Sec. 56-102.5. - Industrial pretreatment.
(a) Purpose. This section sets forth uniform requirements for direct and indirect contributors into the wastewater collection and treatment system for the city and enables the city to comply with its service agreement with the Metropolitan Denver Sewage Disposal District No. 1, city clerk's Filing No. 85852, as well as state and federal laws required by the Clean Water Act of 1977 and the general pretreatment regulations (40 CFR, Part 403). The objectives of this section are:
(1) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the municipal sanitary sewer system and POTW which will interfere with the operation of the system or contaminate resulting sludge;
(2) To prevent the introduction of pollutants into the municipal sanitary sewer system which will pass through the system, inadequately treated, into receiving waters or the atmosphere or otherwise be incompatible with the system;
(3) To improve the opportunity to recycle and reclaim wastewaters and sludges from the system; and
(4) To provide for the equitable distribution of the costs of this program.
This section provides for the regulation of direct and indirect contributors to the municipal sanitary sewer system through the issuance of permits to certain nondomestic users and through enforcement of general requirements for other users, authorizes monitoring and enforcement activities, requires user reporting, assumes that existing customers' capacity will not be preempted, and provides for the setting of fees for the equitable distribution of costs resulting from the program established herein. This section shall apply to the city and to persons outside the city who are, by contract or agreement, users of the municipal sanitary sewer system.
(b) Definitions. Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the following terms and phrases, as used in this section only, shall have the meanings hereinafter designated. Definitions found in other sections of this Revised Municipal Code may be applicable to this section; however, whenever there shall be any inconsistency or variance between such definitions and the definitions contained herein, the following definitions shall take control and precedence over any such conflicting definition for the purposes of this section only:
(1) Act or "the Act": The Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also known as the Clean Water Act, as amended, 33 U.S.C. 1251 et seq.
(2) Approval authority: The director of the state department of health, water quality control division and the administrator of the EPA in a non-NPDES state or NPDES state without an approved state pretreatment program.
(3) Authorized representative of industrial user: An authorized representative of an industrial user may be: (i) A principal executive officer of at least the level of vice-president, if the industrial user is a corporation; (ii) a general partner or proprietor if the industrial user is a partnership or proprietorship, respectively; (iii) a duly authorized representative of the individual designated above if such representative is responsible for the overall operation of the facilities from which the indirect discharge originates.
(4) Baseline monitoring report: The EPA report required of industrial users subject to categorical standards.
(5) Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD): The quantity of oxygen utilized in the biochemical oxidation of organic matter under standard laboratory procedure, five (5) days at twenty (20) [degrees] centigrade, expressed in terms of weight and concentration (milligrams per liter (mg/l)).
(6) Categorical standards: National categorical pretreatment standards or pretreatment standard.
(7) City: The city and County of Denver.
(8) Cooling water: The water discharged from any use such as air conditioning, cooling or refrigeration, or to which the only pollutant added is heat.
(9) Control authority: The term "control authority" shall refer to the "approval authority" defined hereinabove; or to Metro, defined herein, if Metro has an approved pretreatment program under the provisions of 40 CFR 403.11.
(10) Direct discharge: The discharge of treated or untreated wastewater directly into the waters of the state.
(11) Environmental Protection Agency or EPA: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, or where appropriate, the term may also be used as a designation for the administrator or other duly authorized official of the said agency.
(12) Federal categorical pretreatment standard or pretreatment standard: Any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by the EPA in accordance with Sections 307(b) and (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1317), which applies to a specific category of industrial users.
(13) Grab sample: A sample which is taken from a waste stream on a one-time basis with no regard to the flow in the waste stream and without consideration of time.
(14) Indirect discharge: The discharge or the introduction of nondomestic pollutants from any source regulated under Sections 307(b) or (c) of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1317), into the municipal sanitary sewer system as a component of the POTW (including holding tank waste discharged into the system).
(15) Industrial user: Any nondomestic source discharging pollutants into the municipal sanitary sewer system.
(16) Interference: A discharge which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, both (1) inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes, use or disposal; and (2) therefore is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the city's service agreement with Metro, or Metro's NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal in compliance with the following statutory provisions and regulations or permits issued thereunder (or more stringent state or local regulations): Section 405 of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1345), the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) including Title II, more commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and including state regulations contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA, the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act.
(17) Manager, department of transportation and infrastructure: The person designated by the city to supervise the operation of the municipal sanitary sewer system and administer the service agreement with metro as operator of the POTW and the person charged with the implementation of this section, or his duly authorized representative.
