Village of Bellevue, MI Sewers

Any nongovernmental use of publicly owned treatment works identified in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1972, Office of Management and Budget, as amended and supplemented, under the following divisions:

(a)

Division A, Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing.

(b)

Division B, Mining.

(c)

Division D, Manufacturing.

(d)

Division E, Transportation, Communications, Electric, Gas and Sanitary Services.

(e)

Division I, Services.

MAJOR CONTRIBUTING INDUSTRY

A user in the divisions listed may be excluded if it is determined that it will introduce primarily segregated domestic wastes or wastes from sanitary conveniences.

INDUSTRIAL WASTES

The liquid wastes, solids, or semisolid from industrial processes as distinct from domestic sanitary wastewater.

MAINTENANCE

The cost of keeping the waste treatment works in a state of good repair for efficient operation.

An industrial user of the publicly owned treatment works that:

Has a flow of 50,000 gallons or more per average workday;

Has a flow greater than 5% of the flow carried by the municipal system receiving the waste;

Has in its waste, a toxic pollutant in toxic amounts as defined in standards issued under Section 307(a) of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act; or

PROPERLY SHREDDED GARBAGE

Is found by the permit issuance authority, in connection with the issuance of an NPDES permit to the publicly owned treatment works receiving the waste, to have significant impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industries, on that treatment works or upon the quality of effluent from that treatment works.

NATURAL OUTLET

Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake or other body of water, either surface or groundwater.

NPDES PERMIT

The Federal permit issued by the State of Michigan authorizing the Village of Bellevue to discharge treated wastewater into the Battle Creek River.

OPERATION

The cost of providing staff, utilities, chemicals, supplies, etc., for treating wastewater.

PERSON

Any individual, firm, company, association, society, corporation or group.

The logarithm of the reciprocal of the weight of hydrogen ions in grams per liter of solution.

The wastes from the cooking, preparation and dispensing of food that has been cut or shredded to such a degree that all particles will be carried freely under flow conditions normally prevailing in public sewers, with no particle greater than 1/2 inch in any dimension.

PUBLIC SEWER

A sewer that carries wastewater and to which storm- , surface and ground waters are not intentionally admitted.

REPLACEMENT

The expenditures for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories, or appurtenances that are necessary during the service life of the treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which such works were designed and constructed. The term "operation and maintenance" includes replacement.

SEWER

Any pipe, tile, tubes, or conduit for carrying wastewater.

STORM SEWER or STORM DRAIN

A sewer which carries storm- and surface waters and drainage but which excludes wastewater and polluted industrial wastes.

SUSPENDED SOLIDS

The solids that either float on the surface of or are suspended in water, wastewater, or other liquids, and which are removable by laboratory filtering.

SYSTEM

Any and all parts of the Village's wastewater treatment system.

USER CHARGE

A charge levied on users of a treatment works for the cost of operation and maintenance of such works.

USER CLASS

A division of users into categories having similar flows and wastewater characteristics (i.e., residential, commercial, industrial, institutional and governmental).

VILLAGE

The Bellevue Village Council or its duly designated representative.

WASTEWATER

Any combination of water-carried wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions, and industrial establishments, together with such ground- , surface and storm waters as may be present.

WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT

Any arrangement of devices and structures used for treating wastewater.

WASTEWATER WORKS

All facilities for collecting, pumping, treating and disposing of wastewater.

WATERCOURSE

A channel in which a flow of water occurs, either continuously or intermittently.

Word usage. "Shall" is mandatory. "May" is permissive.

§ 117-3 Use of public sewers required.

It shall be unlawful for any person to place or deposit or permit to be deposited in any area under the jurisdiction of the Village for discharge into any natural watercourse any substance which is injurious to the public health or detrimental to the public welfare.

The owner of all houses, buildings or properties used for human occupancy, employment, recreation or other purpose, situated within the Village and abutting on any street, alley or right-of-way in which there is now located or may in the future be located a public sanitary sewer of the Village, is hereby required at his expense to install suitable toilet facilities and other sanitary conveniences therein, and to connect such facilities directly with the public sewer in accordance with the provisions of this chapter. The Village Council may require any such owner, pursuant to the authority conferred upon it by law or ordinance, to make such installation or connection.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, cooling water or unpolluted industrial process waters into any sanitary sewer.

