§ 23-80. Compliance and enforcement.

A. 

Enforcement response plan. The City may adopt policies and procedures as set forth in the City's Enforcement Response Plan for carrying out the provisions of this article, provided that such policies and procedures are not in conflict with this article or any applicable state or federal law or regulation.

B. 

Administrative enforcement actions.

(1) 

Notice of violation (NOV). When the City finds that an industrial user has violated, or continues to violate, any provision of this article, an industrial wastewater discharge permit, or order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may serve upon the industrial user a written notice of violation. Within five working days of the receipt of such notice, an explanation of the violation and a plan for the satisfactory correction or prevention thereof, to include specific required actions, shall be submitted by the industrial user to the City. Submission of such a plan in no way relieves the industrial user of liability for any violations occurring before or after receipt of the notice of violation. Nothing in this section shall limit the authority of the City to take any action, including emergency actions or any other enforcement action, without first issuing a notice of violation.

(2) 

Suspension of service.

(a) 

Endangerment to health or welfare of the community. The City, through other than a formal notice to the affected industrial user, may immediately and effectively halt or prevent any discharge of pollutants into any natural waterway, surface drainage within the City, any area under jurisdiction of the City, the POTW of the City or any wastewater system tributary thereto, by any means available to it, including physical disconnection from the wastewater system, whenever it reasonably appears that such discharge presents an imminent endangerment to the health or welfare of the community.

(b) 

Endangerment to environment or treatment works. The City, after written notice to the discharger, may halt or prevent any discharge of pollutants into any natural waterway, surface drainage within the City, any area under jurisdiction of the City, the POTW, wastewater system tributary thereto, by any means available to it, including physical disconnection from the wastewater system, whenever such discharge presents or may present an endangerment to the environment or threatens to interfere with the operation of the POTW.

(c) 

Any person notified of a suspension of the wastewater treatment service and/or the industrial wastewater discharge permit shall immediately stop or eliminate the contribution. In the event of a failure of the person to comply voluntarily with the suspension order, the City shall take such steps as deemed necessary, including immediate severance of the sewer connection, to prevent or minimize damage to the POTW system or endangerment to individuals or the environment. The City may reinstate the industrial wastewater discharge permit and/or the wastewater treatment service upon proof of the elimination of the noncomplying discharge.

(d) 

A detailed written statement submitted by the industrial user describing the causes of the harmful contribution and the measure taken to prevent any future occurrence shall be provided to the City within five days of the date of occurrence. Suspension of service shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against the industrial user.

(3) 

Administrative compliance order. When the City finds that an industrial user has violated, or continues to violate, any provision of this article, an industrial wastewater discharge permit, or order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may issue an order to the industrial user responsible for the discharge directing that the industrial user come into compliance within a specific time. If the industrial user does not come into compliance within the time provided, sewer service may be discontinued unless adequate treatment facilities, devices, or other related appurtenances are installed and property operated. Compliance orders also may contain other requirements to address the noncompliance, including additional self-monitoring and management practices designed to minimize the amount of pollutants discharged to the POTW. A compliance order may not extend the deadline for compliance established for a pretreatment standard or requirement, nor does a compliance order relieve the industrial user of liability for any violation, including any continuing violation. Issuance of a compliance order shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against the industrial user.

(4) 

Consent order. The City may enter into a consent order, assurances of compliance, or other similar documents establishing an agreement with any industrial user responsible for noncompliance. Such documents shall include specific actions to be taken by the industrial user to correct the noncompliance within a time period specified by the document. A consent order may include penalties, supplemental environmental projects, or other conditions and requirements as agreed to by the City and the industrial user.

(5) 

Cease and desist order.

(a) 

When the City Engineer finds that an industrial user is violating this division, a wastewater discharge permit, any order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement, or that the industrial user's past compliance history indicates that violations are likely to recur, the City Engineer may issue an order to the user directing it to cease and desist all such violations and directing the industrial user to:

[1] 

Immediately comply with all requirements; and

[2] 

Take such appropriate remedial or preventive action as may be needed to properly address a continuing or threatened violation, including halting operations and/or terminating the discharge.

