[Adopted 2-20-1951]
No septic tank, leaching pit, chemical toilet,
privy, pipe or other means for the disposal or discharge of sewage
or sink wastes shall be installed anywhere in the Town of Niskayuna,
except as herein provided.
No installation of any septic tank, leaching
pit, chemical toilet, privy, pipe or other means for the disposal
or discharge of sewage or sink wastes shall be begun, nor shall the
construction or erection of any structure intended for human occupancy
be commenced, until an application duly filled out, in duplicate,
on forms supplied by the Sanitary Inspector and drawings showing the
intended location of the disposal system proposed to be used in connection
with such structure shall have been filed in the Town Clerk's office
and approved in the manner hereinafter prescribed.
[Amended 3-25-1952]
A fee of $20 shall be paid to the Town Clerk
simultaneously with the filing of the application.
The Town Board of Health shall appoint one or
more competent Sanitary Inspectors, who shall be responsible to the
Town Board of Health for the performance of the duties hereinafter
mentioned and whose appointment shall be held at the pleasure of the
Town Board of Health (bonded).
A.
It shall be the duty of the Sanitary Inspector to:
(1)
Receive applications.
(2)
Promptly investigate, before and after installation,
any proposed disposal device indicated in said application.
(3)
See that the provisions of this regulation are observed.
(4)
Issue to the applicant a certificate of approval permitting
the use of such installations that conform to the provisions of this
regulation.
B.
No such installation shall be covered until it has
been inspected and approved.
C.
One copy of the application shall be retained by the
Inspector with a duplicate of the certificate of approval issued,
in case such certificate of approval is issued, and with the reason
for declining to issue a certificate of approval, provided that one
is not issued. The second copy of the application shall be given to
the applicant with the certificate of approval or a written statement
of his reasons for declining to issue the same.
If the Sanitary Inspector declines to approve
any proposed installation, the applicant may appeal to the Town Board
of Health, whose approval or rejection shall be final.
The following regulations shall govern the construction
and installation of such utilities as are required by this Article:
A.
Independent system.
(1)
The drainage and plumbing system of each new building
and of new work installed in an existing building shall be separate
from and independent of that of any other building, except as provided
below, and every building shall have an independent connection with
a public or private sewer when available.
(2)
Where one building stands in the rear of another building
on an interior lot and no private sewer is available or can be constructed
to the rear building through an adjoining alley, court, yard or driveway,
the house sewer from the front building may be extended to the rear
building and the whole will be considered as one house sewer.
B.
Old house sewers. Old drains may be used in connection
with new buildings or new plumbing only when they are found, on examination
and test, to conform in all respects to the requirements governing
new drains, as prescribed in this Article. If the old work is found
defective, the proper administrative authority shall notify the owner
to make the necessary changes to conform with this Article.
C.
Connections with cesspools. The connection of any
drainage system of any building to a cesspool or septic tank is prohibited
where a public sewer is accessible. In locations not served by sanitary
sewers and where there is no piped water in the street, the installation
of wells, privies, cesspools and septic tanks may be permitted. In
general, the basis of design and installation of these rural conveniences
shall conform to New York State Department of Health, Bulletin No.
26, entitled "Rural Water Supply and Sewage Disposal Systems," latest
edition, or its subsequent revision.
D.
Prohibitions.
(1)
No person shall make or cause to be made or maintain
any connection with any stormwater drain or with any stream or watercourse
within the limits of the Town of Niskayuna for the removal of sewage
from any premises.
(2)
No person shall cause or allow any surface water from
the ground, cellar or the roof of any house or building to enter any
pipe or drain that discharges into any fixture or trap connected with
the public sewer.
(3)
No water supply pipe shall be placed in, through or
across any septic tank field.
E.
Material and fall. All house sewers from buildings
discharging into public sewers, cesspools, vaults or septic tanks
shall be not less than four inches in diameter of cast iron solidly
laid on a true grade of 1/4 inch per foot and as nearly as possible
in a straight line.
F.
Permit required. No person shall hereafter construct
any privy vault or cesspool or septic tank within the limits of the
Town of Niskayuna without a special permit from the Sanitary Inspector.
G.
Cesspools. No person shall build or maintain any cesspool
or septic tank within 100 feet of any well or within 20 feet of any
street line, dwelling, house, shop, factory, store or public building
without special permission in writing from the Sanitary Inspector.
[Amended 3-25-1952]
H.
Privy closets. No person shall build any privy closet,
except with a watertight vault, or maintain any privy within 25 feet
of any street line, dwelling, house, shop, factory, store or public
building or within 50 feet of any well without special permission
from the Sanitary Inspector.
I.
