AUTHORITY OF THE CITY MANAGER OR WATER RESOURCES DIRECTOR TO REGULATE AND ENFORCE POTW USER COMPLIANCE
Mesa City Code § 8-4-27
in effect8-4-27: - AUTHORITY OF THE CITY MANAGER OR WATER RESOURCES DIRECTOR TO REGULATE AND ENFORCE POTW USER COMPLIANCE
The City Manager or Water Resources Director is authorized to regulate and enforce POTW user compliance with the requirements of this Chapter. In carrying out this responsibility, the City Manager or Water Resources Director has authority to:
(A) Consistent with applicable state and federal requirements, such as the pretreatment standards:
1. Regulate the volume and flow rate of discharge to the POTW;
2. Establish permissible limits of concentration for various specific substances, materials, waters, or wastes that can be accepted into the POTW;
3. Specify those pollutants, materials, waters, or wastes that are prohibited from entering the POTW. All prohibitions so established shall be placed on file with the City Clerk and will become effective and enforceable on the thirty-first (31st) day after the date of filing;
4. Establish limitations for individual users or class of users for various pollutants, materials, waters, or wastes that can be accepted into the POTW. All limitations so established shall be placed on file with the City Clerk and will become effective and enforceable on the thirty-first (31st) day after the date of filing;
5. Identify those pollutants, materials, waters, or wastes that shall be controlled with best management practices. Pollutants, materials, waters, or wastes to be controlled with best management practices that have been identified by the City Manager or Water Resources Director shall be placed on file with the City Clerk and will become effective and enforceable on the thirty-first (31st) day after the filing;
6. Require individual users or class of users to implement best management practices for any pollutant, materials, water, or waste;
7. Regulate the admission into the public sewers of any wastewater having one (1) or more of the following characteristics:
(a) A five- (5-) day biochemical oxygen demand greater than three hundred (300) milligrams per litre by weight;
(b) More than three hundred fifty (350) milligrams per litre by weight SS; or
(c) An average daily flow of greater than twenty-five thousand (25,000) gallons.
(B) Issue an Industrial Wastewater Discharge Permit pursuant to Section 8-4-18 of the Mesa City Code.
(C) Incorporate the pertinent requirements of this Chapter into every City contract with any POTW user located outside of the municipal jurisdiction of the City. Such contracts may also provide for liquidated damages and, if applicable, specific performance as remedies for breach of contract.
(D) Receive and analyze all self-monitoring reports and notices submitted by industrial users.
(E) Randomly sample and analyze effluent for industrial users at least once a year and conduct those surveillance and inspection activities needed to identify, independently of any information supplied by such users, occasional or continuing noncompliance with any categorical standard or pretreatment requirement.
(F) Investigate instances of noncompliance with any categorical standard or pretreatment requirement when notice of any actual or probable noncompliance has been received by the City Manager or Water Resources Director.
(G) Notify POTW users of noncompliance with categorical standards or pretreatment requirements discovered by the City Manager or Water Resources Director. Such notice shall also contain a demand for any appropriate corrective action which is necessary to meet the applicable requirements of this Chapter. The appropriate level of action shall be based on detailed written procedures developed by the Department.
1. Any POTW user will be allowed an opportunity to respond to an order of the City Manager or Water Resources Director before any enforcement action against such user is initiated unless the discharge is a threat to the public health, safety, or welfare, in which case the City Manager or Water Resources Director may initiate enforcement action without giving notice.
