Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the following terms and phrases, as used in this chapter, shall have the meanings hereinafter designated:
ACT OR THE ACTThe Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1977, also known as the "Clean Water Act," as amended, 33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq., including the Water Quality Act of 1987.
AUTHORIZED OR DULY AUTHORIZED REPRESENTATIVE OF THE USERA. An authorized or duly authorized representative of the user may be:
(1) If the user is a corporation:
(a) The president, secretary, treasurer, or a vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy or decision-making functions for the corporation; or
The manager of one or more manufacturing, production, or operating facilities, provided the manager is authorized to make management decisions that govern the operation of the regulated facility including having the explicit or implicit duty of making major capital investment recommendations, and initiate and direct other comprehensive measures to assure long-term environmental compliance with environmental laws and regulations; can ensure that the necessary systems are established or actions taken to gather complete and accurate information for individual wastewater discharge permit or general permit requirements; and where authority to sign documents has been assigned or delegated to the manager in accordance with corporate procedures.
If the user is a partnership or sole proprietorship: a general partner or proprietor, respectively.
If the user is a federal, state, or local governmental facility: a director or highest official appointed or designated to oversee the operation and performance of the activities of the government facility, or their designee.
The individuals described in Subsection A1 through 3, above, may designate a duly authorized representative if the authorization is in writing, the authorization specifies the individual or position responsible for the overall operation of the facility from which the discharge originates or having overall responsibility for environmental matters for the company, and the written authorization is submitted to the City.
The authorization must be submitted to the control authority in writing and must name a responsible person or position. Whenever the authorization of this section is no longer accurate, a new authorization must be submitted to the control authority prior to or together with any reports to be signed by the authorized representative.
BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES OR BMPsThe schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to implement the prohibitions listed in §
153-22, Prohibited Discharge Standards. BMPs include treatment requirements, operating procedures, and practices to control plant site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or waste disposal, or drainage from raw materials storage.
The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of the organic matter under standard laboratory procedure, five days at 20° C. expressed in terms of weight and concentration [milligrams per liter (mg/l)].
BUILDING SEWERA sewer conveying wastewater from the premises of a user to the POTW.
CATEGORICAL PRETREATMENT STANDARD OR CATEGORICAL STANDARDAny regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by EPA in accordance with Sections 307(b) and (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1317) that apply to a specific category of users and that appear in 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405 through 471.
CITYThe City of Galax or the City Council of Galax.
COMPATIBLE POLLUTANTBiochemical oxygen demand, suspended solids, pH and fecal coliform bacteria, plus any additional pollutants identified in the POTW's VPDES permit, where the POTW is designed to treat such pollutants and, in fact, does treat such pollutants to the degree required by the POTW's NPDES permit.
CONTROL AUTHORITYThe City of Galax, Virginia, operating through the office of the City Manager, City Engineer and Utility Superintendent.
COOLING WATERThe water discharged from any use as air conditioning, cooling or refrigeration or to which the only pollutant added is heat.
DAILY MAXIMUMThe arithmetic average of all effluent samples for a pollutant collected during a calendar day.
DAILY MAXIMUM LIMITThe maximum allowable discharge limit of a pollutant during a calendar day. Where daily maximum limits are expressed in units of mass, the daily discharge is the total mass discharged over the course of the day. Where daily maximum limits are expressed in terms of a concentration, the daily discharge is the arithmetic average measurement of the pollutant concentration derived from all measurements taken that day.
DIRECT DISCHARGEThe discharge of treated or untreated wastewater directly to the waters of the Commonwealth of Virginia.
GRAB SAMPLEA sample which is taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis with no regard to the flow in the waste stream and without consideration of time.
HOLDING TANK WASTEAny waste from holding tanks, such as vessels, chemical toilets, campers, trailers, septic tanks and vacuum-pump tank trucks.
INDIRECT DISCHARGE OR DISCHARGEThe discharge or introduction of nondomestic pollutants from any source regulated under § 307(b), (c) or (d) of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1317), into the POTW (including holding tank waste discharged into the system).
INSTANTANEOUS LIMITThe maximum concentration of a pollutant allowed to be discharged at any time, determined from the analysis of any discrete or composited sample collected, independent of the industrial flow rate and the duration of the sampling event.
INTERFERENCEA discharge which, alone or in conjunction with discharges from other sources, inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations or its sludge processes, use or disposal and is a cause of a violation of the POTW's VPDES permit or prevents lawful sewage sludge use or disposal in compliance with any of the following statutory/regulatory provisions or permits issued thereunder, or any more stringent state or local regulations: Section 405 of the Act; the Solid Waste Disposal Act, including Title II commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); any state regulations contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the Solid Waste Disposal Act; the Clean Air Act; the Toxic Substances Control Act; and the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act.
