(a)
It is the purpose and intent of this chapter to establish regulations
for the disposal of grease and other insoluble waste discharges from
food service establishments within the city.
(b)
The city council, in enacting the ordinance codified in this chapter,
intends to provide for the maximum beneficial public use of the city's
sewer system, to prevent blockages of that system and the accidental
discharge of wastewater into the storm drain system or the Pacific
Ocean, to ensure the cost of maintaining the city's sewer system is
equitably distributed among users, to clarify grease disposal requirements
for existing food service establishments, and to promote public health
and safety.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
As used in this chapter, the following terms are defined:
shall mean the public works director, the building official
or any other official(s) as designated by the city manager.
shall mean an inspector so designated by the administrative
authority.
shall mean the public works director or other official as
designated by the city manager.
shall mean any device installed for the purpose of disposing
food waste in the public sewer system.
shall mean any food preparation establishment, restaurant,
cafeteria, or any other establishment preparing food for consumption.
Domestic homes are not considered food service establishments under
this definition.
shall mean grease, or fatty or oily substances and other
insoluble waste that turns or may turn viscous or solidifies with
a change in temperature or other conditions.
shall mean a plumbing appurtenance or appliance that is installed
in a sanitary drainage system to intercept nonpetroleum fats, oils
and greases (FOG) from a wastewater discharge and is identified by
volume, thirty minute retention time, baffle(s), not less than two
compartments, a total volume of not less than seven hundred fifty
gallons, and gravity separation. Gravity grease interceptors are generally
an underground multi-compartment device installed outside a food service
establishment of a size and design in compliance with the Uniform
Plumbing Code and approved by the city. A minimum capacity of seven
hundred fifty gallons shall be required unless a variance therefrom
is approved by the administrative authority.
shall mean any grease interceptor, trap, drain, screen, or
similar device that is designed or installed to reduce the amount
of grease entering the wastewater system.
shall mean a plumbing fixture that treats kitchen wastewater
from food service establishments using gravity separation aided by
vented flow control. Typically installed indoors and connected to
one to four sinks in the kitchen of a size and design in compliance
with the Uniform Plumbing Code and approved by the city. HGIs accumulate
fats, oil and grease (FOG) and solids over time in a relatively small
separator tank allowing the treated wastewater to discharge to the
sanitary sewer.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
Gravity grease interceptors that are properly sized and constructed
shall be required prior to commencing business for all new food service
establishments determined by the director to generate grease in quantities
greater than that commonly found in domestic sewage.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
(a)
Food grinders shall be removed from all existing food service establishments
by December 1, 2002.
(b)
After December 1, 2002, food grinders shall be prohibited in all
new food service establishments.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
(a)
General Provisions.
(1)
The installation of a proper interceptor shall be the responsibility
of the user who applies for the connection and the user whose operations
cause or contribute to the necessity for an interceptor.
(2)
Interceptors shall be installed, utilized, and properly maintained
for continuous and efficient operation at all times and at the expense
of the user.
(3)
The administrative authority shall approve the type, capacity and
construction of all interceptors in writing prior to installation.
(4)
A common interceptor shared by multiple businesses can be utilized
if specifically authorized by the director and upon evidence of legal
operating and maintenance agreements between the involved property
owners.
(5)
Interceptors no longer in use shall be abandoned in accordance with
the Uniform Plumbing Code.
(b)
Design.
(1)
Interceptors for food service establishments shall be sized and designed
in compliance with the Uniform Plumbing Code Chapter 10, Table 10-3,
unless otherwise specified herein.
(2)
Other factors that may influence the design include, but shall not
be limited to, the following:
(A)
The type of facility (such as a restaurant, bakery, food processing
factory, etc.);
(B)
The volume of the user's business or operation (such as number of
meals served, number of seats, hours of operation, etc.);
(C)
The peak flow of process wastewater discharged to the collection
system;
(D)
Size and nature of facilities (including kitchen facilities) based
on size, type, number of fixtures, and type of processing or cooking
equipment used;
(E)
The type of service provided or operation undertaken (such as dine-in
meal service versus carry-out meal service);
(F)
The type of foods or other materials used in cooking, processing
or manufacturing operations conducted within the facility;
(G)
The overall potential for grease-laden discharges;
(H)
The existence of devices, procedures or processes designed to minimize
the amount of fats, oil or grease from entering the collection system;
(I)
The location of the facility, if it is located in a known problem
area;
(J)
Any prior problems with the facility, such as blockages, violations,
etc.
