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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOUNCIL - AGENDA ITEM - 07/06/2004 - SECOND READING OF ORDINANCE NO. 094, 2004, AMENDIN ITEM NUMBER: 8 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY DATE: July6, 2004 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF: Steve Comstock David Meyer SUBJECT Second Reading of Ordinance No. 094, 2004, Amending Chapter 26 of the City Code Related to Wastewater Discharges of Mercury from Dental Offices. RECOMMENDATION Staff and the Water Board recommend adoption of the Ordinance on Second Reading. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This Ordinance, which was unanimously adopted on First Reading on June 15, 2004, establishes requirements for wastewater discharges from dental offices that place or remove dental amalgam containing mercury. ORDINANCE NO. 094, 2004 OF THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS AMENDING CHAPTER 26 OF THE CODE OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS RELATED TO WASTEWATER DISCHARGES OF MERCURY FROM DENTAL OFFICES WHEREAS, Section 26-343 of the City Code provides for limitations on the discharge of certain pollutants into the City's wastewater system; and WHEREAS, recent advances in the technical ability to analyze for low concentrations of mercury in water have resulted in increased interest and concern regarding mercury levels in effluent from water reclamation facilities; and WHEREAS, it is anticipated that future changes by the United States Environmental Protection Agency will require additional action by local water reclamation facilities to reduce the amount of mercury in wastewater received by those facilities; and WHEREAS, dental offices have been shown to comprise the source of 35% to 45% of the mercury discharged to water reclamation facilities; and WHEREAS, the installation of relatively simple equipment and compliance with certain management practices has been shown to reduce the total amount of mercury received by wastewater reclamation facilities by as much as 44% to 77%; and WHEREAS, in order to reduce the levels of mercury received by the City's water reclamation facility, the City Council has determined that it is in the best interests of the City to establish certain discharge limitations in the form of best management practice requirements for dental offices. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT ORDAINED BY THE COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF FORT COLLINS as follows: Section 1. That Section 26-206 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to modify the definition of"Pretreatment requirement" as follows: Pretreatment requirement shall mean any substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment other than a national categorical pretreatment standard imposed on an industrial user. "Pretreatment requirement" shall include best management practices consisting of procedural, operational and/or equipment controls designed to prevent or reduce the introduction of pollutants into the sanitary sewer, or to remove pollutants from wastewater before discharge to the sanitary sewer. Section 2. That Section 26-343 of the Code of the City of Fort Collins is hereby amended to add a new subsection (e) to read as follows: Sec. 26-343. Discharge limitations. (e) Mercury from dental offices. Effective July 1, 2005,no dental office shall discharge wastewater generated from the placement or removal of dental amalgam containing mercury unless said dental office has installed the equipment described in, and conducts its operations in accordance with, the following best management practices: (1) All dental chairs shall be equipped with chair-side traps. Said chair-side traps shall be cleaned and maintained as need to assure their continued effective operation. (2) All vacuum pumps shall be equipped with traps or filters. Said traps or filters shall be cleaned and maintained in the manner specified or recommended by the manufacturer of the same. (3) Cleaning of amalgam contaminated traps,filters and other equipment shall be conducted in a manner reasonably expected to minimize the discharge of wastewater. (4) All wastewater generated from the placement or removal of dental amalgam or the cleaning of amalgam traps or filters shall be discharged through an amalgam separator that: a. has been ISO 11143 certified; b. has been installed, and is operated and maintained according to the manufacturer's specifications; and C. achieves a minimum mercury removal efficiency of ninety-five (95) percent. (5) Cleaners that contain chlorine bleach, other oxidizing compounds, or corrosive compounds that mobilize mercury shall not be used in any waste lines or drains connected to the amalgam separator. (6) All dental amalgam wastes shall be stored in structurally sound, tightly closed and appropriately labeled containers. (7) All dental amalgam waste shall be transferred to an offsite recycling facility for recycling of mercury. (8) The following documentation shall be established and maintained for no less than