City of
Ordinance 06-13
The City
Council of the City of
Section
1. 401 Sewer Service.
401.08 User
Charges. It is the purpose of this
section to recover from users of the city facilities, on an equitable basis,
the share of the city facilities' costs attributable to such users, and to
provide funds for the operation and maintenance, debt service, replacement and
improvements of the city.
Subd.
1. Charges
Levied. The user charges provided
for in this section are hereby levied and assessed upon each lodge, parcel of
land, building or premises having any connection with, or discharging either
directly or indirectly into the sewer system.
Subd.
2. Computation
and Notice. The council shall
annually determine and fix the unit costs for use of the city treatment
facilities on the basis of flow, BOD, TSS, PH and any other pollutants, taking
into consideration the cost of treatment of such sewage, and may increase or
decrease such unit cost as often and in such amounts as may reasonably be
required to accomplish the purposes of this section. The city shall compute the
amount due the city for sewer use charges and render a statement thereof, at
periodic intervals, as directed by the council to the owner of any premises
using the city facilities. All amounts due hereunder shall be payable at the
office of the clerk or other designated locations. The clerk shall, in August
of each year, provide to the council, an internal audit report that will
address specific areas of concern including: the need to generate sufficient
revenue through "user" charges to cover total 0 & M costs; the
necessity of maintaining a proportionate system of user charges pursuant to 40
CFR 35.935-13 (b); the need to review the replacement account to determine its
proper level of funding; and a review of the ICRC to assure that each
industrial user pays its share of the Federal grant amount used to construct
city facilities for industrial waste treatment. (Amended by Ordinance 90-09,
passed June 26, 1990 & 12-12-06 Ordinance 06-13)
Subd. 3. Charges,
a Lien. Each charge levied pursuant
to this section shall be a lien against the property, and all such charges due
on September 30 of each year, more than thirty days past due, and having been
properly mailed to the occupant or owner of the premises, shall be certified by
the council to the county auditor, shall specify the amount thereof, the
description of the premises, the name of the owner thereof, and the amount so
certified shall be expended upon the tax rolls against such premises in the
same manner as other taxes, and collected by the county treasurer and paid to
the city along with other taxes.
Subd. 4. Discontinued Service. The city may shut off sewer service when:
(1) the
charge for such service, or any other financial obligation imposed on the
present or former owner or occupant of the premises served is unpaid for 60
days or two billing cycles and in default; or
(2) failure of the property owner or occupant
to implement and maintain within 30 days all sanitary sewer pretreatment
requirements ordered by the City’s Public Works Director following the
discharge of 1) a prohibited substance into the City’s sanitary sewer system,
or 2) prohibited levels of permitted substances such as PH, BOD, TSS in
violation of City ordinance into the City’s sanitary sewer system. (Amended
12-12-06 Ord. 06-13)
Subd. 5. Civil
Action. Any charges levied pursuant
to this section, and which have been properly sent to the occupant or owner and
not paid, may, in addition to all other remedies available to the city, be
recovered in a civil action by the city in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Subd. 6. Prohibited
Discharges. No person shall discharge
or cause to be discharged, directly or indirectly, any of the following
described substances to any public sewer:
(1) Any
gasoline, benzene, naphtha, fuel oil, or other flammable or explosive liquid,
solid or gas.
(2) Any
water or wastes containing toxic or poisonous solids, liquids or gases in
sufficient quantity, either singly or by interaction with other wastes, to
injure or interfere with any sewage treatment process, constitute a hazard to
humans or animals, create a public nuisance, or create any hazard in the
wastewater treatment works.
(3) Any
water or wastes having a pH lower than 5 . 5 or having any other corrosive
property capable of causing damage or hazard to structures, equipment and
personnel of the wastewater treatment works.
(4) Solid
or viscous substances, either whole or ground, in quantities or of such size
capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers, or other interference
with the proper continuation of the wastewater facilities, but not limited to,
ashes, cinders, disposable diapers, glass grinding or polishing wastes, stone
cuttings or polishing wastes, sand, mud, straw, shavings, metal, glass, rags,
feathers, tar, plastics, wood, unground garbage, whole blood, paunch manure,
hair and fleshings, entrails and sanitary napkins, paper dishes, cups, milk
containers, and other paper products.