(18) Metro: Metropolitan Wastewater Reclamation District, operator of the POTW serving the municipal sanitary sewer system under a service agreement, and the permittee under the NPDES permit pertaining thereto.
(19) Municipal sanitary sewer system: The system of pipes and conductors which collect the flows of users and convey the same to the POTW. For the purposes of this section, a part of the POTW and included within that term as it appears herein.
(20) National prohibitive discharge standard or prohibitive discharge standard: Any regulation developed under the authority of Section 307(b) of the Act and 40 CFR 403.5.
(21) New source: Any source, the construction of which is commenced after the publication of proposed regulations prescribing a Section 307(c) (33 U.S.C. 1317) categorical pretreatment standard which will be applicable to such source, if such standard is thereafter promulgated within one hundred twenty (120) days of proposal in the Federal Register. Where the standard is promulgated later than one hundred twenty (120) days after proposal, a new source means any source, the construction of which is commenced after the date or promulgation of the standard.
(22) National pollution discharge elimination system or NPDES permit: A permit issued pursuant to Section 402 of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1342).
(22.5) Pass through: A discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the United States in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW's NPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).
(23) Person: Any individual, partnership, copartnership, firm, company, corporation, association, joint stock company, trust, estate, governmental entity or any other legal entity, or their legal representatives, agents or assigns. The masculine gender shall include the feminine, the singular shall include the plural where indicated by the context.
(24) pH: The logarithm (base 10) of the reciprocal of the concentration of hydrogen ions expressed in moles per liter of solution.
(25) Pollutant: Any dredged soil, solid waste, incinerator residue, sewage, garbage, sewage sludge, munitions, chemical wastes, biological materials, radioactive materials, heat, wrecked or discharged equipment, rock, sand, cellar dirt and industrial, municipal, and agricultural waste discharged into water.
(26) Pollution: The man-made or man-induced alteration of the chemical, physical, biological, and radiological integrity of water.
(27) Pretreatment or treatment: The reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater to a less harmful state prior to or in lieu of discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into a POTW. The reduction or alteration can be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, or process changes by other means, except as prohibited by 40 CFR Section 403.6(d).
(28) Pretreatment requirement: Any substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment, other than a federal pretreatment standard imposed on an industrial user.
(29) Publicly owned treatment works (POTW): A treatment works as defined by Section 212 of the Act (33 U.S.C. 1292) which is owned in this instance by the city or metro and under contractual agreement used to serve the flows of the city's municipal sanitary sewer system. This definition includes the city's municipal sanitary sewer system that conveys wastewater to the POTW treatment plant, but does not include pipes, sewers or other conveyances not connected to a facility providing treatment. For the purposes of this section, "POTW" shall also include any sewers outside the boundaries of the city that convey wastewaters to the municipal sanitary sewer system for POTW treatment by contract or agreement with the city.
(30) POTW treatment plant: That portion of the POTW designed to provide treatment to wastewater.
(31) Shall is mandatory; may is permissive.
(32) Significant industrial user: Any industrial user of the city's wastewater disposal system who (i) has a discharge flow of twenty-five thousand (25,000) gallons or more per average work day, or (ii) has a flow greater than five (5) percent of the flow in the city's wastewater treatment system, or (iii) has in his wastes toxic pollutants as defined pursuant to Section 307 of the Act, or metro rules, or Colorado Statutes and Rules, or (iv) is found by the city, metro, the state department of health, water quality control division, or the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to have significant impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industries, on the wastewater treatment system, the quality of sludge, the system's effluent quality, or air emissions generated by the system.
(33) Slug: An homogenous discharge in a pipe or conduit system.
(34) State: State of Colorado.
(35) Standard industrial classification (SIC): A classification pursuant to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual issued by the Executive Office of the President, Office of Management and Budget, (1972).
(36) Suspended solids: The total suspended matter that floats on the surface of, or is suspended in, water, wastewater or other liquids, and which is removable by laboratory filtering.
(37) Toxic pollutant: Any pollutant or combination of pollutants listed as toxic in regulations promulgated by the administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency under the provisions of CWA 307(a) or other acts.
(38) User: Any person who contributes, causes or permits the discharge of wastewater into the city's municipal sanitary sewer system and the POTW operated by metro.
