A.
Any person who shall violate any provision of § 177-44 shall be guilty of a violation and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $1,000.
[Amended 1-8-1990 by Ord.
No. 1-1990]
B.
Written notice of violation.
(1)
Any person found to be violating any provision of the foregoing Articles of this Part 2, except § 177-44, shall be served by the City with written notice stating the nature of the violation and providing a reasonable time limit for the satisfactory correction thereof. The offender shall, within the period of time stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations.
(2)
Notwithstanding the above notification procedure, the City reserves
the right to suspend the wastewater treatment service and/or wastewater
discharge permit of the offender when such suspension is necessary,
in the opinion of the City Engineer, in order to stop an actual or
threatened discharge of any liquid or substance which, either singly
or in combination with other wastewaters, could result in any of the
following:
(a)
Physical damage to the sewers or sewage treatment works.
(b)
Interference of the treatment process.
(c)
Create potentially hazardous conditions for City employees or
the public.
(d)
Obstruct the normal flow of sewage in the public sewers.
(e)
Create a hazard in the waters which receive the discharge from
the sewage treatment works.
(f)
Contaminate the sludge produced at the treatment plant.
(g)
Causes the City to violate any of the conditions of its SPDES
permit.
(3)
The City shall reinstate the wastewater discharge permit and/or the
wastewater treatment service upon proof of the elimination of the
noncomplying discharge. A detailed written statement, describing the
causes and nature of the harmful discharge and the measures taken
to prevent any future occurrence, shall be submitted by the user to
the City within 15 days of the occurrence.
(4)
The City shall annually publish, in the largest daily newspaper of
the area, a list of the industrial users who were in significant non-compliance
(SNC) with their industrial discharge permits or other applicable
pretreatment requirements or standards during the previous 12 months.
The notification shall also give the location of the specific violation
date and summaries of enforcement actions which were taken against
the user(s) during the same 12 months.
C.
Continued violation.
(1)
Any person who shall continue any violation beyond the time limit provided for in Subsection B herein shall be guilty of an offense, and, on conviction thereof, shall be punished by a fine not exceeding $1,000 for each violation. Each day in which any such violation shall continue shall be deemed a separate offense.
[Amended 1-8-1990 by Ord.
No. 1-1990]
(2)
In the event of the continuing failure of the person to comply with
the suspension order, the City shall take such steps as deemed necessary,
including immediate severance of the sewer connection, to prevent
or minimize damage to the sewers and sewage treatment works or endangerment
of any individuals.
D.
Civil liability. Any person violating any of the foregoing provisions
of this Part 2 shall become liable to the City for any expense, loss
or damage occasioned the City by reason of such violation.
E.
Legal action. If any person discharges sewage, industrial wastes
or other wastes into the City's wastewater disposal system contrary
to the provisions of this Part 2, federal or state pretreatment requirements
or any order of the City, the City Attorney may commence an action
for appropriate legal and/or equitable relief in the (circuit) court
of this county.
F.
Show cause hearing.
(1)
The City may order any user who causes or allows an unauthorized
discharge to show cause before the City Council why the proposed enforcement
action should not be taken. A notice shall be served on the user specifying
the time and place of a hearing to be held by the City Council regarding
the violation, the reasons why the action is to be taken, the proposed
enforcement action and directing the user to show cause before the
City Council why the proposed enforcement action should not be taken.
The notice of the hearing shall be served personally or by registered
or certified mail (return receipt requested) at least 10 days before
the hearing. Service may be made on any agent or officer of a corporation.
(2)
The City Council may itself conduct the hearing and take the evidence
or may designate any of its members of any officer or employee of
the City to:
(a)
Issue in the name of the City Council notices of hearings requesting
the attendance and testimony of witnesses and the production of evidence
relevant to any matter involved in such hearings.
(b)
Take the evidence.
(c)
Transmit a report of the evidence and hearing, including transcripts
and other evidence, together with recommendations to the City Council
for action thereon.
(3)
At any hearing held pursuant to this Part 2, testimony taken must
be under oath and recorded stenographically.
(4)
The transcript, so recorded, will be made available to any member
of the public or any party to the hearing upon payment of the usual
charges thereof.
(5)
After the City Council has reviewed the evidence, it may issue an
order to the user responsible for the discharge directing that, following
a specified time period, the sewer service shall be discontinued unless
adequate treatment facilities, devices or other related appurtenances
shall have been installed or existing treatment facilities, devices
or other related appurtenances are properly operated. Further orders
and directives as are necessary and appropriate may be issued.
G.
Falsifying information. Any person who knowingly makes any false
statements, representation or certification in any application, record,
report, plan or other document filed or required to be maintained
pursuant to this Part 2 or wastewater contribution permit or who falsifies,
tampers with or knowingly renders inaccurate any monitoring device
or method required under this Part 2 or wastewater contribution permit
shall, upon conviction, be punished by a fine of not more than $1,000
or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or by both.
H.
Enforcement response plan. The City shall prepare an enforcement
response plan. The enforcement response plan, in a step-by-step fashion,
shall outline the procedures to be followed to identify, document,
and respond to violations by users of the POTW. All violations by
users of the POTW shall be met with some type of enforcement response.
The response shall be comprehensive and effective.
(1)
The enforcement response plan shall:
(a)
Describe how the City will investigate instances of non-compliance.
(b)
Describe the types of escalated enforcement actions that the
City will take in response to all anticipated types of user violations
and the time periods within which to initiate and follow-up these
actions.
(c)
Adequately reflect the Town Board's responsibility to enforce
all applicable standards and requirements.
(2)
The enforcement response plan shall:
(a)
Contain criteria for scheduling periodic inspection and/or sampling
visits to POTW users.
(b)
Contain forms and guidelines for documenting compliance data
in a manner which will enable the information to be used as evidence.
(c)
Contain systems to track due dates, compliance schedule milestones,
and pending enforcement actions.
(d)
Contain criteria, responsible personnel, and procedures to select
and initiate an enforcement action. The range of appropriate enforcement
actions shall be based on the nature and severity of the violation
and other relevant factors, such as:
(e)
Promote consistent and timely use of enforcement remedies.
(3)
The City Council shall approve the enforcement response plan. The
enforcement response plan shall be reviewed at least every five years.
(4)
The remedies provided for in the enforcement response plan are not
exclusive. The City of Ogdensburg may take any, all, or any combination
of actions included in the enforcement response plan against a noncompliant
user. Enforcement of pretreatment violations will generally be in
accordance with the City's enforcement response plan. However,
the City of Ogdensburg may take other action against any user when
the circumstances warrant. Further, the City of Ogdensburg is empowered
to take more than one enforcement action against any noncompliant
user.
