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1.1 1.1 ENACTMENIThapter 137—Septic Systems—Amend to Add North Qby Wastewater Disposal District No. 1—8-8-2022 RESOLUTION ADOPTING LOCAL LAW NO.: OF 2022 TO AMEND CHAPTER 137 OF QUEENSBURY TOWN CODE ENTITLED "SEPTIC SYSTEMS" TO ADD ARTICLE II "NORTH QUEENSBURY WASTEWATER DISPOSAL DISTRICT NO. 1" RESOLUTION NO.: 12022 INTRODUCED BY: WHO MOVED ITS ADOPTION SECONDED BY: WHEREAS, by Resolution No.: 407, 2014, the Queensbury Town Board created the North Queensbury Wastewater Disposal District No. 1 pursuant to New York State Town Law Section 190- e for the purpose of administration and planning, design, installation, construction, rehabilitation, replacement, operation and maintenance, monitoring, residual treatment and disposal and regulation of private on-site wastewater disposal systems of such district, and WHEREAS, the Town Board wishes to consider further specifying and codifying the requirements applicable within the Disposal District by adoption of Local Law No.: of 2022 which, if adopted would amend Queensbury Town Code Chapter 137 by adding Article 11"North Queensbury Wastewater Disposal District No. I", and WHEREAS, New York State Municipal Home Rule Law §20 requires the Town Board to hold a public hearing prior to the adoption of any Local Law, and the Town Board duly held a public hearing concerning such proposed Local Law on Monday, August 8t', 2022 and heard all interested persons, NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED, that the Queensbury Town Board hereby adopts Local Law No.: of 2022 to amend Queensbury Town Code Chapter 137 by adding Article 11 "North Queensbury Wastewater Disposal District No. 1", substantially in the form presented at this meeting, and BE IT FURTHER, RESOLVED, that the Town Board hereby authorizes and directs the Queensbury Town Clerk to file the Local Law with the New York State Secretary of State in accordance with the provisions of the Municipal Home Rule Law and acknowledges that the Local Law will take effect immediately upon filing with the Secretary of State, and BE IT FURTHER, RESOLVED, that the Town Board further authorizes and directs the Town Supervisor, Director of Building and Codes Enforcement, Town Counsel and/or Town Clerk to take such other and further actions as may be necessary to effectuate the terms of this Resolution. Duly adopted this 8t'day of August, 2022,by the following vote: AYES NOES ABSENT : LOCAL LAWS\Chapter 137 Septic Systems—Amend to Add North Qby Wastewater Disposal District No I—August 8 2022 LOCAL LAW NO.: OF 2022 A LOCAL LAW TO AMEND QUEENSBURY TOWN CODE CHAPTER 137 TO ADD ARTICLE II "NORTH QUEENSBURY WASTEWATER DISPOSAL DISTRICT NO. 1" BE IT ENACTED BY THE QUEENSBURY TOWNBOARD AS FOLLOWS: Section 1. Authority — This Local Law is adopted pursuant to Article 16 of the Town Law and Article 3 of the Public Health Law. Section 2. Queensbury Town Code is hereby amended by adding Chapter 137, Article II as set forth below: ARTICLE II: "NORTH QUEENSBURY WASTEWATER DISPOSAL DISTRICT NO. 119 § 137-7. Purpose and Intent. The North Queensbury Wastewater Disposal District No. 1 (District) was formed by the Queensbury Town Board to protect the waters of Lake George. The District is located entirely within the Dunham's Bay Area along the east shore of Lake George. Lake George is classified as an "AA-Special" water body and serves as a source of drinking water for residents of all eight Towns within the Lake George Basin. Onsite Wastewater Treatments Systems (OWTS) are the sole method of wastewater disposal within the District. Therefore, continued protection of the waters of Lake George is imperative and poorly maintained or malfunctioning OWTS within the District contribute to the contamination and degradation of groundwater and ultimately the water quality of Lake George. The Queensbury Town Board recognizes that OWTS will eventually degrade, even with proper maintenance and operation and that ongoing vigilance to ensure that such systems are properly operating and are appropriately replaced when necessary is crucial to protect groundwater and the waters of Lake George. Pursuant to New York State Town Law §190-e, the District was formed to facilitate the Town's goals of promoting and requiring the rehabilitation, replacement and proper operation 1 J and maintenance of OWTS and the Town has the lawful authority to monitor such systems for this purpose, including providing for regular inspections. § 137-8. INSPECTIONS A. To confirm compliance with the provision of this Article 1I, the Town of Queensbury Building and Codes Enforcement Officer, a designee of such official or other professional approved/selected by the Queensbury Town Board shall have the right to inspect all OWTS within the District once every six (6) years to ensure compliance with the provisions of this Part. The inspection shall include a septic tank pump out by a NYSDEC registered septic hauler and all seepage pits and septic drainfield distribution boxes (D-box) accepting effluent from a septic tank, all septic tank inlet and outlet access covers, all pump stations and holding tank access covers must be uncovered and opened by the property owner or their agent prior to the inspection. 1f access covers are more than twelve (12) inches below grade, they must be outfitted with extension covers. The pump out shall be arranged by the property owner to correspond with the date of inspection. The OWTS inspection shall utilize the New York On- site Wastewater Treatment Training Network (OTN) materials, including the OTN System Inspection Request Form, Findings Worksheet and Site Report (Inspection Findings), all of which shall be available in the Building and Codes Enforcement Office. [The cost of the inspection, to be established by Town Board Resolution as set forth in the Town's Fee Schedule Ordinance, shall be paid to the Town of Queensbury prior to the inspection.] Inspections shall be performed on or before June I"of such year. B. Inspections will not be required within the first six (6) years of installation of entirely new OWTS provided such OWTS were fully lawful when installed and provided further that there are no indicia of system failure, including, but not limited to, the appearance of surface effluent and/or the presence of effluent odors. Lawful OWTS shall include those that are lawful by virtue of the issuance of one or more septic variances by the Town Board. For purposes of this provision, for OWTS to be considered