Excavation. Each system of piping shall be laid in
a separate trench, provided that drainage trenches may be benched
not less than 18 inches for lighter piping, if not in violation of
any Town regulation prescribed for its installation. Where a double
system of drainage is installed, the sanitary and surface house drains
may be laid side-by-side in one trench.
J.
All house sewers from buildings discharging into public
sewers shall be of cast-iron pipe of the required size, quality and
extra heavy weight. All joints for bell and spigot cast-iron pipe
shall be filled with oakum and molten lead and hand caulked so as
to make them air- and water tight. The quantity of lead used shall
be 12 ounces of fine soft lead for each inch of diameter of the pipe.
K.
Where the water system is to be connected to any public
water supply obtaining its water from the City of Schenectady, all
plumbing must be done by a plumber licensed to do business in the
City of Schenectady, and the plumber performing said work shall also
sign a bond with the Town of Niskayuna in an amount and as to its
sufficiency as required by the Town Board of the Town of Niskayuna.
L.
Where a realty map has been approved by the State
of New York for septic tank installation and minimum plans for field
are also shown on said map, the proposed installation shall not be
below the minimum as shown on said map.
M.
Violations. Any violation of this regulation, either
by the occupancy of a structure without a duly authorized certificate
of approval or by the installation or use of a septic tank, leaching
pit, chemical toilet, privy or discharge pipe without compliance with
the terms and provisions of this regulation, is hereby declared to
be a misdemeanor and shall render the owner of the land whereon the
same was installed or the tenant or the person so installing the same,
or any other person guilty of a violation thereof, to a fine not to
exceed the sum of $50 or to imprisonment for a period of not more
than 30 days, or both.
A.
An application for a sewage disposal system permit
must be submitted to the Town Clerk on a blank furnished by him and
must be signed by the owner, agent or contractor. The application
must give all details of location and design. Additional pertinent
information must be furnished when requested. If approved, a permit
will be issued. Inspection of the system is required before backfilling
for which twenty-four hours' notice may be required. Upon satisfactory
completion, final approval will be given in writing, prior to receipt
of which the system may not be used. The following line numbers refer
to the application form, which shall be completed as follows:
(1)
Line 1: Give owner of structure at time of application.
(2)
Line 2: Give same information that appears on tax
receipt.
(3)
Lines 3 and 4: The system should be designed for the
maximum possible future occupancy, not the present number of persons
in the family. Bedrooms having floor area less than 100 square feet
may be considered as 1/2 size. Under "special fixtures" note is garbage
destructor; special types of waste will be discharged to system. Domestic
sewage waste only may be discharged into systems designed for this
purpose.
(4)
Line 5:
(a)
No system may be constructed so as to endanger
any source of public or private water supply. No sewer line shall
pass within 50 feet of a well or other source of water supply. No
portion of the absorption area shall be within 50 feet of or above
or in direct line of drainage towards any private drilled well or
within 100 feet of any private shallow well or spring or within 200
feet of any public water source. Systems located on watersheds of
public water supplies must comply with rules and regulations enacted
by the State Department of Health for the protection of such supplies.
All sewers within the above restrictive distances shall be cast-iron
pipe with tightly caulked and leaded joints.
(b)
Sewer lines. Sewers carrying raw sewage shall
be not smaller than four inches in diameter with slope of 1/4 inch
to the foot for flows up to 1,000 gallons per day. Sewers for higher
flows shall be designed to provide velocities of not less than two
cubic feet per second when flowing half full. All lines between the
foundation walls and the tank shall have watertight joints, uniform
grades and straight alignments. Cleanouts may be required at abrupt
changes of slope or alignment. Cast-iron pipe may be required by local
Plumbing Code or by local soil conditions.
(5)
Line 6:
(a)
Applications will be considered on the basis
of sewage flows in gallons per person per day. These rates are subject
to adjustment for special conditions.
(b)
Where the volume of kitchen wastes is relatively
large, grease traps may be required on the kitchen waste lines.
(c)
In computing the number of persons which may
be accommodated at residences, two persons shall be allowed for each
bedroom unless the size and design of the room indicates other occupancies.
(6)
Line 7:
(a)
Septic or settling tanks. In general, only septic
tanks followed by suitable absorption will be considered. Tanks should
have capacities below the flow line of not less than 500 gallons and
equivalent to the daily sewage flow of up to 1,500 gallons. Tanks
shall be of watertight construction resistant to sewage and approved
proportions, provided with baffled inlets and outlets, cleanout opening
and manhole. The size of the tank shall be computed on a basis of
100 gallons per person where more than one bathroom is provided for
residential occupancies.
(b)
Dosing tanks will be required for laterals exceeding
400 feet in linear length or 800 square feet to bottom area and shall
have a capacity of approximately 75% of the interior volume of tile.
(Volume of four-inch pipe equals 0.652 gallons per linear foot.)
