Borough of Etna, PA Article IV Sewer Use

[Adopted 12-15-1958 by Ord. No. 882 (Ch. XX, Part 2A, of the 1974 Code of Ordinances)]

§ 470-12 Certain substances not to be discharged or infiltrated into sewer system.

It shall be unlawful for any person, firm, association or corporation to discharge or to permit the discharge or infiltration into any Borough sewer which is connected directly or indirectly with the Sanitary Authority's sewage disposal system or into a sewer connected to such a Borough sewer or into the Sanitary Authority's sewage disposal system of any of the following substances:

A. Mineral acids, waste acid, pickling or plating liquors from the pickling or plating of iron, steel, brass, copper or chromium, or any other dissolved or solid substances which will endanger health or safety, or interfere with the flow in sewers, attack or corrode sewers or sewage structures or equipment, or otherwise interfere with the operation of the sewers or other facilities of the Borough or the Sanitary Authority.

B. Cyanides or cyanogen compounds capable of liberating hydrocyanic gas on acidification.

C. Fats, entrails and the like from meat processing plants, rendering plants and similar industries and establishments.

D. Gas tar, phenols, residues from petroleum storage, refining or processing, fuel or lubricating oil, gasoline, naphtha, benzene or explosive or inflammable liquids, solids or gases.

E. Ashes, cinders, sand, mud, lime or acetylene sludges, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, sawdust, paunch manure, hair, hides, dead animals, spent mash and grain, pulp from food processing, water or wastes containing grease in excess of 100 parts per million, or any other solids or viscous substances capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference with the proper operation of the Borough's or the Sanitary Authority's facilities.

F. Sludges or other materials from septic tanks or similar facilities or from sewage or industrial waste treatment plants or from water treatment plants; provided, however, that until March 1, 1959, but not thereafter, the discharge of such sludges and other materials may be permitted, subject to existing legal restrictions and subject also to the regulations and orders of the Borough, the Allegheny County Health Department and the Sanitary Authority.

G. Garbage, whether ground or not, except properly shredded garbage in a private dwelling, apartment building, hotel, commercial restaurant or retail food store, resulting from the proper use of a garbage grinder or disposer of a type approved by the Borough, the Allegheny County Health Department and the Sanitary Authority and maintained in good operating condition; provided, however, that no retail food store shall operate more than one grinder or disposer which shall be not greater than three horsepower in size and, when so required by the Allegheny County Health Department, shall be equipped with an approved water meter and limited in use to the consumption of an average of not more than 1,500 gallons of water per day; and provided, further, that the foregoing restrictions shall not apply to any existing installation in a retail food store of a garbage grinder or disposer larger than three horsepower in size until such time as the equipment now in use can no longer be kept in good operating condition by ordinary maintenance and repair, at which time such larger than three horsepower grinder or disposer shall be abandoned and shall not be renewed or replaced.

H. Water or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5 or higher than 9.0, or having any other corrosive property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment or personnel of the Borough or the Sanitary Authority.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: The preamble to this article stated that, in order to comply with the Pennsylvania Pure Streams Law and the orders of the Sanitary Water Board issued thereunder, the Borough, pursuant to Ordinance 766, had entered into long-term service agreements with the City of Pittsburgh and the Allegheny County Sanitary Authority to construct and operate a sewage collection, treatment and disposal system to serve the City and 69 adjacent municipalities, including this Borough; that the Sanitary Authority was completing construction of the system and had already connected many municipal outfall sewers, including some that were used or would be used by the Borough, to structures and facilities that were a part of the sewage disposal system; that certain harmful wastes then being discharged into the Borough sewers would damage and clog not only the Borough's sewers but also the structures and other facilities of the sewage disposal system or might interfere with the proper operation thereof; that some of such harmful wastes are dangerous to the health and life of operating personnel and the public and some create offensive nuisance conditions; and that the sewage service agreement requires the Borough to carry into effect the purposes and intent of such agreement.

§ 470-13 Unlawful discharge or infiltration to be discontinued.

Any person, firm, association or corporation discharging or permitting the discharge or infiltration of any of the foregoing wastes or materials into a Borough sewer which is connected directly or indirectly with the Sanitary Authority's sewage disposal system or into a sewer connected to such Borough sewer or into the Sanitary Authority's sewage disposal system shall immediately cease to discharge or permit the discharge of such materials or wastes thereinto; provided, however, that temporary permission for the discharge of neutralized acid wastes only may be granted by the Borough, subject to the approval of the Sanitary Authority, for a period expiring not later than December 31, 1958, upon submission to them of satisfactory evidence of the installation and operation of proper neutralizing facilities and of steps taken to provide for the separate disposal or treatment and disposal of such acid wastes upon expiration of the temporary permit.

§ 470-14 Violations and penalties.

[Amended 12-11-1989 by Ord. No. 1208]

Any person, firm, association, or corporation who or which violates any provision of this article shall, for every such violation, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than $1,000 and costs of prosecution and, in default of payment of fine and costs, to undergo imprisonment for not more than 30 days, provided that each day that a violation is continued shall constitute a separate violation; and provided, further, that, in the case of firms or associations, the penalty may be imposed upon the partners or members thereof and, in the case of corporations, upon the officers thereof.

§ 470-15 Severability.

The provisions of this article are severable, and the invalidity of any section, clause, sentence or provision of this article shall not affect or impair the validity of any other part of the ordinance which can be given effect without the invalid part or parts.