### Setting Priorities for Addressing Discharges from Separate Sanitary Sewers-1996 (part of the Enforcement Management System)CHAPTERX. SettingPrioritiesforAddressingDischargesfrom ' SeparateSanitarySewersTHE ENFORCEMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM NATIONAL POLLUTANT DISCHARGE ELIMINATION SYSTEM (CLEANWATER ACT)

CHAPTER X: Setting Priorities for Addressing Discharges from Separate Sanitary Sewers

I

U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY

'OFFICE OF REGULATORY ENFORCEMENT 1996ENFORCEMENT MANAGEMENT SYSTEM 

## - CHAPTER X Setting Priorities for Addressing Discharges from Separate Sanitary Sewers Discharges of raw or diluted sewage from separate sanitary sewers before treatment can cause significant public health and environmental problems. The exposure of the public to these discharges and the potential health and environmental impacts are the primary reasons 'PA is developing this additional guidance on these discharges. This document provides a method of setting priorities for regulatory response, and serves as a supplement to the Enforcement Management System guidance (EMS, revised February 27, 1986). As such, this document addresses only those discharges which are in violation of the Clean Water Act. As a general rule, the discharges covered by this guidance constitute a subset of all discharges from separate sanitary sewer systems. Legal Status In the context of this document, a "discharge from a =+parate sanitary sewer system" (or "discharge") is defined as axy wastewater (includingthat combined with rainfall induced iEfiltration/inflow) which is discharged from a separate sanitary sewer that reaches waters of the United States prior to treatment a= a wastewater treatment plant. Some permits have specific requirements for these discharges, others have specific prohibitions under most circumstances, and still other permits are silent on the status of these discharges. The lezal status of any of these discharges is specifically related to the permit lansuase and the circumstances under which

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## - - tke discharge occurs. Many permits authorize these discharges when there are no feasible alternatives, such as when there are circumstances beyond the control of the municipality (similarto tke concepts in the bypass regulation at 40 CFR Part 122.41 (rn)). Ccher permits allow these discharges when specific requirements are met, such as effluent limitations and monitoring/reporting. Most permits require that any non-compliance including overflows be reported at the end of each month with the discharge mcnitoring report (DMR)submittal. As a minimum, permits generally require that overflow summaries include the date, time, duration, location, estimated volume, cause, as well as any cbserved environmental impacts, and what actions were taken or are being taken to address the overflow. Most permits also require that any non-compliance including overflows which may endanger health or the .en$gcn@nt be :reportedw$gi$;2! hours, and in writing within five :days. .- ~xam~les of overflows .whichmay ezdanger health or the .en~v_i~&~e,nt .i-ncl.ude..,ma jor,;.;ne'.,breaks, c~icrf low events which 'result

### :;:in'fish-killsor other-, significant ?.~rx,and overflow events which occur' in environmentally s3xitive areas.For a person to be in violation of the Clean Water Act: 1) a person must own, operate, or have substantial control over the conveyance from which the discharge of pollutants occurs, 2) the discharge must be prohibited by a permit, be a violation of the permit language, or not be authorized by a permit, and 3) the discharge must reach waters of the United States. In addition, discharges that do not reach waters of the United States may nevertheless be in violation of Clean Water Act permit requirements,such as those requiring proper operation and maintenance (O&M),or may be in violation of state law.
Statement of Principles The following six principles should be considered as 

### EPA Regions and States set priorities for addressing violating discharges from separate sanitary sewers: 1. ~ll discharges (wetweather or dry weather) which cause or czntribute significantly to water quality or public health ~r~blerns (suchas a discharge to a public drinking water supply) skould be addressed as soon as physically and financially ~cssible.Other discharges may, if appropriate,be addressed in th2 context of watershed/basin plans (inconjunction with state or federal NPDES authorities)

## . 2. Discharges which occur in high public use or public access areas and thus expose the public to discharges of raw sewage

