[Ord. 10-1966 § 1, passed 3-16-1966; Ord. 32-1966, passed 5-22-1966]
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meanings
of the terms used in this article shall be as follows:
(a) CITY — The City of Erie, Pennsylvania.
(b) SANITARY SEWAGE — The normal water-carried household and toilet
wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions, industries
and commercial establishments, exclusive of storm water runoff, surface
water or ground water.
(c) INDUSTRIAL WASTES — Any liquid, gaseous or water-borne wastes
from industrial processes or commercial establishments, as distinct
from sanitary sewage.
(d) GARBAGE — Solid wastes from the preparation, cooking and dispensing
of food and from the handling, storage and sale of produce.
(e) PROPERLY SHREDDED GARBAGE — The wastes from the preparation,
cooking and dispensing of food that has been shredded to such degree
that all particles will be carried freely under the flow conditions
normally prevailing in public sewers, with no particle greater than
1/2 inch in any dimension.
(f) STORM WATER RUNOFF — That portion of the rainfall which reaches
a drain.
(g) SEWER — A pipe or conduit for carrying sewage or other waste
liquids.
(h) COMBINED SEWER — A sewer designed to receive both sewage and
storm water runoff.
(i) SANITARY SEWER — A sewer which carries sewage, and to which
storm, surface and ground waters are not intentionally admitted.
(j) STORM SEWER — A sewer which is intended to carry storm water
runoff, surface water, ground water drainage, etc., but which is not
intended to carry any sanitary sewage or polluted industrial waste.
(k) PUBLIC SANITARY SEWERAGE SYSTEM — All separate sanitary sewers,
all combined sewers, all sewage pump stations, all sewage treatment
works and all other facilities provided and owned by the City for
the collection and treatment of sanitary sewage and industrial wastes
with their appurtenances, and any additions, extensions or improvements
that hereinafter may be made thereto by the City. It also includes
all sewers inside or outside the City limits which discharge into
the City sanitary sewerage system, even though those sewers may not
have been constructed by City funds. It does not include separate
storm sewers, culverts or other drains which have been constructed
for the sole purpose of carrying storm and surface runoff, the discharge
from which is not, and does not, become tributary to the City's
sewage treatment facilities.
(l) OCCUPIED BUILDING — Any structure erected and intended for
continuous or periodic habitation, occupancy or use by human beings
or animals, and from which structure sanitary sewage and industrial
wastes, or either thereof, are or may be discharged.
(m) PREMISES ACCESSIBLE TO THE SANITARY SEWERAGE SYSTEM — Any real
estate which adjoins, abuts or is adjacent to the public sanitary
sewerage system, or any real estate which might be connected to that
system by construction of a private sewer of not more than 100 feet
in length, this length to be measured from the nearest margin of real
estate in question.
(n) PERSON — Any individual, partnership, association or corporation.
(o) pH — The logarithm to the base 10 of the reciprocal of the
hydrogen ion concentration expressed in moles per liter. It shall
be determined by one of the acceptable methods described in the latest
edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage,
published by the American Public Health Association.
(p) SUSPENDED SOLIDS — Solids that either float on the surface
of or are in suspension in water, sewage, industrial waste or other
liquids, and which are removable by laboratory filtration. The quantity
of suspended solids shall be determined by one of the acceptable methods
described in the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination
of Water and Sewage, published by the American Public Health Association.
(q) B.O.D. — Designates biochemical oxygen demand and means the
quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of the organic
matter of such sewage or industrial wastes under standard laboratory
procedure in five days at 20° C. expressed in parts per million
by weight. It shall be determined by one of the acceptable methods
described in the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination
of Water and Sewage, published by the American Public Health Association.
(r) ABNORMAL INDUSTRIAL WASTE — Any industrial waste having a suspended
solids content or B.O.D. in excess of that normally found in municipal
sewage. For the purposes of this article, an industrial waste containing
more than 300 parts per million of suspended solids, or having a B.O.D.
in excess of 250 parts per million, shall be considered an abnormal
industrial waste regardless of whether or not it contains other substances
in concentrations differing appreciably from those normally found
in municipal sewage.
