[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Health of the Town of Groton 4-3-2000,
effective 7-1-2000. Amendments noted where applicable.]
A.
Whereas:
(1)
Floor drains in industrial and commercial facilities
are often tied to a system leading to a leaching structure (e.g., dry well,
cesspool, leach field) or a septic system; and
(2)
Poor management practices and accidental and/or intentional
discharges may lead petroleum and other toxic or hazardous materials into
these drainage systems in facilities managing these products; and
(3)
Improper maintenance or inappropriate use of these systems
may allow the passage of contaminants or pollutants entering the drain to
discharge from the leaching structure or septic system to the ground; and
(4)
Discharges of hazardous wastes and other pollutants to
floor drains leading to leaching structures and septic systems have repeatedly
threatened surface and groundwater quality throughout Massachusetts; and
(5)
Surface and groundwater resources in the Town of Groton
contribute to the Town's drinking water supplies;
The Town of Groton Board of Health adopts the following regulation pursuant
to authorization granted by MGL C. 111, §§ 31 and 122.
The regulation shall apply, as specified herein, to all applicable facilities,
existing and new, within the Town of Groton.
For the purposes of this regulation, the following words and phrases
shall have the following meanings:
A public or private establishment where the principal use is the
supply, sale, and/or manufacture of services, products, or information, including
but not limited to: manufacturing, processing, or other industrial operations;
service or retail establishments; printing or publishing establishments; research
and development facilities; small- or large-quantity generators of hazardous
waste; laboratories; hospitals.
The Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection.
The accidental or intentional disposal, injection, dumping, spilling,
leaking, incineration, or placing of toxic or hazardous material or waste
upon or into any land or water so that such hazardous waste or any constituent
thereof may enter the land or waters of the commonwealth. Discharge includes,
without limitation, leakage of such materials from failed or discarded containers
or storage systems and disposal of such materials into any on-site leaching
structure or sewage disposal systems.
An intended drainage point on a floor constructed to be otherwise
impervious which serves as the point of entry into any subsurface drainage,
treatment, disposal, containment, or other plumbing system.
Any subsurface structure through which a fluid that is introduced
will pass and enter the environment, including, but not limited to, dry wells,
leaching catch basins, cesspools, leach fields, and oil/water separators that
are not watertight.
A device designed and installed so as to separate and retain petroleum-based
oil or grease, flammable wastes as well as sand and particles from normal
wastes while permitting normal sewage or liquid wastes to discharge into the
drainage system by gravity. Other common names for such systems include "MDC
traps," "gasoline and sand traps," "grit and oil separators," "grease traps,"
and "interceptors."
Any substance or mixture of physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics
posing a significant, actual, or potential hazard to water supplies or other
hazards to human health if such substance or mixture were discharged to land
or water of the Town of Groton. Toxic or hazardous materials include, without
limitation, synthetic organic chemicals, petroleum products, heavy metals,
radioactive or infectious wastes, acids and alkalis, and all substances defined
as toxic or hazardous under MGL C. 21C and 21E or Massachusetts Hazardous
Waste Regulation (310 CMR 30.000), and also include such products as solvents,
thinners, and pesticides in quantities greater than normal household use.
The handling, generation, treatment, storage, or management of toxic
or hazardous materials.
With the exception of discharges that have received (or have applied
and will receive) a Department-issued permit prior to the effective date of
this regulation, no floor drain(s) shall be allowed to discharge, with or
without pretreatment (such as an oil/water separator), to the ground, a leaching
structure, or septic system in any industrial or commercial facility if such
floor drain is located in either:
A.
An industrial or commercial process area;
B.
A petroleum, toxic, or hazardous materials and/or waste
storage area; or
C.
A leased facility without either Subsection A or B of this section, but in which the potential for a change of use of the property to a use which does have either Subsection A or B is, in the opinion of the Board of Health or its agent, sufficient to warrant the elimination of the ground discharge at the present.
A.
The owner of a facility in operation prior to the effective date of this regulation with a prohibited (as defined under § 279-4) floor drain system shall:
(1)
Disconnect and plug all applicable inlets to and outlets
from (where possible) applicable leaching structures, oil/water separators,
and/or septic systems;
(2)
Remove all existing sludge in oil/water separators, septic
systems, and, where accessible, leaching structures. Any sludge determined
to be a hazardous waste shall be disposed of in accordance with state hazardous
waste regulations (310 CMR 30.000). Remedial activity involving any excavation
and/or soil or groundwater sampling must be performed in accordance with appropriate
Department policies;
(3)
Alter the floor drain system so that the floor drain
shall be either:
(a)
Connected to a holding tank that meets all applicable
requirements of Department policies and regulations, with hauling records
submitted to the Town of Groton Board of Health at this time of hauling;
(b)
Connected to a municipal sanitary sewer line, if available,
or other sewer lines connected to a treatment plant licensed to receive such
wastes, with all applicable Department and local permits; or
(c)
Permanently sealed. (Any facility sealing a drain shall
be required to submit for approval to the Board of Health a hazardous waste
management plan detailing the means of collecting, storing, and disposing
of any hazardous waste generated by this facility, including any spill or
other discharge of hazardous materials or wastes.)
B.
Any oil/water separator remaining in use shall be monitored
weekly, cleaned not less than every 90 days, and restored to proper conditions
after cleaning so as to ensure proper functioning. Records of the hauling
of the removed contents of the separator shall be submitted to the Board of
Health at the time of hauling.
C.
Compliance with all provisions of this regulation must
be accomplished in a manner consistent with Massachusetts Plumbing, Building,
and Fire Code requirements.
D.
Upon complying with one of the options listed under § 279-5A(3), the owner/operator of the facility shall notify the Department of the closure of said system by filing the Department's UIC Notification Form [which may be obtained by calling (617) 292-5770] with the Department, and sending a copy to the Town of Groton Board of Health.
The effective date of this regulation shall be July 1, 2000.
A.
Existing facilities:
(1)
Owners/Operators of a facility affected
by this regulation shall comply with all of its provisions within 120 days
of the effective date;
(2)
All applicable discharges to the leaching structures
and septic systems shall be discontinued immediately through temporary isolation
or sealing of the floor drain.
B.
New facilities:
(1)
As of the effective date of the regulation, all new construction
and/or applicable change of use within the Town of Groton shall comply with
the provisions of this regulation.
(2)
Certification of conformance with the provisions of this
regulation, all new construction and/or applicable change of use within the
Town of Groton shall comply with the provisions of this regulation.
Failure to comply with provisions of this regulation will result in
the levy of fines of not less than $200, but no more than $1,000. Each day's
failure to comply with the provisions of this regulation shall constitute
a separate violation.
The Groton Board of Health will consider an application for a variance
to any requirements of these regulations. In applying for a variance, the
application must demonstrate equal protection provided by these regulations.
An application in writing for a variance must include documentation of notification
of the abutters within 400 feet and notification of the Groton Water Department
and the West Groton Water Supply District.