(i.s.,discharges which occur in residential or business areas, near or within parks or recreation areas, etc.) should be addressed as soon as physically and financially possible. 3. Dry weather discharges should be addressed as soon as ~~ysically and financiallypossible. t. Discharges due to inadequate operation and routine ezintenance should be addressed as soon as possible. (Physical azd financial considerations should be taken into account only id cases where overflow remedies are capital intensive.)
5. Discharges which could be addressed through a comprehensive creventive maintenance program or with minor capital investment should be addressed as soon as physically and financially possible. 6. With respect,toprinciples 1 through 5 above, schedules of compliance which require significant capital investments should take into account the financial capabilities of the specific municipality, as well as any procedures required by state and lccal law for publicly owned facilities in planning, design, bid, award,and construction. (See later sections on Schedules).Causes of Sanitary Sewer Discharges Discharges from separate sanitary sewers can be caused by a variety of factors including,but not limited to: 1. Inadequate O&M of the collection system. For example; failure to routinely clean out pipes, failure to properly seal or maintain manholes, failure to have regular maintenance of deteriorating sewer lines, failure to remedy poor construction, failure to design and implement a long term replacement or rehabilitation program for an aging system, 'failure to deal expeditiously with line blockages, or failure to maintain pump =Lacions (includingback-uppower). 2. Inadequate capacity of the sewer system so that systems which experience increases in flow during storm events are unable to convey the sewage to the wastewater treatment plant. For example, allowing new development without modeling to determine =he impact on downstream pipe capacity, insufficient allowance fzrextraneous flows in initial pipe design (e.g.unapproved cz-nectionof area drains, roof leaders, foundation drains), or ov5rly optimistic Infiltration/Inflow reduction calculations.

, 3. Insufficient capacity at the wastewater treatment plant so that discharges from the collection system musr occur on a rqular basis to limit flows to the treatment plant. For example, basic plant designs which do not allow sufficient design ca~acitv for storm flows. 

# a 4. Vandalism and/or facility or pipeline failures which occur i-dependentof adequate O&M practices.

, ' Applicable Guidance



### .

# - For many years, EPA and the States have been working with 

### -. ,,.,.,icipalities to prevent discharges from separate sanitary sewer s:;scerns. The preferred method has been to use the general policy c- responding to all violations of the Clean Water Act which is c-r-.rained in the EMS guidance. Factors which are considered are tk2 frequency,magnitude, and duration of the violations, the environmental/public health impacts, and the culpability of the viclator. This guidance sets up a series of guiding principles for responding to separate sanitary sewer discharge violations, a.:d it supplements the current EMS. Every EPA Region and State uses some form of this general scforcement response guidance as appropriate to the individual scate processes and authorities. Under the guidance, various EPA Sqionsand States have taken-a 

# -.- large number of-Formal ' ry- O-r--.-..-a -.*-c. ,..

### ..--. tzfcrcement actions over th~ipast several years to address saritary sewer discharge problems across the country. Res?cnses 

### :.,,= ---.-included administrative orders and/or civil judicial actic~sagainst larger municipalities to address sanitary sewer discharge problems, resulting in substantial injunctive relief in some cases. As a result of EPA Region and State enforcement efforts, a number of municipalities have invested substantial resources in diagnostic evaluations and designing, staffing,and implementing O&M plans. Other municipalities have undertaken major rehabilitation efforts and/or new construction to prevent

. sanitary sewer discharges. Priorities for Response There are approximately 18,500municipal separate sanitary sewage collection Systems (servinga population of 135 million), all of which can, under certain circumstances, experience discharges. Given this fact, the Agency has developed a list of priorities in dealing with the broad spectrum of ssparate sa3itary sewer discharges to ensure that the finite enforcement rssources cf EPA and the States are used in ways that result in caximum ecvironmental and public health benefit. However, these priorities should be altered in a specific situation by the de~ree of health or environmental risks presented by the condition(s)


### . In the absence of site-specific information,all separate sanitary sewer discharges should be considered high risk because such discharges of raw sewage may present a serious public health and/or environmental threat. Accordingly, first priority should be given within categories (suchas dry weather discharges and