(39) Waters of the state: All streams, lakes, ponds, marshes, watercourses, waterways, wells, springs, reservoirs, aquifers, irrigation systems, drainage systems and all other bodies or accumulations of water, surface or underground, natural or artificial, public or private, which are contained within, flow through, or border upon the state or any portion thereof.
(c) Abbreviations. The following abbreviations shall have the designated meanings:
BOD | biochemical oxygen demand
CFR | Code of Federal Regulations
COD | chemical oxygen demand
CWA | Clean Water Act (Public Law 92-100)
EPA | Environmental Protection Agency
l | liter
mg | milligrams
mg/l | milligrams per liter
NPDES | national pollution discharge elimination system
POTW | publicly owned treatment works
SIC | standard industrial classification
SWDA | Solid Waste Disposal Act, 42 U.S.C. 6901 et seq.
U.S.C. | United States Code
TSS | total suspended solids
(d) General discharge prohibitions. No user shall contribute or cause to be contributed directly into the city's municipal sanitary sewer system or indirectly any pollutant or wastewater which alone, or in conjunction with other discharges, will cause interference or result in a pass through. These general prohibitions apply to all such users, whether or not the user is subject to national categorical pretreatment standards or requirements. No user may discharge any substance not in compliance with the rules and regulations of the department of transportation and infrastructure.
When the manager determines that a user is contributing to the POTW any of the substances set forth in the rules and regulations in such amounts as to, in his opinion, interfere with the operation of the POTW, the manager shall: (1) advise the user in writing of the impact of the discharge on the POTW; and (2) develop effluent limitations for such user to correct the interference with the POTW.
(e) Federal categorical pretreatment standard; when effective. Upon the promulgation of the federal categorical pretreatment standards for a particular industrial subcategory, the federal standard, if more stringent than limitations imposed under this section for sources in that subcategory, shall immediately supersede the limitations imposed under this section. The manager shall notify all affected users of the applicable reporting requirements under 40 CFR 403.12.
(f) Modification of federal categorical pretreatment standards. Where the metro wastewater treatment system achieves consistent removal of pollutants limited by federal pretreatment standards, the city may request that metro as the control authority grant modification of specific limits in the federal pretreatment standards. The city, upon receipt of the prior written consent of metro, may then modify pollutant discharge limits in the federal pretreatment standards, provided that the requirements contained in the metro service agreement are fulfilled.
(g) Specific pollutant limitations. No person shall discharge wastewater having characteristics not in full compliance with the rules and regulations of the wastewater management division of the department of transportation and infrastructure of the city.
(h) Metro and state requirements. Metro and state requirements and limitations on discharges, both direct and indirect, shall apply in any case where they have been established and published or otherwise made known to the affected user and are more stringent than federal requirements and limitations or those established under this section.
(i) Revision of standards. The city reserves the right to establish by ordinance or rules and regulations more stringent limitations or requirements on discharges to the municipal sanitary sewer system where deemed necessary to comply with the objectives presented in subsection (a) of this section.
(j) Excessive discharge. No user shall increase the use of processed water or, in any way, attempt to dilute a discharge as a partial or complete substitute for adequate treatment to achieve compliance with the limitations contained in the federal categorical pretreatment standards, or in any other pollutant-specific limitation developed by competent authority as herein described.
(k) Accidental discharges. Each user shall provide protection from accidental discharge of prohibited materials or other substances regulated by this section. All facilities, regardless of use, containing prohibited materials or regulated substances shall comply fully with the accidental discharge provisions of this section. Facilities to prevent accidental discharge of prohibited materials shall be provided and maintained at the owner or user's own cost and expense. Detailed plans showing facilities and operating procedures to provide this protection shall be submitted to the city for review, and shall be approved by the city before construction of the facility. All existing users shall complete such a plan by July 1, 1986. No user who commences discharging to the POTW after the effective date of this section shall be permitted to introduce pollutants into the system until accidental discharge procedures have been approved by the city. Review and approval of such plans and operating procedures shall not relieve the user from the responsibility to modify the user's facility as necessary to meet the requirements of this section. In the case of an accidental discharge, it is the responsibility of the user to immediately telephone and notify first, the POTW operator (metro), and secondly, the manager of the incident. The notification shall include location of discharge, type of waste, concentration and volume, and corrective actions taken.
(l) Written notice of accidental discharge. Within five (5) days following an accidental discharge, the authorized representative of the industrial user shall submit to the manager a detailed written report describing the cause of the discharge and the measures to be taken by the user to prevent similar future occurrences. Reports made to other municipal departments covering the events may be offered in lieu of the above report provided the required information is contained therein, or appended thereto, and accepted by the manager as a substitute report.
