Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 62-625.200 - Definitions

Terms used in this chapter shall have the meaning specified below. The meaning of any term not defined below shall be taken from definitions in other rules of the Department, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

(1) "Bypass" means the intentional diversion of wastewater streams from any portion of an industrial user's treatment facility.

(2) "Best Management Practices" or "BMPs" mean schedules of activities, prohibitions of practices, maintenance procedures, and other management practices to implement the prohibitions listed in subsections 62-625.400(1)(a) and (2), F.A.C. BMPs also include treatment requirements, operating procedures, and practices to control plant site runoff, spillage or leaks, industrial sludge or waste disposal, or drainage from raw materials storage.

(3) "Categorical Industrial User" means an industrial user subject to categorical pretreatment standards under Rule 62-625.410, F.A.C., including 40 C.F.R. Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405 through 471, as of July 1, 2009, hereby adopted and incorporated by reference.

(4) "Consistent Removal" means the average of the lowest 50 percent of the removal measured in accordance with subsection 62-625.420(2), F.A.C.

(5) "Control Authority" means any public utility that administers a pretreatment program that has been approved by the Department in accordance with the requirements of Rule 62-625.510, F.A.C. In cases where categorical or significant noncategorical industrial users discharge to domestic WWFs that are not included in an approved pretreatment program, the Department shall function as the control authority until an approved pretreatment program has been established by the public utility.

(6) "Discharge" means the introduction of pollutants into a WWF from any nondomestic source regulated under Chapter 403, F.S.

(7) "Grab Sample" means an individual, discrete sample collected at a specific time. A grab sample includes all sub samples or aliquots (e.g. individual containers for specific analytes or analyte groups), sample fractions (e.g. total and filtered samples), and all applicable field quality control samples (e.g. field sample duplicates or split samples) collected at the same locations within a time not exceeding 15 minutes.

(8) "Industrial User" means a source of discharge.

(9) "Interference" means a discharge which, alone or in conjunction with a discharge or discharges from other sources, both:

(a) Inhibits or disrupts the WWF or potable reuse system, its treatment processes or operations, or its biosolids processes, use or disposal; and,

(b) Is a cause of a violation of any requirement of the WWF's or potable reuse system's permits (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation) or prevents use or disposal of biosolids in compliance with local regulations or rules of the Department and Chapter 403, F.S.

(10) "Instantaneous limit" means the maximum concentration of a pollutant allowed to be discharged at any time, determined from the analysis of any discrete or composited sample collected, independent of the industrial flow rate and the duration of the sampling event.

(11) "Maximum Allowable Industrial Loading" means the total mass of a pollutant that all industrial users and other controlled sources may discharge without causing pass through or interference.

(12) "Method Detection Limit" or "MDL" means an estimate of the minimum amount of a substance that an analyte process can reliably detect. A MDL is analyte- and matrix-specific and is laboratory dependent.

(13) "New Source" means:

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

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

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

3. 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 shall 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 (a)2. or (a)3., above, but otherwise alters, replaces, or adds to existing process or production equipment; or

(c) Construction of a new source, as defined in this chapter, has commenced if the owner or operator has:

1. 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

2. 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 rule.

(14) "Non-significant categorical industrial user" means an industrial user that discharges 100 gallons per day (gpd) or less of total categorical wastewater (excluding sanitary, non-contact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater, unless specifically included in the pretreatment standard) and:

(a) Has consistently complied with all applicable categorical pretreatment standards and requirements;

(b) Annually submits the certification statement required in subsection 62-625.600(17), F.A.C., together with any additional information necessary to support the certification statement; and,

(c) Never discharges any untreated categorical process wastewater.

(15) "Pass Through" means a discharge which exits the WWF into waters of the State or into waters used as a drinking water source 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 WWF's or potable reuse system's permits (including an increase in the magnitude or duration of a violation).

(16) "Permit" means a permit issued to a WWF in accordance with Chapter 62-620, F.A.C.

(17) "Pretreatment" means 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 WWF. The reduction or alteration may be obtained by physical, chemical or biological processes, process changes or by other means, except as prohibited by subsection 62-625.410(5), F.A.C.

(18) "Pretreatment Program" means a program administered by a public utility that meets the criteria established in Rule 62-625.500, F.A.C.

(19) "Pretreatment Requirement" means any substantive or procedural requirement related to pretreatment, other than a pretreatment standard, imposed on an industrial user.

