The purpose of this article is:
(1)
To protect the public potable water supply of the city from the possibility
of contamination or pollution by isolating within the consumer’s
internal distribution system(s) or the consumer’s private water
system(s) such contaminants or pollutants which could backflow into
the public water system;
(2)
To promote the elimination or control of existing cross-connections,
actual or potential, between the consumer’s in-plant potable
water system(s) and nonpotable water system(s), plumbing fixtures
and industrial piping systems; and
(3)
To provide for the maintenance of a continuing program of cross-connection
control that will systematically and effectively prevent the contamination
or pollution of all potable water systems.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
1, adopted 10/17/2017)
The city shall be responsible for the protection of the public
potable water distribution system from contamination or pollution
due to the backflow of contaminants or pollutants through the water
service connection. If, in the judgment of the city, an approved backflow
prevention assembly is required at the consumer’s water service
connection or within the consumer’s private water system for
the safety of the water system, the city designated agent shall give
notice in writing to said consumer to install such an approved backflow
prevention assembly(s) at a specific location(s) on his premises.
The consumer shall immediately install such an approved backflow prevention
assembly(s) at the consumer’s own expense, and failure, refusal
or inability on the part of the consumer to install, have tested and
maintained said assembly(s) shall constitute grounds for discontinuing
water service to the premises until such requirements have been satisfactory
met.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
2, adopted 10/17/2017)
The public works director is in charge of the water department
of the city and is vested with the authority and responsibility for
the implementation of an effective cross-connection control program
and for the enforcement of the provisions of this article.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
3, adopted 10/17/2017)
means the unobstructed vertical distance through the free
atmosphere between the lowest opening from any pipe or faucet conveying
water to a tank, fixture, receptor, sink, or other assembly and the
flood level rim of the receptacle. The vertical, physical separation
must be at least twice the diameter of the water supply outlet, but
never less than 1.0 inch. An air gap may also be a horizontal space
between two pipes at no less than 6.0 inches.
means accepted by the authority responsible as meeting an
applicable specification stated or cited in this article or as suitable
for the proposed use.
Any water supply on or available to the premises other than
the purveyor’s approved public water supply will be considered
as an auxiliary water supply. These auxiliary waters may include water
from another purveyor’s public potable water supply or any natural
source(s) such as a well, spring, river, stream, harbor, etc., or
used waters or industrial fluids. These waters may be contaminated
or polluted or they may be objectionable and constitute an unacceptable
water source over which the water purveyor does not have sanitary
control.
means the undesirable reversal of flow in a public water
distribution system as a result of a cross-connection.
means an assembly or means designed to prevent backflow.
means pressure created by any means in the water distribution
system, which by being in excess of the pressure in the water supply
mains causes a potential backflow condition.
means the backflow of potentially contaminated [water] into
the potable water system as a result of the pressure in the potable
water system falling below atmospheric pressure of the plumbing fixtures,
pools, tanks or vats connected to the potable water distribution piping.
means an impairment of the quality of the potable water which
creates an actual hazard to the public health through poisoning or
through the spread of disease by sewage, industrial fluids, or waste.
means a physical connection or bypass arrangement between
a public water system and either another supply of unknown or questionable
quality, or another source that may contain contaminating or polluting
substances, any source of water treated to a lesser degree in the
treatment process, or any steam, gas or chemical system.
means a connection between a potable water system and a nonpotable
water system with an approved backflow prevention assembly properly
installed and maintained so that it will continuously afford the protection
commensurate with the degree of hazard.
means the installation of an approved backflow prevention
assembly at the water service connection to any customer’s premises,
where it is physically or economically unfeasible to find and permanently
eliminate or control all cross-connections or potential contamination
hazards within the customer’s water system; or it shall mean
the installation of an approved backflow prevention assembly on the
service line leading to and supplying a portion of a customer’s
water system where there are cross-connections or potential contamination
hazards that cannot be effectively eliminated or controlled at the
point of the cross-connection.
mean an assembly composed of two independently acting, approved
check-valves, including tightly closing resilient seated shutoff valves
attached at each end of the assembly and fitted with properly located
resilient seated test cocks. This assembly shall only be used to protect
against a non-health hazard.
Degree of hazard means the non-health hazard or health hazard
classification that shall be attached to all actual or potential cross-connections.
Hazard - health.
