[HISTORY: Adopted by the Common Council of
the City of Hudson by Ord. No. 1-81 as Ch. 5, Secs. 5.20 through 5.57 and 5.80 of the 1981
Code. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter sets forth uniform requirements
for discharges into the City's wastewater treatment works and enables
the City to comply with all state and federal laws.
A.
Objectives. The objectives of this chapter are:
(1)
To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the
wastewater treatment works which will interfere with the operation
of the system or the use or disposal of the sludge.
(2)
To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the
wastewater treatment works which pass through the system inadequately
treated into receiving waters or the atmosphere or would otherwise
be incompatible with the system.
(3)
To improve the opportunity to recycle and reclaim
wastewater and sludge from the system.
B.
This chapter provides for the regulation of discharges
into the City's wastewater treatment works through the issuance of
permits to certain users and through enforcement of the general requirements
for the other users, authorizes monitoring and enforcement activities
and requires user reporting.
C.
This chapter shall apply to the City and to persons outside the City
who are, by contract or agreement with the City, users of the City
wastewater treatment works. Except as otherwise provided herein, the
Public Utility Department shall administer, implement and enforce
the provisions of this chapter.
[Amended 8-1-2016 by Ord.
No. 19-16]
[Added 7-17-2023 by Ord. No. 9-23B]
A.
City limits. The City does hereby limit the provision of wastewater collection, conveyance and treatment service as provided in this section. Except as provided in Subsections B and C, the City shall only collect, convey, and treat wastewater from property located within the City's corporate limits. The provision of service under Subsections B and C shall not be deemed to be a holding out or an offer by the City to furnish sewer service beyond its corporate limits.
B.
Contracts with adjoining municipalities. The City may, with prior
Common Council approval, enter into a contract with an adjoining municipality
to convey and treat wastewater collected from property within a defined
area in that adjoining municipality. The rendering of contractual
service to an adjoining municipality shall not be deemed to be a holding
out or an offer by the City to furnish sewer service beyond that described
in this subsection.
C.
Limited service to adjoining municipalities without current contracts. The City may provide wastewater conveyance and treatment service to an adjoining municipality without a current wastewater treatment contract; however, such service shall be limited as provided in § 198-10F(2). Service under this Subsection C shall only be provided to adjoining municipalities that previously had a wastewater treatment contract with the City. The rendering of service under this Subsection C shall not be deemed to be a holding out or an offer by the City to furnish sewer service beyond that described in this subsection.
A.
ACT
BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND (BOD)
BUILDING DRAIN
BUILDING SEWER
CITY
COMMERCIAL USER
COOLING WATER
DEPARTMENT
GARBAGE
INDUSTRIAL USER
INDUSTRIAL WASTEWATER
LOT
MUNICIPAL SEWER
NATURAL OUTLET
PARCEL OF LAND
PERSON
pH
PREMISES
PRETREATMENT
PROPERLY SHREDDED GARBAGE
RESIDENTIAL USER
SANITARY SEWER
SEWER
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER
(1)
(2)
(3)
(4)
SLUG
STATE
STORM SEWER (sometimes termed "storm drain")
STORMWATER
SUSPENDED SOLIDS
USER
UTILITY
UTILITY DIRECTOR
WASTEWATER
WASTEWATER DIRECTOR
WASTEWATER TREATMENT WORKS
WATERCOURSE
WATERS OF THE STATE
WISCONSIN POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM (WPDES) PERMIT
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise,
the following terms, as used herein, shall have the following meanings:
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also know as the
"Clean Water Act," as amended, 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.
The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation
of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in five days
at 20° C., expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams
per liter).
That part of the lowest horizontal piping of a drainage system
which receives the discharge from soil, waste and other drainage pipes
inside building walls and conveys it to the building sewer, beginning
outside the inner face of the building wall.
The extension from the building drain to the municipal sewer
or other place of disposal.
The City of Hudson or the Common Council of the City of Hudson.
The water discharged from any use, such as air conditioning,
cooling or refrigeration, or during which the only constituent added
to the water is heat.
The Public Utility Department of the City of Hudson.
[Amended 8-1-2016 by Ord.
No. 19-16]
Solid wastes from the preparation, cooking and dispensing
of food and from the handling, storage and sale of produce.
A person who discharges into the City's wastewater treatment
works liquid wastes resulting from the processes employed in industry
or manufacturing or from the development of any natural resource.
The liquid wastes from industrial processes.
A plot of land in any part of the City containing no more
than one connection to the wastewater treatment works.
A sewer in which all owners of abutting properties have equal
rights and which is controlled by public authority.
Any outlet into a watercourse, pond, ditch, lake or other
body of surface water or groundwater.
Any piece of real estate not being a part of any regular
subdivision or addition.
The state or any agency or institution thereof and any municipality,
governmental subdivision, public or private corporation, individual,
partnership or other entity, including but not limited to an association,
commission or any interstate body, and including any officer of a
governmental subdivision or public or private corporation or other
entity.
The logarithm of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen
ions in grams per liter of solution.
Any piece of real estate having one or more sewers which
may be connected, either individually or through a common sewer and
directly or indirectly, to the wastewater treatment works.
The process of reducing the amount of pollutants, eliminating pollutants or altering the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to or in lieu of discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into the City's wastewater treatment works. The reduction, elimination or alteration may be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, process changes or other means, except as prohibited by § 198-6 of this chapter.
The wastes from the preparation, cooking and dispensing of
food that have been shredded to such a degree that all particles will
be carried freely, under the flow conditions normally prevailing in
municipal sewers, with no particle greater than 1/2 inch in any dimension.
A user discharging only sanitary wastewater.
A sewer which carries wastewater and to which stormwater,
surface water and groundwater are not intentionally admitted.
A pipe or conduit for carrying wastewater.
Any user of the City's wastewater treatment works which:
Has a wastewater flow of 50,000 gallons or more
per average workday.
Has a flow greater than 5% of the flow in the
City's wastewater treatment works.
Has in its wastes toxic pollutants as defined
pursuant to Section 307 of the Act or Wisconsin statutes of law.
Has a significant impact, either singly or in
combination with other contributing industries, on the wastewater
treatment works, the quality of sludge, the treatment works' effluent
quality or air emissions generated by the treatment works.
Any discharge of water, wastewater or industrial waste which,
in concentration of any given constituent or in quantity of flow,
exceeds for longer than 15 minutes more than five times the average
twenty-four-hour concentration or flows during a normal operation.
The State of Wisconsin.
A sewer which carries stormwater and surface water and drainage
but excludes sewage and industrial wastes, other than unpolluted cooling
water.
Any flow occurring during or following any form of natural
precipitation and resulting therefrom.
The total suspended matter that floats on the surface of
or is suspended in water or other liquids and which is removable by
a standard glass fiber filter.
Any person who discharges or causes or permits the discharge
of wastewater into the City's wastewater treatment works.
The City's Wastewater Treatment Utility.
