360 C.M.R. 10.007 – Permits - General Requirements

(1) The permits required by 360 CMR 10.000 are in addition to permits that may be required by other federal, state, or local laws or regulations. The following permits are required by 360 CMR 10.000:
1. (a) Sewer Use Discharge Permit. Any Person who directly or indirectly discharges Industrial Wastewater or other Industrial Waste to the Authority Sewerage System, or whose operation within the Authority Sewerage District (regardless of whether the operation discharges to the Authority Sewerage System) is subject to a National Categorical Pretreatment Standard, is required to have a Sewer Use Discharge Permit issued by the Authority and the appropriate Municipality, unless specifically exempted by 360 CMR 10.000 from the requirement to have a permit. This requirement to have a Permit includes Persons who discharge Industrial Waste into a septic or other holding tank whose contents are transported and discharged to the Authority Sewerage System. A Person issued a Group Permit, General Permit, or Combined Permit is not required to have a Sewer Use Discharge Permit for the discharge covered by the Group Permit, General Permit, or Combined Permit.
2. (b) Septage Discharge Permit. Any Person who commercially pumps, transports, or discharges Septage and/or Industrial Waste mixed with Septage and who directly or indirectly discharges Septage and/or Industrial Waste mixed with Septage to the Authority Sewerage System is required to have a Septage Discharge Permit issued by the Authority.
3. (c) Direct Connection Permit. Any Person seeking to make or modify a direct connection to the Authority Sewerage System is required to have a Direct Connection Permit for such a connection issued by the Authority.
4. (d) Municipal Permit. Any Municipality that connects a Sewer to the Authority Sewerage System is required to have a Municipal Permit issued by the Authority.
5. (e) Landfill Permit. Any Person who directly or indirectly discharges Landfill Leachate to the Authority Sewerage System is required to have a Landfill Permit issued by the Authority.
6. (f) Temporary Construction Site Dewatering Permit. Any Person who directly or indirectly discharges Wastewater from a construction site to the Authority Sewerage System is required to have a Temporary Construction Site Dewatering Permit issued by the Authority and appropriate Municipality.
7. (g) Group Permit. Any Person who is required to be covered by a Group Permit is required to have that Group Permit to discharge Industrial Waste directly or indirectly to the Authority Sewerage System. The following Group Permits are in effect: 360 CMR 10.061: Group Permit for Photo Processing and Printing Operations; 360 CMR 10.063: Group Permit for Food Processing; and 360 CMR 10.065: Group Permit for Dental Discharges.
8. (h) Combined Permit. Any Person who is required to be covered by 360 CMR 10.064: Combined Permit is required to have that Combined Permit to discharge Industrial Waste directly or indirectly to the Authority Sewerage System.
9. (i) General Permit. Any Person who is required to be covered by 360 CMR 10.062: General Permit for Low Flow and Low Pollutant Dischargers is required to have that General Permit to discharge Industrial Waste, directly or indirectly, to the Authority Sewerage System.
(2) Alternative Permit. Notwithstanding any provision of 360 CMR 10.000 to the contrary, the Authority may issue a Sewer Use Discharge Permit in the place of a Group, General, or Combined Permit if in the Authority’s judgment:
1. (a) the Group, General, or Combined Permit would provide insufficient requirements to regulate the Person’s discharge appropriately due to the special nature of the Person’s process or pretreatment system; or
2. (b) it has insufficient information to determine if the Person is eligible for the Group, General, or Combined Permit.
(3) Permit Terms and Conditions. The Authority may include terms and conditions as necessary to comply with federal and state requirements including, without limitation, self-monitoring, reporting, and recordkeeping requirements, and effluent limits, or Best Management Practices, or both, based on applicable general Pretreatment Standards in 40 CFR Part 403, National Categorical Pretreatment Standards, requirements of the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, and all requirements and discharge limits of 360 CMR 10.000.
(4) No Permit Required. Unless specifically required to have a Permit by 360 CMR 10.000, the following do not require a Permit:
1. (a) Restaurants, cafeterias, and other food preparation facilities that chiefly prepare meals and snacks for consumption on their premises or for take-out by individuals.