2. A timely and satisfactory response to an order may result in the issuance of a negotiated settlement agreement signed jointly by the user and the City Manager or Water Resources Director indicating a mutually agreeable resolution of the noncompliance action. If such a settlement agreement is reached, the City Manager or Water Resources Director shall provide notice in the largest daily newspaper published in the City of the agreement and a thirty- (30-) day public comment period on the agreement. If no public comments are received on the settlement agreement, the agreement shall become final and effective thirty-one (31) days after the notice publication date. Any public comments received by the City Manager or Water Resources Director shall be responded to in writing and mailed to the commenting party and the affected POTW user. A determination by the City Manager or Water Resources Director that no changes are necessary to the settlement agreement shall result in the agreement becoming final and effective upon the issuance of the City Manager or Water Resources Director's written response. If the City Manager or Water Resources Director determines that public comment warrants any modification to the settlement agreement, then an attempt shall be made to renegotiate the agreement. If a modified settlement agreement is reached, the City Manager or Water Resources Director shall determine whether the modification significantly alters the substance of the initial settlement agreement. The modified settlement agreement shall become final and effective if the City Manager or Water Resources Director determines that no significant alteration occurred. The City Manager or Water Resources Director shall repeat the public notice process described in this paragraph for a modified settlement agreement that has been significantly altered.
(H) Comply with the public participation requirements of 40 CFR Part 25 in connection with the City's enforcement of any categorical standards.
(I) Both:
1. Determine which actual or threatened discharge to the POTW will cause interference with the POTW or may present an imminent or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of any person and/or to the environment, and
2. Correct or mitigate any injury to the environment, the POTW, or to any other property as a result of any discharge in violation of a categorical standard or pretreatment requirement imposed by this Chapter.
(J) Annually publish in the largest daily newspaper published in the City public notice of all industrial users who at least once during the preceding twelve- (12-) month period were in significant noncompliance with any categorical standard or pretreatment requirement imposed by this Chapter. The notification also shall summarize any enforcement actions taken against such users during the same twelve- (12-) month period.
(K) Notify industrial users of applicable categorical standards and any applicable requirements under CWA §§ 204(b) and 405 and Subtitles C and D of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act.
(L) Keep on file one (1) copy of all federal statutes and regulations cited by this Chapter in order to allow required users adequate opportunity to be informed of the applicable federal requirements herein incorporated by reference.
(M) Evaluate at least once every two (2) years whether each significant industrial user needs a plan to control slug loads. The results of such activities shall be available to the approval authority upon request. If the City Manager or Water Resources Director decides that a slug control plan is needed, the plan shall contain all of the following elements:
1. Description of discharge practices, including nonroutine batch discharges;
2. Description of stored chemicals;
3. Procedures for immediately notifying the City Manager or Water Resources Director of slug discharges, including any discharge that would violate a prohibition under 40 CFR § 403.5(b), with procedures for follow up written notification within five (5) days. The written report must detail the cause of the discharge and the measures to be taken by the user to prevent similar future occurrences. Such notification will not relieve the user of any expense, loss, damage, or other liability that might be incurred as a result of damage to the POTW, natural resources, or any other damage to person or property; nor will such notification relieve the user of any fines, penalties, or other liability that may be imposed pursuant to this chapter.
4. Procedures to prevent adverse impact from accidental spills, including inspection and maintenance of storage areas, handling and transfer of material, loading and unloading operations, control of plant site run-off, worker training, building of containment structures or equipment, measures for containing toxic organic pollutants (including solvents), and/or measures and equipment for emergency response.
(N) Require both:
1. The development of a compliance schedule by each industrial user for the installation of technology required to meet applicable pretreatment requirements, and
2. The submission of all notices and self-monitoring reports from industrial users as are necessary to assess and assure compliance by industrial users with pretreatment requirements, including the reports required in 40 CFR § 403.12.
(O) If the City Manager or Water Resources Director determines that it will not harm the POTW, approve the discharge of storm water, surface water, groundwater, roof runoff, subsurface drainage, single-pass cooling water, or condensate that may constitute inflow.
(Ord. No. 5959, § 2, 8-25-25)
Source: City of Mesa, Arizona, Mesa City Code and City Charter (Municode Library, library.municode.com)URL: https://library.municode.com/az/mesa/codes/code_of_ordinances?nodeId=COOR_TIT8HESAEN_CH4SASERE_8-4-27AUMAWAREDIREENPOUSCOFetched: 11/1/2026