LOCAL LIMITSpecific discharge limits developed and enforced by the City upon industrial or commercial facilities to implement the general and specific discharge prohibitions listed in 40 CFR 403.5(a)(1) and (b) and 9 VAC 25-31-770A and B.
MEDICAL WASTEIsolation wastes, infectious agents, human blood and blood products, pathological wastes, sharps, body parts, contaminated bedding, surgical wastes, potentially contaminated laboratory wastes, and dialysis wastes.
MINOR USERA sewer user that does not meet the definition of a "significant industrial user," and is required to obtain a general sewer permit under §
153-49 of this chapter.
The sum of all daily discharges measured during a calendar month divided by the number of daily discharges measured during that month.
MONTHLY AVERAGE LIMITThe highest allowable average of daily discharges over a calendar month, calculated as the sum of all daily discharges measured during a calendar month divided by the number of daily discharges measured during that month.
NATIONAL CATEGORICAL PRETREATMENT STANDARDAny regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by the EPA in accordance with § 307(b) and (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1317) which applies to industrial users.
NEW SOURCEA. Any building, structure, facility or installation from which there is or may be a discharge of pollutants, the construction of which is commenced after the publication of proposed pretreatment standards under § 307(c) of the Act that will be applicable to such source if such standards are thereafter promulgated in accordance with that section, provided that:
(1) The building, structure, facility or installation is constructed at a site at which no other source is located; or
The building, structure, facility or installation totally replaces the process or production equipment that causes the discharge of pollutants at an existing source; or
The production or wastewater-generating processes of the building, structure, facility or installation are substantially independent of an existing source at the same site. In determining whether these are substantially independent, factors, such as the extent to which the new facility is integrated with the existing plant and the extent to which the new facility is engaged in the same general type of activity as the existing source, should be considered.
Construction on a site at which an existing source is located results in a modification rather than a new source if the construction does not create a new building, structure, facility, or installation meeting the criteria of Subsection A(2) or (3) above but otherwise alters, replaces, or adds to existing process or production equipment.
Construction of a new source as defined under this subsection has commenced if the owner or operator has:
(1) Begun, or caused to begin, as part of a continuous onsite construction program:
(a) Any placement, assembly, or installation of facilities or equipment; or
Significant site preparation work including clearing, excavation, or removal of existing buildings, structures, or facilities which is necessary for the placement, assembly, or installation of new source facilities or equipment; or
Entered into a binding contractual obligation for the purchase of facilities or equipment which are intended to be used in its operation within a reasonable time. Options to purchase or contracts which can be terminated or modified without substantial loss and contracts for feasibility, engineering, and design studies do not constitute a contractual obligation under this subsection.
PASS-THROUGHA discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the state in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW's VPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).
PERSONAny individual, partnership, copartnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint-stock company, trust, estate, governmental entity or any other legal entity, or their legal representatives, agents or assigns. The masculine gender shall include the feminine, and the singular shall include the plural where indicated by the context.
pHA measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a solution. The logarithm (Base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in standard units (moles per liter of solution).
POLLUTANTAny dredged spoil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, medical wastes, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discharged equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal and agricultural waste discharged into water, and certain characteristics of wastewater (e.g., pH, temperature, TSS, turbidity, color, BOD, COD, toxicity, or odor); also including any chemical element or compound listed as a priority pollutant under the Act, or listed as a hazardous substance or hazardous constituent under RCRA, CERCLA or under regulations pursuant to those statutes.
POLLUTIONThe man-made or man-induced alteration of the chemical, physical, biological and radiological integrity of water.
PRETREATMENT OR TREATMENTThe reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants or the alteration of the nature of pollutants or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to or in lieu of discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into a POTW. The reduction or alteration can be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, process changes or by other means, except by diluting the concentration of the pollutants unless allowed by an applicable pretreatment standard and as prohibited by 40 CFR 403.6(d) and 9 VAC 25-31-780D.
PRETREATMENT REQUIREMENTSAny substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment, other than a pretreatment standard imposed on an industrial user.
PRETREATMENT STANDARDProhibitive discharge standards, categorical pretreatment standards and local limits.
PUBLICLY OWNED TREATMENT WORKS (POTW)A treatment works as defined by § 212 of the Act (33 U.S.C. § 1292) which is owned, in this instance, by the City. This definition includes any sewers that convey wastewater to the POTW treatment plant, but does not include pipes, sewers or other conveyances not connected to a facility providing treatment. For the purposes of this chapter, "POTW" shall also include any sewers that convey wastewater to the POTW from persons outside the City who are, by contract or agreement with the City, users of the City's POTW.