[Added 7-17-2023 by Ord. No. 9-23B]
The supervisor of the Wastewater Treatment Utility and the
Water Utility, or his/her duly authorized deputy, agent or representative.
[Added 8-1-2016 by Ord.
No. 19-16]
The liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes
from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities and institutions,
together with any groundwater, surface water and stormwater that may
be present, whether treated or untreated, which is discharged into
or permitted to enter the City's wastewater treatment works.
The supervisor of the wastewater treatment plant or his duly
authorized deputy, agent or representative.[1]
Any devices, facilities, structures, equipment or works owned
or used by the City for the purpose of the transmission, storage,
treatment, recycling and reclamation of industrial and domestic wastewater
or necessary to recycle or reuse water, including intercepting sewers,
outfall sewers, sewage collection systems, pumping, power and other
equipment and their appurtenances; extensions, improvements, remodeling,
additions and alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a
reliable recycled water supply, such as standby treatment units and
clear well facilities; and any works, including land, that will be
an integral part of the treatment process or used for ultimate disposal
of residues resulting from such treatment.
A channel in which a flow of water occurs, whether continuously
or intermittently.
All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways,
wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage
systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or
underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained
within, flow through or border upon the state or any portion thereof.
Any permit or requirements issued by the Department of Natural
Resources pursuant to the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as
amended, for the purpose of regulating the discharge of sewage, industrial
wastes or other wastes under the authority of Section 402 of the Act.
[1]
Editor's Note: Throughout this chapter, references
to the "Director of Public Works" and "Director" were amended to "Wastewater
Superintendent" 5-1-2000 by Ord. No. 9-00. All such references to
"Wastewater Superintendent" were subsequently changed to "Wastewater
Director" at the request of the City.
B.
"Shall" is mandatory; "may" is permissive.
C.
Other terms. Terms not otherwise defined herein shall
be accorded their usual and customary meaning under Wisconsin law.
A.
No person shall place, deposit or permit to be deposited
in any unsanitary manner upon public or private property within the
City, in any area under the City's jurisdiction, any human or animal
excrement, garbage or other objectionable waste.
B.
No person shall discharge to any natural outlet within
the City or in any area under the City's jurisdiction any wastewater,
industrial wastes or other polluted water, except where suitable treatment
has been provided in accordance with the provisions of this chapter.
C.
Except as herein provided, no person shall construct
or maintain any privy, privy vault, septic tank, cesspool or other
facility intended or used for disposal of wastewater.
D.
The owner of all houses, buildings or properties used
for human occupancy, employment, recreation or other purpose situated
within the City 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 City is hereby required, at his expense, to
install toilet facilities therein and to connect such facilities directly
with the proper municipal sewer in accordance with the provisions
of this chapter within 90 days after the date of official notice to
do so, provided that the City sewer is within a reasonable distance
as determined by the Wastewater Director.
[Amended 5-1-2000 by Ord. No. 9-00]
A.
Where a municipal sanitary sewer is not available under the provisions of § 198-3D, the building shall be connected to an individual wastewater disposal system complying with the provisions of the City.
B.
At such time as a municipal sewer becomes available to a property served by an individual wastewater treatment system as provided in § 198-3C, a direct connection shall be made to the municipal sewer in compliance with this chapter, and any septic tanks, cesspools and similar individual wastewater disposal facilities shall be abandoned and filled with suitable material at the owner's expense.
A.
No unauthorized person shall uncover, make any connection
with or opening into, use, alter or disturb any municipal sewer or
appurtenance thereof without first obtaining a plumbing permit from
the Wastewater Director.
B.
Any person desiring sewer service from the municipal
sewer system for premises not connected with the system shall apply
to the Wastewater Director for a plumbing permit. The plumbing permit
application shall be supplemented by any plans, specifications or
other information considered pertinent in the judgment of the Wastewater
Director. The Wastewater Director shall be notified by the permit
applicant prior to any digging or hookup for information on acceptable
location and inspection requirements.
C.
All costs and expenses incidental to the installation
and connection of the building sewer shall be borne by the owner.
The owner shall indemnify the City from any loss or damage that may
directly or indirectly be occasioned by the installation of the building
sewer.
D.
A separate and independent building sewer shall be
provided for every building, except that under exceptional circumstances
the Wastewater Director may waive the provisions of this subsection.
E.
Old building sewers may be used in connection with
new buildings only when they are found on examination and testing
to meet all requirements of the City.
F.
The alignment and materials of construction of a building
sewer and the methods to be used in excavating, placing of the pipe,
jointing, testing and backfilling the trench shall conform to the
requirements of the Building and Plumbing Codes or other applicable
rules and regulations of the City.[1]
G.
The size and slope of the building sewer shall be
subject to the approval of the Department, but the diameter shall
not be less than four inches. The slope of such four-inch pipe shall
not be less than 1/4 inch per foot. It shall be required that the
service stub or wye connection and the building drain shall be uncovered
and the differential elevation be determined before construction is
begun. Where practicable, the building connection shall be laid on
a uniform grade between those two points.
H.
Whenever possible, the building sewer shall be brought
to the building at an elevation below the basement floor. No building
sewer shall be laid parallel to 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.
I.
In all buildings in which any building drain is too
low to permit gravity flow to the municipal sewer, wastewater carried
by such drain shall be lifted by approved artificial means and discharged
to the building sewer.
J.
No person shall make connection of roof downspouts,
exterior foundation drains, areaway drains or other sources of surface
runoff or groundwater to a building sewer or building drain which
in turn is connected directly or indirectly to a public sanitary sewer.
K.
All building sewer connections must be made to the
wye or riser provided for that purpose. If a wye or riser is not available,
connection shall be made suitable to the Wastewater Director.
L.
The applicant for the building sewer permit shall
notify the Wastewater Director when the building sewer is ready for
inspection and connection to the municipal sewer. The connection shall
be made under the supervision of the Wastewater Director.
M.
All excavations for building sewer installations shall
be adequately guarded with barricades and lights so as to protect
the public from hazard. Streets, sidewalks, parkways and other public
property disturbed in the course of the work shall be restored in
a manner satisfactory to the City by the person making the installation.
A.
Untreated water. No person shall discharge or cause
to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof
runoff, subsurface drainage, uncontaminated cooling water or unpolluted
industrial process water to any sanitary sewer.
B.
Stormwater. Stormwater and all other unpolluted drainage
shall be discharged to storm sewers or to a natural outlet approved
by the Department. Industrial cooling water or unpolluted process
waters shall be discharged, on approval of the Department, to a storm
sewer or natural outlet.
C.
Prohibited wastes. No person shall discharge or cause
to be discharged any of the following waters or wastes to any public
sewer:
(1)
Any liquids, solids or gases which, by reason of their
nature or quantity, are or may be sufficient, either alone or by interaction
with other substances, to cause fire or explosion or be injurious
in any other way to the wastewater disposal system or to the operation
of the system. At no time shall two successive readings on an explosion
hazard meter at the point of discharge into the system or at any point
in the system be more than 5%, nor shall any single reading be over
10%, of the lower explosive limit (LEL) of the meter. Prohibited materials
include but are not limited to gasoline, kerosene, naphtha, benzene,
toluene, xylene, ethers, alcohols, ketones, aldehydes, peroxides,
chlorates, perchlorates, bromides, carbides, hydrides and sulfides.