(b) 

Issuance of a cease and desist order shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against the industrial user.

(6) 

Administrative fines.

(a) 

When the City finds that an industrial user has violated, or continues to violate, any provision of this article, an industrial wastewater discharge permit, or order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may fine such industrial user in an amount not to exceed $1,000 per day per violation. Such fines shall be assessed on a per-violation, per-day basis. In the case of monthly or other long-term average discharge limits, fines shall be assessed for each day during the period of violation.

(b) 

A lien against the industrial user's property shall be sought for unpaid charges, fines, and penalties.

(c) 

Industrial users desiring to appeal such fines must file a written request for the City to reconsider the fine along with full payment of the fine amount within 15 days of being notified of the fine. Such notice or appeal shall set forth the nature of the order or determination being appealed, the date of such order or determination, the reason for the appeal, and request for reconsideration.

(d) 

Issuance of an administrative fine shall not be a bar against, or prerequisite for, taking any other action against the industrial user.

C. 

Judicial enforcement remedies.

(1) 

Injunctive relief. When the City finds that an industrial user has violated, or continues to violate, any provision of this article, an industrial wastewater discharge permit, or order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement, the City may petition the District Court of the Third Judicial District, Uinta County, for the issuance of a temporary or permanent injunction, as appropriate, which restrains or compels the specific performance of the industrial wastewater discharge permit, order, or other requirement imposed by this article on activities of an industrial user. The City may also seek such other action as is appropriate for legal and/or equitable relief, including a requirement for the industrial user to conduct environmental remediation. A petition for injunctive relief shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against an industrial user.

(2) 

Civil penalties.

(a) 

An industrial user who has violated, or continues to violate, any provision of this article, an industrial wastewater discharge permit, or order issued hereunder, or any other pretreatment standard or requirement shall be liable to the City for a maximum civil penalty not to exceed $1,000 per day per violation. In the case of a monthly or other long-term average discharge limit, penalties shall accrue for each day during the period of violation.

(b) 

The City may recover reasonable attorneys' fees, court costs, and other expenses associated with enforcement activities, including sampling and monitoring expenses, and the cost of any actual damages incurred by the City.

(c) 

In determining the amount of civil liability, the court shall take into account all relevant circumstances including, but not limited to, the extent of harm caused by the violation, the magnitude and duration of the violation, any economic benefit gained through the industrial user's violation, corrective actions by the industrial user, the compliance history of the industrial user, and any other factor as justice requires.

(d) 

Actions for civil penalties shall be civil actions brought in the name of the City in the District Court of the Third Judicial District, Uinta County. The City must prove alleged violations by a preponderance of the evidence.

(e) 

Filing a suit for civil penalties shall not be a bar against, or a prerequisite for, taking any other action against an industrial user.

(3) 

Civil/administrative fine pass through. In the event that an industrial user discharges such pollutants which cause the City to violate any condition of its WYPDES permit and the City is fined by the EPA or the state for such violation, then such industrial user shall be fully liable for the total amount of the fine assessed against the City by the EPA and/or the state.

(4) 

Criminal prosecution. The City may refer violations that warrant criminal prosecution to the U.S. Attorney General's Office, State Attorney General or USEPA Criminal Investigation Division or other appropriate agency. This referral shall not preclude the City from taking a parallel administrative or civil enforcement action.

D. 

Remedies nonexclusive. The remedies provided for in this article are not exclusive of any other remedies that the City may have under the provisions of Wyoming law. The City may take any, all, or any combination of these actions against a noncompliant industrial user. Enforcement of pretreatment violations will generally be in accordance with the enforcement response plan. However, the City may take other action against any industrial user when the circumstances warrant and may take more than one enforcement action against any noncompliant industrial user.