solid wastes; sewage; fecal
coliform and pathogens; dissolved and particulate metals; animal wastes;
silt, sand and/or exposed earth and wastes and residues that result
from constructing a building, a road and/or a structure; concrete
and cement, and noxious or offensive matter of any kind.
The contamination or other alteration of any water's
physical, chemical or biological properties by the addition of any
constituent and includes, but is not limited to, a change in temperature,
taste, color, turbidity, or odor of such waters, or the discharge
of any liquid, gaseous, solid, radioactive, or other substance into
any such waters as will or is likely to create a nuisance or render
such waters harmful, detrimental or injurious to the public health,
safety, welfare, or environment, or to domestic, commercial, industrial,
agricultural, recreational, or other legitimate beneficial uses, or
to livestock, wild animals, birds, fish or other aquatic life.
Any building, lot, parcel of land, or portion of land, whether
improved or unimproved, including adjacent sidewalks and parking strips.
Any and all rivers, streams, creeks, branches, lakes, reservoirs,
ponds, drainage systems, springs, wells, and other bodies of surface
and subsurface water, natural or artificial, lying within or forming
a part of the boundaries of the State of Connecticut which are not
entirely confined and retained completely upon the property of a single
person.
Any surface flow, runoff, and drainage consisting entirely
of water from any form of natural precipitation, and resulting from
such precipitation.
A structural stormwater management facility or device that
controls stormwater runoff and changes the characteristics of that
runoff, including, but not limited to, the quantity and quality, the
period of release or the velocity of flow.
[1]
Editor's Note: See C.G.S. § 22a-325 et seq.
A.
Prohibition of illicit discharges.
(1)
No person shall throw, drain, or otherwise discharge, cause, or allow
others under its control to throw, drain, or otherwise discharge,
into the municipal separate storm sewer system any pollutants or waters
containing any pollutants other than stormwater.
(2)
The following discharges are exempt from the prohibition provision
above, providing they contain no pollutants:
(a)
Water line flushing performed by a public water utility, landscape
irrigation or lawn watering, diverted stream flows, rising groundwater,
groundwater infiltration to storm drains, uncontaminated pumped groundwater,
foundation or footing drains, crawl space, air-conditioning condensation,
springs, natural riparian habitat or wetland flows, and any other
water source not containing pollutants.
(b)
Discharges or flows from firefighting, and other discharges
specified, in writing, by the City of Middletown as being necessary
to protect public health and safety.
(c)
The prohibition provision above shall not apply to any nonstormwater
discharge permitted under a NPDES permit or order issued to the discharger
and administered under the authority of the state and 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 provided that written
approval has been granted for any discharge to the municipal separate
storm sewer system.
(d)
Discharges from water main breaks and sewage released from manholes
or sewer mains caused by blockages, or the repair of a broken sewer
main, provided DEEP was notified and a bypass report was submitted
as required by state law or regulation.
B.
Prohibition of illegal connections. The construction, connection,
use, maintenance or continued existence of any illegal connection
to the municipal separate storm sewer system is prohibited.
(1)
This prohibition expressly includes, without limitation, illegal
connections made in the past, regardless of whether the connection
was permissible under law or practices applicable or prevailing at
the time of connection.
(2)
A person violates this article if the person connects a line conveying
sewage to the municipal separate storm sewer system or allows such
a connection to continue.
(3)
Improper connections in violation of this article must be disconnected
and redirected, if necessary, to an approved on-site wastewater management
system or the sanitary sewer system upon approval of the Middletown
Water and Sewer Department. If what is being discharged is not acceptable
to enter into the sanitary sewer system or infiltrate into the ground,
then it will have to be discharged of in another way that is acceptable
to the Town.
(4)
Any drain or conveyance that has not been documented in plans, maps
or equivalent, and which may be connected to the municipal storm sewer
system, shall be relocated by the owner or occupant of that property
upon receipt of written notice of violation from the Town. Such notice
will specify a time period within which the relocation of the drain
or conveyance is to be completed, that the drain or conveyance be
identified as storm sewer, sanitary sewer or other, and that the outfall
location or point of connection to the storm sewer system, sanitary
sewer system or other discharge point be identified. Results of these
investigations are to be documented and provided to the Director.
A.
