For the purposes of this chapter, the following
terms shall have the meanings indicated:
BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (BMPS)
Schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, general
good housekeeping practices, pollution prevention and educational
practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices
to prevent or reduce the discharge of pollutants directly or indirectly
to stormwater, receiving waters, or stormwater conveyance systems.
BMPs also include treatment practices, operating procedures, and practices
to control site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or water disposal,
or drainage from raw materials storage.
CLEAN WATER ACT
The Federal Water Pollution Control Act (33 U.S.C. § 1251
et seq.), and any subsequent amendments thereto.
CONSTRUCTION ACTIVITY
Activities subject to NPDES Construction Permits. Currently
these include construction projects resulting in land disturbance
of one acre or more. Such activities include but are not limited to
clearing and grubbing, grading, excavating, and demolition.
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
Any material, including any substance, waste, or combination
thereof, which because of its quantity, concentration, or physical,
chemical, or infectious characteristics may cause, or significantly
contribute to, a potential hazard to human health, safety, property,
or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed
of, or otherwise managed.
ILLEGAL DISCHARGE
Any direct or indirect nonstormwater discharge to the storm
drain system, except as specifically exempted by this chapter.
ILLICIT CONNECTIONS
Either of the following: any drain or conveyance, whether
on the surface or subsurface, which allows an illegal discharge to
enter the storm drain system, including but not limited to any conveyances
which allows any nonstormwater discharge, including sewage, process
wastewater, and wash water, to enter the storm drain system and any
connections to the storm drain system from indoor drains and sinks,
regardless of whether said drain or connection had been previously
allowed, permitted, or approved by an authorized enforcement agency,
or any drain or conveyance connected from a commercial or industrial
land use to the storm drain system which has not been documented in
plans, maps, or equivalent records and also approved by an authorized
enforcement agency.
INDUSTRIAL ACTIVITY
Activities subject to NPDES Industrial Permits as defined
in 40 CFR 122.26 (b)(14).
PERSON
Any individual, association, organization, partnership, firm,
corporation or other entity recognized by law and acting as either
the owner or as the owner's agent.
POLLUTANT
Anything which causes or contributes to pollution. Pollutants
may include, but are not limited to: paints, varnishes, and solvents;
oil and other automotive fluids; nonhazardous liquid and solid wastes
and yard wastes; refuse, rubbish, garbage, litter, or other discarded
or abandoned objects, ordinances, and accumulations, so that same
may cause or contribute to pollution; floatables; pesticides, herbicides,
and fertilizers; hazardous substances and wastes; sewage, fecal coliform
and pathogens; dissolved and particulate metals; animal wastes; wastes
and residues that result from constructing a building or structure;
and noxious or offensive matter of any kind.
PREMISES
Any building, lot, parcel of land, or portion of land, whether
improved or unimproved, including adjacent sidewalks and parking strips.
STORM DRAINAGE SYSTEM
Publicly owned facilities by which stormwater is collected
and/or conveyed, including but not limited to any roads with drainage
systems, municipal streets, gutters, curbs, inlets, piped storm drains,
pumping facilities, retention and detention basins, natural and human-made
or altered drainage channels, reservoirs, and other drainage structures.
STORMWATER
Any surface flow, runoff, and drainage consisting entirely
of water from any form of natural precipitation, and resulting from
such precipitation.
STORMWATER MANAGEMENT PRACTICES (SMP)
Measures, either structural or non-structural, that are determined
to be the most effective, practical means of preventing flood damage
and preventing or reducing point source or non-point source pollution
inputs to stormwater runoff and water bodies.
STORMWATER POLLUTION PREVENTION PLAN (SWPPP)
A document which describes the Best Management Practices
and activities to be implemented by a person or business to identify
sources of pollution or contamination at a site and the actions to
eliminate or reduce pollutant discharges to Stormwater, Stormwater
Conveyance Systems, and/or Receiving Waters to the Maximum Extent
Practicable.
WASTEWATER
Any water or other liquid, other than uncontaminated stormwater,
discharged from a facility.
The provisions of this chapter are hereby declared
to be severable. If any provision, clause, sentence, or paragraph
of this chapter or the application thereof to any person, establishment,
or circumstances shall be held invalid, such invalidity shall not
affect the other provisions or application of this chapter.
The standards set forth herein and promulgated
pursuant to this chapter are minimum standards; therefore, this chapter
does not intend nor imply that compliance by any Person will ensure
that there will be no contamination, pollution, nor unauthorized discharge
of pollutants.
The owner or operator of a commercial or industrial
establishment shall provide, at its own expense, reasonable protection
from accidental discharge of prohibited materials or other wastes
into the municipal storm drain system or watercourses through the
use of these structural and nonstructural BMPs. Further, any person
responsible for a property or premises, which is, or may be, the source
of an Illegal Discharge, may be required to implement, at said person's
expense, additional structural and nonstructural BMPs to prevent the
further discharge of pollutants to the municipal separate storm sewer
system. Compliance with all terms and conditions of a valid NPDES
permit authorizing the discharge of stormwater associated with industrial
activity, to the extent practicable, shall be deemed compliance with
the provisions of this section. These BMPs shall be part of a Stormwater
Pollution Prevention Plan (SWPPP) as necessary for compliance with
requirements of the NPDES permit.
Every person owning property through which a
watercourse passes, or such person's lessee, shall keep and maintain
that part of the watercourse within the property free of trash, debris,
excessive vegetation, and other obstacles that would pollute, contaminate,
or significantly retard the flow of water through the watercourse.
In addition, the owner or lessee shall maintain existing privately
owned structures within or adjacent to a watercourse, so that such
structures will not become a hazard to the use, function, or physical
integrity of the watercourse.
Notwithstanding other requirements of law, as
soon as any person responsible for a facility or operation, or responsible
for emergency response for a facility or operation has information
of any known or suspected release of materials which are resulting
or may result in illegal discharges or pollutants discharging into
stormwater, the Storm Drain System, or water of the United States,
said person shall take all necessary steps to ensure the discovery,
containment, and cleanup of such release. In the event of such a release
of hazardous materials, said person shall immediately notify emergency
response agencies of the occurrence via emergency dispatch services.
In the event of a release of nonhazardous materials, said person shall
notify the authorized enforcement agency in person or by phone or
facsimile no later than the next business day. Notifications in person
or by phone shall be confirmed by written notice addressed and mailed
to the Building Official within three business days of the phone notice.
If the illegal discharge of prohibited materials emanates from a commercial
or industrial establishment, the owner or operator of such establishment
shall also retain an on-site written record of the discharge and the
actions taken to prevent its recurrence. Such records shall be retained
for at least three years.