(2)
Waters or wastes containing toxic or poisonous solids,
liquids or gases in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction
with other wastes, to injure or interfere with any wastewater treatment
process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, create a public
nuisance or create any hazard in the receiving waters of the wastewater
treatment plant, including but not limited to the following concentrations
of materials in the wastes as discharged to the City sewer or any
pollutant identified pursuant to Section 307(a) of the Act:
[Amended 5-1-2000 by Ord. No. 9-00]
|
Material
|
Concentration
(milligrams per liter)
| |
|---|---|---|
|
Arsenic
|
0.1
| |
|
Copper
|
1.0
| |
|
Zinc
|
3.0
| |
|
Lead
|
0.1
| |
|
Total Chromium
|
3.0
| |
|
Nickel
|
1.0
| |
|
Cyanide (HCN)
|
1.0
| |
|
Chloroform
|
10.0
| |
|
Cadmium
|
0.1
| |
|
Mercury
|
0.1
| |
|
Silver
|
0.1
| |
|
Total Nitrogen
|
50.0
| |
|
Total Phosphorus
|
10.0
| |
|
Chlorides
|
125.0
|
(3)
Any wastewater having a pH lower than 5.0 or having
any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to
structures, equipment and personnel of the wastewater treatment works.
(4)
Solid or viscous substances in quantities or size
capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference
with the proper operation of the sewage works, such as, but not limited
to, ashes, spent lime, cinders, stone or marble, dust, sand, mud,
straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, gas, tar, plastics,
wood, grease, underground garbage with particles greater than 1/2
inch in any dimension, whole blood, paunch manure, bones, hair and
fleshings, entrails, grass clippings, spent grains, spent hops, wastepaper,
asphalt residues from refining or processing of fuel or lubricating
oil, glass grinding or polishing wastes, disposable diapers, paper
towels and paper dishes, cups, milk containers, etc., whether whole
or ground by garbage grinders.
(5)
Any noxious or malodorous liquids, gases or solids
which, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, are capable
of creating a public nuisance or hazard to life or are sufficient
to prevent entry into the sewers for their maintenance and repair.
(6)
Any substance which may cause the wastewater treatment
plant effluent or any other product of the wastewater treatment process,
such as residues, sludges or scums, to be unsuitable for reclamation
and reuse or to interfere with the reclamation process. In no case
shall a substance discharged to the wastewater treatment works cause
the system to be in noncompliance with sludge use or disposal criteria,
guidelines or regulations affecting sludge use or disposal developed
pursuant to the Solid Waste Disposal Act, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic
Substances Control Act or state standards applicable to the sludge
management method being used.
(7)
Any substance which will cause the wastewater treatment
works to violate its state disposal system permit or the receiving
water quality standards.
(8)
Any wastewater which creates conditions at or near
the wastewater treatment works which violate any statute or any rule,
regulation or ordinance of any public agency or state or federal regulatory
body.
D.
Injurious wastes. No person shall discharge or cause
to be discharged the following substances, materials, waters or wastes.
Other wastes not described below shall not be discharged if it appears
likely, in the opinion of the Department, that such wastes can harm
either the sewers, wastewater treatment process or equipment, can
have an adverse effect on the receiving stream or can otherwise endanger
life, limb, public property or constitute a nuisance. In forming its
opinion, the Department will consider such factors as the quantities
of subject wastes in relation to flows and velocities in the sewers,
materials of construction of the sewers, nature of the wastewater
treatment process, capacity of the wastewater treatment plant, degree
of treatability of wastes in the wastewater treatment plant and other
pertinent factors. The substances prohibited are:
(1)
Any liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than
150° F. (65° C.) or causing, individually or in combination
with other wastewater, the influent at the wastewater treatment plant
to have a temperature exceeding 104° F. (40° C.).
(2)
Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease or
oils, whether emulsified or not, in excess of 25 milligrams per liter
or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures
between 32° F. and 150° F. (0° C. and 65° C.).
(3)
Any waters or wastes containing strong acid iron pickling
wastes or concentrated plating solutions, whether neutralized or not.
(4)
Any waters or wastes containing iron, chromium, copper,
zinc and similar objectionable or toxic substances or wastes exerting
an excessive chlorine requirement to such degree that any such material
received in the composite sewage at the wastewater treatment plant
exceeds reasonable limits.
(5)
Any waters or wastes containing phenols or other taste-
or odor-producing substances in such concentrations exceeding limits
after treatment of the composite wastewater to meet the requirements
of the state, federal or other public agencies of jurisdiction for
such discharge to the receiving waters.
(6)
Any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life
or concentration as may exceed limits in compliance with applicable
state of federal regulations.
(7)
Any waters or wastes having a pH in excess of 9.5.
(8)
Materials which exert or cause:
(a)
Unusual concentrations of inert suspended solids,
such as but not limited to Fuller's earth, lime slurries and lime
residues, or of dissolved solids, such as but not limited to sodium
chloride and sodium sulfate.
(b)
Excessive discoloration, such as but not limited
to dye wastes and vegetable tanning solutions.
(c)
Unusual BOD, chemical oxygen demand or chlorine
requirements in quantities which constitute a significant load on
the wastewater treatment plant.
(d)
Unusual volume of flow or concentration of wastes
constituting slugs.
(e)
Any unpolluted water, including but not limited
to cooling water, stormwater or groundwater.
E.
Limitations on wastewater strengths.
(1)
Federal pretreatment standards. Federal pretreatment
standards promulgated by the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA) pursuant to the Act shall be met by all users which are
subject to such standards in any instance where they are more stringent
than the limitations in this chapter, unless the Department has applied
for and obtained from the Department of Natural Resources approval
to modify the specific limits in the federal pretreatment standards.
When requested, an application for modification of the federal pretreatment
standards will be considered for submittal by the Department when
the City's wastewater treatment works achieves consistent removal
of the pollutants. "Consistent removal" means reduction in the amount
of pollutant or alteration of the nature of a pollutant which is in
the influent to the wastewater treatment works to a less toxic or
harmless state by the time it is discharged in the effluent. The reduction
or alteration must be achieved in 95% of the samples taken when measured
according to the procedures set forth in 40 CFR 403.7(c)(2) of the
General Pretreatment Regulations for Existing and New Sources of Pollution.
(2)
State requirements. State requirements and limitations
on discharges shall be met by all users which are subject to such
standards in any instance in which they are more stringent than federal
requirements and limitations or those in this chapter.
(3)
City's right of revision. The City reserves the right to establish by ordinance more stringent limitations or requirements on discharges to the wastewater disposal system if deemed necessary to comply with the objectives presented in § 198-1 of this chapter.