three(3)years in a location and manner so as to permit review by the city upon request: a. The manufacturer and model of any amalgam separator in use; b. The date of installation of any amalgam separator in use; C. The name and address of the facility to which any waste amalgam is shipped; d. The date and amount of any waste amalgam shipped; and e. Documentation of any maintenance performed on any amalgam separator. Section 3. This Ordinance shall take effect upon the approval of the foregoing modifications to the City's wastewater pretreatment program by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. Introduced and considered favorably on first reading and ordered publi5hQ this 15th day of June, A.D. 2004, and to be presented for final passage on the 6th day dly, A.D. 2004. "9 s ° Mlayor� ATTEST: �IWl .� City Clerk Passed and adopted on final reading this 6th day of July, A.D. 2004. Mayor ATTEST: City Clerk ITEM NUMBER: 10 AGENDA ITEM SUMMARY DATE: June 15, 2004 FORT COLLINS CITY COUNCIL STAFF: Steve Comstock David Meyer SUBJECT First Reading of Ordinance No. 094, 2004, Amending Chapter 26 of the City Code Related to Wastewater Discharges of Merc Er�m 1 � yk RECOMMENDATION Staff and the Water Board recommend adoption of the Ordinance on First Reading. FINANCIAL IMPACT Between 70 and 100 dental facilities will incur equipment and waste recycling costs between $300 and $2000 per year, plu es OsTprogram a or ogram management and labor. City Utilities will not require tion I plementation. EXECUTIVE SUMMARY This Ordinance establishes requirements for wastewater discharges from dental offices that place or remove dental amalgam containing mercury. The regulations are based on best management practices and include the following requirements: 1. Equip dental chairs wi cha7 i tra 2. Equip vacuum pumps ith trap r filte 3. Minimize wastewater m clea g g contaim ted traps and filters. 4. Use of a certified ama g " separ or for e discharge of all amalgam contaminated wastewater. 5. Properly store amalgam wastes in appropriate containers. 6. Send all dental amalgam waste for offsite recycling of mercury. 7. Clean and maintain equipment. 8. Maintain records for City inspection. The new requirements would be effective July 1, 2005. Further the Ordinance establishes the definition for "best management practices" as "Procedural, operational, and/or equipment controls designed to prevent or reduce the introduction of June 15, 2004 -2- Item No. 10 pollutants into the sanitary sewer, or to remove pollutants from wastewater before discharge to the sanitary sewer." The requirements are necessary to meet State Water Quality Standards for mercury. BACKGROUND Mercury is a pollutant that ed�re ed ry 1 w o ra ' s. The State Water Quality Standard that applies to the v is 1 a gr s er ("10 ng/L" or the equivalent 10 parts per trillion). An an d for t merc at such a low concentration has been available only since n b n low-le 1 analyses of mercury in water reclamation facility effluent samples in August 2000 and based on those analyses staff is recommending that the City take additional steps to control the discharge of mercury into the City's wastewater system. Prior to the availability of the low level analysis method, effluent analysis results were all below the detection limit of the less sensitive method. The Region VH1 Environmental Protection Agency pretreatment program is currently developing a policy to require local water reclamation facilities to reduce the amount of mercury in the wastewater received by the facilities. Dental offices are the source of 35% to 45% of the mercury discharged to water r o ieRY malgam separators in dental offices has been shown to r ce th (al eived by water reclamation facilities by as much as 44% t 77%. A best management practices approach to mercury control is being proposed to avoid the problems and expense of sampling and analysis. The impact of the best management practices to most dentists will be the installation and operation of an amalgam separator. The purchase or annual lease cost for an amalgam separator and annual waste recycling costs for a dental office would generally range from $600 to $2000. Although circumstances in some offices may lead some dentists to install the more expensive equipment, lower priced models with the required ISO certification have been shown to be as effective as more expensive models. A model with a total annual cost of approximatel $300 is expected to be available later this year. Between 80 and 120 dentists in 70 to 10 act iOde p e jhs. acted by the mercury control program. The Utilities have informed area fis sed c Letters providing background information and an invitation to attend a meeting to discuss plans for a mercury control program were sent to 130 dentists. Eight dentists attended the meeting held on the evening of April 14. The Water Board discussed this issue at its January 22, February 26 and April 22, 2004 meetings. The Board voted unanimously to support a mercury control program including the use of amalgam separators on February 26. Copies of the minutes are attached.