[Adopted 11-5-1970 by Ord. No. 105 (Ch. 18, Part 3, of the 1995 Code)]
[Amended 3-23-1995 by Ord. No. 192]
Unless specifically and clearly indicated otherwise, the meaning of terms and phrases used in this part shall be as follows:
AUTHORITY
Lower Pottsgrove Township Authority, a municipality authority of the Commonwealth.
BILLING UNIT
A commercial establishment, a dwelling unit, an industrial establishment or an institutional establishment.
BOD (BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND)
The quantity of oxygen, expressed in parts per million (ppm), utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure for five days at 20° C. The standard laboratory procedure shall be that found in the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage as published by the American Public Health Association.
BOROUGH
The Borough of Pottstown, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a municipal corporation of the commonwealth.
BOROUGH AUTHORITY
The Pottstown Borough Authority, a municipality authority of the Commonwealth.
COMMERCIAL ESTABLISHMENT
Any room, group of rooms, building or enclosure connected, directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and used or intended for use in the operation of a business enterprise for the sale and distribution of any product, commodity, article or service.
COMMONWEALTH
The Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
DWELLING UNIT
Any room, group of rooms, house trailer, building or other enclosure connected, directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and occupied or intended for occupancy as separate living quarters by a family or any other group of persons living together or by a person or persons living alone, excluding institutional establishments.
IMPROVED PROPERTY
Any property upon which there is erected a structure intended for continuous or periodic habitation, occupancy or use by human beings or animals and from which structure sanitary sewage and/or industrial wastes shall be or may be discharged.
INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT
Any room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected, directly or indirectly, to the sewer system and used or intended for use, in whole or in part, in the operation of a business enterprise for manufacturing, processing, cleaning, laundering or assembling any product, commodity or article, or from which industrial wastes, as distinct from sanitary sewage, shall be or may be discharged.
INDUSTRIAL WASTES
Any wastes and all liquids discharged from any industrial establishment other than sanitary sewage.
INSTITUTIONAL ESTABLISHMENT
Any room, group of rooms, building or other enclosure connected, directly or indirectly, to the sewer system, including institutional dormitories, which do not or does not constitute a commercial establishment, a dwelling unit or an industrial establishment.
JOINT SEWAGE TREATMENT CONTRACT
The Joint Sewage Treatment Contract between the Authority and this Township, on the one hand, and the Borough and the Borough Authority, on the other hand, whereunder, inter alia, the Authority and the Township have agreed to collect and to deliver to the Borough and the Pottstown Authority, for treatment and disposition, sanitary sewage and industrial wastes emanating in this Township, and the Borough and the Borough Authority have agreed to treat and to dispose of such sanitary sewage and industrial wastes through the sewage treatment plant.
MULTIPLE UNIT
Any improved property in which shall be located more than one billing unit.
OWNER
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole or partial, of any improved property which shall be connected, directly or indirectly, to the sewer system.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, company, association, society, municipality, corporation or other group or entity.
pH (HYDROGEN ION CONTENT)
The logarithm of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions, expressed in grams per liter of solution, indicating the degree of acidity or alkalinity of a substance.
ppm
Parts per million, by weight.
SANITARY SEWAGE
All normal water-carried household, lavatory, laundry and toilet wastes discharged from any improved property.
SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT
The facilities for treatment and disposal of sanitary sewage and industrial wastes which are operated and maintained in and for the Borough by the Borough and/or the Borough Authority.
SEWER
Any pipe or conduit constituting a part of the sewer system and used or usable for sewage collection and transportation purposes.
SEWER SYSTEM
All facilities, as of any particular time, for collecting, pumping, transporting and disposing of sanitary sewage and/or industrial wastes, to be acquired and to be constructed and to be owned by the Authority and to be leased by this Township for maintenance, operation and use.
TOTAL SOLIDS
Solids that either float on the surface of or are in suspension or are dissolved in water, sewage or other liquids and which are determined by laboratory analysis.
TOWNSHIP
The Township of Lower Pottsgrove, Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, a municipal subdivision of the commonwealth, acting by and through its authorized representatives.
[Amended 3-23-1995 by Ord. No. 192]
Sewer rentals or charges are imposed by the Authority upon and shall be collected from the owner of each improved property which shall be connected with the sewer system for use of the sewer system, whether such use shall be direct or indirect, and for services rendered in connection therewith, including services pursuant to the joint sewage treatment contract, which sewer rentals or charges shall commence and shall be effective as of the date of connection of each such improved property to the sewer system and shall be payable in the amounts, at the times and in the manner as provided in this part.
[Amended 3-23-1995 by Ord. No. 192]
A. 
The owner of any improved property which shall be connected to the sewer system for only a part of a quarter-annum billing period shall pay pro rata sewer rentals or charges for the portion of the quarter-annum billing period during which such connection was in effect.
B. 
Sewer rentals or charges shall be due and payable upon the applicable billing date at the place which shall be specified, from time to time, in the bills to be rendered by or in behalf of this Township as provided for in Subsection A, and the appropriate amount, computed in accordance with this part, shall constitute the net bill. If sewer rentals or charges are not paid within 15 calendar days after each applicable billing date, an additional sum of 5% shall be added to such net bill, which net bill, plus such additional sum, shall constitute the gross bill. Payment made or mailed and postmarked on or before the last day of such fifteen-calendar-day period shall constitute payment within such period. If the end of such fifteen-calendar-day period shall fall on a legal holiday or on a Sunday, then payment made on or mailed and postmarked on the next succeeding regular business day shall constitute payment within such period.