(s) UNPOLLUTED WATER OR WASTE — Any water or waste containing none
of the following: free or emulsified grease or oil; acid or alkali;
phenols or other substances imparting taste and odor to receiving
waters; toxic or poisonous substances in suspension, colloidal state
or solution; obnoxious or odorous gases. It shall contain not more
than 10,000 parts per million by weight of dissolved solids, of which
not more than 2,500 parts per million shall be as chloride and not
more than 10 parts per million each of suspended solids and B.O.D.
The color shall not exceed 50 parts per million. Analyses for any
of the above mentioned substances shall be made in accordance with
the latest edition of Standard Methods for the Examination of Water
and Sewage, published by the American Public Health Association.
(t) SHALL — Is mandatory; "may" is permissive.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 2, passed 3-16-1966]
(a) All persons owning any occupied building now erected within the City
upon premises accessible to the public sanitary sewerage system shall,
if not already connected, at their own expense, make connection with
the sanitary sewerage system within three months after the effective
date of this section
(b) All persons owning any premises within the City accessible to the
public sanitary sewerage system upon which a building is hereafter
erected shall, at the time of erection of such building, and at their
own expense, make the connection with the public sanitary sewerage
system.
(c) All persons owning any occupied building within the City upon premises
which hereafter become accessible to the public sanitary sewerage
system shall, at their own expense, make the connection with the public
sanitary sewerage system within 30 days' after notice to do so
from the Bureau of Sewers or its authorized representative.
(d) All connections to the public sanitary sewerage system shall be in
full accord with the Plumbing Code or other applicable ordinances
of the City.
(e) No person owning any occupied building within the City, on premises
accessible to the public sanitary sewerage system, shall erect, construct,
use or maintain, or cause to be erected, constructed, used or maintained,
any privy, cesspool, sinkhole, septic tank or other receptacle on
such premises for receiving sanitary sewage.
(f) Any person who erects, constructs or maintains a privy, cesspool,
sinkhole or septic tank or other receptacle for receiving sanitary
sewage on any property within the City accessible to the public sewerage
system in violation of this article shall be deemed and shall be declared
to be erecting, constructing and maintaining a nuisance, which nuisance
the City is hereby authorized and directed to abate in a manner provided
by law.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 3, passed 3-16-1966]
(a) The discharge of storm water runoff to separate sanitary sewers is
hereby prohibited. Persons presently discharging storm water runoff
to separate sanitary sewers shall cease and desist such practice within
three months after the effective date of this section
(b) All persons connecting to the public sanitary sewerage system shall
provide adequate means for excluding storm water runoff in event connection
is made to separate sanitary sewers.
(c) Provisions of this article do not prohibit the present or future
discharge of storm water runoff to combined sewers or directly to
natural watercourses within the City.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 4.02, passed 3-16-1966]
The discharge of excessive amounts of unpolluted water or waste to a separate sanitary sewer is expressly prohibited. Although such discharge to combined sewers will be permitted where such sewers are of adequate capacity, it is discouraged. It is deemed preferable that, wherever possible, unpolluted water or waste be discharged directly to natural watercourses or storm sewers. In order to encourage such exclusion of unpolluted water from the public sanitary sewerage system, producers of unpolluted wastes, so excluded, will be entitled to a reduction in their sewer bills providing they comply with the requirements of Section
931.19 hereinafter set forth.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 4.03, passed 3-16-1966]
The discharge of garbage to the public sanitary sewerage system is expressly prohibited unless such garbage is properly shredded. (See Section
931.01(g).)
[Ord. 10-1966 § 4.06, passed 3-16-1966]
When required by the City, any person, industry or commercial
establishment discharging industrial wastes to the public sanitary
sewerage system, or industrial wastes in combination with sanitary
sewage, shall install a suitable manhole or manholes on the sewer
or sewers conveying the discharges of such wastes to facilitate observation,
sampling and measurement of the combined flow of waste discharges.