(20) "Pretreatment Standard" means any regulation containing pollutant discharge limits promulgated by the EPA under Sections 307(b) and (c) of the CWA or by the Department under Chapter 403, F.S., which applies to industrial users. This term includes prohibitive discharge limits established in Rule 62-625.400, F.A.C.

(21) "Public Utility" means any state, county or municipality owning, managing, controlling or operating a domestic WWF, or proposing to construct a domestic WWF that provides or proposes to provide wastewater service.

(22) "Removal" means a reduction in the amount of a pollutant in the WWF's effluent or alteration of the nature of a pollutant during treatment at the WWF. The reduction or alteration can be obtained by physical, chemical or biological means and may be the result of specifically designed WWF capabilities or may be incidental to the operation of the treatment system. Removal as used in this chapter shall not mean dilution of a pollutant in the WWF.

(23) "Responsible Corporate Officer" means:

(a) A president, secretary, treasurer, or vice-president of the corporation in charge of a principal business function, or any other person who performs similar policy- or decision-making functions for the corporation; or

(b) The manager of one or more manufacturing, production, or operating facilities, provided, the manager;

1. Is authorized to make management decisions which govern the operation of the regulated facility including having the explicit or implicit duty of making major capital investment recommendations;

2. Is authorized to initiate and direct other comprehensive measures to assure long-term environmental compliance with environmental laws and regulations;

3. Can ensure that the necessary systems are established or actions taken to gather complete and accurate information for control mechanism requirements;

4. Has been assigned or delegated the authority to sign documents in accordance with corporate procedures.

(24) "Severe Property Damage" means substantial physical damage to property, damage to an industrial user's treatment facilities which causes them to become inoperable, or substantial and permanent loss of natural resources which can reasonably be expected to occur in the absence of a bypass. Severe property damage does not mean economic loss caused by delays in production.

(25) "Significant Industrial User" means, except as provided in paragraphs (c) and (d), below, the following:

(a) Categorical Industrial Users; and,

(b) Any other industrial user that discharges an average of 25, 000 gallons per day or more of process wastewater to the WWF (excluding domestic wastewater, noncontact cooling and boiler blowdown wastewater); contributes a process waste stream which makes up 5 percent or more of the average dry weather hydraulic or organic capacity of the treatment plant; or is designated as such by the control authority on the basis that the industrial user has a reasonable potential for adversely affecting the WWF's operation, any portion of the potable reuse system, or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement in accordance with paragraph 62-625.500(2)(e), F.A.C.

(c) The control authority (except where the Department is acting as the control authority) may determine that an industrial user subject to categorical pretreatment standards under Rule 62-625.410, F.A.C., including 40 CFR Chapter I, Subchapter N, Parts 405 through 471, is a non-significant categorical industrial user.

(d) Upon a finding that an industrial user meeting the criteria in paragraph (b), above, has no reasonable potential for adversely affecting the WWF's operation or for violating any pretreatment standard or requirement, the control authority may at any time, on its own initiative or in response to a petition received from an industrial user, and in accordance with paragraph 62-625.500(2)(e), F.A.C., determine that such industrial user is not a significant industrial user.

(26) "Slug Discharge" means any discharge of a nonroutine, episodic nature, which has a reasonable potential to cause interference or pass through, or in any other way violate the WWF's regulations, local limits or permit conditions.

(27) "Treatment Plant" means that portion of a WWF which is designed to provide treatment (including recycling and reclamation) of domestic and industrial wastewater.

(28) "Upset" means an exceptional incident in which there is unintentional and temporary noncompliance with categorical pretreatment standards because of factors beyond the reasonable control of the industrial user.

(29) "Wastewater Facility" or "WWF" means any facility which discharges wastes into waters of the State or which can reasonably be expected to be a source of water pollution and includes any or all of the following: the collection and transmission system, the wastewater treatment works, the reuse or disposal system, and the biosolids management facility.

(30) "Water Management Division Director" means one of the Directors of the Water Management Divisions within the Regional offices of the EPA or this person's delegated representative.

Notes

Fla. Admin. Code Ann. R. 62-625.200

Rulemaking Authority 403.061(7), (31), 403.0885 FS. Law Implemented 403.0885 FS.

New 11-29-94, Amended 5-10-10, Amended by Florida Register Volume 47, Number 174, September 8, 2021 effective 9/20/2021.

New 11-29-94, Amended 5-10-10, 9-20-21.