(c)
Diverting gates. If provided, the absorption
area should be increased not less than 50%.
(7)
Lines 8 and 9: Soil test. Make a hole one foot square
with a depth equal to the depth of the tile trench. For leaching pits,
the hole should be made at 1/2 the proposed depth of the pit. Fill
the hole with water to a depth of six inches and permit to drain.
Repeat if the soil is dry. Observe the time in minutes for the water
level to fall one inch. The rate at which sewage may be applied to
the bottom area of the trenches or the percolating area on the side
walls of the leaching pits below the flow line may be taken from the
following table. Values may be interpolated.
|
Time for 1 Inch Full
(minutes)
|
Allowable Rate of Sewage Application per
Square Foot per Day
(gallons)
|
|---|---|
|
Less than 5
|
2.5
|
|
8
|
2.0
|
|
10
|
1.7
|
|
12
|
1.5
|
|
15
|
1.3
|
|
22
|
1.0
|
|
30
|
0.8
|
|
60
|
0.6
|
|
Over 60
|
None
|
|
NOTE: This test is required to be made by applicant
at site of absorption area.
|
(8)
Line 10:
(a)
Subsurface absorption trenches. The required
length of the trench must be based upon the soil test made at the
site. Main distributors should have diameters not less than four inches
and be laid with tight joints on uniform slopes approximately 1 3/4
inches per foot. Laterals shall consist of four-inch agricultural
tile laid in trenches not less than 12 inches wide nor more than 30
inches wide on uniform slopes not greater than one inch fall in 16
feet, with open joints 1/8 to 1/4 inch wide, with tar paper or metal
strips laid over the top half of the pipe, the pipe to be bedded in
clean washed gravel of uniform size with the depth of gravel under
the tile varying from four inches for twelve-inch-wide trench to eight
inches for thirty-inch wide trench. The tile shall be laid not less
than 10 inches nor more than 24 inches below finished grade level,
with a spacing between laterals of three times the trench width but
not less than five feet on centers. Where excessive slopes are encountered,
the lateral spacing must be increased. Branch connections shall be
of watertight rigid construction. Before backfilling, the pipe shall
be covered with an additional two inches of gravel or single layer
of tar paper, salt, hay or leaves placed on top of the gravel across
the full width of the trench. Connecting lines between parallel trenches
shall be considered as distributors. Avoid placing laterals over gas
and water service lines. If unavoidable, the line must be laid with
tight joints, without gravel, at least three feet on each side of
service line and supported on planking across service line excavation
or a single length of cast-iron pipe used.
(b)
Curtain drains of suitable depth and location
shall be provided to intercept surface and ground water, where necessary.
Such drains may not be closer than 15 feet to the absorption system
and shall be of such depth and construction as to function properly.
(c)
Leaching pits preceded by septic tanks are permitted
only when such use will not endanger water supplies. They should be
made of durable material and construction and such proportions that
the side area should be approximately three times the bottom area,
with minimum distance between centers of pits not less than three
times the diameter of the larger pit. The percolation area in the
side walls below maximum flow lines must be based on the soil test.
(d)
Minimum area for disposal systems. Applications
will be considered on the basis of usable ground area available for
sewage disposal systems on each lot based on the above and following
items. Usable ground area shall have not less than three feet of suitable
soil below the proposed elevation of the bottom of the absorption
trenches and shall be well drained or drainable. A soil test shall
be made of each variety of soil encountered. Hand auger borings may
be required. A topographical map may be required showing two-foot
contours and all rock ledges or outcrops and all other natural features
together with size, depth and existing wells. No portion of any system
shall be placed within 50 feet of any brook, stream or body of water
not a source of water supply or so as to contaminate such water. The
gross area for each system shall based upon trenches 18 feet wide
and of a length per capita as may be determined by soil test and estimated
daily sewage flows, spaced five feet on centers. Provision must be
made to maintain a horizontal distance of not less than five feet
between any foundation well or any property line and any portion of
the disposal system. Any building setback restrictions of record or
proposed shall be noted on the plans and in the application. Leaching
pits, if approved, shall be located not closer than 15 feet to any
property line or at an elevation above any floor elevation of the
building within 30 feet of the building. Sufficient area for the relocation
of the absorption facilities must be shown in the event the installation
of public sewers is not probable within 10 years.
(e)
Special types of sewage treatment. Installations
to serve schools or institutions or providing for discharge into natural
bodies of water must be approved by the New York State Department
of Health, Albany, New York.
B.
The rules and regulations set forth herein shall be
entered in the minutes of the Town Board and published in the Schenectady
Union Star, the official newspaper of the Town of Niskayuna, once,
and a printed copy thereof posted conspicuously in at least three
public places in the Town of Niskayuna for at least 10 days before
the same shall take effect.
