- Home
- Government
- Departments
- Utilities
- Wastewater
- Industrial Wastewater
Industrial Wastewater
The City is mandated to implement an Industrial Waste Program in order to reduce the amount of harmful pollutants discharged into the City sewer. The intent of the program is to:
- To enable the City to comply with the National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System Permit.
- Helps the City to produce quality effluent for reuse and recycling.
- Protect the public, the environment, and City wastewater staff and facilities from harmful industrial discharges.
Programs
The program does this through the permitting of facilities with certain types of industrial discharges. The legal authority to implement the program can be found in Chapter 14.10, Sewer Use, of the City's Municipal Code. The programs included under Industrial Wastewater are:
- Industrial Waste Program
- Fats, Oils & Grease Program
- Small Winery & Small Brewery
- Hauled Waste - Dump Stations
Industrial Wastewater Discharge Permits are issued to facilities which fall under the requirements of Title 40, Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), Part 403 or discharge pollutants that may be harmful to the wastewater system. Permitted facilities may be required to monitor their discharge to ensure compliance with the local discharge limits listed in Section 14.10.070(B) of Sewer Use Ordinance.
Industrial Wastewater Survey
New industrial facilities are required to complete and submit an Industrial Wastewater Survey to the Industrial Waste Manager. If it is determined that additional information is needed, an inspection and /or an Industrial Waste Discharge Application may be required to determine if a permit should be issued.
Contact Information
The City may require a wastewater pretreatment system for certain types of industrial discharges. Please email the Industrial Waste Manager, Patti Gwathmey or call 805-227-1654.
The Fats, Oils, and Grease (FOG) program issues permits to food service establishments and commercial kitchens in order to keep FOG out of the sewer system and to prevent spills caused by grease clogs. All food service facilities are required to have a Grease Interceptor. The legal authority for requiring grease interceptors is in Section 14.10.370 of the Sewer Use Ordinance.
View the Keeping Fats, Oils, and Grease Out of the Sewer Questions and Answers (PDF) for Food Service Establishments regarding Fats, Oil, and Grease and Grease Control Devices. View the FOG Control Manual (PDF) for the sizing and maintenance of Grease Control Devises. Spanish FOG Manual de Control de Grasas, Aceites y Mantecas (PDF)
Food Service Wastewater Permit Application
A Food Service Wastewater Permit Application must be completed and submitted to the Wastewater Department by any new food service facility, or if there is an ownership change of an existing food service. The City will conduct an inspection to confirm the information on the application and a permit will be issued. (Application)
Maintenance Records
During the annual inspection, Grease Interceptor maintenance records will be reviewed, best management practices to reduce the amount of FOG discharged to the sewer will be discussed, and proper outdoor storage of wastes will be looked at. The City may establish a minimum cleaning schedule for the interceptor. View the Grease Interceptor Cleaning Record Form (PDF).
Food Service & Beverage Facility Plans
City Industrial Waste staff review all food service and beverage facility plans submitted to the Building Department for the installation or retrofit of grease interceptors or kitchen plumbing.
Contact Information
Email Brian England, Water Quality Specialist or call 805-227-7239 if you have any questions or need additional information.
Small Winery & Small Brewery Program
Starting July 1, 2018, the City may allow a limited number of small wineries and small breweries to pay a surcharge to discharge wastewater which exceeds the Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Total Suspended Solids (TSS) in lieu of requiring pretreatment of these pollutants. The legal authority and requirements for this program are in Section 14.10.250 of the Sewer Use Ordinance. The definition of small winery and small brewery are as follows:
Small Winery
- Processes less than 160 tons of grapes per year.
- Produces a cumulative total of less than 26,000 gallons of wastewater per month.
- Produces less than 10,000 cases of wine per year.
Small Brewery
- Generates an average of less than 40,000 gallons of wastewater per month.
- Produces less than 15,000 barrels of beer per year.
Surcharge
A small winery and brewery discharge application and permit is required. Participants will be required to conduct effluent monitoring to enable the City to calculate the surcharge. The surcharge will be determined by comparing the strength of the BOD and TSS from the facility effluent to the City's local limits for BOD and TSS. This difference shall be multiplied by the then-current per unit wastewater user rate specified in Section 14.16.020 of the City Municipal Code.
The City has a septage receiving station at the Wastewater Treatment Plant for accepting domestic septage from permitted waste haulers. The City has been limited to only allowing four waste haulers and is not currently permitting new haulers.
Dump Stations
The City does not accept waste from portable toilets, type III marine devices, or recreational vehicles. Dump stations for recreation vehicles are located here:
- Delta RV open Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. at:
1960 Ramada Drive
Paso Robles, CA 93446