[Amended 8-17-2015 by Ord. No. 15-15]
No person shall directly or indirectly discharge, or permit
to be discharged, clearwater into the sanitary sewer system.
A.
No person shall tie into a connection between any conductor used
to carry clearwater, such as, without limitation, a sump pump, roof
drain, foundation drain, or other surface drain (collectively "device"),
and the sanitary sewer system.
B.
No owner shall sell or lease real property, which is improved with
a building, without first obtaining from the Township a certificate
of continued occupancy, which shall include that the owner certifies
that no device is connected to the sanitary sewer system. No purchaser
or tenant shall purchase or rent such real property unless the seller
has provided the purchaser or tenant with the required certificate
of continued occupancy prior to closing of the sale or finalization
of the rental.
C.
Whenever a property owner within the Township of Clark constructs
a new dwelling or structure that requires sanitary sewer discharges,
the property owner shall be required, when undertaking such a construction,
to construct a new sanitary sewer lateral in a manner acceptable to
the Department of Engineering of the Township of Clark and in a good
workmanlike manner, in accordance with standard engineering practices
and such construction standards as may be approved by the Township
of Clark.
[Added 11-6-2017 by Ord.
No. 17-18; amended 3-1-2021 by Ord. No. 21-11; 3-6-2023 by Ord. No. 23-12]
D.
No person shall make any connection with the sanitary sewerage system
unless and until a permit for that purpose has been obtained from
the Construction Official.
[Added 11-6-2017 by Ord.
No. 17-19]
E.
Any changes in use of any existing property or facility or any physical additions to or expansions of existing property or facility shall be subject to review and reevaluation of the sewer service and the amount of flow rights assigned by the Township. Any increase shall subject the applicant to additional fees. Flow rights are granted to the Township of Clark and other member communities by the Rahway Valley Sewerage Authority (RVSA). By agreement, the Township has been granted sewer flow rights for the municipality. Flow rights available for purchase are finite and limited and assigned upon purchase at time of sanitary sewer application. Flow rights are not guaranteed. Therefore, all completed applications for sewer permits shall be approved on a first-come-first-served basis. The obligation of the Authority and/or the Township to approve applications for sewer permits is contingent upon the availability of capacity both at the Rahway Valley Sewerage Authority Treatment Plant and in the mains that are owned and maintained by the RVSA and the Township of Clark. If sufficient flow rights are not available from the Township, it shall be the sole responsibility of the developer to acquire sufficient flow rights from another source to accommodate its development as follows: "If Clark does not already possess adequate flow rights in order for the developer to proceed with the development, Clark may, in its sole discretion, choose to negotiate with another member for the purchase of additional flow rights. All negotiations must be between members only. The developer must reimburse the Township of Clark for the cost of such rights in accordance § 57-6 of the Township Code." Construction permits shall not be issued unless and until the developer provides adequate evidence of its acquisition of flow rights sufficient to serve the proposed development.
[Added 8-20-2018 by Ord.
No. 18-19]
Stormwater and all other unpolluted drainage shall be discharged
to such sewers as are specifically designated as storm sewers or to
a natural outlet approved by the Township Engineer. Industrial cooling
water or unpolluted process waters may be discharged on approval of
the Township Engineer to a storm sewer or natural outlet.
No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any of the
following described waters or wastes to any public sewers:
A.
Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil or other flammable or explosive
liquid, solid or gas.
B.
Any waters or wastes containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids
or gases in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with
other wastes, so as:
C.
Any waters or wastes having a corrosive property capable of causing
damage or hazard to structures, equipment and personnel of the sewage
works.
D.
Solid or viscous substances in quantities or of such 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, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags,
feathers, tar, plastics, wood, unground garbage, whole blood, paunch
manure, hair and fleshings, entrails and paper dishes, cups, milk
containers, etc., either whole or ground by garbage grinders.
[Amended 1-17-2012 by Ord. No. 12-01]
No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged the following
described substances, materials, waters or wastes if it appears likely,
in the opinion of the Authority and/or the Township Engineer, that
such wastes can harm either the sewers, sewage treatment process or
equipment, have an adverse effect on the receiving stream or can otherwise
endanger life, limb, public property or constitute a nuisance. In
forming its opinion as to the acceptability of these wastes, the Authority
will give consideration to 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 sewage treatment process,
capacity of the sewage treatment plant, degree of treatability of
wastes in the sewage treatment plant and other pertinent factors.
The substances prohibited are:
A.
Any liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than 150° F.
(65° C.).
B.
Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease or oils, whether
emulsified or not, in excess of 100 mg/l or containing substances
which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32°
and 150° F. (0° and 65° C.).
C.
Any waters or wastes containing strong acid iron pickling wastes
or concentrated plating solutions, whether neutralized or not.
D.
Any waters or wastes containing iron, chromium, copper, zinc and
similar objectionable or toxic substances in excess of limits established
by the Authority or having a pH outside of maximum and minimum limits
established by the Authority or wastes exerting an excessive chlorine
requirement.
E.
