Bruce S. Feng, Deputy City Manager/Public Works & Capital Projects

Purpose:

To introduce an ordinance that amends Chapter 25 (Sewers) of the Burbank Municipal Code to comply with the United States Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) regulations and adopting a Negative Declaration.

Background:

In 1972, the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, also referred to as the Clean Water Act (CWA), was amended to prohibit the discharge of pollutants to the receiving waters of the United States unless the discharge is in compliance with a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (NPDES) permit.  In California, these permits are issued and enforced by the State Water Resources Control Board (SWRCB) and its nine Regional Water Quality Control Boards (RWQCBs).

To address �indirect discharges� from industries to Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTWs), the USEPA, through CWA authorities, established the National Pretreatment Program as a component of the NPDES Permitting Program. The National Pretreatment Program requires industrial and commercial dischargers to treat or control pollutants in their wastewater prior to discharge to POTWs.

Unlike other environmental programs that rely on Federal or State governments to implement and enforce specific requirements, the Pretreatment Program places the majority of the responsibility on local municipalities.  In order to apply regulatory authority provided by State law, it is necessary for the municipality to establish local regulations to legally implement and enforce pretreatment requirements. Legal authority is detailed in a Sewer Use Ordinance (SUO), which is usually part of city or county code.

In the City of Burbank, the SUO is found in the Burbank Municipal Code (BMC), Chapter 25, Article 5.  This article of the BMC was last updated over ten years ago, and requires modifications to conform to current EPA regulatory language. A recent audit by the USEPA of the City�s Industrial Pretreatment Program has revealed a number of changes that must be made to the Burbank Municipal Code to comply with federal regulations.  The proposed Chapter 25, Article 5, contains all of the required language to comply with these current regulations.

In addition to making the required changes to Article 5, this is also an opportunity to make other enhancements to the BMC Chapter 25.  Highlights of the proposed changes are described in the analysis below.

ANALYSIS:

The proposed ordinance incorporates into the Burbank Municipal Code, Chapter 25, Article 5, new language that complies with USEPA regulations.  These changes were the primary reason for a code update at this time.  This article, also known as the City�s Sewer Use Ordinance, provides the authority for the City to regulate the discharge from industries within the City. 

In 1992, the USEPA issued a Model Pretreatment Ordinance as a guide for municipalities.  The proposed Article 5 of Chapter 25 of the BMC is based on this model ordinance and is in full compliance with the Code of Federal Regulations.  The EPA and the RWQCB have reviewed and approved the proposed language in this article.

Other proposed changes to Chapter 25 of the BMC includes the items listed below:

1.      Article 10 � Storm Water and Runoff Pollution Control

Pursuant to California Regional Water Quality Control Board, Los Angeles Region (RWQCB), Order No. 96-054, the City of Burbank was mandated, as a Permittee of the Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System Permit, to adopt ordinances to enforce the permit requirements, including the Standard Urban Storm Water Mitigation Plan (SUSMP) requirements. On August 29, 2000, the City Council adopted the required ordinances into the code by referencing a portion of the Los Angeles County Code, Title 12, Environmental Protection, Chapter 12.80, as the City�s Storm Water and Runoff Pollution Control Ordinance.  The ordinance also adopted the RWQCB�s approved SUSMP requirements.

The proposed Article 10 incorporates the actual language of the Los Angeles County Code into the BMC rather than by reference.  This change will provide clarity, allowing the BMC to be understood without referencing Los Angeles County Code.

2.      Section 25-312 � Cost of Repair to a Building Sewer

On January 25, 1977, City Council passed Resolution No. 17,805.  This Resolution provided circumstances in which the City would pay for the repair of a building sewer that had been crushed or misaligned by parkway trees.  This proposed section of the code places this language in the BMC.

3.      Section 25-313 � Backwater Valves

This new section requires new and remodeled properties to install, operate, and maintain an approved backwater valve on their building sewer unless it can be shown that such a device is unnecessary.  This requirement will apply to all buildings that are: newly constructed, modified and having a building permit valuation of $50,000 or more, replacing the building sewers, or repairing building sewers with an aggregate repair length in excess of ten feet.   This requirement will prevent the backup of wastewater into a building in the event of a sewer blockage.

4.      Section 25-502.2 � Additional Pretreatment Measures

This new section requires a Food Service Establishment (FSE) to install, operate, and maintain a grease interceptor, unless a conditional waiver is granted by the Director or designee. This requirement will apply to all FSEs that are newly constructed or modified and having a building permit valuation of $50,000 or more.  An FSE determined to have no immediate adverse impact on the public sewer may be granted a conditional waiver from grease interceptor installation requirements.  This requirement is similar to language adopted in the City of Los Angeles and other municipalities. The purpose of this requirement is to reduce sanitary sewer overflows caused by grease originating from FSEs.

5.      Chapter 25 � Various Locations

Many wording changes are also proposed which clarify and update previous BMC language. Among the changes are:

�        �Public Service Department� to �Burbank Water and Power�

�        �water bill� to �Municipal Services Bill�

�         �manhole� to �maintenance hole�

�        �he� to �he / she�

Pursuant to Section 15063 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), a Negative Declaration was prepared.  The public review period began on May 3, 2005 and concluded on May 24, 2005.  No comments were received.

On June 8, 2005, the proposed changes to Chapter 25 of the BMC were presented to the Board of Building and Fire Code Appeals (Building Board).  The Building Board unanimously voted to recommend that the City Council adopt the changes to Chapter 25 of the BMC as proposed.

RECOMMENDATION:

Staff recommends that Council adopt the proposed resolution adopting the Negative Declaration and the proposed ordinance amending Chapter 25 of the Burbank Municipal Code.

attachment:  Exhibit A:  Proposed Burbank Municipal Code Chapter 25

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