(m) Notice to employees. A notice shall be permanently posted on the user's bulletin board or other prominent place advising employees whom to call in the event of an accidental discharge. Employers shall ensure that all employees who may cause or suffer such an accidental discharge to occur are advised of the emergency notification procedure.
(n) Fees and charges. In order to provide for the fair and equitable recovery of costs from users of the city wastewater disposal system resulting from the implementation of the program established herein, in addition to any other service charges, tap fees, fees for the availability of service, surcharges, or other fees and charges established or imposed by this section or any other section or provision of this Revised Municipal Code, the following fees and charges are hereby imposed.
(1) An annual charge for all significant industrial users of category III, i.e., users having in their wastes toxic pollutants as defined pursuant to Section 307 of the Act, or metro rules, or Colorado Statutes and Rules, of four hundred fifty dollars ($450.00) per million gallons of sewage contributed to the municipal sanitary sewer system by the user during the billing period.
(2) An annual charge for all significant industrial users of categories I, II and IV, i.e., users having a discharge flow of twenty-five thousand (25,000) gallons or more per average work day, or having a flow greater than five (5) percent of the flow in the city's wastewater treatment system, or having been found by the city, metro, the state department of health, water quality control division, or the U.S. Environment Protection Agency (EPA) to have significant impact, either singly or in combination with other contributing industries, on the wastewater treatment system, the quality of sludge, the system's effluent quality, or air emission generated by the system, of two hundred forty dollars ($240.00) per million gallons of sewage contributed to the municipal sanitary sewer system by the user during the billing period.
(3) Charges for inspection and laboratory service fees in processing an application for a conditional discharge permit of six hundred eighty-six dollars ($686.00), unless the application shall be accompanied by a baseline monitoring report.
(4) Charges for review and approval of plans and procedures to correct and prevent further harmful discharges of six hundred eighty-six dollars ($686.00) per event.
(5) Charges for sample collection and laboratory analysis performed by the city which is in addition to periodic, scheduled sampling when necessitated, in the opinion of the manager, by prior permit or other violations of the industrial user sampled. Charges shall be in accordance with a schedule of actual, direct and indirect costs of the city as approved by the manager.
All fees and charges paid and collected pursuant to this section shall be segregated, credited and deposited in a special fund or funds, and shall not be transferred therefrom to any account of the city, except to pay for expenses directly attributable to industrial pretreatment activities. The fees and charges paid by virtue of this section shall not be used for general or other governmental or proprietary purposes of the city, except to pay for the equitable share of the costs of accounting, management and government thereof. Instead, the fees and charges shall be used, other than as described above, solely to pay for the costs of the inspection, monitoring, laboratory services, and other costs directly attributable to the operation of the industrial pretreatment program. The annual charges provided for herein may be added to the user's periodic sanitary sewage service charges or otherwise collected in the same manner as such charges.
(o) Wastewater discharges; permit required. No person shall discharge without a valid city permit to any natural outlet within the city, or in any area under the jurisdiction of the city, and/or to the POTW any wastewater except as authorized by the manager in accordance with the provisions of this section.
(p) Conditional wastewater discharge permits.
(1) General permits. Any industrial user proposing to connect to or contribute to the POTW shall submit an industrial waste declaration, describing the constituents and characteristics of the wastewater that will be discharged to the POTW. This declaration must be submitted to the manager at least ninety (90) days prior to connecting to or contributing to the POTW. When the manager determines the industrial user to be a significant industrial user, the user shall obtain a conditional wastewater discharge permit before connecting to or contributing to the POTW.
Existing significant industrial users connected to or contributing to the POTW who are subject to federal categorical pretreatment standards shall obtain a conditional wastewater discharge permit by no later than January 1, 1986. All other industrial users connected to or contributing to the POTW at the time of enactment of this section shall submit an industrial waste declaration to the manager by January 1, 1987, unless required to do so earlier by the manager. The manager shall make a determination whether a permit is required within a reasonable time thereafter.