All vehicle washing must be performed in a manner which prevents
the direct discharge of soapy washwater to a stream, river, or other
surface water body. Wash waters should not enter a stormwater catch
basin because the vast majority of these stormdrains discharge directly
to a surface waterbody without treatment.
B.
Vehicle washing should be performed in an area large enough to contain
all wash water and allow it to seep into the grass, gravel and/or
soil. It is important that the area selected be away from on-site
or neighboring potable water supplies (wells). For more information
on this subject, please refer to the latest guidance documents on
"Disposal of Vehicle Wash Water" on the Connecticut Department of
Environmental Protection's website.
Disposal of residential swimming pool and/or hot tub wastewater
needs to comply with all the latest Connecticut Department of Environmental
Protection (DEP) regulations and requirements. For more information
on this subject, please refer to the environmental permitting section
of the Connecticut DEP's website.
Any person subject to an industrial, commercial 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 Director prior to allowing discharges
to the municipal separate storm sewer system.
The Director shall be permitted to enter and inspect properties
and facilities at reasonable times as often as may be necessary to
determine compliance with this article.
A.
If a property or facility has security measures in force which require
proper identification and clearance before entry into its premises,
the owner or operator shall make the necessary arrangements to allow
access to representatives of the City.
B.
The owner or operator shall allow the Director access to all parts
of the premises for the purposes of inspection, sampling, photography,
videotaping, examination and copying of any records that are required
under the conditions of a NPDES permit to discharge stormwater.
C.
The Director shall have the right to set up on any property or facility
such devices as are necessary in his/her opinion to conduct monitoring
and/or sampling of flow discharges.
D.
The Director may require the owner or operator to install monitoring
equipment and perform monitoring as necessary, and make the monitoring
data available to his/her office. This sampling and monitoring equipment
shall be maintained at all times in a safe and proper operating condition
by the owner or operator at his/her own expense. All devices used
to measure flow and quality shall be calibrated to ensure their accuracy.
E.
Any temporary or permanent obstruction to safe and easy access to
the property or facility to be inspected and/or sampled shall be promptly
removed by the owner or operator at the written or oral request of
the Director and shall not be replaced. The costs of clearing such
access shall be borne by the owner or operator.
F.
Unreasonable delays in allowing the Director access to a facility
are a violation of this article.
G.
If the Director has been refused access to any part of the premises
from which stormwater is discharged, and the Director is able to demonstrate
probable cause to believe that there may be a violation of this article,
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 article or any order issued hereunder, or to protect the overall
public health, safety, environment and welfare of the community, then
the Director may seek issuance of a search warrant from any court
of competent jurisdiction.
A.
Notwithstanding other requirements of law, as soon as any person
responsible for a facility, activity or operation, or responsible
for emergency response for a facility, activity or operation, has
information of any known or suspected release of pollutants or nonstormwater
discharges from that facility or operation which are resulting or
may result in illicit discharges or pollutants discharging into stormwater,
the municipal separate storm sewer system, state waters, or waters
of the U.S., said person shall take all necessary steps to ensure
the discovery, containment, and cleanup of such release so as to minimize
the effects of the discharge.
B.
Said person shall notify the Director no less than 24 hours after
the event of the nature, quantity and time of occurrence of the discharge.
Notifications in person or by phone shall be confirmed by written
notice addressed and mailed to the Director within three business
days of the phone or in-person 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.
Said person shall also take immediate steps to ensure no recurrence
of the discharge or spill.
C.
In the event of such a release of hazardous materials, emergency
response agencies and/or other appropriate agencies shall be immediately
notified.
D.
Failure to provide notification of a release as provided above is
a violation of this article.
A.
Violations.
(1)
It shall be unlawful for any person to violate any provision or fail
to comply with any of the requirements of this article. Any person
who has violated or continues to violate the provisions of this article,
may be subject to the enforcement actions outlined in this section
or may be restrained by injunction or otherwise abated in a manner
provided by law.
(2)
In the event the violation constitutes an immediate danger to public health or public safety, the Middletown Police Department and/or the Director is authorized to enter upon the subject private property, without giving prior notice, to take any and all measures necessary to abate the violation and/or restore the property. The Director is authorized to seek costs of the abatement as outlined in Subsection E.
B.
Notice of violation. Whenever the Director finds that a violation
of this article has occurred, the Director may order compliance by
written notice of violation.