(4)
Dilution. No user shall increase the use of process
water or in any way attempt to dilute a discharge as a partial or
complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with
the limitations contained herein, contained in the federal pretreatment
standards or contained in any state requirements.
F.
Accidental discharges. Each user shall provide protection
from accidental discharge of prohibited materials or other substances
regulated by this chapter. Where necessary, facilities to prevent
accidental discharge of prohibited materials shall be provided and
maintained at the owner's or user's own cost and expense. Detailed
plans showing facilities and operating procedures to provide this
protection shall be provided and maintained at the owner's or user's
own cost and expense. Detailed plans showing facilities and operating
procedures to provide this protection shall be submitted to the Department
for review and shall be approved by the Department before construction
of the facility. Review and approval of such plans and operating procedures
shall not relieve the user from the responsibility of modifying the
user's facility as necessary to meet the requirements of this chapter.
G.
Department requirements.
(1)
If any water or wastes are discharged or proposed to be discharged to the public sewers, which waters contain substances or possess characteristics enumerated in Subsection C of this section and which, in the judgment of the Department, may have a deleterious effect upon the wastewater treatment processes or receiving waters or which otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the Department may:
(a)
Reject the wastes;
(b)
Require pretreatment to an acceptable condition
for discharge to the public sewers;
(c)
Require control over the quantities and rates
of discharge; and/or
(d)
Require payment to cover the added cost of handling
and treating wastes not covered by existing taxes or sewer charges.
(2)
If the Department permits the pretreatment or equalization
of waste flows, the design and installation of the plant and equipment
shall be subject to the review and approval of the Department and
subject to the requirement of all applicable codes, ordinances and
laws.
H.
Interceptors. Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall
be provided when, in the opinion of the Department, they are necessary
for the proper handling of liquid wastes containing grease in excessive
amounts or 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 Department and shall be located in a readily
and easily accessible place for cleaning and inspection. Where installed,
all grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be maintained in continuously
efficient operation by the owner at his expense.
I.
Preliminary treatment facilities. Where preliminary
treatment or flow-equalizing facilities are provided for any waters
or wastes, they shall be maintained continuously in satisfactory and
effective operation by the owner at his expense.
J.
Monitoring facilities.
(1)
Monitoring facilities to allow inspection sampling
and flow measurement of the building sewer and/or internal drainage
systems shall be provided and operated by all significant industrial
users or other users which may have a significant effect as determined
by the Department. The monitoring facility should normally be situated
on the user's premises, but the Department may, when such a location
would be impractical or cause undue hardship on the user, allow the
facility to be constructed in the public street or sidewalk area and
located so that it will not be obstructed by landscaping or parked
vehicles.
(2)
There shall be ample room in or near such sampling
manhole or facility to allow accurate sampling and compositing of
samples for analysis. The facility, sampling and measuring equipment
shall be maintained at all times in a safe and proper operating condition
at the expense of the user.
(3)
Whether constructed on public or private property,
the sampling and monitoring facilities shall be provided in accordance
with the Department's requirements and all applicable local construction
standards and specifications. Construction shall be completed within
90 days following written notification by the Department, unless a
time extension is otherwise granted by the Department.
K.
Sampling standards. All measurements, tests and analyses
of the characteristics of waters and wastes shall be determined in
accordance with the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination
of Water and Wastewater, published by the American Public Health Association,
and shall be determined at the control manhole provided or upon suitable
samples taken at such control manhole. If no special manhole has been
required, the control manhole shall be the nearest downstream manhole
in the public sewer from where the building sewer is connected. Sampling
shall be carried out by customarily accepted methods to reflect the
effect of the constituents upon the wastewater treatment works and
to determine the existence of hazards to life, limb and property.
The particular analysis involved shall determine whether a twenty-four-hour
composite of all outfalls of a premises is appropriate or whether
a grab sample or samples should be taken. Usually BOD and suspended
solids analyses are obtained from twenty-four-hour composites of all
outfalls, whereas pH's are determined from periodic grab samples.
No 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 wastewater treatment
works.
A.
The Department shall inspect the facilities of any
user to ascertain whether the purpose of this chapter is being met
and all requirements are being complied with. Persons or occupants
of premises where wastewater is created or discharged shall allow
the Department ready access at all reasonable times to all parts of
the premises for the purpose of inspection, observation, measurement,
sampling, testing or record examination or in the performance of any
of its duties. The Department, Department of Natural Resources and
Environmental Protection Agency shall have the right to set up on
the user's property such devices as necessary to conduct sampling,
inspection compliance monitoring and/or metering operation. Where
a user has security measures in force which would require proper identification
and clearance before entry into its premises, the user shall make
necessary arrangements with any security guards so that, upon presentation
of suitable identification, the Department, Department of Natural
Resources and Environmental Protection Agency will be permitted to
enter, without delay, for the purposes of performing their specific
responsibilities.
B.
The Department shall have no authority to inquire
into any industrial processes beyond that point in the process having
a direct bearing on the kind and source of discharge to the sewers
or waterways or facilities for treatment.
D.
The Department, bearing proper credentials and identification,
shall be permitted to enter all private properties through which the
City holds a duly negotiated easement for the purpose of, but not
limited to, inspection, observation, measurement, sampling, repair
and maintenance of any portion of the wastewater treatment works lying
within the easement. All entry and subsequent work, if any, on the
easement shall be done in full accordance with the terms of the duly
negotiated easement pertaining to the private property involved.
[Amended by Ord. No. 16-83]
A.
No person shall engage in the business of cleaning,
unplugging or plowing building sewer lines in the City without first
procuring a license under this section.
B.
No person engaged in the business of servicing septic
tanks shall dispose of any waste into the City wastewater treatment
system without having first obtained the license required under this
section.
C.
A separate license shall be required for a sewer cleaner
and for a septic tank hauler. Licenses shall be required annually
and shall commence on July 1 of each year and expire on June 30 of
the following year. Each license shall require a fifty-dollar fee.
Any license granted hereunder may be revoked upon hearing if the licensee
violated any law, ordinance or regulation adopted by the Wastewater
Director relating to sewer lines. No license shall be issued if the
applicant is delinquent in payment of any taxes, assessments, forfeitures
for violations of City ordinances, utility bills, or any other claims
owed to the City.
[Amended by Ord. No. 17-99; 3-12-2012 by Ord. No. 3-12]
[Amended by Ord. No. 11-86; Ord. No. 2-82; Ord. No. 14-84; Ord. No. 15-86; Ord. No. 2-92; Ord. No. 5-92; Ord. No. 36-95; Ord. No. 1-96; Ord. No. 2-96; Ord. No. 11-96; Ord. No. 17-97; 5-1-2000 by Ord. No.
9-001-6-2003 by Ord. No. 26-02; 3-2-2009 by Ord. No. 3-09; 6-3-2013 by Ord. No. 2-135-15-2017 by Ord. No. 8-17; 7-6-2020 by Ord. No. 14-20; 1-22-2021 by Ord. No. 3-21; 7-17-2023 by Ord. No. 9-23B]
A.
