[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 1; as amended by Ord. 231, 6/25/1981, § 1]
Unless the context specifically and clearly indicates otherwise, the meanings of terms used in this Part 3 shall be as follows:
ALLENTOWN AGREEMENTS
Collectively, the agreement, dated as of April 12, 1965, between the Authority and certain other parties, on the one hand, and the city, on the other hand, and the agreement, dated as of March 1, 1966, between the Authority and the city, including any supplements and/or amendments to either or both of said agreements at any time constituting a part of either or both of said agreements, under terms of which, inter alia, the sewer system will be connected to the sewer system operated by the city, so that sewage and other wastes collected in the sewer system, subject to conditions set forth therein, may be discharged into the sewer system operated by the city for ultimate treatment and disposal.
AUTHORITY
Salisbury Township Authority, a Pennsylvania municipality authority.
BOD (BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND)
The quantity of oxygen, expressed in 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, published by the American Public Health Association.
CITY
The City of Allentown, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
DWELLING UNIT
Any room, group of rooms, house trailer or other enclosure occupied or intended for occupancy as separate living quarters by a family or other group of persons living together or by persons living alone.
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 sewage and/or industrial wastes shall be or may be discharged.
INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT
Any improved property used, in whole or in part, for manufacturing, processing, cleaning, laundering or assembling any product, commodity or article or from which any process waste, as distinct from sewage, shall be discharged.
INDUSTRIAL WASTES
Any and all wastes discharged from an industrial establishment, other than sewage.
OWNER
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole or partial, of any improved property.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, company, association, society, corporation or other group or entity.
pH
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.
SEWAGE
Normal water-carried household and toilet wastes from any improved property.
SEWAGE TREATMENT PLANT
The plant and facilities operated by the city for the purpose of treatment of sewage and other permitted wastes, located on Kline's Island, to which the sewer system is to be connected, and all additions, modifications, alterations and improvements thereto.
SEWER
Any pipe or conduit constituting a part of the sewer system used or usable for sewage collection purposes.
SEWER SYSTEM
All facilities, as of any particular time, for collecting, pumping, treating or disposing of sewage and/or industrial wastes, situate in or adjacent to this Township to be acquired and owned by the Authority and to be leased to this Township for maintenance and operation, under a proposed agreement of lease, to be dated as of April 1, 1966, by and between the Authority and the Township, and any supplements and amendments thereto.
SS (SUSPENDED SOLIDS)
The filterable residue of the wastes as determined by the latest edition of Standard Methods for Examination of Water and Waste-water, published by the American Public Health Association.
TKN (TOTAL KJELDAHL NITROGEN)
The quantity of nitrogen as ammonia and organic nitrogen, but not nitrate and nitrate nitrogen, measured as parts per million. The standard laboratory procedure for determination of TKN shall be that found in the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Wastewater, published by the American Public Health Association.
TOWNSHIP
The Township of Salisbury, Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, acting by and through its Board of Township Commissioners or, in appropriate cases, acting by and through its authorized representatives.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 2; Ord. 253, 1/24/1985; Ord. 12-90-331, 12/13/1990; Ord. 12-98-462, 12/10/1998; Ord. 05-2010-559, 5/27/2010, Art. I; Ord. 04-2015-597, 4/9/2015; Res. 12-2015-1515, 12/17/2015; Res. No. 12-2016-1551, 12/22/2016; Res. No. 12-2018-1616, 12/13/2018; Res. No. 12-2019-1656, 12/12/2019; Ord. No. 01-2021-634, 1/28/2021; Res. No. 12-2022-1765, 12/8/2022; Res. No. 12-2023-1797, 12/14/2023; Res. No. 12-2024-1838, 12/12/2024; Res. No. 12-2025-1882, 12/11/2025]
1. 
Sewer rentals or charges are imposed 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, 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 as provided herein, in accordance with the following schedule of rates and classifications:
A. 
Residential.
(1) 
Beginning January 1, 2026, there shall be a charge to each private dwelling unit of $368 per annum, payable at the rate of $92 per quarterly billing period. Thereafter, these rates may be amended or revised from time to time by duly enacted resolution of the Board of Commissioners.
(2) 
Each dwelling unit in a double house, in a row of connecting houses, in a trailer park or in an apartment shall be billed as a separate entity.
B. 
Nonresidential.
(1) 
Commercial, industrial, schools, clubhouses, firehouses, hospitals, churches, chapels, institutions, etc.
(2) 
Beginning January 1, 2026, all owners of nonresidential improved properties connected to the sewer system shall pay sewer rentals or charges, except as hereinafter noted, at the rate of $404.80 per annum, payable at the rate of $101.20 per quarterly billing period per unit, or at a rate set from time to time by duly enacted resolution by the Board of Commissioners, on the basis of equivalent dwelling units determined or computed as follows:
(a) 
Each church or chapel, firehouse, social hall or clubroom shall constitute one equivalent dwelling unit. Where a home occupation or home professional office which utilizes water in the service it provides or the product it produces is conducted in a building also used for residential purposes, the sewer rate which shall be paid for such property shall be calculated in the same manner as commercial uses, i.e., on the basis of equivalent dwelling units, and not on a flat-rate basis, but in no event less than the flat-rate charges for residential users.