, .V.=- weather discharges) to those discharges which can be.most

.- t quickly addressed. The priority scheme listed below takes this into account by first ensuring that municipalities are taking all ctcessary s~eps to properly operate and maintain their sewerage =.,-sterns.Corrective action for basic O&M is typically azcomplished in a short time, and can yield significant public kralth and environmental results. Risk again becomes a determinant factor when conditions warrant long term corrective action. The goal here should be to e.-.sure that capital intensive, lengthy compliance projects are 7xioritized to derive maximum health and environmental gains. The priorities for correcting separate sanitary sewer discharges are typically as follows: 1) Dry weather, O&M related: examples include lift stations or pumps that are not coordinated, a treatment plant that is not adjusted according to the influent-.flow, poor csrnmunication between field crews and management, ir.filtration/inflow,and/or pretreatment problems.2) 'Dryweather, preventive maintenance related: examples include pumps that fail due to poor maintenance, improperly calibrated flow meters and remote monitoring equipment, insufficient maintenance staff, deteriorated pipes, and/or sewers that are not cleaned regularly. 3) Dry weather, capacity related: examples include an insufficient number or undersized pumps or lift stations, undersized piges, and/or insufficient plant capacity. 4) Wet weather, O&M related: examples include excessive inflow and/or infiltration (suchas from improperly sealed manhole covers), inadequate pretreatment program (i.e.excessive industrial connections without regard to line capacity), uncoordinated pump operations, treatment plant operation tha: is not adjusted according to the influent flow,poor coordination between field crews and management, illegal connections, and/or no coordination between weather forecast authorities and sewer system masagement.

z \ Wet weather, preventive maintenance related: examples include poor pump maintenance leading to failure, improperly calibrated flow meters and remote monitoring equipment, insufficientmaintenance staff, and/or sewers that are not cleaned regularly. 6) Wet weather, O&M minor capital improvement related: examples include the upgrading of monitoring equipment,pumps, or computer ~r3grams, and/or repair or replacement of broken manholes or czlla~sed pipes.
7i Wet weather capacity, quick solution related: examples include a known collection system segment that is a "bottleneck", pumps beyond repair in need of replacement, and/or need for a.5ditionalcrews or technical staff. E) Wet weather, capacity, health impact related requiring long * term corrective action: examples include frequent discharges to ~ublic recreational areas, shellfish beds, and/or poor 

## re treatment where the total flow is large. 51 Wet weather, capacity, sensitive area related requiring long term corrective action: examples include discharges to ecglogically and environmentally sensitive areas, as defined by State or Federal government. Selecting A Response The appropriate regulatory response and permittee response fcr separate sanitary sewer discharges will depend on the scecificsof each case. The regulatory response can be informal, =--rial, or some combination thereof. Typical regulatory -

### --.responses include a phone call, Letter of Violation (LOV), Section 308 ~nformation Request, ~dministrative Order (AO), Administrative Penalty Order (APO),and/or judicial action. The permittee response can range from providing any required information to low cost, non-capital or low capital improvements to more capital intensive discharge control plans. The attached chart lists some categories of separate

n sanitary sewer noncompliance along with the range of response for eac'h instance. The chart is intended as a guide. The responses listed on the chart are not to be corisidered mandatory responses in any given situation. EPA and the States should use the full range of regulatory response options (informal,formal, or some combination thereof) to ensure that the appropriate response or remedy is undertaken by the permittee or municipality. All regulatory responses should be in accordance with the concept of the EMS regarding orderly escalation of enforcement action. Developing Compliance Schedules A compliance schedule should allow adequate time for all p?.ases of a sanitary sewer discharge control program, including csvelopmefitof an O&M plan, diagnostic evaluation of the c3llector system, construction, and enhanced O&M. Mxticipalities should be given a reasonable length of time to develop schedules so they can realistically assess their cerrpliance needs, examine their financing alternatives, and work ouc reasonable schedules for achieving compliance. Nevertheless, tirelines for schedules should be as short as physically and fizancially possible. Short Term Schedules In general, short term schedules would be appropriate for sanitary sewer discharges involving O&M problems, or where only zinor capital expenses are needed to correct the problem. The schedule should have interim dates and a final compliance date izcorporated in the administrative order or enforcement mechanism. Comprehensive Discharge Control Schedules Comprehensive discharge control schedules should be used where specific measures must be taken to correct the discharges, and the measures are complicated, costly, or require 

### a significant period of time.-td' implement. 

### If appropriate, these schedules should include the use of temporary measures to address hich impact problems, espe2i-a_llywher$-. ..a -longterm project is required to correct the sanitary sewer discharge violation. When working with municipalities to develop comprehensive sckedules, EPA Regions and St'ates should'be sensitive 

### to theirspecial problems and needs, including consideration of a municipality's financial picture. Factors that should be considered are the municipality's current bond rating, the amount cf outstanding indebtedness,population and income information, qrant eligibility and past grant experience, the presence or absence of user charges, and whether increased user charges would be an effective fund-raisingmechanism, and a comparison 

