Richmond council OKs state-required wastewater ordinance

By Brooke Barker

March 23, 2006 | RICHMOND -- After waiting for more than a month, the City Council was finally able to get a copy of the enabling ordinance establishing wastewater pre-treatment policy and procedures manual.

The city received the ordinance from the Utah Division of Water Quality in February, but not in a format the city could open or print.

"Hasn't the state heard of PDF?" Councilwoman Terrie Wierenga asked, while City Manager Marlowe Adkins discussed problems trying to convert the lengthy document.

The ordinance is required by the Environmental Protection Agency as well as the DWQ. The wording of the document could not be changed at the meeting without having to go through a re-approval process with the DWQ and EPA.

"This can require companies to pre-treat before they put out, like Lowers is doing now," Adkins said during the meeting. Adkins talked about some of the past problems with companies dumping grease and other wastes that clogged the sewer system.

The ordinance first appeared on last month's agenda but the council was apprehensive of agreeing to something they hadn't had a chance to look at.

"The fact still remains that I'm not going to endorse something I haven't had a chance to look at," Wierenga said after receiving her copy of the document.

The council unanimously accepted the ordinance after spending several minutes skimming the document. Adkins explained to the council the importance of the ordinance.

"If something were to happen, this ordinance has it all down so we can say, according to this manual, these are the things that you need to be doing and these are our responsibilities as a city," Adkins said.

The council will meet next on Tuesday, April 18, at 7 p.m.

Other items discussed during the meeting:
-- The progress of the Richmond city history book.
-- A bid for the new sewage system, and the decision to get a second bid from another company.
-- Councilman Brad Jensen collected names of 48 children attending school on the west side of U.S. Highway 91 in order to help receive funding for a new stoplight from the Utah Department of Transportation.
-- A representative from the Child and Family Support Center in Logan came to the meeting to ask the city to help support child abuse prevention month during April by handing out blue ribbons for residents to wear.

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