(5) Noxious
or malodorous liquids, gases or substances which either singly or by
interaction with other wastes are sufficient to create a public nuisance or
hazard to life or are sufficient to prevent entry into the sewers for their
maintenance and repair.
(6) Prohibited
wastes shall be regulated in accordance with the city's NPDES permit, Sections
307(a) and 307(b) of the Clean Water Act and all other applicable state and
Federal regulations.
Subd. 7. Discharges
Allowed by Permit Only. No person
shall discharge or
cause to be
discharged directly or indirectly the following described
substances to any public sewer unless a permit for the same has been obtained
from the city. Application may be made
upon forms provided by the city.
Such a permit may be granted by the
council only if, in the opinion of the city, such discharge will not
harm the wastewater facilities, nor cause obstruction to the flow in sewers,
nor otherwise endanger life, limb or public property, nor constitute a
nuisance. In forming its opinion as to
the acceptability of these wastes, the city may give consideration to such
factors as the quantities of the subject wastes in relation to flows and
velocities in the sewers, materials of construction of the sewers, nature of
the sewage treatment process, capacity of the sewage treatment plant, degree of
treatability of wastes in the sewage treatment plant, the city's NPDFS permit,
and other pertinent factors. The city
may make such determinations either on a general basis or as to discharges from
individual users or specific discharges, and may prohibit certain discharges
from individual users because of unusual concentrations or combinations which
may occur. The substances prohibited
are:
(1) Any
liquid or vapor having a temperature higher than 150 F (65 C).
(2) Any
water or waste containing fats, wax, grease, or oils, whether emulsified or
not, in excess of twenty mg/1 or containing substances which may solidify or
become viscous at temperatures between 32 and 150 F (0
and 65 C).
(3) Any
garbage that has not been ground or comminuted to such a degree that all
particles will be carried freely in suspension under flow conditions normally
prevailing in public sewers, with no particles greater than one-half inch in
any dimension.
(4) Any
water or wastes containing strong acid, iron pickling wastes, or concentrated
plating solutions, whether neutralized or not.
(5) Any
water or wastes containing phenols or other taste or odor producing substances
which constitute a nuisance or hazard to the structures, equipment or personnel
of the sewage works, or which interfere with the treatment required to meet the
requirements of the state and Federal government and any other public agency
with proper authority to regulate the discharge from the sewage treatment
plant.
(6) Radioactive
wastes or isotopes of such half-life or concentration that they are in
non-compliance with regulations issued by the appropriate authority having
control over their use or which have caused or may cause damage or hazards to
the treatment works or personnel operating it.
(7) Any water or wastes having a pH in
excess of 9.0.
(8) Materials which exert or cause:
(a) Unusual concentration
of suspended solids (such as, but
not limited to, Fullers earth, lime slurries and lime residues) or of dissolved
solids (such as, but not limited to, sodium chloride and sodium sulfate).
(b) Excessive
discoloration (such as, but not limited to, dye wastes and vegetable tanning
solutions).
(c) Unusual
BOD, chemical oxygen demand, or chlorine requirements in such quantities as to
constitute a significant load on the wastewater treatment works.
(d) Unusual
volume of flow or concentration of wastes constituting a slug.
(e) Water
or water containing substances which are not amendable to treatment or
reduction by the sewage treatment processes employed, or are amenable to
treatment only to such degree that the sewage treatment plant effluent cannot
meet the requirements of the NPDES permit or requirements of other governmental
agencies having jurisdiction over discharge from the sewage treatment plant.
Subd. 8. City Authority. If any water or wastes are discharged, or are
proposed to be discharged, directly or indirectly to the public sewers, which
water or wastes do not meet the standards set out in or promulgated in this
chapter or which in the judgment of the city may have a deleterious effect upon
the treatment works, processes, equipment or receiving waters, or which
otherwise create a hazard to life or constitute a public nuisance, the city may
take any or all of the following steps:
(Amended by Ordinance No. 03-02 passed June 10, 2003)
(1) Refuse to accept the discharges by
plugging or otherwise blocking the premises’ sewer discharge pipe at or before
it connects with sanitary sewer main, or within the sanitary sewer main, or
(2) Require
control over the quantities and rates of discharge, or
(3) Require
payment to an acceptable conditions for the discharge to the public sewer, or
(4) Require
payment to cover the added cost of handling and treatment wastes, or
(5)
The discharge of any water from sump pumps into the City
sewers will be deemed a misdemeanor.
