Unless a provision explicitly states otherwise, the following terms and phrases, as used in this chapter, shall have the meanings hereinafter designated:
"Act" or "the Act"means the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, (33 USC
1251 et seq.), as amended.
"AKART"is an acronym for "all known, available, and reasonable methods of prevention, control, and treatment." AKART shall represent the most current methodology that can be reasonably required for preventing, controlling or abating the pollutants associated with a discharge. AKART shall be applied by all industrial users of the POTW. Best management practices are a subset of AKART, and may be required by the director for any discharge to the POTW.
"Applicable pretreatment standards"means, for any specified pollutant, Washougal's prohibitive standards, Washougal's specific pretreatment standards (local limits), state of Washington pretreatment standards, or National Categorical Pretreatment Standards (when effective), whichever standard is appropriate or most stringent.
"Authorized representative of the user"means:
(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
(b) The manager of one or more manufacturing, production, or operation facilities employing more than 250 persons or having gross annual sales or expenditures exceeding $25,000,000 (in second-quarter 1980 dollars), if authority to sign documents has been assigned or delegated to the manager in accordance with corporate procedures;
(2) If the user is a partnership or sole proprietorship: a general partner or proprietor, respectively;
(3) 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 his/her designee;
(4) The individuals described in subdivisions (1) through (3) above may designate another 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 of Washougal.
"Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD)"means the quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedures during five days at 20 degrees centigrade, usually expressed as a concentration (milligrams per liter (mg/l)).
"Bypass"means the intentional diversion of wastestreams from any portion of a user's treatment facility.
"Categorical user"means a user covered by one or more categorical standards as defined herein.
"City"means the city of Washougal or its duly authorized representative, deputy or agent.
"Cooling water"means water used for cooling purposes generated from any use, such as air conditioning, heat exchangers, cooling or refrigeration. For purposes of this chapter, such waters are further divided into two subcategories:
"Color"means the optical density at the visual wave length of maximum absorption, relative to distilled water. One hundred percent transmittance is equivalent to zero (0.0) optical density.
"Composite sample"means the sample resulting from the combination of individual wastewater samples taken at selected intervals based on an increment of either flow or time.
"Director of public works" or "director"means the person designated by the city of Washougal to supervise the department of public works which includes the maintenance and operation of the POTW. The use of the term "director" in this chapter specifically includes his/her duly authorized representative or inspector.
"Domestic user (residential user)"means any person who contributes, causes or allows the contribution of wastewater into the city POTW that is similar in volume and/or chemical make-up to domestic wastewater. For comparison, discharges of domestic wastewater shall be assumed to be 100 gallons containing 0.2 pounds of BOD, and 0.2 pounds of TSS per capita per day.
"Domestic wastewater"means wastewater from residential kitchens, bathrooms and laundries, and waterborne human wastes from sanitary facilities in all other buildings, together with such groundwater infiltration or surface waters as may be present.
"Ecology"means the Washington State Department of Ecology or authorized representative thereof.
"Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)"means the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency or, where appropriate, the Regional Water Management Division Director, or other duly authorized official of said agency.
"Existing source"means any categorical user which discharges wastewater to the POTW, the construction or operation of which commenced prior to the publication of proposed categorical pretreatment standards which will be applicable to such source if the standard is thereafter promulgated in accordance with Section 307 of the Act.
"Existing user"means any noncategorical user which discharges wastewater to the POTW prior to the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter.
"Grab sample"means a sample which is taken from a wastestream on a one-time basis without regard to the flow in the wastestream and without consideration of time.
"Indirect discharge" or "discharge"means the introduction of pollutants into the POTW from any nondomestic source regulated under Section 307(b), (c) or (d) of the Act. The discharge into the POTW is normally by means of pipes, conduits, pumping stations, force mains, constructed drainage ditches, surface water intercepting ditches, and all constructed devices and appliances appurtenant thereto.
"Industrial wastewater"means water or liquid-carried waste from any industry, manufacturing operation, trade or business which includes process wastewater, cooling water, contaminated stormwater, contaminated leachates, or other wastewater, or is subject to regulation under Federal Categorical Pretreatment Standards, the State Waste Discharge Permit program, or this chapter.
"Interference"means the effect of a discharge or discharges on the POTW from one or more nondomestic users which results in either: (1) inhibition or disruption of the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes, use or disposal; (2) violation of any permit regulating Washougal's wastewater discharge or sewerage sludge; or (3) prevention of sewage sludge or disposal in compliance with any applicable statutory or regulatory provision or permit issued thereunder. (Applicable sludge regulations shall include Section 405 of the Clean Water Act; the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA), including Title II commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA); state regulations contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA; the Clean Air Act; the Toxic Substance Control Act; the Marine Protection, Research, and Sanctuaries Act; and 40 CFR part
503.)
"Maximum allowable discharges"means the maximum allowable discharge of a pollutant allowed to be discharged at any time, determined from the analysis of any discrete or composite sample collected, independent of the industrial flow rate and the duration of the sampling event.
"Medical wastes"means isolation wastes, infectious agents, human blood and blood products, pathological wastes, sharps, body parts, contaminated bedding, surgical wastes, potentially contaminated laboratory wastes, and dialysis wastes.
"New source"means:
(1) Any facility constructed after proposed pretreatment standards applicable to operations conducted at the facility were published; provided, the facility is or may be a source of discharge, and:
(a) The building, structure, facility, or installation is constructed at a site at which no other source is located; or
(b) The new construction totally replaces the process or production equipment that causes the discharge of pollutants at an existing source; or
(c) The production or wastewater generating processes of the building, structure, facility, or installation are substantially independent of an existing source at the same site.