Health hazard means the classification assigned to a cross-connection
or potential contamination hazard or other situation involving any
substance that can cause illness, death, or spread of disease or has
a high probability of causing such effects if introduced into the
potable drinking water supply.
Hazard - plumbing.
Plumbing hazard means a plumbing-type cross-connection in
a consumer’s potable water system that has not been properly
protected by an approved air gap or an approved backflow prevention
assembly.
Hazard - non-health.
Non-health hazard means a cross-connection or potential cross-connection
involving any substance that generally would not be a health hazard
but would constitute a nuisance or be aesthetically objectionable
if introduced into a public water supply.
Hazard - system.
System hazard means an actual or potential threat of severe
damage to the physical properties of the public or the consumer’s
potable water system or of a pollution or contamination that would
have a protracted effect on the quality of the potable water in the
system.
means an impairment of the quality of the potable water to
a degree which does not create a hazard to the public health but that
does adversely and unreasonably affect the aesthetic qualities of
such waters for domestic use.
means a backflow prevention device consisting of two independently
acting check-valves, internally force-loaded to a normally closed
position and separated by an intermediate chamber (or zone) in which
there is an automatic relief means of venting to the atmosphere, internally
loaded to a normally open position between two tightly closing shutoff
valves and with a means for testing for tightness of the checks and
opening of the relief means.
Nonpotable water means water not safe for drinking, personal
or culinary utilization.
Potable water means water free from impurities present in
amounts sufficient to cause disease or harmful physiological effects
and conforming to the bacteriological and chemical quality requirements
of the Public Health Drinking Water Standards or the regulations of
any public health authority having jurisdiction over such matters.
Service connection means the terminal end of a service connection
from the public potable water system (i.e., where the water purveyor
may lose jurisdiction and sanitary control of the water at its point
of delivery to the consumer’s water system). If a water meter
is installed at the end of the service connection, then the service
connection shall mean the downstream end of the water meter.
Used water means any water supplied by a water purveyor from
a public potable water system to a consumer’s water system after
it has passed through the service connection and is no longer under
the control of the water purveyor.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
6, adopted 10/17/2017)
(a)
The water system shall be considered as made up of two parts: the
water purveyor’s system and the consumer’s system.
(b)
The water purveyor’s system shall consist of the source facilities
and the distribution system, and shall include all those facilities
of the water system under the complete control of the purveyor, up
to the point where the consumer’s system begins.
(c)
The source shall include all components of the facilities utilized
in the production, treatment, storage, and delivery of water to the
distribution system.
(d)
The distribution system shall include the network of conduits used
for the delivery of water from the source to the consumer’s
system.
(e)
The consumer’s system shall include those parts of the facilities
beyond the termination of the water purveyor’s distribution
system, which are utilized in conveying potable water to points of
use.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
11, adopted 10/17/2017)
(a)
Compliance.
No water service connection to any premises
shall be installed or maintained by the water purveyor unless the
water supply is protected as required by state commission on environmental
quality laws and regulations and this article. Service of water to
any premises shall be discontinued by the water purveyor if a backflow
prevention assembly required by this article is not installed, tested
and maintained, or if it is found that a backflow prevention assembly
has been removed or bypassed, or if an unprotected cross-connection
exists on the premises. Service will not be restored until such conditions
or defects are corrected.
(b)
Inspections; correction of violations.
The consumer’s
system should be open for inspection at all reasonable times to authorized
representatives of the city water department to determine whether
unprotected cross-connections or other structural or sanitary hazards,
including violations of these regulations, exist. When such a condition
becomes known, the public works director shall deny or immediately
discontinue service to the premises by providing for a physical break
in the service line until the consumer has corrected the condition(s)
in conformance with the state commission on environmental quality
statutes relating to plumbing and water supplies and the regulations
adopted pursuant thereto.
(c)
Backflow prevention assembly requirements.
An approved
backflow prevention assembly shall also be installed on each service
line to a consumer’s water system at or near the property line
or immediately inside the building being served, but, in all cases,
before the first branch line leading off the service line, wherever
the following conditions exist:
(1)
In the case of premises having an auxiliary water supply which is
not or may not be of safe bacteriological or chemical quality and
which is not acceptable as an additional source by the public works
director (30 Texas Administrative Code chapter 290), the public water
system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by installing
an approved backflow prevention assembly in the service line commensurate
with the degree of hazard.