Stormwater and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged into such sewers as are specifically designated as combined sewers or storm sewers or to a natural outlet approved by the Village. Industrial cooling water or unpolluted process waters may be discharged, upon approval of the Village into a storm sewer, combined sewer or natural outlet.

Except as hereinafter provided, no person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any of the following described waters or wastes into any public sewer:

Any liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than 150º F., or lower than 30º F.

Any water or waste which may contain more than 50 parts per million, by weight, of fat, oil or grease.

Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil, or other flammable or explosive liquid, solid or gas.

Any garbage that has not been properly shredded.

(5)

Any ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, wood pulp, paunch manure, or any solid or viscous substance capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference with the proper operation of the wastewater works.

(6)

Any waters or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5 or higher than 10.5 or having any other corrosive properties capable of causing damage or hazards to the structures, equipment or personnel of the wastewater works.

(7)

Any waters or wastes containing a toxic or poisonous substance in sufficient quantity to injure or interfere with any wastewater treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, fish or aquatic life or create any hazard in any receiving waters or in the wastewater treatment plant.

(8)

Any waters or wastes containing cyanide, hexavalent chromium or copper wastes.

(9)

Any waters or wastes containing suspended solids of such character or quantity that unusual attention or expense is required to handle such materials at the wastewater treatment plant.

(10)

Any noxious or malodorous gas or substance capable of creating a public nuisance.

(11)

Any waters or wastes that shall exceed any limitations set forth by state or federal regulations, including the NPDES permit requirements and pretreatments standards governing discharges into any public sewer.

Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be provided when, in the opinion of the Village, they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease, excessive amounts of any flammable wastes, sand, or 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 Village and shall be located so as to be readily accessible for cleaning and inspection. Grease and oil interceptors shall be constructed of impervious materials capable of withstanding abrupt and extreme changes in temperature. They shall be substantially constructed, 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 the owner's expense and shall be in continuously efficient operation at all times.

Admission into waters; approval by Village.

The admission into the public sewers of any waters or wastes having a five-day BOD greater than 200 milligrams per liter; containing more than 250 milligrams per liter of suspended solids; containing more than 1,000 milligrams per liter of total solids; having a chlorine demand of more that 15 milligrams per liter; containing any quantity or substance having a characteristic description in Subsection E; or having a daily average flow greater than 2% of the average daily wastewater flow of the Village shall be subject to the review and approval of the Village.

Where necessary, in the opinion of the Village, the owner shall provide, at his expense, such preliminary treatment as may be necessary to:

(a)

Reduce the BOD to 200 milligrams per liter, the suspended solids to 250 milligrams per liter, total solids to 1,000 milligrams per liter, and the chlorine demand to 15 milligrams per liter; or

(b)

Reduce objectionable characteristics or constituents to within the maximum limits provided for in Subsection E; or

(c)

Control the quantities and rates of discharge of such waters or wastes.

Plans, specifications and other pertinent information relating to proposed preliminary treatment facilities shall be submitted for approval to the Village, and no construction of such facilities shall be commenced until such approvals are obtained in writing. The Village shall also have the right to:

(a)

Exclude industrial wastes in whole or in part for any reason; and/or

(b)

Levy a surcharge on any extra-strength industrial wastes discharged to cover the added costs of treating such wastes.

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

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

All measurements, tests, and analysis of the characteristics of waters and wastes to which reference is made in Subsections E and H of this section shall be determined in accordance with Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage, and also be in conformance with Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for Analysis of Pollutants, as published in 40 CFR, Part 136, dated October 16, 1973, and shall be determined at the control manhole provided for in Subsection J of this section or upon suitable samples taken at said control manhole. In the event that no special manhole has been required, the control manhole shall be considered to be the nearest downstream manhole in the public sewer to the point at which the building sewer is connected.

No statement contained in this section shall be construed as preventing any special agreement or arrangement between the Village and any industrial concern whereby an industrial waste of unusual strength or character, i.e., exceeding specific strengths or concentrations as heretofore provided in this section, may be accepted by the Village for treatment, subject to the payment by the industrial concern of the estimated cost of such treatment and such charges for industrial waste cost recovery as are applicable. Any special contract entered into will be subject to all of the provisions and rates set forth in this or other applicable ordinances and resolutions of the Village.

No unauthorized person shall maliciously, willfully or negligently break, damage, destroy, uncover, deface or tamper with any structure, appurtenance or equipment which is a part of the municipal wastewater system or treatment plant.

