Sec. 14-110. - Purpose of article.

The adoption of this article is necessary to protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of the county, to preserve the underground aquifers of potable water from contamination or deterioration in quality by the infiltration of contaminated waters in all areas of the county, and to implement any joint powers agreement between the county and any city or sewer district for treatment of sewage emanating from within Kings County Assessment Districts as may be formed by the board by resolution.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-111. - Application.

This article shall apply solely to the unincorporated area of the county within the various Kings County Assessment Districts. This article is in addition to and is intended to supplement the plumbing code as applicable to all unincorporated areas of the county. This article shall not affect prior enactments concerning sanitary sewer systems reflected in sections 14-50 through 14-70, inclusive, and sections 14-75 through 14-95, inclusive, of the Kings County Code.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Cross reference— Plumbing code, § 5-81 et seq.

Sec. 14-112. - Definitions.

(a)

Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise, the meaning of the terms used in this article shall be as defined in the American Society of Civil Engineers' "Manual of Engineering Practice" No. 37 and the latest edition of the book "Standard Methods for the Examination of Water & Sewage", published by the American Public Health Association.

(b)

The meaning of additional terms used in this article shall be as follows:

(1)

Applicant shall mean any person, or group of persons, who applies for sewer service.

(2)

Area shall mean the area within the various Kings County Sanitary Sewer Assessment Districts as established by the board by resolution.

(3)

Board means board of supervisors of the County of Kings.

(4)

City shall mean the city, district or agency responsible for treatment of sewage effluent.

(5)

City council shall mean the city council of the city or the governing board of the district or agency responsible for treatment of sewage effluent.

(6)

City engineer shall mean the city engineer of the city or engineer representing the district or agency referenced above, or his authorized representative acting within the scope of his assigned duties.

(7)

Commercial garbage grinder shall mean a mechanical unit for pulverizing large quantities of waste by a commercial user.

(8)

Customer shall mean any person, firm, association, corporation, or governmental agency served by the sewer system.

(9)

Garbage shall mean solid wastes from the preparation, cooking and dispensing of food and from the handling, storage and sale of produce.

(10)

Grease, oil and fats shall mean any material, or like material, that is soluble in petroleum ether.

(11)

Industrial waste shall mean the wastes from industrial processes, including, but not limited to, water softening regeneration plants.

(12)

Person shall mean any individual, firm, company, association, society, municipality, private corporation, institution, enterprise, governmental agency, or other entity.

(13)

Properly shredded garbage shall mean the waste from the preparation, cooking, and dispensing of food that has been shredded to such a degree that all particles will be carried freely under the flow conditions normally prevailing in public sewers, with no particle greater than one-half inch in any dimension.

(14)

Slug shall mean any discharge of water, sewage, or industrial waste which, in concentration of any given constituent or in quantity of flow, exceeds for any period of longer duration than 15 minutes more than five times its average hourly concentration or flow.

(15)

Surcharge shall mean the assessment, in addition to the service charge, which is levied on those persons whose wastes are greater in strength than the concentration values set forth is section 14-116, subsection (a) of this article entitled "Quality of waste."

(16)

Suspended solids shall mean solids which either float on the surface of, or are in suspension in, water, sewage, or other liquid and which are removable by laboratory filtration.

(17)

Unpolluted water or liquid shall mean any water or liquid containing none of the following: Emulsified grease or oil; acids or alkalis; substances that may impart taste-and-color or color characteristics; and toxic or poisonous substances in suspension, colloidal state, or solution. Such water or liquid shall contain not more than 500 parts per million of dissolved solids, and not more than 25 parts per million each of suspended solids or biochemical oxygen demand, or meet the most recent requirement for secondary treatment defined by state water resources. Analytical determinations shall be made in accordance with the procedures set forth in "Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage." Any water having contact with potential pathogen sources shall be considered to be polluted.

(18)

Water softener shall mean a unit using the ion exchange process requiring sodium chloride to regenerate the exchange bed.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-113. - Disposal of wastes.

It shall be unlawful for any person to cause, suffer, or permit the disposal of sewage, human excrement, or other liquid waste in any place or manner except through and by means of an approved plumbing and sewage system.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-114. - Private sewage disposal systems.

It shall be unlawful to construct within any designated area any privy, privy vault, septic tank, cesspool, or other facility designed, or intended to be utilized, for the disposal of sewage.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-115. - Prohibited discharges.

