§ 53.20. EXERCISE OF SUPERINTENDENT’S DISCRETIONARY POWERS; PROCEDURE.
Latest version.
(A) If the Superintendent discovers or determines that any waters or wastes are being discharged, are proposed to be discharged, or are likely to be discharged by any individual sewer use, or by any identifiable class of sewer users, or by any and all sewer users in general and in the aggregate, and the waters or wastes contain the substances, possess the characteristics, or are being or will be discharged in such quantities as enumerated in § 53.19, and which in the judgment of the Superintendent do or may have any of the deleterious effects described in § 53.19, he or she shall issue and cause to be served or promulgated a written order to the individual user, class of users, or all users in general, as he or she may deem most suitable to alleviate or prevent the problem, in the manner hereafter provided. In the order, the Superintendent may:
(1) Prohibit the continued, proposed, or anticipated discharge of the wastes;
(2) Require pretreatment to an acceptable condition, or a means of controlling and equalizing quantities and rates of discharge, as a requisite for permitting further or future discharge of the waste, and providing also that design and installation of equipment to accomplish these purposes be subject to his or her review and approval; and/or
(3)
Prohibit or restrict the further or future discharge of the wastes, subject to such deadlines as he or she may deem necessary and fair, pending the execution of an agreement between the user and the City Council providing for the payment by the user of extra fees, charges, fines or surcharges to cover the added cost of handling and treating the wastes to the extent that the same are not covered by existing taxes or sewer charges, as provided by
§§ 53.35 through 53.42.
(B) A written order issued pursuant to this section shall state or indicate the individual users or class of users to which it is intended to apply, or that it applies to all users generally; the specific substance, character, or quantity of discharge to which the order applies; the specific nature of the restriction or regulation being imposed by the order; the date and time when the order shall take effect, which shall allow a reasonable time for compliance unless any continuation of the discharge would pose an imminent and substantial risk of harm to persons, property, or the environment; and that the order is issued by the Superintendent under authority of this section and failure to comply will result in penalties or other costs as provided in this chapter.
(1985 Code, § 6-7-9)
(C) A written order issued pursuant to this section shall not be effective upon any sewer user until it is served or promulgated, which may be done in any of the following manners as is most expeditious in the particular case. The order may be served or promulgated by:
(1) A copy of the order being delivered by the Superintendent to the user or his or her agent in person;
(2) A copy of the order being sent by registered mail with return certificate of delivery, which certificate shall constitute presumptive evidence that the order was received by the user or his or her agent;
(3) A copy of the order being enclosed with the next sewer charge billing sent to all users to whom the order applies, payment of the bill being presumptive evidence that the order was received;
(4) Publication at least one time in a newspaper of general circulation within the city of either a public notice setting forth the order, or a news story which includes all of the substantive information contained in the order as previously described, the publication in either form being deemed evidence that the issuance and character of the order are matters of common public knowledge;
(5) Whenever application is made for a new sewer connection permit as provided in § 53.15, the Inspector, prior to approving and signing the application, shall attach thereto copies of any orders issued pursuant to this section which would apply to the use of the public sewer by the applicant, and the subsequent execution and filing of the application shall be presumptive evidence that the order was received by the user or his or her agent; and/or
(6) Serving specific notice of violation upon the user in the manner provided by § 53.57.
(D) When an order has been issued by the Superintendent, and has been served or promulgated in the manner herein provided, any person to whom the order applies and who discharges or continues to discharge any sewage to the public sewer in contravention of the order shall be considered in violation of this chapter, and subject to immediate citation and prosecution therefor, whether or not the notice procedure prescribed by § 53.57 has been invoked.