§ 117-4 Service connections to existing system.

Application for wastewater connections shall be made to the Department on forms prescribed and furnished by it. The Department may refuse to authorize a larger service pipe than reasonably required by the premises served. Wastewater connections shall be installed in accordance with rules and regulations of the Department and upon payment of the required connection fee and meter installation fee. All wastewater connections shall be the property of the Village. Connection fees shall not be less than the cost of materials, installation and overhead attributable to such installations.

The connection fee will be set by the Village Council on an annual basis. A connection fee will be established both for properties that have been special assessed for the installation of the system, as set forth in this chapter and Chapter 125, Special Assessment, and for properties that have not been special assessed for the installation of the system.

The Village is the owner of the wastewater service to property line.

§ 117-5 Additional regulations.

No provision contained in this chapter shall be construed to interfere with any additional regulations or requirements that may be imposed by the Village Council, County of Eaton, the State Health Department or any other lawfully constituted authority with respect to public or private wastewater disposal.

§ 117-6 Wastewater service extensions.

[Amended 1-14-2014 by Ord. No. 2014-001]

Connecting.

Any property that wishes to connect to the public wastewater system of the Village of Bellevue must be within the Village limits. If the property is not within the Village limits, then it must be annexed into the Village before being allowed to connect to the system.

Except as otherwise provided in this section, new sewer connections are mandatory; provided that capacity is available in downstream sewers, lift stations, pumping stations, force mains and the sewage treatment plant, including pollutant-removal capacity for BOD and suspended solids. Except as otherwise provided in this section, no property may be developed within the Village without being connected to the system.

Payment of fee for survey and cost estimate. Any property owner in the Village who shall desire to make use of the Village wastewater system in an area not now serviced by the system shall pay a fee, as set by the Village Council on an annual basis. This fee will be for the initial survey and cost estimate to construct the proposed extension of the system. The fee shall be applied upon the cost of extension if carried out or retained by the Village if the applicant decides to abandon the plan for the extension. The Village will, as soon as possible, notify the property owner of the cost of the extension, and the property owner shall within 90 days thereafter pay to the Village Clerk the total cost of the extension. Upon receipt of payment, the Village shall begin and complete the extension of the wastewater system as requested by the property owner.

Additional benefited property. All property that an extension of the wastewater system will benefit shall be special assessed as set forth in Chapter 125, Special Assessment, of the Code of the Village of Bellevue.

Permit required. No person other than the Village shall construct any extension of the wastewater system of the Village without first securing a permit from the Village Clerk. No permit shall be granted if the Village is willing and able to make the extension.

Application for permit. Any person desiring a permit for an extension under this chapter shall file an application with the Village Clerk and shall furnish with the application complete engineered plans and specifications duly approved by the State Department of Health, which plans and specifications shall be turned over to the Village Engineer for examination and review.

Permit fee. The permit applicant shall pay to the Village Clerk a fee as set by the Village Council on an annual basis to cover the costs and expenses of the examination and review of the plans and specifications by the Village Engineer, and if the fee is not sufficient to pay all the costs of the examination and review, said applicant shall pay the remainder thereof. No permit therefor shall be granted until the plans and specifications have been approved by the Village Engineer and the entire fee paid.

Review of plan. In examining and reviewing the plans and specifications, the Village Engineer shall:

See that the plans and specifications comply with this chapter, the statutes of the state and the rules and regulations of the State Department of Health, the Department of Environmental Quality and any other state or county agency having any jurisdiction in regard thereto.

See that the extension has adequate capacity to serve not only the applicant's property and development, but also the foreseeable development along the extension.

See that the wastewater line to which the extension is connected has adequate capacity to assume the added burden of the extension.

Bonds and insurance required. Before any construction under the permit issued pursuant to this chapter is started, the contractor of the project shall furnish to the Village such bonds and insurance as would be required of the contractor if the contract were with the Village.

Securing of permits and easements. The permittee under this chapter shall secure all permits, licenses and easements required in the extension.

Testing of completed construction. Construction shall be completed according to the plans and specifications submitted pursuant to this chapter, and shall be subject to examination and testing by the Village Engineer, whose expenses and fees shall be paid by the permittee as part of the expense of the extension.

Route. Construction of the extension pursuant to this chapter may be along and in the right-of-way of the public streets and alleys of the Village or on private easements across private ground, provided that the Village has use of the easements for repair or alteration of the line or to connect into the lines.

