It is determined and declared to be necessary
and conducive to the protection of the public health, safety, welfare
and convenience of the Town of Ellington WPCA to collect charges from
all users which contribute wastewater to the WPCA's collection and
treatment works. The proceeds of such charges, so derived, will be
used for the purpose of operating and maintaining the public wastewater
collection and treatment works. It is intended that user charges meet
all costs of operation and maintenance of the sewer systems on an
annual basis.
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise,
the meaning of the terms used in this chapter shall be as follows.
"Shall" is mandatory; "may" is permissive.
ACCESSORY APARTMENT
The same definition in the Ellington Zoning Regulations, which is a subordinate dwelling unit located within a
single-family residence. An accessory apartment shall not have more
than one bedroom. For the purposes of calculating the user charge,
it will be at .3 (1/3) EDU.
[Added 5-15-2001]
BOD (denoting BIOCHEMICAL OXYGEN DEMAND)
The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation
of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure in days at 20°
C., expressed in milligrams per liter (mg/l).
COMMERCIAL USER
All retail stores, restaurants, office buildings, laundries,
and other private business and service establishments.
CRYSTAL LAKE SEWER SERVICE AREA
That area from which collected wastewater is discharged to
the Town of Stafford and defined in the facility plan adopted by the
WPCA, as amended from time to time.
EQUIVALENT DWELLING UNIT (EDU)
The average wastewater flow discharged from a single dwelling
unit in the Town of Ellington. For the purposes of this chapter, an
EDU is defined as 150 gallons per day (gpd) of wastewater flow.
EXCESSIVE WASTEWATER FLOWS
When water consumption records or other separate meter(s)
reveals that a property uses more then the average amount of water.
Excessive water use translates to excessive sewage use, transferring
sewage treatment cost to others and the potential lack of sewage availability
to other parcels.
[Added 5-15-2001]
FIXED CHARGES
Those components of the WPCA's annual expenditures which
are not directly related to wastewater flow. These charges may include,
but are not limited to, the costs associated with staffing, equipping
and supplying those employees of the Town of Ellington Department
of Public Works dedicated to the WPCA; WPCA administrative expenses,
including salaries of administrative personnel, administrative office
expenses and administrative charges paid to the Town of Ellington;
purchased services, including engineering, administrative consulting,
legal advice and insurance expenses; and the cost associated with
annual deposits to the equipment/capacity replacement fund.
GOVERNMENTAL USER
Includes legislative, judicial, administrative, and regulatory
activities of federal, state and local governments.
HOCKANUM SEWER SERVICE AREA
That area from which collected wastewater is discharged to
the Town of Vernon and defined in the facility plan adopted by the
WPCA, as amended from time to time.
INDUSTRIAL USER
Includes any user of publicly owned treatment works which
is identified in the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, 1972,
Office of Management and Budget, as amended and supplemented, under
the following divisions: Division A, Agriculture, Forestry, and Fishing;
Division B, Mining; Division D, Manufacturing; Division E, Transportation,
Communications, Electric, Gas and Sanitary; and Division I, Services,
or any other user which is not a residential user, commercial user,
institutional user or governmental user.
INSTITUTIONAL USER
Includes social, charitable, religious, and educational activities,
such as schools, churches, hospitals, nursing homes, penal institutions
and similar institutional users.
MINIMUM BILL
That portion of the total user charge assessed against all
users of the system, regardless of the volume of wastewater discharged.
The minimum bill shall be computed by dividing the total value of
the fixed charges (see definition of "fixed charges" above) by the
number of users. The minimum bill for commercial, industrial, institutional
and governmental users whose flows exceed those defined for an EDU
(see the definition of "equivalent dwelling unit" above) shall be
computed by dividing the total flow from the facility by the EDU flow
value and multiplying the resulting number of EDUs by the minimum
bill amount.
NORMAL DOMESTIC WASTEWATER
Wastewater that has a BOD concentration of not more than
200 mg/l and a suspended solids concentration of not more than 200
mg/l.
OPERATION AND MAINTENANCE
Those functions that result in expenditures during the useful
life of the treatment works for materials, labor, utilities and other
items which are necessary for managing and using the facilities for
which such works were designed and constructed. The term "operation
and maintenance" includes replacement as defined below.
REPLACEMENT
Expenditures for obtaining and installing equipment, accessories
or appurtenances that are necessary during the useful life of the
treatment works to maintain the capacity and performance for which
the works were designed and constructed. "Replacement" is not intended
to mean the costs associated with depreciation of the collection or
treatment system.
RESIDENTIAL USER
Any contributor to the WPCA's treatment works whose lot,
parcel, real estate or building is used for domestic dwelling purposes
only.
SEASONAL OCCUPANCY
The use of a property and sewer system for less than the
full calendar year on a consistent basis. During the period of nonoccupancy,
no discharge shall be made to the sewer system or any holding tank.
For the purpose of this limited use, proof in the form of original
copies of electric utility bills for the off season shall be required
or other documentary evidence of seasonal use found acceptable to
the WPCA. The WPCA shall review this documentation and may adjust
billing for the unused period.
SS (denoting SUSPENDED SOLIDS)
Solids that either float on the surface of or are in suspension
in water, sewage, or other liquids and which are removable by laboratory
filtering.