(2)
In the case of premises on which any industrial fluids or any other
objectionable substance is handled in such a fashion as to create
an actual or potential hazard to the public water system, the public
system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by installing
an approved backflow prevention assembly in the service line commensurate
with the degree of hazard. This shall include the handling of process
waters and waters originating from the water purveyor’s system
which have been subject to deterioration in quality.
(3)
In the case of premises having (i) internal cross-connections that
cannot be permanently corrected or protected against, or (ii) intricate
plumbing and piping arrangements, or where entry to all portions of
the premises is not readily accessible for inspection purposes, making
it impracticable or impossible to ascertain whether or not dangerous
cross-connections exist, the public water system shall be protected
against backflow from the premises by installing an approved backflow
prevention assembly in the service line.
(d)
Type of protective assembly.
The type of protective
assembly required under certain circumstances shall depend upon the
degree of hazard which exists, as follows:
(1)
In the case of any premises where there is an auxiliary water supply
as stated in this section and it is not subject to any of the following
rules, the public water system shall be protected by an approved air
gap or an approved reduced pressure principle backflow prevention
assembly.
(2)
In the case of any premises where there is water or substance that
would be objectionable but not hazardous to health if introduced into
the public water system, the public water system shall be protected
by an approved double check-valve backflow prevention assembly.
(3)
In the case of any premises where there is any material dangerous
to health, which is handled in such a fashion as to create an actual
or potential hazard to the public water system, the public water system
shall be protected by an approved air gap or an approved reduced pressure
principle backflow prevention assembly. Examples of premises where
these conditions will exist include sewage treatment plants, sewage
pumping stations, chemical manufacturing plants, hospitals, mortuaries
and plating plants.
(4)
In the case of any premises where there are unprotected cross-connections,
either actual or potential, the public water system shall be protected
by an approved air gap or an approved reduced pressure principle backflow
prevention assembly at the service connection.
(5)
In the case of any premises where, because of security requirements
or other prohibitions or restrictions, it is impossible or impractical
to make a complete in-plant cross-connection survey, the public water
system shall be protected against backflow from the premises by either
an approved air gap or an approved reduced pressure principle backflow
prevention assembly on each service to the premises.
(e)
Standards for backflow prevention assemblies.
Any backflow
prevention assembly required herein shall be a make, model and size
approved by the public works director. The term “approved backflow
prevention assembly” shall mean an assembly that has been manufactured
in full conformance with the standards established by the American
Water Works Association entitled:
(1)
AWWA/ANSI C510-921, Standard for Double Check-Valve Backflow Prevention
Assemblies;
(2)
AWWA/ANSI C511-921, Standard for Reduced Pressure Principle Backflow
Prevention Assemblies;
|
and has met completely the laboratory and field performance
specifications of the Foundation for Cross-Connection Control and
Hydraulic Research of the University of Southern California (USC FCCCHR)
established in Specifications of Backflow Prevention Assemblies -
section 10 of the most current edition of the Manual of Cross-Connection
Control.
|
(f)
Testing and maintenance of backflow prevention assemblies.
It shall be the duty of the consumer at any premises where backflow
prevention assemblies are installed to have a field test performed
by a certified backflow prevention assembly tester upon installation
and at least once per year. In those instances where the public works
director deems the hazard to be great enough, he may require field
tests at more frequent intervals. These tests shall be at the expense
of the consumer and shall be performed by a certified tester approved
by the public works director. It shall be the duty of the public works
director to see that these tests are made annually. The consumer shall
notify the city in advance when the tests are to be undertaken so
that an official representative may witness the field tests if so
desired. These assemblies shall be repaired, overhauled or replaced
at the expense of the consumer whenever said assemblies are found
to be defective. Records of such tests, repairs and overhaul shall
be kept and made available to the city.
(g)
Existing backflow prevention assemblies.
All presently installed backflow prevention assemblies which do not meet the requirements of this section but were approved devices for the purposes described herein at the time of installation and which have been properly maintained shall, except for the testing and maintenance requirements under subsection (f) of this section, be excluded from the requirements of these rules so long as the public works director is assured that they will satisfactorily protect the water purveyor’s system. Whenever the existing unit is moved from the present location or requires more than minimum maintenance or when the public works director finds that the maintenance constitutes a hazard to health, the unit shall be replaced by an approved backflow prevention assembly meeting the requirements of this section.