Replacement of streets and sidewalks. The surface of all streets, alleys, sidewalks, etc., disturbed in the construction under this chapter shall be replaced and put in like condition as before the construction was started, and all fills in streets and alleys shall be backfilled with sand.

Acceptance by Village. When the construction under this chapter is completed and is connected to the Village wastewater system, and the Village has accepted it, the extension shall become and be the property under the jurisdiction, maintenance and control of the Village.

Rights of abutting property owners. Any owner of property along the route of the extension must tap into and use the extended line, unless already connected to the system, provided that they have paid the special assessment provided for in Subsection C of this section.

Any property that, as of November 1, 2013, or any property that is annexed to the Village as of the date of annexation, was connected to a satisfactory private sewage disposal system (i.e., septic tank, cesspool, or other facility intended to be used for the private disposal of sanitary sewage) that has been approved by all applicable state and local governmental agencies, shall not be required to connect to the public wastewater system unless or until the private sewage disposal system ceases to operate for more than one year, or incurs a substantial failure as determined by an appropriate county health department or Village official, and further provided that capacity is available. In the event that a private sewage disposal system ceases to operate for more than one year, or incurs a substantial failure as determined by an appropriate Village or county health department official, and capacity is available, the private sewage disposal system shall be discontinued and abandoned, and filled with suitable materials, and the property connected to the public wastewater system. The owner of a private sewage disposal system as described in this section which ceases to operate for more than one year, or incurs a substantial failure as determined by an appropriate county health department or Village official, shall not repair or replace the system unless capacity in the public wastewater system is not available and the owner receives prior written approval from the Village Council, and instead shall proceed with the discontinuation, abandonment and filling of the private sewage disposal system. Otherwise, nothing in this chapter shall be construed to prevent the repair or maintenance of a private sewage disposal system, or to prevent the development of a property connected to a private sewage disposal system.

§ 117-7 Wastewater billing and rates.

[Amended 6-12-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-001]

Dates of billing. Charges for the use of the Village wastewater system shall be made on a quarterly basis with the first quarter ending on March 31 of each year, the second quarter ending on June 30 of each year, the third quarter ending on September 30 of each year, and the fourth ending on December 31 of each year. Charges for usage shall be made at the close of each of the aforesaid quarters, or as near to as possible, and shall be based on the volume of usage for that quarter as indicated by the water meter.

Billing rates for usage.

The Village Council, by resolution, shall adopt a schedule for the billing rates, including minimums based upon a benefit schedule adopted by the Village Council, for wastewater usage annually. This will be done during the fourth quarter of the calendar year. The new billing rates shall take effect immediately and will be reflected in all utility bills following the adoption of the new rate schedule.

No free service shall be furnished by said system to any person, firm or corporation, public or private, or to any public agency or instrumentality.

It is required that the rates set by the schedule adopted by the Village Council are estimated to be sufficient to provide for the payment of the expenses of administration and operation and such expenses for maintenance of the system as are necessary to preserve the same in good repair and working order.

The Village Council, by resolution, shall adopt a benefit schedule, including the quarterly capital improvement charge(s) that each premises shall pay per benefit unit, as established in the schedule, with said capital improvement charge to be placed upon each quarterly billing.

Past-due accounts.

Wastewater bills which are not paid within two months of the date thereof shall be subject to a late charge of 10% of the face amount of the bill.

Any consumer who shall be in default of payment by more than one quarterly bill shall be subject to having the water service disconnected, and such service shall not be reconnected until all bills thereon are paid in full, including a fee for reconnection, which shall be set by the Village Council on an annual basis.

The owner of property shall be liable for all wastewater bills incurred for said property regardless of whether such owner uses the property or rents it to another party.

Special billing procedures.

If a property owner requests the Village to call in an employee outside of normal working hours for that Department, then the property owner will be billed for all charges associated with the call in.

For miscellaneous or special services for which a special rate shall be established, such rates shall be set by the schedule adopted by resolution of the Village Council.

Wastewater services supplied to a building, all or part of which is rented, shall normally be charged to the owner or his agent. At its discretion, the Department may, upon written request of the property owner, render wastewater bills to tenants. In all cases, however, the property owner shall be held liable for payment of charges due for services supplied to such premises and shall be held responsible for all violations of rules by tenants.