Policy.
(1)
Sufficiency of charges. It shall be the policy of the City to establish
fair and equitable cost-based sewer service charges sufficient to
meet the Utility's revenue needs. Sewer service charges shall
be established in such amount as to obtain sufficient revenues to
pay operation and maintenance costs, including contributions to a
replacement fund, debt service, including any debt service reserves
and coverage requirements, and annual capital outlay.
(2)
Classification of users. It shall be the policy of the City to classify
users of the wastewater treatment works based on the strength of the
user's wastewater, whether the service provided to the user is
retail, wholesale or hauled waste service, whether service is provided
to inside-City or outside-City customers, and whether the wholesale
service is provided pursuant to a wastewater treatment contract. This
classification recognizes that the Utility incurs additional costs
to treat wastewater with concentrations greater than normal domestic
strength wastewater, that in-City retail customers are the owners
of the Utility, and that the provision of outside-City service and
wholesale service results in additional risks to the Utility.
(3)
Proportionality by class. It shall be the policy of the City to ensure
that each class of user of the wastewater treatment works pays its
proportionate share of the cost of the wastewater treatment works.
(4)
Compliance with law. Sewer service charges shall be set in accordance
with any relevant and applicable requirements imposed by the Wisconsin
Department of Natural Resources or by federal law.
B.
CASH NEEDS REVENUE REQUIREMENT
DEBT SERVICE
EQUIPMENT REPLACEMENT FUND
INTERCEPTOR SEWERS
NET INVESTMENT RATE BASE
NET OPERATING INCOME
NONCONTRACT MUNICIPAL CUSTOMER
NORMAL DOMESTIC STRENGTH WASTEWATER
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE COSTS
RATE OF RETURN ON RATE BASE
REVENUE REQUIREMENT
SEWER SERVICE CHARGE
UTILITY BASIS REVENUE REQUIREMENTS
WASTEWATER TREATMENT CONTRACT
WASTEWATER TREATMENT PLANT
YEARLY CAPITAL OUTLAY
Definitions. The following words, terms and phrases, when used in
this section, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this subsection,
except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
The method of establishing annual revenue requirements, giving
consideration to the annual budget expenditures for operation and
maintenance expenses, debt service payments, cash-financed capital
improvements, reserve fund requirements, and taxes. Debt service coverage
requirements must also be taken into account to establish cash needs
revenue requirements.
Includes all costs associated with repayment of debts incurred
for the construction and/or rehabilitation of the wastewater treatment
works.
Includes all costs necessary to accumulate the resources
to replace equipment as required to maintain capacity and performance
during the design life of the wastewater treatment works. A separate
segregated distinct replacement fund shall be established and used
for only replacement of equipment.
Sewers greater than eight inches in diameter that serve all
users of the wastewater conveyance system.
The amount invested by the City or Utility in capital assets,
minus accumulated depreciation.
Utility operating income, minus operating expenses, including
depreciation expense.
An adjoining municipality without a current wastewater treatment
contract that is provided with wastewater conveyance and treatment
service pursuant to City ordinances.
Wastewater with concentrations no greater than 300 milligrams
per liter (mg/l) for BOD (biochemical oxygen demand), 300 mg/l for
TSS (total suspended solids), 8 mg/l for P (phosphorus), and 40 mg/l
for NH3-N (ammoniacal nitrogen).
Includes all costs associated with the operation and maintenance
of the wastewater treatment works.
The annual percentage rate of earnings on the Utility's
net investment rate base, calculated as the net operating income divided
by the net investment rate base.
The amount of total revenues that the Utility needs to generate
annually from all sources to cover its current and long-term costs,
determined based on industry standard methods of determining revenue
requirements.
A service charge levied on users of the wastewater treatment
works.
The method of establishing annual revenue requirements, giving
consideration to annual operation and maintenance expense, depreciation
expense, taxes, and return on net investment rate base.
A contract with another municipality for the conveyance,
treatment, and disposal of wastewater.
The wastewater treatment plant owned and operated by the
City of Hudson, or any such additional or replacement wastewater treatment
plant owned and operated by the City of Hudson.
The amount budgeted to pay for the construction and/or rehabilitation
of the wastewater treatment works on a pay-as-you-go basis.
C.
Basis for sewer service rates:
(1)
Establishment of class-based rates. The Common Council shall establish
sanitary sewer rates by resolution. The rates established by the Common
Council shall distinguish between user classes. At a minimum, the
Common Council will distinguish between the following user classes
if applicable: retail in-City customers discharging normal domestic
strength wastewater, retail in-City customers discharging high strength
wastewater, hauled wastewater customers, municipal wholesale customers
with a current wastewater treatment contract, municipal wholesale
customers without a current wastewater treatment contract, and other
outside-City customers.
(2)
Rate study. The rates established shall be based on a methodology
documented in a written rate study approved by the Common Council.
The rate study shall be reviewed and updated from time to time and
the methodology used in the rate study may be revised. The methodology
used in the rate study shall ensure that each user class pays its
proportionate share of the cost of the wastewater treatment works.
(3)
Rate review and revision. Rates shall be reviewed biennially. Such
review shall be performed by the Utility and the Common Council. Rates
shall be adjusted, as required, to reflect the Utility's projected
revenue requirement, the allocation of the Utility's revenue
requirement to the different user classes, the amount and strength
of wastewater discharged to the wastewater treatment works by the
different user classes, and the actual number of users.
(4)
Establishment of revenue requirement. The Utility's projected
revenue requirement may be established as a cash needs revenue requirement
or a utility basis revenue requirement. If the Utility's projected
revenue requirement is established on a utility basis, the Common
Council may utilize different rates of return for different customers
classes to reflect the different responsibilities borne and risks
related to the different classes.
(5)
Types of rates. The Common Council may establish a fixed rate for
each user class to recover the Utility's billing and customer
related administration expenses attributable to that user class and
the cost for flow not directly attributable to any user. The Common
Council shall establish usage-based rates by user class to fund the
remainder of the Utility's revenue requirement attributable to
that user class. The rates established for outside-City customers
and wholesale customers may include an additional risk premium to
reflect the additional risk associated with the provision of service
to a user that has no ownership responsibility or contractual obligation
with respect to the wastewater treatment works.
D.
Sewer service charges.
(1)
Imposition of charges. The City shall impose a sewer service charge
upon the owner or occupants of each lot, parcel of land, building,
or premises served by the wastewater treatment works or otherwise
discharging wastewater, including industrial wastes, into the wastewater
treatment works.
(2)
Assignment of user into user classes. The Utility will assign each
sewer user into a user class. Sewer service charges shall be determined
based upon the rates applicable to the assigned user class. The Utility
may reassign a user into a different user class if wastewater sampling
or other information indicates a change in class is necessary.
