Industrial Pretreatment Program
The purpose of the Industrial Pretreatment (IPT) Department is
to protect the El Paso Water Utilities (EPWU) municipal treatment
plants (commonly known as publicly-owned treatment works or POTWs)
and the environment from the adverse impacts which may occur when
hazardous or toxic wastes are discharged into the sewage system.
The pretreatment program attempts to accomplish that protection
through the regulation of the industrial sources of discharge. This
includes use of Federal Categorical Standards as well as locally
developed regulations. The main components of the IPT program include,
1) Establishment of Technically Based Local Limits (TBLLs), 2) Permitting,
3) Inspection, 4) Sampling, and 5) Enforcement. The TBLLs, listed
below, are specific numerical discharge limits established to protect
the operation of the EPWU treatment system, the quality of the Rio
Grande, and the quality of the sludge. Additional discharge limitations
are specified in the Rules and Regulations of the Public Service
Board, Rule 9 and in the individual wastewater discharge permits.
Technically Based Local Limits
The following pollutant limits are established to protect against
pass-through and/or interference. No person shall discharge or cause
to be discharged into the wastewater system any pollutant or wastewater
in violation of the local limits listed below. These limits are
based on either flow-proportional or time-proportional composite
samples; or, a grab sample where composite sampling is not possible
or practical. The limits apply at the point where the wastewater
is discharged to the POTW. All concentrations are for the "total"
pollutant.
Pollutant Concentration
| Pollutant |
Concentration |
| arsenic |
0.17 mg/L |
| cadmium |
0.11 mg/L |
| chromium |
1.22 mg/L |
| copper |
2.39 mg/L |
| cyanide |
1.31 mg/L |
| lead |
0.66 mg/L |
| mercury |
0.002 mg/L |
| molybdenum |
0.15 mg/L |
| nickel |
1.71 mg/L |
| selenium |
0.35 mg/L |
| silver |
0.98 mg/L |
| zinc |
5.37 mg/L |
| Total dissolved solids (TDS): |
6140 mg/L |
No user shall discharge or cause to be discharged into the wastewater
system any pollutant or wastewater containing any of the following:
- Fat, grease, oil or wax of vegetable origin in excess of 100
mg/L unless otherwise allowed by the Wastewater Discharge Permit.
- Wastewater containing dye, dye waste or any other coloring
agent resulting in a wastewater color concentration in excess
of 300 ADMI units.
- The following limits are established for BTEX compounds and
are based on grab sampling.
| Pollutant |
Concentration |
| benzene |
20.0 mg/L |
| toluene |
17.0 mg/L |
| ethyl benzene |
16.0 mg/L |
| xylene |
17.0 mg/L |
Discharge Permits
Industrial wastewater discharge permits are issued as either Categorical
or Non-Categorical, depending on the industrial processes performed
at the facility. There is a charge for both types of permits to
cover EPWU costs for permitting, inspections, and sampling. In some
instances, a non-discharge permit is issued, at no cost, to those
industries which do not discharge, but are performing categorical
processes according to 40 CFR 403.
Industrial inspections are performed initially to determine permitting
requirements. Thereafter, inspections are performed biannually for
permitted industries and randomly for non permitting. The sampling
and analysis schedule includes both regular and random sampling
of industrial discharges to ensure that both TBLLs and permit limits
are being adhered to. Enforcement actions may be taken for non-compliance
issues.
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Application for Industrial Wastewater
Discharge Permit
Application for
Renewal Industrial Wastewater Discharge Permit |