### of user charges with other municipalities of similar size and population. Physical capability should be considered when schedules are developed. Schedules sahould include interim milestones and iztermediate relief based on sound construction techniques and scheduling such as critical path method. Compliance schedules should be based on current sewer system physical inspection data adequate to design sanitary sewer discharge control facilities. Schedules should not normally require extraordinary measures such 2s overtime, short bidding times, or other acceleraced building techniques. Where possible, schedule development should be cznpleted according to normal municipal government contrac:inc rssairements


### . Financial capability should also be considered in schedule d~v~loprnent, including fiscally sound municipal financing techniques such as issuing revenue bonds, staging bond issuance, seq~encing project starts, sensitivity to rate increase percentages over time.

KC:~: The intent of this guidance is to aid the Regions and Zz2:2s in setting priorities for enforcement actions based on lizited resources and the need to provide a consistent level of response to violations. This does not represent final Agency

ion, but is intended solely as guidance. This guidance is not ~rcended for use in pleading, or at hearing or trial. It does r.2~ create any rights, duties, obligations, or defenses, implied =rotherwise, in any third parties. This guidance supplements ' tk? Agency's Enforcement Management System Guide (revised



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.-Lruary 27, 1986)

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## ATTACHMENT CHAPTER

## X.. 

### . . ENFORCEMENTRESPONSEGUIDE DISCHARGES FROMSEPARATESAVITARYSEWERS

Discharge without a permit orinviol?tion ofgenerhl Sohibtion Discharge uithout aperm~t



### - -orin violarlonofgeneral
, prohibition Discharge w~thout a permit orin violation ofgeneral prohibition Discharge without a permit or in violationofgeneral prohibition Dlscn~rge u~thout apermit orIn biolut~on ofgeneral prohibition ' Discharge without apermit orin violation ofgeneral prohibition Discharge withoutapermit orin \iolationofgeneral prch~b~tion Dbch~rge ulthoutapemlt orIn violation ofgeneral prohrbltlon
D~scharge wlthoutapermit orin violation ofgeneral prohibition
Dischargewithoutapermit or in violation ofgeneral prohibition Isolated & infrequent. dryweather O&hf related Isolated & infrequenr. dry weathercapacity related Isolated & infrequent. wet weather O&M related i Isolated & infrequent. wetweather, quick and easy solution Isolated & infrequent, wet weathercapacity related, he?lth and/orsensitiveareas Isolated &infrequent,wet weather capaciryrelated, non-health, non-sensitive areas Causeunknown

Permitteedoesnot respond toletters,doesnot follow through onverbal orwritten agreement Frequent, doesnot significantlyaffect water quality, nopotentialpublichealth impact Frequent,causeorcontribute siznificantlytoWQproblems, oroccurinhighpublicuse and public accessareas,ororherwise affectpublic health Phonecall. LOV, 308request

J308req'uest. AO.

APO.Judicial action

Phonecall,LOV. 308request
LOV, 308request

LOV. 308request, A0. APO

Phonecall, LOV, 308 request

Phonecall,LOV,308 request
AO,APO,judicial action

LOV, 308request. AO.APO

AO,APO,judicial action

### ENFORCEMENTRESPONSE GUIDE 

### DISCHARGESFROh.1

### SEPARATESSLNITARYSEWERS NONCOMPLIANCE RANGEOFRESPONSE

Missed interim datein CDCP Will nor cause late finaldate LOV orotherinterim dates

hlissed interim datein CDCP LVill result in othermissed LOV. AO..\PO. dates. no good and valid cause judicial action Missed final darein CDCP Violation dueto force Contactpermitterand majeure require documenrationof goodorvalidcause hlissed fins1date inCDCP Failureorrehsal tocomply AO.APOorjudicial withoutgoodand valid action cause Failureto repon overflows Isolated and infrequent, Phonecall, LOV,AO,APO (assprciriedinpermit) healthrelated Failure tilreponoverflows Isolated and infrequent, water Phonecall,LOV.'AO,APO (asspecifiedin permit) qualicyandenvironmentrelated Failure to repon overflo~s Permitteedoesnot respond to AO,APO,judicial action, (asspecified inpermit) letters,doesnot followthrough request forcriminal onverbalorwritten agreement. investigation orfrequentviolation Failureto reponpermit Any insunce Phone. LOV.AO,APO rquirements

CDCP=ComprehensiveDischargeControlPlan