(3)
Fixed charge. The Utility will charge each sewer user a fixed charge
based on the fixed rate attributable to its user class. The fixed
charge will be imposed as a flat fee per meter based on meter size.
The minimum fixed charge will be based on the quarterly fixed charge
(prorated for new and closed accounts or for those with meter removals).
(4)
Volumetric charge. The Utility will charge each sewer user a volume
charge that is based on the volume of wastewater discharged by that
user and the volumetric rate applicable to its user class.
(5)
Determination of volume by meter. The volume of wastewater discharged
by an in-City or outside-City retail user is presumed to equal the
total volume of water used by that user during the billing period
in units of 100 cubic feet (CCF) unless the Utility approves using
a separate sanitary sewer meter for determining volume of wastewater
discharged. The volume of wastewater discharged by a hauled wastewater
customer shall be determined at the wastewater treatment plant. The
volume of wastewater discharged by a municipal wholesale customer
shall be measured by a sanitary sewer meter. When it is impossible
or impracticable to measure the amount of water being used, the Utility
Director shall determine the volume of wastewater discharged by a
reasonable method selected by the Utility Director. Such determination
may be appealed to the Council. In such cases, the Utility Director
may, after approval by the Council, establish a flat rate for sewage
services or authorize the installation, at the owner's expense,
of a sewage meter.
(6)
High strength surcharges. Wastewater discharged by retail users,
other than hauled waste customers, is presumed to be of normal domestic
strength unless wastewater sampling demonstrates otherwise. If the
strength of a user's wastewater discharge is determined to exceed
that of normal domestic strength wastewater for any pollutant parameter,
the Utility will charge the user the applicable high strength surcharge
on the pounds of the pollutant parameter(s) discharged in that billing
period in excess of normal domestic strength wastewater.
(7)
Hauled waste customers. The Utility shall bill hauled waste customers
charges based on the volume and type of wastewater discharged and
the applicable rates established by the Common Council.
(8)
Municipal customers with a current contract. All municipalities receiving
wastewater treatment service and using the City's interceptor
sewers pursuant to a written contract with the City shall receive
and be charged for service in accordance with the contract. Applicable
rates shall be established by the Common Council.
(9)
Municipal wholesale customers without a current contract. Municipalities without a current wastewater treatment contract that receive wholesale wastewater treatment service and use the City's interceptor sewers pursuant to § 198-1.1C shall receive service and be charged as provided in the City's ordinances.
E.
Sewer connection charge.
[Amended 12-4-2023 by Ord. No. 16-23; Amended 2-5-2024 by Ord. No. 2-24
(1)
Sewer connection charges for buildings not presently connected to
the wastewater treatment works, or for buildings that have a change
in use that requires a larger water meter, shall be based on equivalent
residential meters based on the Sewer Connection Fee Schedule located
in the City's annual fee schedule established by the Common Council.
For buildings with a change in use the charge would be the difference
between the amount for the existing meter size and the amount for
the proposed meter size. Buildings connecting directly to the City's
collection system will be charged both the conveyance and treatment
connection charges. Buildings connecting to the wastewater treatment
works via a collection system outside of the city will be charged
the treatment connection charge only.
(2)
The sewer connection charge shall automatically increase effective
each January 1 by a percentage equal to the percentage increase in
the 20-City Construction Cost Index published by the Engineering News
Record over the most recent twelve-month period, unless the City,
by resolution, limits the fee increase to a lesser percentage rate.
F.
Capacity limits.
(1)
Municipal customers with a current contract. All municipalities receiving
treatment of wastewater pursuant to a current contract with the City
shall be subject to the capacity limitations contained in that contract
while that contract is in effect.
(2)
Municipal wholesale customers without a current contract.
(a)
Volume limitation. Service to a noncontract municipal customer
shall be limited to the volumetric capacity used by that noncontract
municipal customer at the time their prior wastewater treatment contract
with the City expired or was terminated. No increase in the volume
of wastewater conveyed or treated from the noncontract municipal customer
shall be permitted without Common Council approval. The City shall
determine the volumetric capacity used by the noncontract municipal
customer at the time its wastewater treatment contract with the City
expired or was terminated. The City shall maintain a schedule of capacity
limits applicable to its noncontract municipal customers at the Utility
Director's office.
(b)
Strength limitation. Service to a noncontract municipal customer
shall be limited to the acceptance of normal domestic strength wastewater
only.
(c)
Area limitation. Service to a noncontract municipal customer
shall be limited to service within the noncontract municipal customer's
service area borders as those borders existed at the time their prior
wastewater treatment contract with the City expired or was terminated.
The City shall prepare a map of the noncontract municipal customer's
service area borders at the time the wastewater treatment contract
expired or was terminated and shall maintain a copy of that map at
the Utility Director's office. No extension of service beyond
the noncontract municipal customer's service area borders shown
on the map shall be permitted without Common Council approval.
(d)
Source limitation. A noncontract municipal customer is prohibited
from delivering to the City any wastewater that contains any hauled
waste.
(e)
Limitations cumulative. The City's willingness to provide service to a noncontract municipal customer is subject to all four limitations set forth in this Subsection F. Service within the noncontract municipal customer's service area borders that would result in an exceedance of the volume limitations under § 198-10F(2)(a) is prohibited without Common Council approval.
(3)
Violation. Each day a noncontract municipal customer exceeds a limitation under this Subsection F is a separate violation of this subsection. Each conveyance of wastewater to the City's wastewater treatment works from a property not included in the area map maintained by the Utility Director under § 198-10F(2) is a violation of this subsection. Each property constitutes a separate violation.
G.
Special charges. Other charges may be imposed when a customer requests
special services such as a special billing or meter reading outside
of the normal schedule. Rates for special services provided to in-City
retail customers will be the same as the rates ordered by the Public
Service Commission for the water utility for other charges. Rates
for special services provided to outside-City customers and wholesale
customers shall be established by the Common Council.
[Added 7-17-2023 by Ord. No. 9-23B]
A.
Sewer connection charges for buildings not presently connected to
the wastewater treatment works, or for buildings that have a change
in use that requires a larger water meter, shall be based on equivalent
residential meters based on the following schedule in effect on January
1, 2023. For buildings with a change in use, the charge would be the
difference between the amount for the existing meter size and the
amount for the proposed meter size.
|
Meter Size
|
Conveyance Charge
|
Treatment Charge
|
Total Charge
|
|---|---|---|---|
|
5/8-inch
|
$2,380
|
$1,479
|
$3,859
|
|
3/4-inch
|
$2,380
|
$1,479
|
$3,859
|
|
1-inch
|
$5,951
|
$3,697
|
$9,648
|
|
1 1/2-inch
|
$11,902
|
$7,395
|
$19,297
|
|
2-inch
|
$19,043
|
$11,832
|
$30,875
|
|
3-inch
|
$35,705
|
$22,184
|
$57,889
|
|
4-inch
|
$59,509
|
$36,974
|
$96,483
|
|
6-inch
|
$119,018
|
$73,948
|
$192,966
|
|
8-inch
|
$190,429
|
$118,317
|
$308,746
|
|
10-inch
|
$285,644
|
$177,476
|
$463,120
|
|
12-inch
|
$380,858
|
$236,634
|
$617,492
|
B.