(1)
The notice of violation shall contain:
(a)
The name and address of the alleged violator;
(b)
The address, when available, or a description of the building,
structure or land upon which the violation is occurring or has occurred;
(c)
A statement specifying the nature of the violation;
(d)
A description of the remedial measures necessary to restore
compliance with this article and a time schedule for the completion
of such remedial action. It is not the responsibility of the Town
to formulate or design any remedial systems;
(e)
A statement of the penalty or penalties that shall or may be
assessed against the person to whom the notice of violation is directed;
and
(f)
A statement that the determination of violation may be appealed
to the Public Works Commission by filing a written notice of appeal
within 30 days from the date of the written notice of violation.
(2)
Such notice may require, without limitation:
(a)
The performance of monitoring, analyses, and reporting required;
(b)
The elimination of illicit discharges and illegal connections;
(c)
That violating discharges, practices, or operations shall cease
and desist;
(d)
The abatement or remediation of stormwater pollution or contamination
hazards and the restoration of any affected property;
(e)
Payment of costs to cover administrative and abatement costs;
and
(f)
The implementation of pollution prevention practices acceptable
to the City.
(g)
The reporting of the violation to the Connecticut Department
of Environmental Protection (CTDEP) and/or the United States Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA).
C.
Appeal of notice of violation. Any person receiving a notice of violation
may appeal the determination of the Director. The notice of appeal
must be received by the Town Clerk's office within 30 days from
the date of the written notice of violation. A hearing on the appeal
before the Public Works Commission shall take place within 60 days
from the date of receipt of the notice of appeal. The alleged violator
or his/her designee should be present at the Public Works Commission
meeting to present his/her case and defend the accusations from the
notice of violation. The decision of the Public Works Commission shall
be final.
D.
Enforcement measures after appeal. If the violation has not been
corrected pursuant to the requirements set forth in the notice of
violation or, in the event of an appeal, within 30 days of the decision
of the Public Works Commission upholding the decision of the Director,
then the Director may enter upon the subject private property and
is authorized to take any and all measures necessary to abate the
violation and/or restore the property. It shall be unlawful for any
person, owner, agent or person in possession of any premises to refuse
to allow the government agency or designated contractor to enter upon
the premises for the purposes set forth above.
E.
Costs of abatement of the violation.
(1)
Within 30 days after abatement of the violation, the owner of the
property will be notified of the cost of abatement, including administrative
costs. The property owner may file a written protest to the Public
Works Commission objecting to the assessment or to the amount of the
assessment within 30 days of such notice. A hearing on the abatement
assessment appeal before the Public Works Commission shall take place
within 60 days from the date of receipt of the notice of appeal. The
alleged violator or his/her designee should be present at the Public
Works Commission meeting to present their case on why the assessment
is unfair.
(2)
If the amount due is not paid within 30 days after receipt of the
notice, or if an appeal is taken, within 30 days after a decision
on said appeal, the charges shall become a special assessment against
the property and shall constitute a lien on the property for the amount
of the assessment.
(3)
Any person violating any of the provisions of this article shall
become liable to the City of Middletown by reason of such violation.
F.
Civil penalties. In the event the alleged violator fails to take
the remedial measures set forth in the notice of violation or otherwise
fails to cure the violations described therein within 10 days, or
such greater period as the Director shall deem appropriate, after
the Director has taken one or more of the actions described above,
the Director may impose a penalty not to exceed $100 (depending on
the severity of the violation) for each day the violation remains
unremedied after receipt of the notice of violation.
G.
Criminal penalties. For intentional and flagrant violations of this
article, the Director may refer the violation to the United States
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for enforcement of penalties
under Sections 309 and 311 of the Clean Water Act.
H.
Violations deemed a public nuisance. In addition to the enforcement
processes and penalties provided, any condition caused or permitted
to exist in violation of any of the provisions of this article is
a threat to public health, safety, welfare, and environment and is
declared and deemed a nuisance, and may be abated by injunctive or
other equitable relief as provided by law.
I.
Remedies not exclusive.
(1)
The remedies listed in this article are not exclusive of any other
remedies available under any applicable federal, state or local law,
and the Director may seek cumulative remedies.
(2)
The Director may recover attorney's fees, court costs, and other
expenses associated with enforcement of this article, including sampling
and monitoring expenses.
