12.80.025 Emergency suspension of municipal storm water system access.
When the City Engineer finds that any discharger has violated any provision of this title, or any order issued hereunder, or that the discharger’s past violations are likely to recur, and that said violations have caused or contributed to an actual or threatened discharge to the municipal separate storm sewer system or waters of the State which reasonably appears to present an imminent or substantial endangerment to the health or welfare of people or the environment, the City Engineer may issue an order to the discharger directing an immediate cease and desist of all such violations.
(1) The order will direct the discharger to:
(a) Immediately comply with all title requirements; and
(b) Take such appropriate preventive action as may be needed to properly address a continuing or threatened violation, including immediately halting operations and/or terminating the discharge.
(2) Any person notified of an emergency order directed to him under this title shall immediately comply and stop or eliminate any endangering discharge. In the event of a discharger’s failure to immediately comply voluntarily with the emergency order, the City Engineer may take such steps as deemed necessary to prevent or minimize harm to the municipal separate storm sewer system or waters of the State, and/or endangerment to persons or the environment, including immediate termination of the facility’s municipal storm water connection or other municipal utility services.
(3) The City Engineer may require a person that is responsible, in whole or in part, for any discharge presenting imminent danger to submit a detailed written statement, describing the causes of the harmful discharge and the measures taken to prevent any future occurrence. Such written statement shall be submitted to the City Engineer within 30 days of receipt of the order.
(4) A person commits an offense if the person reinstates municipal separate storm sewer system access to premises terminated pursuant to this chapter without the prior approval of the City Engineer.
(5) The City Engineer may allow the discharger to recommence its discharge when it has demonstrated to the satisfaction of the City Engineer that the period of endangerment has passed, unless further termination proceedings are initiated against the discharger under this chapter.
(6) Issuance of an emergency cease and desist order shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against the violator. (Ord. 166, passed 12-10-2019)