(2) Construction of a new source as defined under this paragraph has commenced if the owner or operator has begun, or caused to begin any placement, assembly or installation of facilities or equipment or significant site preparation work including removal of existing facilities necessary for the emplacement of new source facilities or equipment or entered into a binding contractual obligation for the purchase of facilities or equipment for use in operation of a new source within a reasonable time.
"New user"is any noncategorical user that plans to discharge a new source of wastewater to the Washougal sewage collection system after the effective date of the ordinance codified in this chapter. This discharge may be from either a new or an existing facility. Any person that buys an existing facility that is discharging nondomestic wastewater will be considered an "existing user" if no significant changes are made in the manufacturing operation.
"Pass through"means a discharge which exits the POTW 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 city NPDES or state waste discharge permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or causes a violation of any water quality standard for waters of the state promulgated under regulations including Chapter
173-201A WAC.
"Permittee"means a person or user issued a wastewater discharge permit.
"Person"means any individual, partnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, estate, any federal, state or local governmental agency or entity, or any other entity whatsoever; or their legal representatives, agents or assigns.
"pH"is a measure of the acidity or alkalinity of a substance, expressed in standard units.
"Pollutant"means any substance discharged into a POTW or its collective system which, if discharged directly, would alter the chemical, physical, biological or radiological integrity of the receiving water.
"Pollution prevention"means source reduction; protection of natural resources by conservation; or increased efficiency in the use of raw materials, energy, water or other resources.
"Pretreatment"means the reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater prior to (or in lieu of) introducing such pollutants into the POTW. This reduction or alteration can be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes; by process changes; or by other means (except by diluting the concentration of the pollutants unless allowed by an applicable pretreatment standard).
"Pretreatment requirements"means any substantive or procedural state, local, or federal requirement related to pretreatment developed under Chapter
90.48 RCW and/or Section 307 and 402 of the Clean Water Act.
"Pretreatment standards" or "standards"means any pollutant discharge limitations including categorical standards, state standards, and limits of WMC §
14.24.080 applicable to the discharge of nondomestic wastes to a POTW. The term shall also include the prohibited discharge standards of this chapter, WAC
173-240-060, and
40 CFR Part 403.5.
"Publicly owned treatment works (POTW)"means a "treatment works," as defined by Section 212 of the Act (33 USC
1292) which is owned by the city. This definition includes any devices or systems used in the collection, storage, treatment, recycling and reclamation of sewage or industrial wastes of a liquid nature and any conveyances which convey wastewater to a treatment plant. The term shall also mean the city.
"Septic tank waste" or "septage"means any sewage and sludge from individual wastewater disposal systems such as septic tanks and cesspools; and domestic wastes from holding tanks, chemical toilets, campers and trailers absent of any industrial wastewater.
"Severe property damage"means substantial physical damage to property, damage to the treatment facilities which causes them to become inoperable, or substantial and permanent loss of natural resources which can reasonably be expected to occur in the absence of a bypass. Severe property damage does not mean economic loss caused by delays in production.
"Sewage" or "wastewater"means water-carried human wastes or a combination of water-carried wastes from residences, business buildings, institutions and industrial establishments, together with such ground, surface, storm or other wastes as may be present.
"Sewer"means any pipe, conduit ditch, or other device used to collect and transport sewage.
"Shall"defines a mandatory requirement.
"Significant industrial user"means:
(1) A user subject to categorical pretreatment standards; or
(2) A user that:
(a) Discharges an average of 25,000 gpd or more of process wastewater to the POTW (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling, and boiler blowdown wastewater), or
(b) Contributes a process wastestream which makes up five percent or more of the average dry water hydraulic or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant, or
(c) Is designated as such by the Washington State Department of Ecology with input from the city on the basis that it, alone or in conjunction with other sources has a reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTWs operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement;
(3) Upon a finding that a user meeting the criteria in subdivision (2) above has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any applicable pretreatment standard or requirement, Ecology may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from a user or the city and in accordance with procedures in 40 CFR
403.8(f)(6), determine that such user should not be considered a significant industrial user.
"Significant noncompliance (SNC)"means an assessment of an industry's compliance status. An industry is in significant noncompliance of pretreatment regulations if any industrial violation or series of violations meets the SNC criteria as defined in 40 CFR
403 as amended.
"Slug load"means any discharge at a flow rate or concentration which could cause a violation of the discharge standards in WMC §
14.24.050 through §
14.24.080 or any discharge of a pollutant, including oxygen demanding pollutants (BOD, etc.), released in a single extraordinary discharge episode of such volume or strength as to cause interference to the POTW or at such a flowrate as to exceed a permitted peak flow or 10 percent of the capacity of the available trunk sewer, whichever is greater.
"Stormwater"means any flow occurring during or following any form of natural precipitation, and resulting from such precipitation, including snowmelt.
"Total suspended solids"means the total suspended matter that floats on the surface of, or is suspended in, water, wastewater or other liquid, and which is removable by laboratory filtering.
"Toxic pollutant"means one or a combination of the pollutants listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by EPA under Section 307 (33 USC
1317) of the Act.
"Upset"means an exceptional incident in which there is unintentional and temporary noncompliance with applicable pretreatment standards because of factors beyond the reasonable control of the user. An upset does not include noncompliance to the extent caused by operational error, improperly designed treatment facilities, inadequate treatment facilities, lack of prevention maintenance, or careless or improper operation.
User.(See "Industrial user.")
(Ord. 1221 § 1, 1996)