(2) Permit application. Users required to obtain a conditional wastewater discharge permit shall complete and file with the manager an application in the form prescribed accompanied by a fee of two hundred fifty dollars ($250.00). In support of the application, the user shall submit, in units and terms appropriate for evaluation, the following information:
a. Name, address, and location (if different from the address);
b. SIC numbers according to the Standard Industrial Classification Manual, Bureau of the Budget, 1972, as amended;
c. Wastewater constituents and characteristics including but not limited to those mentioned in subsections (d) through (k) of this section as certified in writing by a reliable analytical laboratory; sampling and analysis shall be performed in accordance with procedures established by the EPA pursuant to Section 304(g) of the Act and contained in 40 CFR, Part 136, as amended. For initial permitting, a copy of the baseline monitoring report submitted to the EPA may be submitted in support of the application;
d. Time and duration of discharge(s);
e. Average daily and thirty-minute peak wastewater flow rates, including daily, monthly and seasonal variations if any;
f. Site plans, floor plans, mechanical and plumbing plans and details to show all sewers, sewer connections and appurtenances by the size, location and elevation;
g. Description of activities, facilities and plant processes on the premises including all materials which are or could be discharged into the sanitary sewer;
h. A report setting forth the nature and concentration of any pollutants, the discharge of which are limited by any city, metro, state, or federal discharge standards, and a statement regarding whether or not the discharge standards are being met on a consistent basis and, if not, whether additional operation and maintenance (O&M) and/or additional pretreatment is required for the user to meet the applicable discharge standards;
i. If additional pretreatment and/or operation and maintenance will be required to meet the pretreatment or discharge standards, the shortest schedule by which the user will provide such additional pretreatment. The completion date in this schedule shall not be later than the compliance date established for the applicable pretreatment standard, unless approved by the manager.
The following conditions shall apply to this schedule:
1. The schedule shall contain increments of progress in the form of dates for the commencement and completion of major events leading to the construction and operation of additional pretreatment required for the user to meet the applicable pretreatment standard or discharge standards (e.g., hiring an engineer, completing preliminary plans, completing final plans, executing contract for major components, commencing construction, completing construction, etc.).
2. No increment referred to in paragraph 1., above, shall exceed a reasonable period of time, as determined by the manager. In determining the said time period, the manager shall consider the complexity of the project consistent with sound engineering practices.
3. No later than fourteen (14) days following each date in the schedule and the final date for compliance, the user shall submit a progress report to the manager including, as a minimum, whether or not it complied with the increment of progress to be met on such date and, if not, the date on which it expects to comply with this increment of progress, the reason for delay, and the steps being taken by the user to return the construction to the schedule established. In no event shall more than nine (9) months elapse between such progress reports to the manager;
j. Each product produced by type, amount, process or processes and rate of production;
k. Type and amount of raw materials processed (average and maximum per day);
l. Number and type of employees and hours of operation of plant and proposed or actual hours of operation of pretreatment system;
The city will evaluate the data furnished by the user and may require additional information. After evaluation and acceptance of the data furnished, the manager may issue a conditional wastewater discharge permit subject to terms and conditions provided herein.
(q) Permit modifications. Within nine (9) months of the promulgation of a federal categorical pretreatment standard, the conditional wastewater discharge permit of users subject to such standards shall be revised to require compliance with such standards within the time frame prescribed by such standards. Where a user, subject to a federal categorical pretreatment standard, has not previously submitted an application for a conditional wastewater discharge permit as required by subsection (p)(2), the user shall apply for a conditional wastewater discharge permit within one hundred eighty (180) days after the promulgation of the applicable federal categorical pretreatment standard. In addition, the user with an existing conditional wastewater discharge permit shall submit to the manager within one hundred eighty (180) days after the promulgation of an applicable federal categorical pretreatment standard the information required by paragraphs h. and i. of subsection (p)(2).
(r) Permit conditions. Conditional wastewater discharge permits shall be expressly subject to all provisions of this section and all other applicable regulations, user charges and fees established by the city. Valid permits shall contain the following, as applicable:
(1) The unit charge for the wastewater to be discharged to a community sewer;
(2) Limits on the average and maximum wastewater constituents and characteristics;
(3) Limits on average and maximum rate and time of discharge or requirements for flow regulations and equalization;
(4) Requirements for installation and maintenance of inspection and sampling facilities;
(5) Specifications for monitoring programs including: sampling locations, frequency of sampling, number, types and standards for test and reporting schedule;
(6) Compliance schedules;
(7) Requirements for submission of technical reports or discharge reports (see subsection (u));
(8) Requirements for maintaining and retaining plant records relating to wastewater discharge as specified by the applicable rules and regulations of the city;
(9) Requirements for notification of the city of any new introduction of wastewater constituents or any substantial change in the volume or character of the wastewater constituents being introduced into the wastewater treatment system;
(10) Requirements for notification of slug discharges as required in the rules and regulations of the wastewater management division.