SIGNIFICANT INDUSTRIAL USER (SIU)A. Except as provided in Subsection
B, a "significant industrial user" is:
(1) All industrial users subject to Categorical Pretreatment Standards under 40 CFR 403.6, 9 VAC 25-31-780, and 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N, except as provided in Subsection
B; and
Any other industrial user that: discharges an average of 25,000 gallons per day or more of process wastewater to the POTW (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater); contributes a process wastestream which makes up 5% or more of the average dry weather hydraulic or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant; or is designated as such by the control authority on the basis that the industrial user has a reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement [in accordance with 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6) and 9 VAC 25-31-800F6].
Upon a finding that an industrial user meeting the criteria in Subsection A(2) above of this section has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the control authority may, at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user and in accordance with 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6) and 9 VAC 25-31-800F6, determine that such industrial user is not a significant industrial user. Such discretionary designations or de-designations of significant industrial users pursuant to the subsection are subject to approval by the approval authority as required by 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6) and 9 VAC 25-31-800F6.
(1) The City may determine that an industrial user subject to categorical pretreatment standards is a non-significant categorical industrial user rather than a significant industrial user on a finding that the industrial user never discharges more than 100 gallons per day (gpd) of total categorical wastewater (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater, unless specifically included in the pretreatment standard) and the following conditions are met:
(a) The industrial user, prior to City's finding, has consistently complied with all applicable categorical pretreatment standards and requirements;
The industrial user annually submits the certification statement required in §
153-43 [see 40 CR 403.12(q) and 9 VAC 25-31-840Q], together with any additional information necessary to support the certification statement; and
The industrial user never discharges any untreated concentrated wastewater.
Upon a finding that a user meeting the criteria in Subsection A(2) of this part has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user, and in accordance with procedures in 40 CFR 403.8(f)(6) and 9 VAC 25-31-800F6, determine that such user should not be considered a significant industrial user.
SIGNIFICANT NONCOMPLIANCEA violation which meets one or more of the following criteria:
A. Chronic violations of wastewater discharge limits, defined here as those in which 66% or more of all of the measurements taken during a six-month period exceed (by any magnitude) a numeric pretreatment standard or requirement, including instantaneous limits as defined in §
153-4;
Technical review criteria (TRC) violations, defined here as those in which 33% or more of all of the measurements for each pollutant parameter taken during a six-month period equals or exceeds the product of the numeric pretreatment standard or requirement including instantaneous limits, as defined in §
153-4, multiplied by the applicable criteria (TRC = 1.4 for BOD, TSS, fats, oil, and grease and 1.2 for all other pollutants except pH);
Any other violation of a pretreatment effluent limit standard or requirement as defined by Article
II (daily maximum, long-term average, instantaneous limit, or narrative standard) that the control authority determines has caused, alone or in combination with other discharges, interference or pass-through (including endangering the health of POTW personnel or the general public);
Any discharge of a pollutant that has caused imminent endangerment to human health, welfare or to the environment or has resulted in the POTW's exercise of its emergency authority under § 158-50 of this chapter to halt or prevent such a discharge;
Failure to meet, within 90 days after the schedule date, a compliance schedule milestone contained in a local control mechanism or enforcement order for starting construction, completing construction or attaining final compliance;
Failure to provide, within 45 days after the due date, required reports such as baseline monitoring reports, ninety-day compliance reports, periodic self-monitoring reports, and reports on compliance with compliance schedules;
Failure to accurately report noncompliance; or
Any other violation or group of violations that may include a violation of best management practices, which the control authority determines will adversely affect the operation or implementation of the local pretreatment program.
SLUG LOAD OR SLUG DISCHARGEAny discharge at a flow rate or concentration, which could cause a violation of the prohibited discharge standard, in §
153-22 of this ordinance. A slug discharge is any discharge of a nonroutine, episodic nature, including, but not limited to, an accidental spill or a noncustomary batch discharge, which has a reasonable potential to cause interference or pass-through, or in any other way violate the Sewer Use Ordinance, local limits or permit conditions.
A classification pursuant to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual issued by the Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget, 1987.
STATEThe Commonwealth of Virginia.
STORMWATERAny flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation and resulting therefrom.
SUPERINTENDENTThe person designated by the City to supervise the operation of the POTW and who is charged with certain duties and responsibilities by this chapter or his duly authorized representative.
TOXIC POLLUTANTAny pollutant or combination of pollutants listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by the Administrator of the EPA under the provision of § 307 (a) of the Act, or under other acts, including, but not limited to, RCRA, HSWA, CERCLA, SARA and TSCA.
USERAny person who contributes, causes or permits the contribution of wastewater into the City's POTW.
WASTEWATERThe liquid and water-carried industrial or domestic wastes from dwellings, commercial buildings, industrial facilities and institutions, together with any groundwater, surface water and stormwater that may be present, whether treated or untreated, which is contributed into or permitted to enter the POTW.
WATERS OF THE STATEAll streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through or border upon the state or any portion thereof.