Such manholes shall be accessible and shall be provided with the necessary
safety provisions and constructed in accordance with plans approved
by the Bureau of Sewers. The manholes shall be installed at the expense
of the person, industry or commercial establishment which discharges
the wastes into the public sanitary sewer system.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 4.14, passed 3-16-1966]
The surcharges provided for in this article will be added to
the sewage bill and shall be subject to the same penalties as set
forth in regard to normal sanitary sewage. They will be computed monthly,
bi-monthly or quarterly, depending on whether the sewage bills are
rendered monthly, bi-monthly or quarterly.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 4.15, passed 3-16-1966]
No reduction in sewage charges will be permitted because of
the fact that certain industrial wastes discharged to the public sanitary
sewage system contain less than 300 milligrams per liter of suspended
solids or less than 250 milligrams per liter of B.O.D. or less than
20 milligrams per liter of chlorine requirement.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 5, passed 3-16-1966]
(a) In event it is established to the satisfaction of the Bureau of Sewers
that a portion of the water used by a person does not and cannot enter
the public sanitary sewerage system, then the Bureau may permit the
installation of additional meters at the owner's or interested
party's expense in such a manner as to measure either the quantity
of water actually excluded from the public sanitary sewerage system,
or the actual quantity of water discharged thereto.
In the event it is desired to meter the water excluded or diverted
from the public sanitary sewerage system, then all outlets for such
water shall be consolidated and measured by one single meter. In the
event it is desired to meter the actual flow to the public sanitary
sewerage system, the meter shall be installed in a suitable manhole
and shall be approved by the Bureau. All such meters or measuring
devices shall be under the control of the City and may be tested,
inspected or repaired by the Bureau whenever the Bureau deems it necessary.
All repairs thereto shall be made at the expense of the person owning
the meter.
(b) In event that the Bureau of Sewers finds it is not practical to measure
either the actual sewage and industrial waste flow, or the flow of
diverted water, it may, at its discretion, approve some other manner
of computing or estimating the amount of water diverted from the public
sanitary sewerage system.
Likewise, in the event it is not practical to make an actual
measurement of the waste discharged from the premises of the water
consumer into the sewerage system of the City, the Bureau may, at
its discretion, accept as the volume of waste discharged from the
premises the actual volume of water delivered into the consumer's
premises as shown by meters of the Bureau through which water is sold
to the consumer, or the volume determined by some other method of
measurement approved by the Bureau of Sewers.
(c) When requested in writing, persons complying with the terms of this
section will be granted a suitable reduction in their sewage bills.
Such reduction shall be calculated on that portion of the sewage consumption
diverted and excluded from the public sanitary sewerage system.
(d) Persons requesting consideration for a reduction in sewage rates
because of water excluded from the public sanitary sewerage system
shall make written application to the Bureau of Sewers for such consideration
giving their name, address and supporting data fully describing other
sources of water, if any, as well as disposition of water alleged
not to be entering the sewerage system. The application shall be accompanied
by a sketch to approximate scale showing the plan of the property,
water distribution system, sewer layout, existing meters and proposed
meters in the scheme proposed for determining the quantity of water
entering, and not entering, the sewerage system.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 6, passed 3-16-1966]
The Bureau of Sewers and the Chief thereof are authorized and
directed to promulgate and enforce such rules and regulations deemed
necessary for the enforcement of this article and for the safe, economical
and efficient management, control and protection of the City's
public sanitary sewerage system. Such rules and regulations shall
be consistent with the intent and objectives of this article.
[Ord. 10-1966 § 7, passed 3-16-1966]
(a) Whoever violates any of the provisions of this article shall, upon
conviction, be fined not more than $300, together with the cost of
prosecution. Each day during which a violation continues shall be
a separate offense.
(b) All prosecutions for violation of this article shall be by summary
proceedings, brought in the name and for the use of the City before
an alderman, justice of the peace, or magistrate of Erie County. All
fines and penalties shall be paid to the Treasurer of the City to
apply to the General Fund. In default of the payment of any fine or
penalty, under the provisions of this article, the person so offending
shall be committed to the County prison for a period not exceeding
30 days. In addition to such prosecution, the City may, in the enforcement
of this article, apply to the Court of Common Pleas for injunctive
relief against any violation.