(s) Permit duration. Permits shall be issued for a specified time period, not to exceed five (5) years. A permit may be issued for a period less than a year or may be stated to expire on a specific date, based upon projected use of the facility. The user shall apply for permit reissuance a minimum of ninety (90) days prior to the expiration of the user's existing permit. The terms and conditions of the permit may be subject to modification by the city during the term of the permit as limitations or requirements identified in subsections (d) through (k) are modified or other just cause exists. The user shall be informed in writing of any proposed changes in his permit at least thirty (30) days prior to the effective date of change. Any changes or new conditions in the permit shall include a reasonable time schedule for compliance.
(t) Permit transfer. Conditional wastewater discharge permits are issued to a specific user for a specific operation. A conditional wastewater discharge permit shall not be reassigned or transferred or sold to a new owner, new user, different premises, or a new or change operation without the prior written approval of the city. Any succeeding owner or user of a permitted operation is bound by the term of the existing permit.
(u) Reporting requirements for permittees.
(1) Compliance date report. Within ninety (90) days following the date for final compliance with applicable pretreatment standards or, in the case of a new source, following commencement of the introduction of wastewater in the POTW, any user subject to pretreatment standards and requirements shall submit to the manager a report indicating the nature and concentration of all pollutants in the discharge from the regulated process which are limited by pretreatment standards and requirements and the average and maximum daily flow for these process units in the user's facility which are limited by such pretreatment standards or requirements. The report shall state whether the applicable pretreatment standards or requirements are being met on a consistent basis and, if not, what additional operation and maintenance and/or pretreatment is necessary to bring the user into compliance with the applicable pretreatment standards or requirements. This statement shall be signed by an authorized representative of the significant industrial user, and certified by a qualified professional.
(2) Periodic compliance reports.
a. Any user subject to a pretreatment standard, after the compliance date of such pretreatment standard, or in the case of a new source, after commencement of the discharge into the POTW, shall submit to the manager during the months of June and December, unless required more frequently in the pretreatment standard or by the manager, a report covering the preceding six (6) months indicating the nature and concentration of pollutants in the effluent which are limited by such pretreatment standards. In addition, this report shall include a record of average and maximum daily flows from all regulated processes during the reporting period. At the discretion of the manager and in consideration of such factors as local high or low flow rates, holidays, budget cycles, etc., the manager may agree to alter the months during which the above reports are to be submitted.
b. The manager may impose mass limitations on users which are using dilution to meet applicable pretreatment standards which specifically provide for dilution, and where the imposition of mass limitations are appropriate based upon the POTW operating characteristics. In such cases, the report required by subparagraph a. of this subsection shall indicate the mass of pollutants regulated by categorical or pretreatment standards in the effluent of the user. These reports shall contain the results of sampling and analysis of the discharge, including the flow and the nature and concentration, or production and mass where requested by the manager, of pollutants contained therein which are limited by the applicable pretreatment standards. All analyses shall be performed in accordance with the procedures established by the administrator pursuant to Section 304(g) of the Act and contained in 40 CFR, Part 136, and amendments thereto or with any other test procedures approved by the administrator.
(v) Monitoring facilities. The city shall require to be provided and operated at the user's own expense, monitoring facilities to allow inspection, sampling, and flow measurement of the building sewer and/or internal drainage systems. The monitoring facility should normally be situated on the user's premises, but the city may, when such a location would be impractical or cause undue hardship on the user, allow the facility to be constructed in the public street or sidewalk. There shall be ample room in or near such sampling manhole or facility to allow accurate sampling and preparation of samples for analysis. The facility, sampling, and measuring equipment shall be maintained by the user at all times in a safe and proper operating condition at the expense of the user. Whether constructed on public or private property, the sampling and monitoring facilities shall be provided in accordance with the city requirements and all applicable local construction standards and specifications. Construction shall be completed within ninety (90) days following written notification by the city that such facilities are required.
(w) Inspection and sampling. The city may inspect the facilities of any user to ascertain whether the purpose of this section is being met and all requirements are being complied with. Persons or occupants of premises where wastewater is created or discharged shall allow the city, its authorized representatives, or metro, ready access at all reasonable times to all parts of the premises for the purposes of inspection, sampling, records examination and copying, or in the performance of any of their duties. The city, metro, the approval authority, and the EPA shall have the right to set up on the user's property such devices as are necessary to conduct sampling, inspection, compliance monitoring, and/or metering operations. Where a user has security measures in force which would require proper identification and clearance before entry into their premises, the user shall make necessary arrangements with their security guards so that upon presentation of suitable identification, personnel from the city, metro, and EPA will be permitted to enter, without delay, for the purposes of performing the work authorized herein.