(6)
Sump pumps must be installed and hard plumbed to the
exterior of the building on all new residential and commercial
construction. Certificate of occupancy
will be issued after compliance.
(7)
The city shall have authority to immediately discontinue
sewer service to a customer who is found to be discharging wastes into the
cities system which are in violation of this ordinance. (Amended Dec. 12, 2006
06-13)
The design and installation of the plant and equipment for
pretreatment or equalization of waste flows shall be subject to the review and
approval of the city and subject to the requirements of 40 CRF 403, entitled,
“Pretreatment Standards” and all applicable codes, ordinances, and laws.
(Amended by Ordinance No. 93‑04, passed April 13, 1993)(Amended
by Ordinance 06-13, passed 12-12-06)
Subd. 9. Interceptors. Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be
provided when they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes
containing ingredients. All interceptors required under this subdivision shall
be of a type and capacity approved by the city and shall be located as to be
readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection. Such interceptors
shall not be required for private living quarters or dwelling units. Where
preliminary treatment, flow equalizing facilities, or interceptors are provided
for any water or wastes, they shall be effectively operated and maintained
continuously in satisfactory and effective condition by the owner at his
expense, and shall be available for inspection by the city at all reasonable
times.
Subd. 10. Industrial Meters. When required by the city, the owner of any
property serviced by a building sewer carrying industrial wastes shall install
a suitable control structure, together with such necessary meters and other
appurtenances in the building sewer to facilitate observation, sampling, and
measurement of the wastes. Such structures and equipment, when required, shall
be constructed at the owner's expenses in accordance with plans approved by the
city and shall be maintained by the owner so as to be safe and accessible at
all times.
Subd.
11. Measurement
Standards . All measurements, tests, and analyses of the characteristics of
water and wastes to which reference is made in this chapter shall be determined
in accordance with 40 CFR 136 (Guidelines Establishing Test Procedures for
analysis of Pollutants); the latest edition of Standard Methods for the
Examination of Water and Wastewater, and shall be determined at the control
structure provided, or upon suitable samples taken at said control structures.
In the event that no special structure has been required, the control structure
shall be considered to be the nearest downstream manhole in the public sewer
from the point at which the building sewer is connected. Sampling shall be
carried out by customarily accepted methods to reflect the effect of
constituents upon the sewerage works and to determine the existence of hazards
to life, limb, and property. (The particular analyses involved will determine
whether a twenty-four hour composite of all outfalls of a premise is
appropriate or whether a grab sample or samples should be taken. Normally, but
not always, BOD and suspended solids analyses will be obtained from twenty-four
hour composite of all outfalls whereas pHs will be determined from periodic
grab samples.)
Subd. 12. City
Testing. The city may conduct such
tests as are necessary to enforce this chapter and employees of the city may
enter upon any property for the purpose of taking samples, obtaining
information or conducting surveys or investigations relating to such enforcement.
Entry shall be made during operating hours unless circumstances require
otherwise. In all cases where tests are conducted by the city for the purpose
of checking to determine if a previously found violation of this chapter has
been corrected, the cost of such tests shall be charged to the user and added
to the user's sewer charge. In
those cases where
the city determines that the
nature of volume
of a particular
user's sewage requires more
frequent than normal testing, the city may charge such user for the test, after
giving the user ten days written notice of its intention to do so, and the cost
thereof shall be added to the user's sewer charge. In any case where industrial
wastes are discharged to a public sewer, the city may require the user at his
own expense to test his discharge on a regular basis and to report the test
results to the city within a reasonable time. All such tests shall be ordered
by the city and shall be conducted by qualified personnel and in accordance
with the standards set out in Subd. 11 above.
Subd.