No person shall discharge, deposit, or throw, or cause, allow, or permit to be discharged into any public sewer any of the following described materials:

(a)

Any solids, liquids, or gases which by themselves or by interaction with other substances may cause fire or explosion hazards or in any other way be injurious to persons, property, or the operation of the wastewater works;

(b)

Any noxious or malodorous solids, liquids, or gases which, either singly or by interaction with other substances, are capable of creating a public nuisance or hazard to life or preventing entry into sewers for their maintenance and repair;

(c)

Any solids, greases, slurries, or viscous materials of such character or in such quantity that, in the opinion of the city engineer, may cause an obstruction to the flow in the sewer or otherwise interfere with the proper functioning of the wastewater works;

(d)

Any toxic substances, chemical elements, or compounds in quantities sufficient to impair the operation or efficiency of the wastewater works or that will pass through the wastewater plant and cause the effluent thereof to exceed regional water quality control board requirements for the receiving farmland;

(e)

Any garbage except garbage properly ground with a mechanical garbage grinder;

(f)

Any sand, earth, cement, broken glass, cinders, feathers, straw, metal, rags, tar, wood, meat processing plant wastes, such as animal skins, intestines, fleshings, and paunch materials retained on a screen having eight meshes per inch each way, any other solid or viscous substance capable of causing obstruction to the flow in sewers or other interference with the proper operation or maintenance of the sewage system;

(g)

Any septic tank or cesspool waste; and

(h)

Any radioactive waste. In the event of an accidental spill of radioactive material into any public sewer, the person responsible shall:

(1)

Immediately notify the wastewater plant superintendent; and

(2)

Render such technical or other assistance to the city or the district within his powers to prevent the wastewater works from becoming contaminated with radioactivity.

(i)

Water prohibited. Waters emanating from leaders from roof, surface drains or storm drains, surface or storm waters, cooling waters or unpolluted industrial wastewaters, shall not be permitted to be introduced into a city or a district sanitary sewer system.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-116. - Specific limitations of wastes into sanitary sewers.

(a)

Quality of waste. The admission into the public sanitary sewers of any waters or wastes shall be subject to the review and approval of the city engineer, and, where necessary in the opinion of the city engineer, the person shall provide, at person's own expense, such preliminary treatment as may be necessary to comply with physical and chemical standards prescribed by the city engineer to protect the sewer system or the environment. Plans and specifications for pretreatment works shall be prepared by a registered engineer and shall be submitted to the city engineer for approval.

Grease, oil and sand interceptors shall be provided when in the opinion of the city engineer they are necessary for the proper handling of liquid wastes, sand and/or other harmful ingredients. All interceptors shall be so located, as to be readily and easily accessible for cleaning and inspection.

(b)

Slugs and equalized discharges. No person shall cause the discharge of slugs of water or wastes into the sewer system. Each person producing the discharge of a slug into the public sewers shall construct and maintain at his own expense a suitable storage and flow control facility to ensure the equalization of discharges over a 24-hour period. Such facility shall have a capacity of at least 80 percent of the total normal volume of a 24-hour production period, and the outlet to the sewer shall be equipped with a rate-discharge controller or other approved device, the regulation of which shall be directed by the city engineer.

(c)

Special agreements. No statement contained in this article shall be construed as prohibiting any special agreement or arrangement between the county with the consent of city and any person whereby an industrial waste of unusual strength or character may be admitted to the wastewater treatment works, either before or after pretreatment, provided there is no impairment of the functioning of the wastewater treatment plant by reason of the admission of such wastes, and no extra costs are incurred without recompense by the person.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-117. - Connection and repair permits.

Any person desiring to use the sewer system will be allowed to connect the property to the system if the property is in the area and the following conditions are met:

(a)

The effluent will meet the requirements of the city accepting the effluent;

(b)

A street cut permit and/or encroachment permit is obtained pursuant to county requirements.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-118. - Construction of sewer laterals.

The applicant shall bear all costs necessary for the installation of laterals in accordance with the standards of the city and county for connecting sewer facilities to the sewer mains.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-119. - Industrial wastes.

(a)

Permits required. Before any person shall discharge industrial wastes into the sewer system, it shall be the duty of the person to first obtain from the city engineer a permit therefor.

(b)

Applications for permits. Applications for permits to discharge industrial wastes into the municipal sewers shall be made in writing and shall contain the following information:

(1)

The name and address of the applicant;

(2)

The location of the connection or proposed connection with the municipal sewers; and

(3)

The estimated quantity of wastes proposed to be discharged and a statement as to the approximate time of discharging the same, together with information as to peak loads, chemical and biological composition, and such other similar data as the city engineer may prescribe.