TREATMENT WORKS
Any devices and systems for the storage, treatment, recycling
and reclamation of municipal sewage, domestic sewage or liquid industrial
wastes. These include intercepting sewers, outfall sewers, sewage
collection systems, pumping, power, and other equipment and their
appurtenances; extensions, improvements, remodeling, additions and
alterations thereof; elements essential to provide a reliable recycled
supply, such as standby treatment units and clear well facilities;
and any works, including site acquisition of the land that will be
an integral part of the treatment process or used for ultimate disposal
of residues resulting from such treatment (including land for composting
sludge, temporary storage of such compost and land used for the storage
of treated wastewater in land treatment systems before land application);
or any other method of system for preventing, abating, reducing, storing,
treating, separating or disposing of municipal waste or industrial
waste, including waste in combined stormwater and sanitary sewer systems.
USEFUL LIFE
The estimated period during which a treatment works will
be operated.
USER CHARGE
That portion of the total wastewater service charge which
is levied in a proportional and adequate manner for the cost of operation,
maintenance, and replacement of the wastewater treatment works.
VARIABLE CHARGES
Those components of the WPCA's annual expenditures which
are directly related to the volume of wastewater flow. These charges
may include, but are not limited to, the cost associated with providing
utility services, including electricity, potable water, alarm service,
user fees paid to the Town of Stafford and user fees paid to the Town
of Vernon.
WATER METER
A water volume measuring and recording device, furnished
and installed by a user and approved by the Town of Ellington WPCA.
Users within both the Hockanum Sewer Service Area and the Crystal Lake Sewer Service Area shall pay their equitable share of the expense of operating the respective wastewater collection and disposal system on a semiannual basis. The user charge shall be the total of the variable charge and fixed charge (see §
330-2). The determination of the equitable share and subsequent individual user charge shall be based upon the application of the following general rules:
A. On or before May 1 of each year the WPCA shall determine the costs associated with the operation of each of the WPCA's systems, Hockanum and Crystal Lake, and adopt a schedule of these expenses as an operational budget for the coming fiscal year. Each user of either of the WPCA's systems will be assessed a minimum charge semiannually, based on the determination of the minimum bill and related fixed charges as defined in §
330-2.
B. Those users within the Hockanum Sewer Service Area shall pay for the services provided by the WPCA defined as variable charges (defined in §
330-2) based on their actual use of the treatment works. The actual use of the treatment works shall be determined by water meter readings for those users in the Hockanum Sewer Service Area.
(1) In situations where one water meter may serve more
than one residential or commercial unit, the WPCA shall divide the
total metered flow equally among the units served through the meter
or make other reasonable adjustments that more accurately reflect
the actual water use of the individual units.
(2) Those residential users that derive potable water
from on-site wells within the Hockanum System, without metered water
service, shall have their bills computed based on the average water
use associated with other residential users within the system as calculated
by the WPCA based on information supplied by water meter readings.
(3) The system-wide variable charges shall be determined
through the application of the following formula: Total annual variable
expenses ÷ total annual wastewater flow = cost per gallon of
variable expenses.
(4) The variable charge attributable to an individual
property shall be calculated and billed semiannually through the application
of the following formula: Cost per gallon of variable expenses X gallons
of water used = property's variable charge.
C. Those users within the Crystal Lake Sewer Service Area shall pay equal shares of the Crystal Lake variable charges based on the number of equivalent dwelling units (EDUs), as defined in §
330-2, attributable to their property. The cost per EDU shall be determined through the application of the following formula: Total Crystal Lake variable charges ÷ total number of EDUs = variable charge per EDU.
D. If a residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial
user has a consumptive use of water or in some other manner uses water
which is not discharged into the wastewater collection system, the
user charge for that contributor may be based on readings of a wastewater
meter(s) or separate water meter(s) installed, maintained and read
at the user's expense.
E. Any residential or commercial user whose property
is occupied on a seasonal basis may apply to the WPCA to determine
qualification as season occupancy. For the period of occupancy the
charge will contain both fixed and variable charges as previously
defined. For the period of nonuse, only the minimum charge will be
made.
F. In all cases where the wastewater flow must be estimated
for commercial, industrial, recreational, restaurant, church or governmental
uses, the WPCA shall apply the flow information contained in the most
recent version of the State of Connecticut Department of Public Health
publication titled "Connecticut Public Health Code Regulations and
Technical Standards for Subsurface Sewage Disposal Systems" on file
with the WPCA.
G. If a residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial
user exceeds the wastewater flow gallons per day (gpd) approved in
the 1998 Facilities Plan Update for the Hockanum River Watershed approved
by DEP, the WPCA will levy a surcharge rate for excessive wastewater
flows. The surcharge rate is to encourage conservation and secure
individual compliance to stay within the total contracted flows of
819,200 gpd sent to Vernon's Treatment Plant and the total contracted
flows of 98,000 gpd to Stafford's Treatment Plant.
[Added 5-15-2001]
H. If a residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial
user has potable water for his or its property without a metered service,
the WPCA plans to implement a requirement that all contributors install
a separate water meter(s) to be maintained at the user's expense.
Approved in the 1998 Facilities Plan Update.
[Added 5-15-2001]
I. Any residential, commercial, institutional, or industrial user who or which violates Ellington WPCA Sewer Ordinance §
143-6H by connecting roof downspouts, foundation drains, building drains, storm sewers, storm drains, subsoil drainage or other sources of surface runoff directly or indirectly into the public sanitary sewer shall be subject to a minimum semiannual sewer user penalty surcharge of $50. The sewer user penalty charge will be in addition to any penalties imposed by Ellington's Sewer Ordinance.
[Added 5-15-2001]