(b) 
Each school (public or private) shall constitute one equivalent dwelling unit for each unit of 24 pupils computed on the basis of the average number of pupils enrolled on days when the school was in session during the last full school fiscal year preceding the calendar year in which the sewer rental or charge is payable. Teachers and employees of the school shall be classified as pupils for sewer rental purposes. On or before December 31 of each year, the chief school administrator shall file a sworn statement with this Township setting forth complete information required in order to compute the sewer rental or charge to each school.
(c) 
Equivalent dwelling units for all nonresidential users, except as specified in Subsection 1B(2)(a) and (b) above, shall be based upon the volume of water consumed or the volume of discharge to the sewer system, as applicable; provided, however, that the sewer rental or charge to each industrial establishment discharging sewage and/or industrial wastes into the sewer system shall not be less than $2.60 per employee per quarter annum based upon the average number of persons employed (including employers) per working day during the service period for which the billing is rendered. Equivalent dwelling units based upon the volume of water consumed or the volume of discharge to the sewer system shall be based upon one equivalent dwelling unit for each 15,000 gallons of water consumed or 15,000 gallons of waste discharged to the sewer system, as applicable.
C. 
Exceptional-Strength Users.
(1) 
If any nonresidential user shall discharge any waste having a strength exceeding 230 ppm of BOD or 250 ppm of SS, or 44 ppm of TKN, that user shall be charged as an exceptional strength user in accordance with the following rates:
Basis Charge
$1.20 per each 1,000 gallons or fraction thereof
Plus:
For all BOD greater than 230 ppm
$0.88 per pound
For all SS greater than 250 ppm
$0.052 per pound
For all TRN greater than 44 ppm
$0.152 per pound
(2) 
The basis for determination of the strength of waste shall be a seven-day composite sample taken once per billing period.
2. 
For service periods of less or more than one quarter annum, the sewer rental or charge and the computation of the volume of water consumed or the volume of discharge to the sewer system, as applicable, shall be proportionately adjusted.
3. 
If the owner of any nonresidential improved property (including any school) shall fail to provide this Township with complete information required to compute the sewer rental or charge to such nonresidential improved property, this Township may estimate a reasonable applicable sewer rental or charge for such nonresidential improved property, and such estimated sewer rental or charge shall be the actual sewer rental or charge payable until the required information is filed; provided, however, that no rebates will be paid by this Township if the information filed reveals a lower indicated sewer rental or charge than that estimated by this Township.
4. 
Additional classifications and sewer rentals or charges or modifications of the above schedule of sewer rentals or charges may be established by this Township from time to time as deemed necessary.
5. 
Nothing herein contained shall be deemed to prohibit this Township from entering into separate agreements with owners with respect to sewer rentals or charges to be imposed in those cases where, due to seasonal fluctuations or other unusual circumstances, the sewer rentals or charges set forth herein shall be deemed by this Township to be unfair or inequitable.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 3; as amended by Ord. 253, 1/24/1985; by Ord. 1-88-293, 1/4/1988; by Ord. 5-96-413, 5/9/1996, §§ 1, 2; and by Ord. 04-2015-597, 4/9/2015]
1. 
All bills for sewer rentals or charges, except those based on metered water consumption or metered waste discharged or estimates of this Township, shall be rendered in calendar quarters, on the first days of January, April, July and October, respectively, in each year, or on such other dates as this Township, by resolution, shall specify, and shall cover a quarterly billing period consisting of the immediately preceding three complete calendar months.
All bills for sewer rentals or charges based on metered water consumption or metered waste discharged or estimates of this Township shall be rendered for each quarter annum or other period covered by the meter reading promptly after the meters are read or estimates made.
2. 
All bills for sewer service furnished to consumers shall be due and payable as of the date thereof. Bills for sewer service shall be paid within 15 days after such bill shall become due and payable. The customer shall pay the net amount of the bill, known as "Net 15." If bills for such sewer service remain unpaid beyond 15 days of the billing date, an additional 10% will be added to any current, outstanding balance. If bills for such sewer service are paid during the period between 16 and 30 days of the billing date, this gross amount of the bill shall be due and payable. This shall be known as "Gross 30." If bills for such sewer service are not paid within 30 days of the billing date thereof, such bills shall be deemed delinquent and a penalty equal to 25% of the current Gross 30 amount of the bill shall be added to the amount of the bill and collected as part thereof. When bills are paid by mail, the date of the postmark will be considered the date of the payment.
3. 