(h)
Additional rules and regulations.
The public works director
is authorized to make all necessary and reasonable rules and policies
with respect to the enforcement of this article. All such rules and
policies shall be consistent with the provisions of this article and
shall be effective thirty (30) days after being filed with the secretary
of the city.
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
12, adopted 10/17/2017)
The following table lists many common hazards. It is not an
all-inclusive list of the hazards which may be found connected to
public water systems. This list was obtained from TCEQ (the Texas
Commission on Environmental Quality).
|
Premises Isolation - Description of Premises
|
Assessment of Hazard
|
Required Assembly
|
|---|---|---|
|
Aircraft and missile plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Animal feedlots
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Automotive plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Breweries
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Canneries, packing houses and rendering plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Commercial carwash facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Commercial laundries
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Cold storage facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Connection to sewer pipe
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Dairies
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Docks and dockside facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Dye works
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Food and beverage processing plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Hospitals, morgues, mortuaries, medical clinics, autopsy facilities,
sanitariums, and medical labs
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Metal manufacturing, cleaning, processing, and fabrication plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Microchip fabrication facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Paper and paper products plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Petroleum processing or storage facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Photo and film processing labs
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Plants using radioactive material
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Plating or chemical plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Pleasure-boat marinas
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Reclaimed water systems
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Restricted, classified or other closed facilities
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Rubber plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Sewage lift stations
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Sewage treatment plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Slaughterhouses
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Steam plants
|
Health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Tall buildings or elevation differences where the highest outlet
is 80 feet or more above the meter
|
Non-health
|
DCVA
|
|
Internal Protection - Description of Cross-Connection
|
Assessment of Hazard
|
Required Assembly
|
|---|---|---|
|
Aspirators
|
Non-health
|
AVB
|
|
Aspirator (medical)
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Autoclaves
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Autopsy and mortuary equipment
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Bedpan washers
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Connection to industrial fluid systems
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Connection to plating tanks
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Connection to salt water cooling systems
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Connection to sewer pipe
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Cooling towers with chemical additives
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Cuspidors
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Degreasing equipment
|
Non-health
|
DCVA
|
|
Domestic space-heating boiler
|
Non-health
|
RPBA
|
|
Dye vats or machines
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Firefighting system (toxic liquid foam concentrates)
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Flexible shower heads
|
Non-health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Heating equipment - commercial
|
Non-health
|
RPBA
|
|
Heating equipment - domestic
|
Non-health
|
DCVA
|
|
Hose bibbs
|
Non-health
|
AVB
|
|
Irrigation systems - with chemical additives
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Irrigation systems - without chemical additives
|
Non-health
|
DCVA, AVB or PVB
|
|
Kitchen equipment - commercial
|
Non-health
|
AVB
|
|
Lab bench equipment
|
Health or non-health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Ornamental fountains
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Swimming pools - private
|
Non-health
|
PVB or AG
|
|
Swimming pools - public
|
Non-health
|
RPBA or AG
|
|
Sewage pump
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Sewage ejectors
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Shampoo basins
|
Non-health
|
AVB
|
|
Specimen tanks
|
Health
|
AVB or PVB
|
|
Steam generators
|
Non-health
|
RPBA
|
|
Steam tables
|
Non-health
|
AVB
|
|
Sterilizers
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Tank vats or other vessels containing toxic substances
|
Health
|
RPBA
|
|
Trap primers
|
Health
|
AG
|
|
Vending machines
|
Non-health
|
RPBA or PVB
|
|
Watering troughs
|
Health
|
AG or PVB
|
|
Notes:
| ||
|
AG
|
=
|
Air gap
|
|
AVB
|
=
|
Atmospheric vacuum breaker
|
|
DCVA
|
=
|
Double check-valve backflow prevention assembly PVB = Pressure
vacuum breaker
|
|
RPBA
|
=
|
Reduced pressure principle backflow prevention assembly
|
|
AVBs and PVBs may be used to isolate health hazards under certain
conditions, that is, backsiphonage situations. Additional area of
premises isolation may be required.
| ||
|
Where a greater hazard exists (due to toxicity or other potential
health impact), additional area protection with RPBAs is required.
| ||
(Ordinance 10-2017, att. A, sec.
13, adopted 10/17/2017)