entirely new, their component septic tanks, pump stations and either leach fields or seepage pits must be new and cannot have been part of the previous OWTS. 2 C. Nothing contained in this provision shall prevent additional inspections within this six (6)-year period if there are any indicia of OWTS failure, including, but not limited to, the appearance of surface effluent and/or the presence of effluent odors. D. The Town Board may, in its discretion, contract with a consultant of its choosing to conduct initial information gathering activities which may include contact and coordination with landowners to identify the location and nature of the OWTS and/or OWTS components and create an inventory of all OWTS infrastructure within the District. Related costs shall be a District expense. § 137-9. MINIMUM STANDARDS. The following minimum standards shall apply to each inspection: (a) All septic tanks and holding tanks must be within 250 gallons of the minimum volume requirement; minimum volume* includes bedrooms, rooms used for sleeping, Jacuzzi tubs and garbage grinders; (b) All holding tanks shall be equipped with a float switch with a 50% level alarm, a 100% high-level alarm located in a conspicuous place to indicate when pump out is necessary and a water shut off device. A copy of pump out records shall be submitted during or prior to the inspection; and (c) For an aerobic treatment system or Enhanced Treatment Unit (ETU), the new owner must send a signed copy of an updated service contract to the Town annually. § 137-10. OWTS FAILURES. Failure of an existing OWTS occurs when the standards for lawful OWTS as set forth in Chapter 136 and this Article are not met. While not exhaustive, examples of a failing system include the following: (1) Lack of a pre-treatment vessel (i.e., septic tank, aerobic treatment unit, ETU, etc.) prior to effluent discharge to any subsurface treatment(soil treatment area or absorption field); (2) There is a discharge of effluent directly or indirectly to the ground's surface, with surface breakouts, ponding or saturated soils over the soil treatment area; (3) Direct pipe surface discharge of grey water (into a dry well, over an embankment, into a roadside ditch or stream/tributary, etc.); 3 (4) A dye test results in the presence of dye on the ground surface or adjacent/downstream water body; (5) There is a backup of sewage into the home, building, septic tank or facility as a result of a septic tank overload or malfunction, or a clogged soil treatment area; (6) The septic tank requires pumping more than four times per year and/or sewage is observed flowing back into the septic tank from the secondary treatment area during pump out; (7)Presence of a metal septic tank that is undersized and/or corroded; (8) A cesspool, defined as a covered hole or pit used to receive untreated sewage from a house or building constructed as a primary source of wastewater disposal; (9) A holding tank that discharges effluent to surrounding subsurface areas; (10) No septic tank, seepage pit, enhanced treatment unit or soil treatment area (STA) shall be permitted to discharge to any natural outlet or adjoining property. § 137-11. MANDATORY PUMP OUT. Each OWTS within the District must be pumped out no less than once every three years. Property owners within the District may individually undertake such effort. In addition, the Town of Queensbury may arrange for one or more septic haulers to undertake annual pump outs of approximately 1/3 of the properties within the District. The cost of such services, if arranged throughout the District shall be a District expense. Otherwise, each property owner shall be independently responsible for such costs. In the event any new OWTS has been installed within the District, no additional inspection or pumpout shall be required within the three years directly following installation, provided the owner gives the Town sufficient information and documentation to identify the location of the OWTS and all its components, the type of system and the manner of its operation. § 137-12. EXEMPTION. The requirements of Section 137-8 and 137-11 shall not apply where the owner has submitted to the Town, on or before June 1"of the year in which such activity was to occur, an annual maintenance report demonstrating that such pump out or inspection has been performed and that the system is functioning properly. 4 § 137-13. COSTS INCURRED; VIOLATIONS; PENALTIES FOR OFFENSE. A. Any and all costs incurred by the District due to a District owner's failure to undertake the actions required by this Article or as a result of the District addressing any violations thereof may be assessed against the real property and levied and collected in the same manner as the levy and collection of special ad valorem assessments through inclusion on the individual tax bills of the property at issue. Costs assessed in this way shall include all actual expenses incurred by the District on behalf of such owner and any Application Fees that would have been required had the owner complied with the provisions hereof. B. Appearance tickets/information. The Town Enforcement Officer, or such other person designated by the Town Board or authorized by law, upon receipt of a complaint or upon such person's own initiative, may commence proceedings in Queensbury Town Court by issuing an appearance ticket and/or filing an information or a summons and complaint with the Queensbury Town Court pursuant to New York law. C. Penalties. Violation of any provision of this Article shall constitute a violation, punishable by an assessment of civil penalties of $950 or a fine not exceeding $950, or imprisonment for a term not exceeding 15 days, or both. Each week such violation continues after notification to the person in violation shall constitute a separate violation. E. Civil Actions and Penalties. In addition to any other remedies provided by this Article, the Town may commence a Civil Action to compel compliance with this Article and/or to seek monetary penalties for violation of its provisions. Section 6. Severability —The invalidity of any clause, sentence, paragraph or provision of this Local Law shall not invalidate any other clause, sentence,paragraph or part thereof. Section 7. Repealer — All Local Laws or Ordinances or parts of Local Laws or Ordinances in conflict with any part of this Local Law are hereby repeated. Section 8. Effective Date—This Local Law shall be effective upon filing by the New York State Department of State. 5