The sewer connection charge shall automatically increase effective
each January 1 by a percentage equal to the percentage increase in
the 20-City Construction Cost Index published by the Engineering News
Record over the most recent twelve-month period, unless the City,
by resolution, limits the fee increase to a lesser percentage rate.
A.
Each user or owner shall be responsible for maintaining
and cleaning his sewer connection from the house to the sewer main.
The City shall not be liable for any stoppages in sewers. Each user
should provide a suitable backwater valve to prevent flooding of basements
in the event of sewer stoppage.
B.
Any sewer connection that is abandoned for nonuse or found not to meet all requirements of § 198-5E shall be disconnected and plugged at the municipal sewer location by a means acceptable to the Department. All costs and expenses incidental to disconnecting the building sewer shall be borne by the owner.
The Department may require that any industrial
user discharging or proposing to discharge wastewater to the wastewater
treatment works file a periodic discharge report. The discharge report
may include but not be limited to nature of process, rates of flow,
mass discharge rate, raw materials and production quantities, hours
of operation, number and classification of employees, compliance status
with any state or federal pretreatment standards or other information
which relates to the generation of waste, including wastewater constituents
and characteristics in the wastewater discharge. Such reports may
also include the chemical constituents and quantity of liquid or gaseous
materials stored on site, even though they may not normally be discharged.
At a minimum, a summary of such data indicating each industrial user's
compliance with this chapter shall be prepared quarterly and submitted
to the Department. In addition to discharge reports, the Department
may require information in the form of wastewater discharge permit
applications, self-monitoring reports and compliance schedules.
A.
Mandatory permits. All significant industrial users
or other industrial users which may have a significant effect, as
determined by the Department, proposing to connect or to commence
a new discharge to the wastewater treatment works shall obtain a wastewater
discharge permit before connecting to or discharging into the wastewater
treatment works. All existing significant industrial users or industrial
users subject to federal pretreatment standards under Section 307(b)
and (c) of the Act connected to or discharging into the wastewater
treatment works shall obtain a wastewater discharge permit within
90 days after February 19, 1981.
B.
Permit application. Users required to obtain a wastewater
discharge permit shall complete and file with the Department an application
in the form prescribed by the Department and accompanied by a fee.
Existing users shall apply for a wastewater discharge permit within
30 days after February 19, 1981, and proposed new users shall apply
at least 90 days prior to connecting or discharging to the wastewater
treatment works. In support of the application, the user shall submit,
in units and terms appropriate for evaluation, the following information:
(1)
Name, address and location (if different from the
address).
(2)
Standard industrial classification (SIC) number according
to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, Bureau of the Budget,
1972, as amended.
(3)
Wastewater constituents and characteristics, including but not limited to those governed by § 198-6 of this chapter as determined by a reliable analytical laboratory. Sampling and analysis shall be performed in accordance with procedures established by the Environmental Protection Agency pursuant to Section 304(g) of the Act and contained in 40 CFR Part 136, as amended.
(4)
Time and duration of discharge.
(5)
Average daily and thirty-minute peak wastewater flow
rates, including daily, monthly and seasonal variations, if any.
(6)
Site plans, floor plans, mechanical and plumbing plans
and details to show all sewers, sewer connections and appurtenances
by the size, location and elevation.
(7)
Description of activities, facilities and plant processes
on the premises, including all materials which are or could be discharged.
(8)
Where known, the nature and concentration of any pollutants
in the discharge which are limited by any City, state or federal pretreatment
standards and (for an existing discharge) a statement regarding whether
or not the pretreatment standards are being met on a consistent basis
and, if not, whether additional operation and maintenance and/or additional
pretreatment is required for the user to meet applicable pretreatment
standards.
(9)
Each product by type, amount and rate of production.
(10)
Type and amount of raw materials processed (average
and maximum per day).
(11)
Number of full- and part-time employees and
hours of work.
(12)
Any other information as may be deemed by the
Department to be necessary to evaluate the permit application. The
Wastewater Director will evaluate the data furnished by the user and
may require additional information. After evaluation and acceptance
of the data furnished, the Department may issue a wastewater discharge
permit subject to terms and conditions provided herein.
C.
Permit conditions. Wastewater discharge permits shall
be expressly subject to all provisions of this chapter and all other
applicable regulations, user charges and fees established by the City.
Permits may contain the following:
(1)
The unit charge or schedule of user charges and fees
for the wastewater to be discharged to the wastewater treatment works.
(2)
Limits on the average and maximum wastewater constituents
and characteristics.
(3)
Limits on average and maximum rate and time of discharge
or requirements for flow regulation and equalization.
(4)
Requirements for installation and maintenance on inspection
and sampling facilities.
(5)
Requirements for installation, operation and maintenance
of pretreatment facilities.
(6)
Specifications for monitoring programs, which may
include sampling location, frequency and method of sampling, number,
types and standards for tests and reporting schedule.
(7)
Compliance schedules.
(8)
Requirements for submission of technical reports or
discharge reports.
(9)
Requirements for maintaining and retaining plant records
relating to wastewater discharge as specified by the Department and
affording the Department access thereto.
(10)
Requirements for notification to the Department
of any wastewater constituents being introduced into the wastewater
treatment system.
(11)
Requirements for notification of slug discharges
as provided in this chapter.
(12)
Other conditions as deemed appropriate by the
City to ensure compliance with this chapter.
D.
Permit duration. Permits shall be issued for a specified time period, not to exceed five years. A permit may be issued for a period less than one year or may be stated to expire on a specific date. The user shall apply for permit reissuance a minimum of 180 days prior to the expiration of the user's existing permit. The terms and conditions of the permit may be subject to modification by the Department during the term of the permit as limitations or requirements as identified in § 198-6 are modified or other just cause exists. The user shall be informed of any proposed changes in his permit at least 30 days prior to the effective date of change. Any changes or new conditions in the permit shall include a reasonable time schedule for compliance.
E.
Permit transfer. Wastewater discharge permits are
issued to a specific user for a specific operation. A wastewater discharge
permit shall not be reassigned or transferred or sold to a new owner,
new user, different premises or a new or changed operation without
the approval of the Department. Any succeeding owner or user shall
also comply with the terms and conditions of the existing permit.
Industrial users shall provide necessary wastewater
treatment as required to comply with this chapter and shall achieve
compliance with all federal categorical pretreatment standards within
the time limitations as specified by the federal pretreatment regulations.