Any waters or wastes containing phenols or other taste- or odor-producing
substances in such concentrations exceeding limits which may be established
by the Authority as necessary, after treatment of the composite sewage,
to meet the requirements of the state, federal or other public agencies
of jurisdiction for such discharge to the receiving waters.
F.
Any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration
as may exceed limits established by the Authority in compliance with
applicable state or federal regulations.
G.
Materials which exert or cause:
(1)
Unusual concentrations of inert suspended solids, such as, but not
limited to, fullers earth, lime slurries and lime residues, or of
dissolved solids, such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and
sodium sulfate.
(2)
Excessive discoloration, such as, but not limited to, dye wastes
and vegetable tanning solutions.
(3)
Unusual volume of flow or concentration of wastes constituting slugs,
as defined herein.
H.
Waters or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to
treatment or reduction by the sewage treatment processes employed
or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the sewage treatment
plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of other agencies having
jurisdiction over discharge to the receiving waters.
[Amended 1-17-2012 by Ord. No. 12-01]
A.
If any waters or wastes are discharged or are proposed to be discharged to the public sewers, which waters contain the substances or possess the characteristics enumerated in § 279-5 and which, in the judgment of the Authority and/or the Township Engineer, may have a deleterious effect upon the sewage works, processes, equipment or receiving waters or which otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the Authority and/or the Township Engineer may:
B.
If the Authority and/or the Township Engineer permits the pretreatment
or equalization of waste flows, the design and installation of the
plants and equipment shall be subject to the review and approval of
the Authority and/or the Township Engineer and subject to the requirements
of all applicable codes, ordinances and laws.
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/her expense.
[Amended 1-17-2012 by Ord. No. 12-01]
When required by the Authority and/or the Township Engineer,
the owner of any property serviced by a building sewer carrying industrial
wastes shall install a suitable control manhole, together with such
necessary meters and other appurtenances, in the building sewer to
facilitate observation, sampling and measurement of the wastes. Such
manhole, when required, shall be accessible and safely located and
shall be constructed in accordance with plans approved by the Authority.
The manhole shall be installed by the owner at his/her expense and
shall be maintained by him/her so as to be safe and accessible at
all times.
All measurements, tests and analyses of the characteristics
of waters and wastes to which reference is made in this article 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.
In the event that no special manhole has been required, the control
manhole shall be considered to be the nearest downstream manhole in
the public sewer to the point at which the building sewer is connected.
[Amended 1-17-2012 by Ord. No. 12-01; 8-17-2015 by Ord. No. 15-15]
The Authority, its supervising engineer and any other duly authorized employees and/or agents of the Authority and/or the Township, by and through its Building Inspector, Code Enforcement Officer, Fire Subcode Official and/or any other person or employee duly appointed and bearing proper credentials and identification (collectively, "inspector"), may, subject to law, undertake inspections or tests as the Inspector deems necessary and appropriate to determine whether the provisions of § 279-2 of Chapter 279 is being violated. In connection with such inspections, such person or persons shall be permitted to enter all properties for the purposes of such inspection, observations, measurement, sampling and testing (collectively "inspections") in accordance with the provisions of this article. Any inspections may only take place after written notice, mailed to the address of the property in question, at least five business days in advance of the inspection. Inspections shall be conducted on weekdays, between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 5:00 p.m. or by appointment. The Township, Authority or their respective representatives shall have no authority to inquire into any processes, including metallurgical, chemical, oil, refining, ceramic, paper or other industries, beyond such point which has a direct bearing on the kind and source of discharge in the sewers of waterways or facilities for waste treatment.
A.
The inspector shall be permitted immediate entry onto real property to undertake inspections or tests for violations of § 279-2 of the Clark Township Code if, in the sole opinion of the inspector, an actual emergency exists tending to create an immediate danger to the public health and safety.
B.
The owner of the property shall make all areas of the building to
be tested or inspected available to the inspector.
C.
If, in the sole opinion of the inspector, any violations are found,
the violations shall be eliminated at the owner's expense. Such corrective
work shall be completed within 10 days of the date the inspector notifies
the owner of the deficiency, in writing, mailed to the address of
the property in question.
D.
In the event violations are identified, the inspector shall re-inspect
the property either upon notice from the owner that the violation
has been corrected or within 15 days from the date of the notice of
violation, whichever first occurs.
E.
If the property owner fails to undertake such corrective work within
the times specified herein, the Township shall be authorized and permitted
to make such repairs or replacements and to assess the owner of the
property for the cost thereof, plus 10% or $50, whichever is greater,
for administrative costs. Such assessment shall constitute a lien
against the property until paid in the same manner as real estate
taxes constitute a lien against the property.
[Amended 1-17-2012 by Ord. No. 12-01]
While performing the necessary work on private properties referred to in § 279-10, the Township, supervising engineer of the Authority, or duly authorized employees of the Authority or Township shall observe all safety rules applicable to the premises established by the owner, and the owner shall be held harmless for injury or death to any Township or Authority employees, and the Township and Authority shall indemnify the owner against loss or damage to its property by any Township or Authority employees and against liability claims and demands for personal injury or property damage asserted against the owner and growing out of the gauging and sampling operation, except as such may be caused by negligence or failure of the owner to maintain safe conditions.
