Town of Georgetown, DE Definitions of Allowable Waste

§ 176-16 Only wastewater to be discharged.

There shall be discharged into the sanitary sewer system of the Town of Georgetown only such waste as is properly designated as "wastewater."

§ 176-17 Prohibited discharges to sanitary sewer.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any stormwater, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, building foundation drainage, basement drainage, overflow or drainage from cesspools or septic tanks and uncontaminated cooling water to any sanitary sewer.

§ 176-18 Prohibited discharges to wastewater facilities.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged any of the following described waters or wastes to wastewater facilities.

Any gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel, oil or other flammable or explosive liquid, solid or gas.

Any waters or wastes containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids or gases in sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, to injure or interfere with any sewage treatment process, constitute a hazard to humans or animals, create a public nuisance or create any hazard in the receiving waters of the sewage treatment plant.

Any waters or wastes having corrosive properties capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment and personnel of wastewater facilities.

Any solid or viscous substances in quantities or of such size capable of causing obstruction to the flow or other interference with the proper operation of the wastewater facilities such as, but not limited to, ashes, cinders, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags, feathers, tar, plastics, wood, underground garbage, whole blood, paunch manure, hair and fleshings, entrails and paper dishes, cups, milk containers, etc., either whole or ground by garbage grinders.

§ 176-19 Wastes harmful to process or equipment.

No person shall discharge or cause to be discharged the following described substances, materials, waters or wastes if it appears likely in the opinion of the Mayor and Council that such wastes can harm either the sewage treatment process or equipment, have an adverse effect on the receiving stream, or can otherwise endanger life, limb, public property or constitute a nuisance. In forming his or her opinion as to the acceptability of these wastes, the Mayor and Council will give consideration to such factors as the quantities of subject wastes in relation to flows and velocities in the sewers, materials of construction of the sewers, nature of the sewage treatment process, capacity of the sewage treatment plant, degree of treatability of wastes in the sewage treatment plant and other pertinent factors. The substances prohibited are:

Any liquid or vapor having a temperature greater than 150° F. or an average temperature over an eight-hour period greater than 100° F.

Any water or waste containing fats, wax, grease or oils, whether emulsified or not, in excess of 100 mg/l or containing substances which may solidify or become viscous at temperatures between 32° F. and 150° F. and 65° C.

Any garbage that has not been properly shredded. The installation and operation of any garbage grinder equipped with a motor of 3/4 horsepower (0.76 hp metric) or greater shall be subject to the review and approval of the Mayor and Council.

Any industrial wastes that will not pass a 20-mesh screen or equivalent.

Any waters or wastes containing strong acid iron pickling wastes or concentrated plating solutions, whether neutralized or not.

Any waters or wastes containing iron, chromium, copper, zinc and similar objectionable or toxic substances; or wastes exerting an excessive chlorine requirement, to such degree that any such material received in the composite sewage at the sewage treatment works exceeds the limits established by the Mayor and Council for such materials or which create any hazard in the receiving water of the treatment plant. The following substances are not permitted in concentrations above those listed. By amendment to the regulation, restrictions may also be placed on other substances or the present concentration limits revised, when it is shown that the presence of these substances or concentrations at the treatment plant is sufficient to adversely affect any portion of the treatment process.

	Substance	Maximum Allowable Concentration (mg/l)
	Arsenic as AS	0.5
	Cadmium as Cd	0.4
	Chromium (hexavalent) as Cr	0.2
	Cyanide as CN	0.5
	Lead as Pb	0.5
	Copper as Cu	1.0
	Mercury as Hg	0.5
	Nickel as Ni	2.0
	Zinc as Zn	5.0

Any waters or wastes containing phenols or other taste- or odor-producing substances in such concentrations exceeding limits which may be established by the Mayor and Council as necessary, after treatment of the composite sewage, to meet the requirements of the federal, state or other public agencies of jurisdiction for such discharge to the receiving waters.

Any radioactive wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration as may exceed limits established by the Mayor and Council in compliance with applicable federal or state regulations.

Any waters or wastes having a pH lower than 5.5 or greater than 9.5.

Materials which exert or cause:

(1)

Unusual concentrations of inert suspended solids (such as, but not limited to, Fullers earth, lime residues) or of dissolved solids (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate).

(2)

Excessive discoloration (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate).

(3)

A biochemical oxygen demand (BOD) greater than 300 mg/l as determined from analysis of a twenty-four-hour composite sample.

(4)

A chemical oxygen demand (COD) greater than 400 mg/l as determined from analyses of a twenty-four-hour composite sample.

(5)

A total suspended solids (TSS) load greater than 300 mg/l as determined from analysis of a twenty-four-hour composite sample.

(6)

An average chlorine demand greater than 15 ppm.

(7)

Unusual "slug" of flow or concentration of wastes which exceeds for any period of duration longer than 15 minutes more than five times the average twenty-four-hour concentration of flows during normal operation.

Waters or wastes containing substances which are not amenable to treatment or reduction by the sewage treatment processes employed, or are amenable to treatment only to such degree that the sewage treatment plant effluent cannot meet the requirements of other agencies having jurisdiction over discharge to the receiving waters.

§ 176-20 Action by Mayor and Council regarding harmful wastes.

If any waters or wastes are discharged or are proposed to be discharged to the wastewater facilities, which waters contain the substances or possess the characteristics enumerated in § 176-19 of this article, and which in the judgment of the Mayor and Council may have a deleterious effect upon the wastewater facilities, processes, equipment or receiving waters, or which otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the Mayor and Council may:

Require that the waste discharge be stopped or reject the application to discharge proposed waste;

Require pretreatment to an acceptable condition before discharge to the public sewers;

Require control over the quantities and rates of discharge; and/or

Require payment to cover the added cost of handling and treating the wastes not covered by existing user charge systems.

§ 176-21 Installation of manhole.

When required by the Mayor and Council, the owner of any property serviced by a building sewer carrying industrial wastes shall install a suitable control manhole together with such necessary meters, automatic sampling devices and other appurtenances in the building sewer to facilitate observation, sampling and measurement of the wastes. Such manhole, when required, shall be accessibly and safely located, and shall be constructed in accordance with plans approved by the Mayor and Council. The manhole shall be installed by the owner at his or her expense, and shall be maintained by him or her so as to be safe and accessible at all times.