(x) Pretreatment. Users shall provide necessary wastewater treatment as required to comply with the permit issued pursuant to the provisions of this section and shall achieve compliance with all national categorical pretreatment standards within the time limitations as specified by the Federal Pretreatment Regulations contained in 40 CFR.
Any facilities required to pretreat wastewater shall be provided, operated and maintained in efficient order at the user's expense. Detailed plans showing the pretreatment facilities and operating procedures shall be submitted to the city for review and approval before construction of the facility. The review of such plans and operating procedures will in no way relieve the user from the responsibility of modifying the facility as necessary to produce an effluent acceptable to the city under the provisions of this section. Any subsequent changes in the pretreatment facilities or methods of operation shall be reported to and be acceptable to the city prior to the user's initiation of the changes.
Pursuant to federal law, the city shall annually publish in the newspaper of largest circulation within the city a list of the users which were not in compliance with any pretreatment requirements or standards at least once during the twelve (12) previous months. The notification shall also summarize any enforcement actions taken against the users during the same twelve (12) months.
All records relating to compliance with pretreatment standards shall be made available to the approval authority, manager, or his representatives, and metro upon receipt of reasonable notice, during normal business hours.
(y) Confidential information. Information and data on a user obtained from written reports, questionnaires, permit applications, permits and monitoring programs and from inspections shall be available to the public or other governmental agencies without restriction unless the user specifically requests and is able to demonstrate to the satisfaction of the city that the release of such information would divulge information, processes or methods of production entitled to protection as trade secrets of the user. All claimed confidential information must be marked "Confidential" before and after the section containing the data, and the first page thereof must show "Claimed Confidential Data." When requested by the person furnishing the report, the portions of a report which might disclose trade secrets or secret processes shall not be made available for inspection by the public, but shall be made available upon written request to governmental agencies for uses related to this section, the national pollution discharge elimination system (NPDES) permit, state disposal system permit and/or the pretreatment programs; provided, however, that such portions of a report shall be available for use by the state or any state agency in judicial review or enforcement proceedings involving the person furnishing the report. Wastewater constituents and characteristics will not be recognized as confidential information.
(z) Harmful discharges. The city may suspend the wastewater treatment service and/or a conditional wastewater discharge permit when such suspension is necessary in the opinion of the city, or the city is ordered in writing to do so by Metro, to stop an actual or threatened discharge which presents or may present an imminent or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of persons, to the environment, cause interference to the POTW, or cause the city to violate any conditions of its service agreement with Metro, or cause the city or Metro to violate any condition of its NPDES permit.
Any person notified of a suspension of the wastewater treatment service and/or the conditional wastewater discharge permit shall immediately stop or eliminate the discharge. In the event of a failure of the person to comply voluntarily 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 POTW system or endangerment to any individuals. The city shall reinstate the conditional wastewater discharge permit and/or the wastewater treatment service upon proof of the elimination of the noncomplying discharge. A detailed written statement submitted by the user describing the causes of the harmful discharge and the measures taken to prevent any future occurrence shall be submitted to the manager, along with the fee prescribed, within five (5) days of the date of occurrence.
(aa) Revocation of permit. Any user who violates the provisions of this section, or applicable Metro, state or federal regulations, or commits any of the following acts, is subject to having his permit revoked in accordance with the procedures of subsections (z) through (dd) of this section:
(1) Failure of a user to factually report the wastewater constituents and characteristics of his discharge;
(2) Failure of the user to report significant changes in operations, or wastewater constituents and characteristics;
(3) Refusal of responsible access to the user's premises for the purpose of inspection or monitoring; or
(4) Violation of conditions of the conditional wastewater discharge permit.
(bb) Notification of violation. Whenever the city finds that any user has violated or is violating this section, conditional wastewater discharge permit, or any prohibition or limitation of requirements contained herein or contained in the rules and regulations pertaining hereto, the city may serve upon such person a written notice stating the nature of the violation, and any required remedial action. Within ten (10) days of the date of the notice, a plan for the satisfactory correction thereof shall be submitted to the city by the user.