(c)

Issuance of permits. The city engineer shall issue to the applicant a permit, as required, in the event he finds and determines:

(1)

That there is unused carrying and treatment capacity not necessary for the disposition of domestic sewage of the city;

(2)

That the amount and character of the wastes proposed to be discharged by the applicant is such that the same can be transported and treated in such a manner that an effluent will result which complies with all applicable state laws and regulations and which will not result in a nuisance nor any objectionable odors along the pipelines or in the vicinity of wastewater treatment plants and other facilities; and

(3)

That such wastes will not result in damages to pipelines and other wastewater facilities.

(d)

Permit charges. All industries discharging or proposing to discharge to city sewers will be subject to permit regulations as of the effective date of the resolution or order creating the area. Before granting any permit pursuant to the provisions of this section, the city shall require the payment of fees for liquid waste discharges for the total quantity from any premises or establishment in an amount to be established by ordinance or resolution of the city council or district governing board.

(e)

Revocation of permits. In the event that, after granting a permit as provided for in this article, it shall develop, by reason of increased flow, increased waste concentrations, or changes in the composition of the effluent, that the discharge causes a nuisance or objectionable odors or objectionable conditions along the lines or in the vicinity of the wastewater treatment plants or other facilities, then, in his discretion, the city engineer may revoke the permit, or may impose further conditions with respect thereto, toward the end of remedying such conditions.

(f)

Inspection facilities. It shall be required that the customer responsible for any property served by a service lateral carrying industrial wastes shall provide, at customer's expense, suitable means of inspection to facilitate the observation, sampling and measurement of the wastes. Such inspection facility, when required, shall be maintained so as to be safe and accessible at all times. The costs of sampling and the analysis of such wastes shall be assumed by the customer when such types of analysis are required that are not normally run by the wastewater plant laboratory. All records of sampling and analysis shall be made available to the city.

(g)

Waste sampling. Industrial wastes discharged into the public sewers shall be subject to periodic inspections and a determination of the character and concentration of such wastes. The determination shall be made as often as may be deemed necessary by the city engineer.

Samples shall be collected in such a manner as to be representative of the composition of the wastes. The sampling may be accomplished either manually or by the use of mechanical equipment acceptable to the city engineer. The installation, operation, and maintenance of the sampling facilities shall be the responsibility of the person discharging the wastes and shall be subject to the approval of the city engineer.

Access to sampling locations for the purpose of periodic sampling shall be granted to the city engineer or his duly authorized representatives at all times. Every care shall be exercised in the collection of samples to ensure their preservation in a state comparable to that at the time the sample was taken.

(h)

Analyses. Laboratory procedures used in the examination of industrial wastes shall be those set forth in "Standard Methods for the Examination of Water and Sewage." However, alternative methods for certain analyses of industrial wastes may be used subject to mutual agreement between the city engineer and the customer.

The determination of the character and concentration of the industrial wastes shall be made by the city, and such determinations shall be binding as a basis for charges.

(i)

Admission of waters into storm sewers. Industrial cooling waters, or wash water waste, or waters which are odorless, stable and free from deleterious chemicals, where practicable, shall be discharged into storm drains or storm water channels. For the purposes of this section, any industrial waste, waters, or liquids containing less than 25 parts per million BOD or which meet the most recent requirements for secondary treatment, as defined by state water resources, shall be deemed stable. The admission of such waters into the public storm sewers shall be limited to unpolluted wastewater provided it does not violate any provisions of this Code.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-120. - Sewer service charges.

For all systems discharging into treatment facilities of the city, the sewer service charge for each sewer connection shall be the same as the monthly sewer charges as now established or hereafter amended by the city for users within the city plus any charges as may be mutually agreed upon by a joint powers agreement or other agreement.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-121. - Sewer connection charges.

All connections to a sewer system shall pay the connection charge of the city applicable at the time of connection, subject to credit for any prepaid connection in the amount prepaid. In addition, connections shall pay any county fees which may, from time to time, be imposed by resolution of the board to cover administrative costs and processing such connections.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-122. - Enforcement.

(a)

Sewer service charges; collections. The sewer service charges established shall be paid monthly in advance. Sewer service charges shall be collected by the city. The industrial surcharge shall be included as a separate item of the regular bill for sewer charges.

