Industrial Monitoring

The National Pretreatment Program is a cooperative effort of federal, state, and local regulatory environmental agencies established to protect water quality. The program is designed to reduce the level of pollutants discharged by industry and other non-domestic wastewater sources into municipal sewer systems, and thereby, reduce the amount of pollutants released into the environment from these sources.

The National Pretreatment Program was established by Congress under authority of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act of 1972 as amended by the Clean Water Act of 1977.  Implementation requirements of the pretreatment portions of these laws were first codified into 40 Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) Part 403 in 1978. A copy of 40 CFR Part 403 - General Pretreatment Regulations for Existing and New Sources of Pollution can be obtained by clicking the link below.

Fulton County Industrial Pretreatment Program was adopted by the Fulton County Board of Commissioners in 1983.

Objectives of the program:

• Protect the Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) including the associated sewers that may cause interference with sewage treatment operations.
• Prevent the introduction of pollutants into a POTW, including the associated sewers that could cause pass through of untreated pollutants to receiving waters.
• Prevent the introduction of pollutants into a POTW that could cause health or safety concerns to employees as well as the public.    

The Industrial Monitoring (IM) program maintains an active monitoring program to ensure continued compliance by its industrial users. Sampling for compliance purposes is conducted by the Environmental Water Technicians (EWT). The EWT is devoted to sampling and obtains both grab and composite samples, grab samples are collected in conjunction with on-site inspections of industrial equipment and wastewater sources. The EWTs also perform surveillance monitoring aimed at facilitating the detection of actual and potential problems caused by the illegal discharge of prohibited materials. 

The IM program also maintains an extensive field inspection program, which includes visiting industrial facilities to investigate their compliance status, identifying industrial sources responsible for treatment plant upsets or incidents, and disseminating information on the pretreatment program to industrial users.   Industrial users that are found through inspection or monitoring to be out of compliance are subject to enforcement actions.

All industrial facilities discharging industrial wastes into the POTW shall be charged and assessed a surcharge, in addition to any sewer service charges.   The charges reflect the cost incurred by the County in handling excess COD, TKN, TSS and Total Phosphorus.   The surcharge includes a proportionate share of charges for maintenance and operation of the POTW.   This ensures that proper measures are in place at the treatment plant to adequately treat the higher strength wastewater and that the added costs of this treatment are assumed by the appropriate users.

Ngozi Daramola 
ngozi.daramola@fultoncountyga.gov
7472 Cochran Road
College Park, GA 30349
404-612-0212-office
404-734-5190-mobile
404-612-2931-efax