[HISTORY: Adopted by the Special Town Meeting 3-15-2008 by Art. 7.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Whereas:
(1)
floor drains in industrial and commercial facilities
are often tied to a system leading to a leaching structure (e.g. dry
well, cesspool, leach field) or a septic system; and
(2)
poor management practices and accidental and/or intentional
discharges may lead petroleum and other toxic or hazardous material
into these drainage systems in facilities managing these products;
and
(3)
improper maintenance or inappropriate use of these
systems may allow the passage of containments or pollutants entering
the drain to discharge from the leaching structure or septic system
to the ground; and
(4)
discharges of hazardous wastes and other pollutants
to floor drains leading to leaching structures and septic systems
have repeatedly threatened surface and ground water quality throughout
Massachusetts; and
(5)
surface and ground water resources in the Town of
Southwick contribute to the town's drinking water supplies;
B.
The Town of Southwick adopts the following by-law,
as a preventive measure for the purpose of:
For the purposes of this by-law, the following
words and phrases shall have the following meanings:
A public or private establishment where the principal use
is the supply, sale, and/or manufacture of services, products, or
information, including but not limited to: manufacturing, processing,
or other industrial operations; service or retail establishments;
printing or publishing establishments; research and development facilities;
small or large quantity generators of hazardous waste; laboratories;
hospitals.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.
The accidental or intentional disposal, deposit, injection,
dumping, spilling, leaking, incineration, or placing of toxic or hazardous
material or waste upon or into any land or water so that such hazardous
waste or any constituent thereof may enter the land or waters of the
Commonwealth. Discharge includes, without limitation, leakage of such
materials from failed or discarded containers or storage systems and
disposal of such materials into any on-site leaching structure or
sewage disposal system.
An intended drainage point on a floor constructed to be otherwise
impervious which serves as the point of entry into any subsurface
drainage, treatment, disposal, containment, or other plumbing system.
Any subsurface structure through which a fluid that is introduced
will pass and enter the environment, including but not limited to,
dry wells, leaching catch basins, cesspools, leach fields, and oil/water
separators that are not water-tight.
A device designed and installed so as to separate and retain
petroleum based oil or grease, flammable wastes as well as sand and
particles from normal wastes while permitting normal sewage or liquid
wastes to discharge into the drainage system by gravity. Other common
names for such systems include MDC traps, gasoline and sand traps,
grit and oil separators, grease traps, and interceptors.
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
Any substance or mixture of physical, chemical, or infectious
characteristics posing a significant, actual, or potential hazard
to water supplies or other hazards to human health if such substance
or mixture were discharged to land or water of the Town of Southwick.
Toxic or hazardous materials include, without limitation, synthetic
organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals, radioactive or
infectious wastes, acids and alkalis, and all substances defined as
Toxic or Hazardous under Massachusetts General Laws (MGL) Chapter
21 E and the Massachusetts Hazardous Waste Regulations promulgated
at 310 CMR 30.000, and also include such products as solvents, thinners,
and pesticides in quantities greater than normal household use.
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
The handling, generation, treatment, storage, or management
of toxic or hazardous materials.
The area of land as described by a map entitled "Town of
Southwick Commonwealth of Massachusetts Wellhead Protection District"
prepared by Dodson Associates, Ltd. dated March 26, 2007, and any
subsequent amendments thereto. A copy of said map is on file in the
Town Clerk's Office.
[Added STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
With the exception of discharges that have received
(or have applied and will receive) a Department issued permit prior
to the effective date of this by-law, no floor drain(s) shall be allowed
to discharge, with or without pretreatment (such as an oil/water separator),
to the ground, a leaching structure, or septic system in any industrial
or commercial facility if such floor drain is located in either:
A.
The owner of a facility in operation prior to the
effective date of this by-law with a prohibited floor drain system
shall:
(1)
disconnect and plug all applicable inlets to and outlets
from (where possible) applicable leaching structures, oil/water separators,
and/or septic systems;
(2)
remove all existing sludge in oil/water separators,
septic systems, and where accessible, leaching structures. Any sludge
determined to be a hazardous waste shall be disposed of in accordance
with state hazardous waste regulations (310 CMR 30.000). Remedial
activity involving any excavation and/or soil or groundwater sampling
must be performed in accordance with appropriate Department policies;
(3)
Alter the floor drain system so that the floor drain
shall be either:
(a)
connected to a holding tank that meets all applicable
requirements of Department policies and regulations, with hauling
records submitted to the Southwick Department of Public Works at the
time of hauling;
(b)
connected to a municipal sanitary sewer line,
if available, with all applicable Department and local permits; or
(c)
permanently sealed. Any facility sealing a drain
shall be required to submit for approval to the Department of Public
Works a hazardous waste management plan detailing the means of collecting,
storing, and disposing any hazardous waste generated by the facility,
including any spill or other discharge of hazardous materials or wastes.
B.
Any oil/water separator remaining in use shall be
monitored weekly, cleaned not less than every 90 days, and restored
to proper conditions after cleaning so as to ensure proper functioning.
Records of the hauling of the removed contents of the separator shall
be submitted to the Department of Public Works at the time of hauling.
C.
Compliance with all provisions of this by law must
be accomplished in a manner consistent with Massachusetts Plumbing,
Building, and Fire code requirements.
D.
Upon complying with one of the options listed under § 110-4A(3) the owner/operator of the facility shall notify the Department of the closure of said system by filing the Department's UIC Notification Form with the Department, and sending a copy to the Town of Southwick Department of Public Works.
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art.
9]
The effective date of this by-law is governed
by G.L. c. 40, § 32.
A.
Existing Facilities:
(1)
Owner/Operators of a facility affected by this by-law
shall comply with all of its provisions within (120) days of the effective
date;
(2)
All applicable discharges to the leaching structures
and septic systems shall be discontinued immediately through temporary
isolation or sealing of the floor drain.
B.
New Facilities:
(1)
As of the effective date of the by-law, all new construction
and/or applicable change of use within the Town of Southwick shall
comply with the provisions of this by-law.
(2)
Certification of conformance with the provisions of
this by-law by the Department of Public Works shall be required prior
to issuance of construction and occupancy permits.
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
Failure to comply with provisions of this by-law
will result in the levy of fines of not less than $200.00, but no
more than $300.00. Each day's failure to comply with the provisions
of this by-law shall constitute a separate violation.
Each provision of this by-law shall be constructed
as separate to the end that, if any provision, or sentence, clause,
or phrase thereof, shall be held invalid for any reason, the remainder
of that section and all other sections shall continue in full force
and effect.
[Amended STM 3-16-2009 by Art. 9]
The provisions of this by-law shall be administered
and enforced through inspection by the Southwick Building Department.