(3)
All interceptors shall be certified by the International Association
of Plumbing and Mechanical Officers, or another listing agency approved
by the director, and be plumbed according to the Uniform Plumbing
Code.
(4)
All grease interceptors shall include an effluent sample box of a
type and size approved by the administrative authority.
(5)
Inspection by the administrative authority, or an authorized inspector,
of installed interceptors and piping prior to backfilling is required.
Piping shall meet the requirements of the Uniform Plumbing Code.
(6)
Interceptors shall have a sanitary tee located inside the sample
box on the discharge side of the sample box.
(7)
Interceptors shall have a cleanout and vent to roof installed after
the sample box on the private sewer lateral and at intervals required
by the Uniform Plumbing Code.
(8)
All manholes and sample boxes are to be installed a minimum of one-half
inch above the finished grade with a concrete collar a minimum of
eighteen inches around the manhole and sample box lids.
(c)
Interceptor Maintenance.
(1)
Any user who is required by the director or the ordinance codified
in this chapter to install or operate an interceptor shall be required
to adequately maintain the interceptor at the user's expense, so that
the interceptor is in proper working order at all times. Maintenance
shall include the complete removal of all contents, including floating
materials, wastewater, sludge and solids. Decanting or discharging
of removed waste back into the interceptor from which the waste was
removed or into any other interceptor, for the purpose of reducing
the volume to be hauled is prohibited.
(2)
Grease interceptors shall be cleaned out completely by a permitted
waste hauler as necessary to assure that the interceptor will operate
as designed at all times or as otherwise specified by the administrative
authority.
(3)
The use of additives, directly or indirectly to the plumbing or sewer
system, to emulsify grease and/or oil is specifically prohibited.
(4)
The use of biological additives as a supplement to interceptor maintenance,
including the addition of micro-organisms, may be authorized by the
director and approval shall be obtained in writing prior to the use
of such additives.
(5)
A maintenance log indicating each pumping of an interceptor for the
previous twelve months and any other pertinent information shall be
maintained by each establishment. This log shall include, but not
be limited to, date, time, amount pumped, hauler, and disposal site,
and the log shall be kept in a conspicuous location for inspection
by the administrative authority or an authorized inspector during
normal business hours.
(6)
All users must sign a waste manifest form before having a waste load
transported by a permitted hauler. The user shall also keep copies
of the manifest form for a period of at least three years, and make
all manifest records available for inspection by the administrative
authority during normal business hours.
(7)
All waste removed from an interceptor must be disposed at a facility
permitted by the county of Orange or applicable regulatory agencies
to receive such waste. The pumpage shall not be returned to the public
sewer system or manhole, any private wastewater system or storm drains.
(8)
All interceptors shall be located as to be readily and easily accessible
for cleaning, inspection and removal of intercepted waste.
(9)
Any fixture connected to a grease interceptor shall have a nonremovable,
secured food strainer of such integrity to withstand daily operational
usage.
(d)
Required Connections to Interceptors. All three-compartment sinks,
scullery (preparation) sinks, floor drains, and mop sinks along a
cook line, prewash sinks at dishwashing stations, and all other fixtures
that contribute grease into the wastewater system shall be connected
to an interceptor.
(e)
Prohibited Connections or Additives to Interceptors.
(1)
Final rinse discharge from automatic dishwashers shall not be connected
to the interceptor.
(2)
The use of any additive, such as enzymes, surfactants or chemicals
shall not be connected to any type of interceptor. Chemical additives,
such as chlorinated solvents, or any other additives that causes the
emulsification of grease, are strictly prohibited from use in any
type of interceptor.
(f)
Plan Review.
(1)
Applicants or users shall be required to submit copies of detailed
facility proposed interceptors, pretreatment facilities, spill containment
facilities, and operating procedures, to the community development
department. Facility plans shall also include site plans, floor plans,
mechanical and plumbing plans, and details to show all wastewater
plumbing, spill containment, and appurtenances by size, location,
and elevation. The review of the plans and procedures shall in no
way relieve the user of the responsibility of modifying the facilities
or discharge, and to meet the requirements of this chapter or any
requirements of other regulatory agencies.
(2)
All submitted drawings shall be prepared by a licensed and registered
professional engineer. Any false information or misleading calculations
submitted shall be the responsibility of the user.
(3)
The design, location and procedures for operation and maintenance
of a required interceptor shall be approved by the administrative
authority. Such approval shall be obtained prior to the user's connection
of the facility to the public wastewater system.
(4)
No food service establishment or other identified user shall be constructed
except according to plans and specifications approved by the administrative
authority.
