La. Admin. Code tit. 33 § IX-6105

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
Section IX-6105 - Definitions
A. For purposes of this Chapter, except as discussed below, the general definitions, abbreviations, and methods of analysis set forth in 40 CFR Part 401 shall apply to this regulation.

Act- the Clean Water Act (CWA as defined in LAC 33:IX.2313 and the appropriate provisions of the LEQA and regulations.

Approval Authority- the state administrative authority in an NPDES state with an approved state pretreatment program and the appropriate EPA regional administrator in a non NPDES state or NPDES state without an approved state pretreatment program.

Approved POTW Pretreatment Program or Program or POTW Pretreatment Program- a program administered by a POTW that meets the criteria established in this regulation (LAC 33:IX.6115 and 6117) and which has been approved by a EPA regional administrator or state administrative authority in accordance with LAC 33:IX.6121 of this regulation.

Best Management Practices (BMPs) - schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to implement the prohibitions listed in LAC 33:IX.6109. BMPs also include treatment requirements, operating procedures, and practices to control plant site runoff, spillage or leaks, sludge or waste disposal, or drainage from raw materials storage.

Control Authority - a POTW, if the POTW's pretreatment program submission has been approved in accordance with the provisions in LAC 33:IX.6121; or the approval authority, as defined in this Subsection, if the submission has not been approved.

EPA Regional Administrator- the appropriate EPA Regional Administrator.

Indirect Discharge or Discharge- the introduction of pollutants into a POTW from any non-domestic source regulated under Section 307(b), (c) or (d) of the Act.

Industrial User or User- a source of indirect discharge.

Interference- a discharge which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, both:

a. inhibits or disrupts the POTW, its treatment processes or operations, or its sludge processes or operations, use or disposal; and

b. therefore is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW's LPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or of the prevention of sewage sludge use or disposal in compliance with the following statutory provisions and regulations or permits issued thereunder (or more stringent state or local regulations): Section 405 of the Clean Water Act, the Solid Waste Disposal Act (SWDA) (including Title II, more commonly referred to as the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), and including state regulations contained in any state sludge management plan prepared pursuant to Subtitle D of the SWDA), the Clean Air Act, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the Marine Protection, Research and Sanctuaries Act.

National Pretreatment Standard, Pretreatment Standard, or Standard- any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated in accordance with Section 307(b) and (c) of the Act, which applies to industrial users. This term includes prohibitive discharge limits established pursuant to LAC 33:IX.6109.

New Source-

a. any building, structure, facility, or installation from which there is or may be a discharge of pollutants, the construction of which commenced after the publication of proposed pretreatment standards under Section 307(c) of the Act which will be applicable to such source if such standards are thereafter promulgated in accordance with that Section, provided that:

i. the building, structure, facility or installation is constructed at a site at which no other source is located; or

ii. the building, structure, facility or installation totally replaces the process or production equipment that causes the discharge of pollutants at an existing source; or

iii. the production or wastewater generating processes of the building, structure, facility or installation are substantially independent of an existing source at the same site. In determining whether these are substantially independent, factors such as the extent to which the new facility is integrated with the existing plant, and the extent to which the new facility is engaged in the same general type of activity as the existing source should be considered.

b. Construction on a site at which an existing source is located results in a modification rather than a new source if the construction does not create a new building, structure, facility or installation meeting the criteria of Subparagraph 1.b and c above but otherwise alters, replaces, or adds to existing process or production equipment.

c. Construction of a new source as defined under this Paragraph has commenced if the owner or operator has:

i. begun, or caused to begin as part of a continuous on-site construction program:

(a). any placement, assembly, or installation of facilities or equipment; or

(b). significant site preparation work including clearing, excavation, or removal of existing buildings, structures, or facilities which is necessary for the placement, assembly, or installation of new source facilities or equipment; or

ii. entered into a binding contractual obligation for the purchase of facilities or equipment which are intended to be used in its operation within a reasonable time. Options to purchase or contracts which can be terminated or modified without substantial loss, and contracts for feasibility, engineering, and design studies do not constitute a contractual obligation under this Paragraph.