(b)

Sewer service charges; delinquencies.

(1)

Penalty fees. In the event the owner, occupant, or lessee of premises connected to the sewer system shall fail to pay the sewer service charge or industrial surcharge by the fifteenth of the month following the presentation of a bill therefor, a penalty for late payment in the amount of 25 percent shall be added to such bill.

(2)

Discontinuance of service. In the event the owner, occupant, or lessee of the premises connected to the sewer system shall fail to pay the sewer service charge, the industrial surcharge, or connection charges by the fifteenth day of the second month following the presentation of a bill therefor, the county may, in addition to all other remedies it may have, discontinue furnishing sewer and water service and shall not resume such service until all delinquent charges, together with any service charge necessitated by the resumption of sewer and water service, have been fully paid.

(3)

Court actions. In addition, at the option of the county, the county may file a civil action against the owner, occupant, or lessee for the collection of any amount due and unpaid. Such remedy shall be cumulative and in addition to any other remedy provided by this article.

(4)

Notices of liens. In the event the premises shall be three months delinquent in sewer service charges, industrial surcharges, or connection charges the city shall notify the owner of the real property of such delinquency in writing and shall further notify such owner that the delinquency shall be subject to collection pursuant to the provisions of subsection (5) of this subsection.

(5)

Lien proceedings. In the alternative, the board, pursuant to sections 5470 through 5473a of the Health and Safety Code of the state, may elect to have such delinquent charges collected on the tax roll in such manner and at the same time as its general taxes and shall give the notice, hold the hearing, and prepare and file the report as to such delinquencies as required by the Health and Safety Code of the state. Such delinquent charges shall thereafter, pursuant to said code, constitute a lien against the lot or parcel of land against which the charges have been imposed.

(6)

Restoration of service. Water or sewer service shall not be restored until all charges, including the expenses of removal, closing and restoration, shall have been paid.

(7)

Ownership and occupancy. A change in the ownership or occupancy of premises found delinquent shall not be cause for reducing or eliminating the penalties set forth in this subsection (b).

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-123. - Sewer main extensions.

The service applicant in each instance will be responsible for constructing any needed sewer main, except that in special cases the board may authorize the construction of such mains by the county. All such main extensions shall be constructed in accordance with city approved engineering design and city specifications.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-124. - Ownership of sewers.

Laterals on private property shall belong to the property owner. All sewers in public streets, alleys, and roads, except the lateral serving the individual property, shall become the property of the county when the job is completed and accepted.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-125. - Maintenance.

The property owner shall be responsible for the maintenance of the complete lateral connection to the street sewer main, including the portion of such lateral placed in the public right-of-way or easement.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-126. - Discharges from swimming pools into public sewers and streets.

(a)

Backwash water for swimming pool filters shall be connected to and discharged into a public sewer by an approved connection, including a required air gap separation.

(b)

Pool water may be drained or pumped into either the sanitary sewer, storm sewer, or gutters that drain to the storm sewer provided the rate does not exceed 100 gallons per minute. The permission of the county public works director shall be obtained before draining or pumping to the street gutters.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-127. - Violations; penalties.

Any person found to be violating any provisions of this article shall be served a written notice stating the nature of the violation and providing a time for the satisfactory correction thereof. The offender shall, within the period of time stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations and shall be liable to the county for any expense, loss or damage to the county occasioned by reason of such violation, including, but not limited to, compensating payment, charges, fees and/or penalties to the city. Violations of the provisions of this article shall be a misdemeanor, and violators shall be subject to a fine of up to $500.00. Each additional day of violation after the time allowed for the satisfactory correction thereof shall be a new misdemeanor.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-128. - Enforcement officials authorized.

The county public works director or his authorized agent is charged with the duty of enforcing the provisions of this article with the exception of the collection of funds.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-129. - Disposition of revenues.

The wastewater improvement and operation funds of the city are hereby incorporated and all funds collected hereunder except the billing fee shall be paid to the city for deposit in said fund.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Sec. 14-130. - Validity.

If any section, subsection, sentence, clause, or phrase of this article is for any reason held to be invalid, such decision shall not affect the validity of the remaining portions of this article. The board hereby declares that it would have passed this article, and each section, subsection, sentence, clause, and phrase thereof, irrespective of the fact that any one or more sections, subsections, sentences, clauses, or phrases be declared invalid.

(Ord. No. 444, § 2, 2-5-85)

Secs. 14-131—14-140. - Reserved.