El Paso City Code § 18.21.010 Definitions.
18.21.010 - Definitions.
The following words and terms, when used in this chapter, shall have the following meanings, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
1. "Aerobic digestion" means the bacterial decomposition and stabilization of sewage in the presence of free oxygen.
2. "Anaerobic digestion" means the bacterial decomposition and stabilization of sewage in the absence of free oxygen.
3. "Bedrock" means a continuous horizontal layer of hardened mineral deposits that does not support growth of common plant life.
4. "Blackwater" means all sewage other than greywater that contains sufficient human or animal wastes to require the water to be treated prior to disposal to the earth's subsurface.
5. "Bore hole" means a drilled hole four feet or greater in depth and one to three feet in diameter.
6. "Caliche" means a white or pale yellow deposit of carbonate or sulfates of varying hardness that exists in the soil profile.
7. "Cesspool" means a non-watertight covered receptacle intended for the receipt and partial treatment of domestic sewage. This device is constructed such that its sidewalls and bottom are open jointed to allow the gradual discharge of liquids while retaining the solids for an anaerobic decomposition.
8. "Chemical" means a liquid or powdered waste that in sufficient quantity could have a biotoxic effect on on-site sewage facilities.
9. "Chemical toilet" means a portable toilet using chemicals to mask odors, discourage insect breeding, and provide partial disinfection.
10. "Collective system" means an on-site sewage collection, treatment, and disposal system designed to serve two or more sewage-generating units where the total combined flow from all units does not exceed five thousand gallons per day.
11. "Commission" means the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
12. "Composting toilet" means a disposal facility designed to decompose non-waterborne human wastes through bacterial action facilitated by aeration.
13. "Department" means the Texas Department of State Health Services.
14. "Evaportranspiration system" means a subsurface sewage disposal system which relies on soil capilarity and plant uptake to dispose of treated effluent through surface evaporation and plant transpiration.
15. "Gravelless drainfield pipe" means a generically labeled large diameter (usually eight or ten inches) geotextile fabric-wrapped piping product which is intended for use without gravel in a subsurface sewage disposal system.
16. "Greywater" means wastewater from clothes washing machines, showers, bathtubs, handwashing lavatories, and sinks that are not used for food preparation or disposal of chemical and biological ingredients.
17. "Holding tank" means a watertight container used to receive and store sewage in an anaerobic environment pending its delivery to, and treatment at, an approved treatment facility.
18. "Individual" means a person, group of persons, corporation, or entity permitted to own, or use real estate.
19. "Injection well" means a hole drilled into permeable soil which is intended to receive either raw sewage or the effluent from some form of treatment process.
20. "Innovative design" means detailed drawings and specifications describing the construction of on-site sewerage facilities that utilize materials and concepts not included in these standards.
21. "Institution" means any establishment other than a single-family residence or a duplex residence.
22. "Licensing authority" means the department of environmental services.
23. "Mobile home park" means any facility or area developed for lease or rental of space for the placement of two or more mobile homes.
24. "Mound system" means a soil absorption system which is installed in or below an artificially created mound of earth.
25. "Natural soil" means earthen materials deposited into place by natural processes and not disturbed by artificial processes.
26. "On-site aerobic treatment unit" means a watertight covered receptacle designed to receive, store and provide treatment to domestic sewage received through a building sewer. Its function is to separate solids from the liquid, promote the aerobic digestion of organic matter through the use of a forced air supply, store and aerobically digest settleable solids, and allow the clarified liquid to be disposed of in a subsurface disposal system.
27. "On-site sewerage facilities" means septic tanks, pit privies, cesspools, sewage holding tanks, injection wells used to dispose of sewage, chemical toilets, treatment tanks, collective systems, and all other facilities, systems, and methods used for the disposal of sewage other than the disposal systems operated under a permit issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality.
28. "Pit privy" means a vented waterproof vault intended to store human wastes and allow its decomposition through natural processes. In this type of treatment, no external water source is provided and there is no direct discharge to the surface. It is recommended for use only in primitive and remote areas.
29. "Platted" means recorded with the county clerk's office in an official plat record.
30. "Portable toilet" means a small portable enclosure with a built-in toilet seat and a raw sewage holding tank. It is primarily intended for use at construction sites and other areas where temporary restroom facilities are required. Domestic sewage collected in these facilities is generally retained in an anaerobic state pending delivery to, and treatment at, an approved treatment facility.
31. "Pressure dosing" means the use of some form of pumping device and a network of small diameter piping to distribute treated effluent within a subsurface sewage disposal area.
32. "Private sewage facility" means all systems and methods used for the disposal of sewage, other than those operated in accordance with the terms and conditions of a valid waste discharge permit issued by the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. "Private sewage facility" is synonymous with "private sewerage facility," and includes the following three units:
a. A generating unit, including, but not limited to, a residence or an institution;
b. A treatment unit, including, but not limited to, a septic tank or holding tank; and
c. The disposal unit, including, but not limited to, an evapotranspiration unit bed or an absorption trench.
33. "Sanitary control easement" means a document securing all land, within one hundred fifty feet of a public or private potable water well location, from pollution hazards that include, but are not limited to, solid and liquid waste disposal sites, animal pens, improperly sealed or abandoned wells, major sewage pumping and treatment plants, and drainage ditches which contain industrial waste discharges.
34. "Scum" means a mass of organic or inorganic matter which floats on the surface of sewage.
35. "Seepage pit" means an unlined covered excavation in the ground which is designed to operate in essentially the same manner as a cesspool.
36. "Septic tank" means a watertight covered receptacle designed to receive, store and provide treatment to domestic sewage received from a building sewer. Its function is to separate solids from the liquid, digest organic matter under anaerobic conditions, store the digested solids through a period of detention, and allow the clarified liquid to be disposed of in a subsurface disposal system.
37. "Sewage" means water which contains, or which has been in contact with, organic and inorganic contaminants such as human or animal wastes, vegetable matter, cooking fats and greases, laundry and dishwashing detergents, and other chemical compounds and waste products.
38. "Single-family dwelling" means a habitable structure constructed on, or brought to its site, and occupied by one or more persons.
39. "Sludge" means a semiliquid mass of partially decomposed organic and inorganic matter which settles at or near the bottom of a receptacle containing sewage.
40. "Soil" means the unconsolidated mineral material on the surface of the earth that serves as a natural medium for the growth of plants.
41. "Soil absorption system" means a subsurface sewage disposal system which relies on the soil's ability to absorb moisture and allow its dispersal by lateral and vertical movement through and between individual soil particles.
42. "Split system" means a wastewater disposal system that treats and disposes of blackwater and greywater separately.
43. "Substantial modification to on-site sewerage facilities shall include replacement of a septic or aerobic tank, addition of a septic or aerobic tank to a system, any extension or expansion of an existing disposal bed.
44. "Subsurface sewage disposal system" means a network of perforated piping installed below ground level which is used to distribute pretreated sewage effluent over a given disposal area.
45. "Ultra-low-flow toilets" means toilets that use one and one-half gallons or less per flush.
(Ord. 16818 §§ 1—3 (part), 5, 2008; Ord. 9718 § 1, 1989; Ord. 9448 (part), 1988)