NPDES State- a state (as defined in LAC 33:IX.2313) or interstate water pollution control agency with an NPDES permit program approved pursuant to Section 402(b) of the Act.

Pass Through- a discharge which exits the POTW into waters of the United States in quantities or concentrations which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the POTW's LPDES permit (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).

Permit- an NPDES or LPDES permit issued to a POTW pursuant to Section 402 of the Act.

POTW Treatment Plant- that portion of the POTW which is designed to provide treatment (including recycling and reclamation) of municipal sewage and industrial waste.

Pretreatment- the reduction of the amount of pollutants, the elimination of pollutants, or the alteration of the nature of pollutant properties in wastewater prior to or in lieu of discharging or otherwise introducing such pollutants into a POTW. The reduction or alteration may be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, process changes or by other means, except as prohibited by LAC 33:IX.6105.Approved POTW Pretreatment Program or Program or POTW Treatment Program. Appropriate pretreatment technology includes control equipment, such as equalization tanks or facilities, for protection against surges or slug loadings that might interfere with or otherwise be incompatible with the POTW. However, where wastewater from a regulated process is mixed in an equalization facility with unregulated wastewater or with wastewater from another regulated process, the effluent from the equalization facility must meet an adjusted pretreatment limit calculated in accordance with LAC 33:IX.6111.E.

Pretreatment Requirements- any substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment, other than a national pretreatment standard, imposed on an industrial user.

Significant Industrial User-

a. except as provided in Subparagraph b of this definition, the term significant industrial user means:

i. all industrial users subject to categorical pretreatment standards under LAC 33:IX.6111 and 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N (LAC 33:IX.4903); and

ii. any other industrial user that:

(a). discharges an average of 25,000 gallons per day or more of process wastewater to the POTW (excluding sanitary, noncontact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater);

(b). contributes a process wastestream which makes up 5 percent or more of the average dry weather hydraulic or organic capacity of the POTW treatment plant; or

(c). is designated as such by the control authority, as defined in this Subsection, on the basis that the industrial user has a reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement (in accordance with LAC 33:IX.6115.F.6);

b. the control authority may determine that an industrial user subject to categorical pretreatment standards under LAC 33:IX.6111 and 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N is a non-significant categorical industrial user rather than a significant industrial user on a finding that the industrial user never discharges more than 100 gallons per day (gpd) of total categorical wastewater (excluding sanitary, non-contact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater, unless specifically included in the pretreatment standard) and the following conditions are met:

i. the industrial user, prior to the control authority's finding, has consistently complied with all applicable categorical pretreatment standards and requirements;

ii. the industrial user annually submits the certification statement required in LAC 33:IX.6123.Q together with any additional information necessary to support the certification statement; and

iii. the industrial user never discharges any untreated concentrated wastewater;

c. upon a finding that an industrial user meeting the criteria in Clause a.ii of this definition has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the POTW's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the control authority (as defined in this Subsection) may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user or POTW, and in accordance with LAC 33:IX.6115.F.6, determine that such industrial user is not a significant industrial user.

a. a request by a POTW for approval of a pretreatment program to the EPA or the state administrative authority;

b. a request by a POTW or the state administrative authority for authority to revise the discharge limits in categorical pretreatment standards to reflect POTW pollutant removals; or

c. a request to the EPA by an NPDES State for approval of its State pretreatment program.

Water Management Division Director- one of the Directors of the Water Management Divisions within the Regional Offices of the Environmental Protection Agency or this person's delegated representative.

La. Admin. Code tit. 33, § IX-6105

Promulgated by the Department of Environmental Quality, Office of Water Resources, LR 21:945 (September 1995), amended by the Office of Environmental Assessment, Environmental Planning Division, LR 28:474 (March 2002), repromulgated LR 30:232 (February 2004), amended by the Office of the Secretary, Legal Affairs Division, LR 32:1033 (June 2006).
At 49 FR 5132, Feb. 10, 1984, Paragraphs (i) and (n) were suspended until further notice.
AUTHORITY NOTE: Promulgated in accordance with R.S. 30:2001 et seq., and in particular Section 2074(B)(3) and (B)(4)