Any facilities required to pretreat wastewater to a level acceptable
to the Department shall be provided, operated and maintained at the
user's expense. Detailed plans showing the pretreatment facilities
and operating procedures shall be submitted to the Department for
review and shall be acceptable to the Department before construction
of the facility. The review of such plans and operating procedures
shall in no way relieve the user from the responsibility of modifying
the facility as necessary to produce an effluent acceptable to the
Department under the provisions of this chapter. Any subsequent changes
in the pretreatment facilities or method of operation shall be reported
to and be acceptable to the Department prior to the user's initiation
of the changes. All records relating to compliance with pretreatment
standards shall be made available by the Department to officials of
the Environmental Protection Agency or Wisconsin Department of Natural
Resources upon request.
A.
Information and data on an industrial user obtained
from reports, questionnaires, permit applications, permits, monitoring
programs and inspections shall be available to the public and governmental
agencies without restriction unless the user specifically requests
and is able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the Department that
the release of such information would divulge information, processes
or methods of production entitled to protection as trade secrets of
the user.
B.
When requested by the person furnishing a report,
the portions of a report which might disclose trade secrets or secret
processes shall not be made available for inspection by the public
but shall be made available upon written request to governmental agencies
for uses related to this chapter, the state disposal system permit
and/or the pretreatment programs; provided, however, that such portions
of a report shall be available for use by the state or any state agency
in judicial review or enforcement proceedings involving the person
furnishing the report.
C.
Wastewater constituents and characteristics will not
be recognized as confidential information. Information accepted by
the Department as confidential shall not be transmitted to any governmental
agency or to the general public by the Department until and unless
a ten-day notification is given to the user.
Sludges, floats, skimmings, etc., generated
by an industrial or commercial pretreatment system shall not be placed
into the City's wastewater treatment works. Such sludges shall be
contained, transported and disposed of by haulers in accordance with
all federal, state and local regulations.
A.
Industrial users shall notify the Department immediately
upon having a slug or accidental discharge of substances or wastewater
in violation of this chapter in order to enable countermeasures to
be taken by the Department to minimize damage to the wastewater treatment
works and the receiving waters. Such notification shall not relieve
users of liability for any expense, loss or damage to the wastewater
treatment works or treatment process or for any fines imposed on the
City on account thereof under any state or federal law.
B.
The Department may suspend the wastewater treatment
service and/or a wastewater discharge permit when such suspension
is necessary, in the opinion of the Department, in order to stop an
actual or threatened discharge which presents or may present an imminent
or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of persons, to
the environment or to the wastewater treatment works or would cause
the City to violate any condition of its state disposal system permit.
Any user notified of a suspension of the wastewater treatment service
and/or the wastewater discharge permit shall immediately stop the
discharge. If the user fails to comply voluntarily with the suspension
order, the Department shall take such steps as deemed necessary, including
immediate severance of the sewer connection, to prevent or minimize
damage to the wastewater treatment works or endangerment to any individuals.
C.
The Department shall reinstate the wastewater discharge
permit and/or the wastewater treatment service upon proof of the elimination
of the noncomplying discharge. A detailed written statement submitted
by the user describing the causes of the slug or accidental discharge
and the measures taken to prevent any future occurrence shall be submitted
to the Department within 15 days of the date of occurrence.
In accordance with the procedures of § 198-20 of this chapter, the Department may revoke the permit of any industrial user which fails to factually report the wastewater constituents and characteristics of this discharge; which fails to report significant changes in wastewater constituents or characteristics; which refuses reasonable access to the user's premises for the purpose of inspection or monitoring; or for violation of conditions of its permit, this chapter or applicable state and federal regulations.
Whenever the Department finds that any industrial
user has violated or is violating this chapter, the wastewater discharge
permit or any prohibition, limitation or requirement contained herein,
the Department may serve upon such person a written notice stating
the nature of the violation. Within 30 days of the date of the notice,
a plan for the satisfactory correction thereof shall be submitted
to the City by the user.
A.
Notice of hearing. If the violation is not corrected
by timely compliance, the Department may order any user which causes
or allows an unauthorized discharge to show cause before the Common
Council why the proposed enforcement action should not be taken. A
notice shall be served on the user specifying the time and place of
a hearing to be held by the Common Council regarding the violation,
the reasons why the action is to be taken and the proposed enforcement
action and directing the user to show cause before the Common Council
why the proposed enforcement action should not be taken. The notice
of the hearing shall be served personally or by registered or certified
mail (return receipt requested) at least 10 days before the hearing.
Service may be made on any agent or officer of a corporation.
B.
Hearing officials. The Common Council may itself conduct
the hearing and take the evidence, or it may designate any of its
members or any officer or employee of the City to:
(1)
Issue in the name of the Common Council notices of
hearings requesting the attendance and testimony of witnesses and
the production of evidence relevant to any matter involved in such
hearings.
(2)
Take the evidence.
(3)
Transmit a report of the evidence and hearing, including
transcripts and other evidence, together with recommendations, to
the Common Council for action thereon.
C.
Transcripts. At any hearing held pursuant to this
section, testimony taken must be under oath and recorded stenographically.
The transcript, so recorded, will be made available to any member
of the public or any party to the hearing upon payment of the usual
charges therefor.
D.
Issuance of orders. After the Common Council has reviewed
the evidence, it may issue an order to the user responsible for the
discharge directing that, following a specified time period, the sewer
service be discontinued unless adequate treatment facilities, devices
or other related appurtenances shall have been installed or existing
treatment facilities, devices or other related appurtenances are properly
operated. Further orders and directives as are necessary and appropriate
may be issued.
If any person discharges sewage, industrial
wastes or other wastes into the City's wastewater treatment works
contrary to the provision of this chapter, federal or state pretreatment
requirements or any order of the City, the City Attorney may, following
the authorization of such action by the Common Council, commence an
action for appropriate legal and/or equitable relief.
A.
Civil penalties. Any industrial user which is found
to have violated an order of the Common Council or which has failed
to comply with any provision of this chapter and the orders, rules,
regulations and permits issued hereunder may be subject to a forfeiture
of not less than $100 nor more than $500 for each offense. Each day
on which a violation shall occur or continue shall be deemed a separate
and distinct offense. In addition to the penalties provided herein,
the City may recover reasonable attorney's fees, court costs, court
report fees and other expenses of litigation by an appropriate action
against the person found to have violated this chapter or the orders,
rules, regulations and permits issued hereunder.
[Amended by Ord. No. 17-99]
B.
Costs of damage. Any industrial user violating any
of the provisions of this chapter or which has a discharge which causes
a deposit, obstruction, damage or other impairment to the City's wastewater
treatment works shall become liable to the City for any expense, loss
or damage caused by the violation or discharge. The Department may
add to the user's charges and fees the costs assessed for any cleaning,
repair or replacement work caused by the violation or discharge. Any
refusal to pay the assessed costs shall constitute a violation of
this chapter.
C.
Falsifying information. Any person who knowingly makes
any false statements, representation or certification in any application,
record, report, plan or other document filed or required to be maintained
pursuant to this chapter or the wastewater discharge permit or who
falsifies, tampers with or knowingly renders inaccurate any monitoring
device or method required under this chapter may, upon conviction,
be subject to a forfeiture of not more than $300.
