Code of Massachusetts Regulations › 310 CMR - DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION › Title 310 CMR 15.000 - The State Environmental Code, Title 5: Standard Requirements for the Siting, Construction, Inspection, Upgrade and Expansion of On-site Sewage Treatment and Disposal Systems and for the Transport and Disposal of Septage › Subpart A - GENERAL PROVISIONS AND ENFORCEMENT › Section 15.021 - Certificates of Compliance

Current through Register 1525, July 5, 2024
(1) No person shall
				discharge sewage to a new, upgraded or expanded system without first obtaining
				a Certificate of Compliance from the Approving Authority in accordance with 310
				CMR 15.021(2) through (5). Certificates of Compliance shall be in a form
				approved by the Department. The Approving Authority shall provide the owner or
				operator a copy of the Department's operation and maintenance guide, or inform
				him or her where a copy can be obtained.
(2) Subsurface components of a system shall
				not be backfilled or otherwise concealed from view until a final inspection has
				been conducted by the Approving Authority and permission has been granted by
				the Approving Authority to backfill the system. The Designer shall inspect the
				construction after the initial excavation, prior to backfilling, and during
				backfilling. In addition, the final inspection of the system shall be conducted
				by the Approving Authority, the system installer and the Designer prior to the
				issuance of a Certificate of Compliance pursuant to 310 CMR 15.021(3). Any
				component of the system which has been covered without such permission shall be
				uncovered upon the request of the Approving Authority or the
				Department.
(3) Upon availability,
				the designer shall file an electronic registration for the system with the
				Department or an agent authorized by the Department, prior to signing the
				Certificate of Compliance in accordance with 310 CMR 15.021(4). Documentation
				of the registration must be provided to the Approving Authority and the system
				owner.
(4) Within 30 days of the
				final inspection of the system and prior to the issuance of a Certificate of
				Compliance, the Disposal System Installer and the Designer shall certify in
				writing on a form approved by the Department that the system has been
				constructed in compliance with
				310 CMR 15.000, the approved
				design plans and all local requirements, and that any changes to the design
				plans have been reflected on as-built plans which have been submitted to the
				Approving Authority by the Designer prior to the issuance of a Certificate of
				Compliance. The as-built plans shall be prepared in accordance with
				310 CMR
				15.220 and, at a minimum, shall reflect any
				changes to the approved design plans and show the exact location and elevation
				of all system components. As-built plans are required to be submitted to the
				Approving Authority only when changes have been made to the approved plans. If
				no changes have been made to the approved plans, the approved plan showing the
				distances from a known structure to the system components shall be submitted to
				the Approving Authority in place of an as-built plan. Prior to the issuance of
				a Certificate of Compliance for a system, the Approving Authority shall make
				sufficient inspections of the system in accordance with 310 CMR 15.021(2) to
				determine that the work has been completed in compliance with the requirements
				of
				310 CMR 15.000, the Disposal
				System Construction Permit, the approved design plans, and any local
				requirements.
(5) A Certificate of
				Compliance does not constitute a statement that the system will function as
				designed nor shall it in any way limit the powers or responsibilities of the
				local Approving Authority or the Department to enforce any requirement, or to
				take any other action to protect public health, safety, welfare or the
				environment.
(6) The Approving
				Authority shall give to the building inspector or other official of the
				municipality responsible for the issuance of a Certificate of Occupancy
				pursuant to 780 CMR 100 a copy of the Certificate of Compliance. No person
				shall apply for a Certificate of Occupancy to inhabit or use new construction
				until a Certificate of Compliance has been issued by the Approving
				Authority.