2. (b) Supermarkets, groceries, and other facilities that are chiefly retail purveyors of food to individuals.
3. (c) Coin operated laundromats; laundries that do not wash any of the following:
  1. 1. industrial, hospital/clinic, or commercial uniforms, wipers, mats, or mops;
  2. 2. industrial, hospital/clinic, or commercial linens;
  3. 3. diapers; or
  4. 4. carpets. Dry cleaners do not require a permit for the discharge from their washing machines if
they do not use their washing machines to wash industrial, hospital/clinic, or commercial uniforms, wipers, mats, or mops; industrial, hospital/clinic, or commercial linens; diapers; or carpets, but may not discharge cleaning solvents (e.g., perchloroethylene), including solvents in their cooling water discharge.
1. (d) Commercial facilities that discharge only human and domestic wastes.
2. (e) Persons who do not discharge Industrial Waste.
3. (f) A onetime only Discharge that receives prior written approval of the Authority. A request for a onetime only Discharge may be granted if the discharge meets the Authority's limits and regulations, will not have an adverse impact on the Authority Sewerage System or a Municipal Sewer, and if there is adequate capacity for the Discharge. A request to Discharge uncontaminated water will be denied unless the discharger has no reasonable alternative. Written approval may be granted by letter, with the approval of the Municipality, if there are no necessary conditions on the Discharge other than the location, volume, time and duration of the Discharge, and the general requirement to meet Authority limits. A permit is necessary, or an existing permit must be modified, if there are conditions appropriate for the Discharge in addition to location, volume, time, duration and meeting Authority limits, such as sampling, reporting or pretreatment.
4. (g) Other discharges otherwise specifically exempted by 360 CMR 10.000 from the requirement to have a Permit.
(5) A person shall not discharge or operate without having been issued the appropriate permit for the discharge, or with an expired, suspended, or revoked permit.
(6) A permit shall not be assigned or transferred without prior written approval of the Authority. After the Authority's approval of a permit assignment or transfer, the permittee shall provide a copy of the permit to the assignee or transferee.
(7) All Permits except a Direct Connection Permit shall contain an expiration date, which in no case shall be more than five years from the date of issuance. If a permittee files a complete and accurate application or Notice of Intent to renew a permit no later than 60 days before the expiration date of the permit, the permit shall not expire until a new permit is issued, the application or notice is denied, or the permit duration exceeds five years from the date of issuance, whichever occurs first.
(8) The Authority may modify a permit as it deems necessary or appropriate or as required by state or federal law.
(9) A permittee may appeal the terms and conditions in an issuance, renewal, or modification of its Permit, and an applicant may appeal the denial of a Permit, pursuant to the procedures of 360 CMR 2.21: Appeals of Notices of Noncompliance, Orders, Permits and Permit Actions, except a Person may not appeal the standard terms and conditions of a Group Permit, General Permit, or Combined Permit.
(10) The Authority may enforce, pursuant to St. 1984, c. 372 and St. 1987, c. 307, its regulations, and other applicable local, state, and federal laws, the terms and conditions of a permit issued under 360 CMR 10.000. Enforcement actions for violating a term or condition of a permit may include those actions authorized by 360 CMR 2.00: Enforcement and Administrative Penalties and those actions authorized by federal and state laws and regulations. In addition, a Municipality may enforce the terms and conditions of a permit which it issued jointly with the Authority, and the terms and conditions of a Group, General, or Combined Permit issued by the Authority to a Person discharging to its Municipal Sewer.
(11) The issuance of a permit by the Authority shall not relieve the permittee of its obligation to comply with all applicable laws and regulations, including the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, 33 USC §1251 et seq., and federal regulations promulgated thereunder, the Massachusetts Clean Waters Act, M.G.L. c. 1, § 26 et seq., and Massachusetts regulations promulgated thereunder, and 360 CMR 10.000, unless specifically modified by the permit.
(12) 360 CMR 10.000 shall not be construed to require the Authority to permit itself for Authority activities done to carry out the Authority's responsibilities under any federal or state laws, regulations, or requirements.