13. Accidental
Discharges. Accidental discharges of
prohibited waste in to the sewage works, directly or through another disposal
system, or to any place from which such waste may enter the treatment works, shall
be reported to the city by the persons responsible for the discharge, or by the
owner or occupant of the premises where the discharge occurred, immediately
upon obtaining knowledge of the fact of such discharge.
Subd.
14. Connections
Prohibited. New connections to the
sanitary sewer system shall be prohibited unless sufficient capacity is
available in all downstream facilities, including capacity for flow, BOD, and
suspended solids.
Subd.
15. Private
Agreements. No statement contained
in this section shall be construed as preventing any special agreement or
arrangement between the city and any industrial concern whereby an industrial
waste of unusual or character may be accepted by the city for treatment,
subject to payment therefore, by the industrial concern, in accordance with
applicable regulations and any supplemental agreement with the city.
Subd.
Subd. 17. Liability for Fines Levied Upon the City. Any person or entity which discharges
prohibited substances into the City sanitary sewer system which causes the
wastewater treatment plant to violate its state discharge permit requirements
such that a fine is
Imposed upon the City by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency or other state or federal agency, shall be liable to the City for the amount of such fine(s). Any such fines shall be paid to the City within 30 days of billing by the City.
Section 2. Water Service Section 402.
402.08 Discontinued
Service.
Subd.
1. Voluntary. Any person desiring to discontinue the use of
city water shall notify the utilities superintendent to that effect, who shall
have the service at the curb stop box cut off by authorized personnel. No
unauthorized person shall cut off the water service. Where city water has been
turned off, it will be turned on only when:
(1) A fee as set forth in Chapter 212 is
paid; and
(2) All
unpaid fees, usage charges and late payment penalties are paid.
Subd.
2. Involuntary. In addition to the provisions of 402.08,
Subdivision 1, water service may be shut off at any stop box connection
whenever:
(1) The
owner or occupant of the premises served, or any person working on any pipes or
equipment thereon which are connected with the watery system, has violated or
threatens to violate any of the provisions of this chapter.
(2) Any
charge for water, service, meter, or any other financial obligation imposed on
the present or former owner or occupant of the premises served is unpaid for 60
days or two billing cycles and in default. (Amended 12-12-06 Ord 06-13)
(3) Fraud
or misrepresentation by the owner or occupant of the premises served in
connection with any application for service.
(4) Failure
of the property owner or occupant to implement and maintain within 30 days all
sanitary sewer pretreatment requirements ordered by the City’s Public Works
Director following the discharge of 1) a prohibited substance into the City’s
sanitary sewer system, or 2) prohibited levels of permitted substances such as
PH, BOD, TSS in violation of City ordinance into the City’s sanitary sewer
system.
(5) The owner or occupant of the premises
serves, or any person under the control of
the owner or occupant of the premises, discharges a prohibited waste into the City’s sanitary
sewer system in such a manner as to constitute an imminent public health
threat, the City may, on an emergency basis, and without notice to the owner or
occupant, shut off water service to the premises until such time as the imminent
public health threat is alleviated.
Subd. 3. Procedure
for Involuntary Termination. A.
Except as provided in Section 402.08, Subd. 2 (5) of the City Code, water shall
not be shut off until notice and an opportunity for a hearing has first been
given the occupant of the premises and, if different from the occupant, the
application for water service. Notice
shall be served by leaving it at the premises served and, if different than the
address served, by mailing copy of the same to the address shown on the
application. The notice shall state the
reasons for shut off of water service and that the same will be shut off on a
specified date not less than ten days
after the notice is served if the condition causing the shut off is not
rectified. The notice shall further
state that a hearing before the City Council on such shut off may be demanded
in writing delivered to the City Administrator within five business days after
service of the notice of shut off. If a
hearing is requested, service shall not be discontinued until such hearing has
been held. If, as a result of the
hearing, the City Council finds that a violation has occurred which justifies
shut off under this chapter, the water service may be shut off.
Section
3. Effective Date. This ordinance shall become
effective upon the date of publication.
Submitted to the City Council on
December 12, 2006.
_____________________________________
Michael
Beyer, Mayor
ATTEST:
__________________________________
Nancy Carswell, Administrator