(cc) Show-cause hearing. The city may order any user who causes or allows an unauthorized discharge to enter the POTW to show cause before the manager, or his delegate, why a proposed enforcement action should not be taken, or to allow the manager to determine the appropriate action to be taken when insufficient facts are available without the participation of the user. A notice shall be served on the user specifying the time and place of a hearing 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 manager 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 ten (10) days before the hearing. Service may be made on any agent or officer of a corporation, or the authorized representative of the industrial user. The manager shall make a final determination within thirty (30) days of the hearing date, which shall be a final order and reviewable under Section 106(a)(4) of the Colorado Rules of Civil Procedure.
(dd) 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 section, federal or state pretreatment requirements, or any order of the city, the city attorney may, upon the direction of the mayor, commence an action for appropriate legal and/or equitable relief in the appropriate forum.
(ee) Civil penalties. Any user served hereunder found to have violated the terms of his conditional discharge permit or any order of the city or with any provision of this section and the orders, rules, regulations and permits issued hereunder shall be subject to the imposition of civil penalties pursuant to section 56-107(b) of this Revised Municipal Code for each offense. Each day on which a violation shall occur or continue shall be deemed a separate and distinct violation. For violation of monthly average discharge limits, penalties may be assessed for each day during the month of violation. Violations of four-day average discharge limits shall be considered as four (4) days of violation. Civil penalties may be assessed by written notice, payable thirty (30) days following the date of the notice, or as otherwise allowed by law. Unpaid civil penalties may be collected in the same manner as are delinquent sanitary sewage service charges. In addition to the penalties provided herein, the city may recover reasonable attorneys' fees, court costs, court reporter's fees, laboratory analysis costs, and other expenses of any show cause proceeding, administrative hearing or litigation, by an appropriate action at law.
(ff) 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 section or conditional wastewater discharge permit, or who falsifies, tampers with, or knowingly renders inaccurate any monitoring device or method required under this section shall be subject to severance of service and such other remedies as are provided herein.
(gg) Severability. In the event that any subsection, subdivision, paragraph, sentence, clause or phrase of this section or application thereof is for any reason held or decided to be unconstitutional or unlawful, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portion or application of this section. The city council hereby declares that it would have passed this section and each subsection, subdivision, sentence, clause or phrase or application thereof separately and individually, and irrespective of the fact that any one (1) or more subsections, subdivisions, sentences, clauses or phrases or applications thereof might be declared unconstitutional or unlawful.
(hh) Contractual obligations. Pursuant to the service agreement between the city and metro, it shall be lawful for metro and its duly authorized representative to carry out within the city the provisions of Article IV (less those subsections of Section 409 from which the city is exempted or nonelecting) of the service agreement providing for management of deleterious waste.
(ii) Slug discharge determination. At least every two (2) years, the city shall evaluate whether each significant industrial user needs a plan to control slug discharges. If a slug plan is needed, the plan shall contain, at a minimum, the following elements:
(1) Description of discharge practices, including nonroutine batch discharges;
(2) Description of stored chemicals;
(3) Procedures for immediately notifying the city of slug discharges, including any discharge that would violate a prohibition under Chapter 7 of the Rules and Regulations Governing Sewerage Charges and Fees and Management of Wastewater, as the same may be amended or superseded, with procedures for followup written notification within five (5) days;
(4) If necessary, procedures to prevent adverse impact from accidental spills, including inspection and maintenance of storage areas, handling and transfer of materials, loading and unloading operations, control of plant site runoff, worker training, building of containment structures or equipment, measures for containing toxic organic pollutants (including solvents), and/or measures and equipment for emergency response.
(jj) Hazardous waste discharge reporting. Industrial users shall notify the city, the Metro District, the EPA regional waste management division director and the state hazardous waste authorities, in writing, of any discharge into the POTW of any substance which, if otherwise disposed of, would be considered a hazardous waste under 40 CFR Part 261. This notification does not apply to pollutants already reported under the reporting requirements contained in subsection (u) of this section 56-102.5. Report contents and time limitations applicable for reporting under this subsection shall be as specified in 40 CFR 403.12(p).
(Ord. No. 421-85, § 1, 8-6-85; Ord. No. 78-87, § 35, 2-9-87; Ord. No. 560-88, §§ 6—12, 9-6-88; Ord. No. 657-88, § 1, 10-17-88; Ord. No. 452-92, §§ 1—3, 7-6-92; Ord. No. 834-95, § 5, 10-10-95; Ord. No. 194-96, § 1, 3-4-96; Ord. No. 39-20, § 244, 2-3-20)