(5)
Approved plans and specifications shall not be changed or altered
without written approval by the administrative authority.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
(a)
Variance from the gravity grease interceptor requirements set forth
in this chapter to allow installation of a hydro-mechanical grease
interceptor (HGI).
(1)
An existing, new, or remodeled food service establishment (FSE) may
obtain a variance from the gravity grease interceptor requirements
set forth in this chapter to allow for the installation of an HGI
that is at least equally effective in controlling the FOG discharge
if the food service establishment demonstrates that it is impossible
or impracticable to install, operate, or maintain a gravity grease
interceptor. The city shall evaluate the following conditions prior
to determining whether to grant a variance:
(A)
Whether there is inadequate space for the installation and/or maintenance
of a gravity grease interceptor; and
(B)
Whether there is inadequate slope for gravity flow between kitchen
plumbing fixtures and the gravity grease interceptor and/or between
the gravity grease interceptor and the private collection lines or
the public sewer.
(2)
Design and Sizing.
(A)
All food service establishments using HGIs shall install vented flow
control devices upstream of HGIs to control the wastewater flow so
that it matches the certified flow rate of the HGI. All HGIs shall
be of a size and design in compliance with the Uniform Plumbing Code
and approved by the city.
(B)
The installation of an HGI inside of an FSE requires local health
department approval.
(C)
HGIs may be located in the ground or may sit on top of the floor
under the fixture it services.
(D)
HGIs may be located outside of the FSE.
(E)
HGIs located outside of the FSE, or located in the ground, must be
placed inside a vault, or be constructed in a way that allows a minimum
of six-inch service room around the entire HGI.
(F)
HGIs may not be placed downstream of final rinse discharge from an
automatic dishwasher.
(3)
Proper Maintenance. HGIs should be maintained so as not to exceed
twenty-five percent of their overall capacity for floating FOG and
settled solids.
(Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
(a)
Drain Screens.
(1)
Drain screens shall be installed on all drainage pipes in food preparation
areas for existing food service establishments by December 1, 2002.
(2)
After December 1, 2002, drain screens shall be installed on all drainage
pipes in food preparation areas for all new food service establishments
deemed by the director to generate grease.
(b)
Waste Cooking Oil.
(c)
Food Waste. All food waste shall be placed in enclosed plastic bags
and disposed of directly into the trash or garbage, and not in sinks.
(d)
Employee Training.
(1)
Employees of the food service establishment shall be trained by January
1, 2003, and twice each calendar year thereafter, on the following
subjects:
(A)
How to "dry wipe" pots, pans, dishware and work areas before washing
to remove grease;
(B)
How to properly dispose of food waste and solids in enclosed plastic
bags prior to disposal in trash bins or containers to prevent leaking
and odors;
(C)
The location and use of absorption products to clean under fryer
baskets and other locations where grease may be spilled or dripped;
(D)
How to properly dispose of grease or oils from cooking equipment
into a grease barrel or drum without spilling.
(2)
Training shall be documented and employee signatures retained indicating
each employee's attendance and understanding of the practices.
(3)
Training records shall be available for review at any reasonable
time by the authorized inspector.
(e)
Kitchen exhaust filters shall be cleaned as frequently as necessary
to be maintained in good operating condition, but in no event less
than one time per month.
(f)
All best management practices shall be posted conspicuously in the
food preparation and dishwashing areas at all times.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1410 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
Food service establishments shall be open and available for
inspection by an authorized inspector at all times during normal business
hours to ensure that the operation and maintenance of the food service
establishment complies with the requirements of this chapter.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
(a)
Violations of this chapter may result in fines and/or penalties.
(b)
Failure to comply with the provisions of this chapter may result
in one or more of the following:
(c)
Appeals of Fines, Penalties or Requirements to Install Grease Interceptors.
(1)
Appeals of fines, penalties, or other corrective actions shall be
submitted to the city manager within thirty days after the food service
establishment has been notified of the penalty and/or corrective actions.
The decision of the city manager shall be in writing.
(2)
The decision of the city manager can be appealed to the city council
by submitting a written request to the city clerk within fifteen days
of the issuance of the city manager's decision, and payment of the
appropriate fee, as set by resolution of the city council.
(3)
Upon appeal, the appellant shall, upon written request to the city
manager, be provided within fifteen days of said request, at reasonable
cost to the appellant, copies of all reports, data or other documentary
evidence upon which the citation is based.
(Ord. 1402 § 1, 2002; Ord. 1603 § 1, 2015)