C. 
The owner of an improved property which is connected to the sewer system initially shall provide this Township with and thereafter shall keep this Township advised of the correct address of such owner. Failure of any person to receive quarter-annum bills for sewer rentals or charges shall not be considered an excuse for nonpayment nor shall such failure result in an extension of the period of time during which the net bill shall be payable.
Sewer rentals or charges imposed by this part shall be a lien upon the improved property connected to and served by the sewer system, and any such sewer rentals or charges which are delinquent shall be filed as a lien against the improved property so connected to and served by the sewer system, which lien shall be filed in the appropriate office of the County of Montgomery, Pennsylvania, as provided by law, and shall be collected in the manner provided by law for the filing and collecting of municipal claims.
A. 
No person shall discharge or shall cause to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, spring water, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, building foundation drainage or drainage from roof leader connections into any sewer.
B. 
This Township reserves the right to refuse permission to connect to the sewer system, to compel discontinuance of use of the sewer system or to compel pretreatment of industrial wastes by any owner of an improved property in order to prevent discharges deemed to be harmful or to have a deleterious effect upon any sewer or the sewer system or the sewage treatment plant.
C. 
No sanitary sewage or industrial wastes shall be discharged to the sewer system, which:
(1) 
Shall have a temperature higher than 150° F.
(2) 
Shall contain more than 100 ppm of fat, oil and/or grease.
(3) 
Shall contain any gasoline, benzine, naphtha, fuel oil or other inflammable or explosive liquids, solids or gases.
(4) 
Shall contain any solid wastes resulting from preparation, cooking and dispensing of food and from handling, storage and sale of produce, which wastes commonly are known as garbage, which have not been ground by household-type garbage disposal units or other suitable garbage grinders.
(5) 
Shall contain any ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, cotton, wool or other fibers, plastics, wood, paunch manure or any other solid or viscous substances capable of causing obstructions to or other interferences with proper operation of the sewer system or any sewer or the sewage treatment plant.
(6) 
Shall have a pH lower than 4 1/2 or higher than nine or shall have any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazards to structures or equipment of the sewer system or any sewer or the sewage treatment plant or to any person engaged in operation and maintenance of the sewer system or any sewer or the sewage treatment plant.
(7) 
Shall contain toxic or poisonous substances in sufficient quantity to injure or to interfere with any sewage treatment process, to constitute hazards to humans or animals, or to create any hazards in waters which shall receive treated effluent from the sewer system and the sewage treatment plant. Toxic wastes shall include, but shall not be limited to, wastes containing cyanide, chromium, copper and nickel ions.
(8) 
Shall contain noxious or malodorous gases or substances capable of creating a public nuisance.
(9) 
Shall contain total solids of such character and quantity that special and unusual attention is required for handling at the sewage treatment plant.
D. 
Where necessary, in the opinion of this Township, the owner of an improved property shall provide, at the expense of the owner, suitable pretreatment facilities in order to comply with Subsection C of this section.
E. 
Plans, specifications and any other pertinent information relating to proposed facilities for preliminary treatment and handling of industrial wastes shall be submitted for approval of this Township, and no construction of any such facility shall be commenced until approval thereof first shall have been obtained, in writing, from this Township and until approval thereof first shall have been obtained from any governmental regulatory body having jurisdiction.
F. 
Whenever facilities for preliminary treatment and handling of industrial wastes shall have been provided by any owner, such facilities continuously shall be maintained at the expense of the owner in satisfactory operating condition, and this Township shall have access to such facilities at reasonable times for purposes of inspection and testing.
G. 
Nothing contained in this section shall be construed as prohibiting any special agreement or arrangement between this Township and any owner whereby industrial wastes of unusual strength or character may be admitted into the sewer system either before or after preliminary treatment.
This Township shall have the right of access, at all reasonable times, to any part of any improved property served by the sewer system as shall be required for purposes of inspection, observation, measurement, sampling and testing and for performance of other functions relating to service rendered by this Township through the sewer system.
A. 
The furnishing and installation of meters or other measuring devices which shall not be owned by this Township but which shall be permitted or required under provisions of this part shall be the sole responsibility of the owner. The installation or use of such meters or other measuring devices at all times shall be subject to the approval of this Township and may be tested and inspected by this Township whenever necessary. The owner shall be responsible for the maintenance, safekeeping and repair of any such meter, whether such repairs shall be made necessary by ordinary wear and tear or other causes.
B. 
This Township shall be responsible for the reading of all meters or other measuring devices, and the same shall be available to employees and agents of this Township at all reasonable times.
C. 
Representatives of this Township shall have the right of access at reasonable times to any part of any improved property served by the sewer system and any meters used for purposes of establishing or determining volumes for purposes of this part.
The Township reserves the right to adopt, from time to time, such additional rules and regulations as it shall deem necessary and proper in connection with use and operation of the sewer system, which rules and regulations shall be, shall become and shall be construed as part of this part.
It is declared that enactment of this part is necessary for the protection, benefit and preservation of the health, safety and welfare of inhabitants of this Township.