Whenever any bill for sewer service furnished to a consumer shall remain unpaid for a period in excess of thirty (30) days after the date thereof, the Township shall mail a delinquency notice to the consumer, which notice shall inform the customer of the delinquency and the penalty and shall declare the intention of the Township to shut off and discontinue water service. Water service will not be restored until the bill, including penalties, together with a turn-off and turn-on charge of $10 each, has been paid. Every owner of improved property which is connected to the sewer system initially shall provide this Township with and thereafter shall keep this Township advised of the owner's correct address. Failure of any person to receive 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.
4. 
Cancellation of Service. Subject to the provisions of this section, upon failure of any consumer to comply with any provision set forth herein or with any additional rules and regulations adopted by the Township relating to the sewer system, the Township may shut off water service, or have adjacent communities supplying water service to Salisbury Township shut off water service, subject to the cut-off and turn-on rates set forth in § 26-110 of Salisbury Township's Water Ordinance [Chapter 26] and any charges incurred by the adjacent communities.
5. 
The Board of Commissioners may, from time to time, by duly enacted resolution of the Board, set new rules and rates to govern §§ 18-302 and 18-303.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 4; as amended by Ord. 239, 10/28/1982, § 1]
Sewer rentals or charges imposed by this Part 3 shall be a lien on 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 office of the Prothonotary of Lehigh County, Pennsylvania, and shall be collected in the manner provided by law for the filing and collecting of Township claims.
All liens filed pursuant to this § 18-304 for sewer rentals or charges for any period from or after January 1, 1983, shall bear interest at the rate of 10% per annum from the date of filing to the date of payment.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 5]
1. 
Methods of Measuring Volume.
A. 
Whenever the entire water supply of an improved property discharging sewage and/or industrial wastes into the sewer system is supplied by a public water system, the volume of water furnished, as determined from meter readings of the public water system, shall be used as the volume of water consumed in computing equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges, subject to adjustment, if appropriate, as provided in this Part 3.
B. 
Whenever an improved property discharging sewage and/or industrial wastes into the sewer system shall have a source or sources of water supply in addition to or other than the public water system, the owner of such improved property shall provide a meter on such additional or other source or sources of water supply. The total volume of water consumed, as determined from the meter readings on the public water system and the meter readings of the meter or meters on such additional source or sources of water supply, or the meter readings of the meter or meters on such other source or sources of water supply, as appropriate, shall be used as the volume of water consumed in computing equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges, subject to adjustment, if appropriate, as provided in this Part 3.
C. 
Upon written approval of the Township, the volume of water consumed to be used for computation of sewer rentals or charges, as provided in this Part 3, may be established by estimates or other methods of measurement approved by the Township where the Township considers metering to be impractical.
D. 
The Township may require an industrial establishment, or the industrial establishment may elect, to install, pay for and maintain a meter approved by the Township for measuring wastes discharged to the sewer system, in which case equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges shall be based upon the actual volume of wastes so metered as being discharged to the sewer system. Said sewer rentals or charges shall be computed as set forth under § 18-302 of this Part 3.
E. 
Exclusion from the sewer system of noncontaminated wastewaters and waters used for cooling purposes may be required by the Township, or such exclusion may be optional with the owner if not required by the Township. When such waters are excluded, the volume of water or other measure to be used for computation of equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges shall be computed by one of the following methods:
(1) 
By installing a meter or other measuring device on the connection to the sewer system. The readings from such meter or measuring device shall be used as the measure of discharge of sewage and/or industrial wastes in computing equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges.
(2) 
By installing a meter or other measuring device to measure the volume of water not being discharged into the sewer system. The readings from such meter or measuring device shall be deducted from the total water meter readings and the remainder shall be the volume of water to be used in computing equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges.
(3) 
If it is not practical, in the opinion of this Township, to install a meter or other measuring device to determine continuously the volume of water not discharged into the sewer system, this Township shall determine, in such manner and by such method as it may prescribe, the percentage of metered water which is being discharged into the sewer system. The volume of water to be used in computing equivalent dwelling units and sewer rentals or charges shall be the percentage so determined of the volume of water measured by the water meter or meters. Any dispute as to such estimated percentage shall be submitted to this Township, after notice of such estimate. The decision of this Township with respect to the matter shall be final for the current calendar year.
2. 
Measuring Devices. The furnishing and installation of meters or other measuring devices which shall not be owned by any public or private water company in connection with a water system, but which shall be required or permitted under provisions of this Part 3, 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, safe-keeping and repair of any such meter, whether such repairs shall be made necessary by ordinary wear and tear or other causes.
3. 
Meter Readings. This Township shall be responsible for the reading of all meters or other measuring devices, other than those owned and read by any public or private water company, and the same shall be available to employees and agents of this Township at all reasonable times.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 8]
This Township shall have the right of access at reasonable times to any part of any improved property served by the sewer system as shall be required for purposes of inspection, measurement, sampling and testing and for performance of other functions relating to service rendered by this Township through the sewer system.
[Ord. 100, 3/22/1966, § 9]
This 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 3.