Council adopts ordinance updating wastewater pretreatment code to meet state audit

The Springville City Council on an affirmative roll call approved Ordinance No. 17-2025 amending the city code on wastewater pretreatment (Title 4, Chapter 14) to comply with recommendations from the Utah Division of Water Quality.

The ordinance stems from a DWQ audit of the city’s pretreatment program conducted on 09/10/2024 that identified required revisions, cross-reference corrections and updates based on the Environmental Protection Agency model pretreatment ordinance and the Code of Federal Regulations. Morgan Heiner, Springville’s pretreatment coordinator, told the council the changes will clarify roles and protections for the publicly owned treatment works and ensure the city remains in compliance with state and federal requirements.

“This is for the amendment of title 4 chapter 14. So just a little background. The division of water quality, DWQ, audits the pretreatment program every 5 years, and this is to ensure that the program is current with any updates with the Environmental Protection Agency, EPA, as well as the code of federal regulation CFR requirements,” Morgan Heiner said.

Heiner said the DWQ audit found multiple items needing correction, including specifying the publicly owned treatment works (POTW), clarifying the superintendent’s duties and delegation authority, indicating best management practices and local limits, protecting the POTW from corrosive pH, and fixing section-number cross‑references. He said the revisions affect all wastewater dischargers, particularly the city’s five currently permitted industrial users.

Council members asked timing questions about the audit and earlier practice; Heiner and other staff said the deep review happens every five years while smaller pretreatment inspections occur annually. A council member moved and another seconded the ordinance; the roll call recorded “Yes” votes from Craig, Jay, Logan and Mindy and the motion passed.

The council did not state a legal threshold or an effective date in the meeting record; the action was recorded as passage by roll call vote. City staff warned that inaction could lead to referral to the DWQ compliance and enforcement section, though the council voted to adopt the ordinance language to avoid that outcome.

The council discussion did not include revisions to funding or implementation timelines; Heiner indicated the changes are largely wording, cross-reference and standards updates needed to align the local ordinance with state and federal pretreatment standards. Staff indicated they would implement the ordinance language as the city code requires.