Section 22a-416-6 - Requirements for owners of wastewater treatment facilities(a)General(1) Upon the commissioner's request, the owner of a wastewater treatment facility shall provide in writing to the commissioner the name of each chief operator, shift operator, and process control operator employed at such facility.(2) The owner of a wastewater treatment facility shall notify the commissioner in writing prior to any additions or deletions of unit processes or unit operations listed in appendix A.(b)Requirements for employing qualified operators, including chief, shift, and process control operators.The owner of a wastewater treatment facility shall assure compliance with the following requirements:
(1) Except as provided in subdivision (b)(2) of this section, the owner shall employ a chief operator certified at the class of such facility or higher, determined in accordance with subsection (b) of section 22a-416-3 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies, and such operator shall be present at such facility for the following minimum numbers of hours each day of a five-day work-week: Class of facility | Design flow rate of facility (Million Gallons/Day) | Minimum number of hours of the chief operator for on-site operations |
I | [LESS THAN EQUAL TO] 0.20 | 2 |
II | [LESS THAN EQUAL TO] 0.20 | 2 |
III | [LESS THAN EQUAL TO] 0.15 | 3 |
I,II | [GREATER THAN] 0.20 | 7* |
III | [GREATER THAN] 0.15 | 7* |
IV | any | 7* |
* The Commissioner may give credit to a chief operator for hours of on-site operations for reasonable time he or she spends in training, conferences, meetings, and other administrative duties related to wastewater treatment, and in activities related to operation and maintenance of the collection system, if the collection system is under the chief operator's supervision.
(2) At a wastewater treatment facility with a design flow rate of less than 0.025 mgd, a chief operator may be present for fewer than the minimum number of hours required by subdivision (b)(1) of this section only with the prior written approval of the commissioner. To obtain such approval, the owner shall demonstrate to the satisfaction of the commissioner that the owner would be able to properly operate such facility and comply with all pertinent requirements of chapter 446k of the general statutes if the chief operator were present for fewer than such required hours. A request for approval under this subdivision shall include, without limitation, a description of duties and tasks performed by each operator during a typical workday and class of the operator certification of each operator employed at the facility.(3) At a wastewater treatment facility where the chief operator is not normally present during any operating shift, the owner shall employ a shift operator who is certified no lower than one class below the classification of the facility during such shift.(4) Within 24 months of the adoption of the wastewater treatment operator regulations, at a wastewater treatment facility with a design flow rate greater than or equal to 150,000 gallons per day, the owner shall employ a shift operator certified no lower than one class below the classification of the facility during every shift when the chief operator is normally present.(5) The owner of a wastewater treatment facility may employ a process control operator certified no lower than one class below the classification of the facility.(6) An owner shall not employ as an operator any individual who has not been certified at a minimum of Class I as required in subsection (a) of section 22a-416-7 of the Regulations of Connecticut State Agencies.(7) Within 14 days after a chief operator, shift operator, or process control operator begins or terminates employment in such capacity at a wastewater treatment facility, the owner thereof shall notify the commissioner in writing of such fact. Direct responsible charge experience shall not start to accumulate for such chief operator, shift operator, or process control operator until the date the commissioner receives such notification from the owner.(8) If either the chief operator or shift operator of a wastewater treatment facility: (A) ceases to be employed by such facility or(B) is or will be absent from such facility for more than 30 consecutive days,The owner of such facility shall notify the commissioner in writing of the designation of an acting chief operator or shift operator within 14 days. An individual may act as chief operator under the wastewater treatment operator regulations only if such individual is certified at no lower than one class below the class of the facility. An individual may act as a shift operator under the wastewater treatment operator regulations only if such individual is certified at no lower than two classes below the class of the facility. The owner of such facility may continue to operate such facility without a chief operator or shift operator for no longer than 90 days, except that upon good cause shown in writing by such owner, the commissioner may extend in writing such 90 day limit for no more than an additional 275 days.(9) If either the chief operator or shift operator of a wastewater treatment facility is or will be absent from such facility for less than 30 consecutive days, the owner may continue to operate the facility provided that the owner designates an acting chief operator or acting shift operator, as applicable, during such absence. An individual may act as chief operator under the wastewater treatment operator regulations only if such individual is certified at no lower than one class below the class of the facility. An individual may act as a shift operator under the wastewater treatment regulations only if such individual is certified at no lower than two classes below the class of the facility. If the owner does not employ an individual qualified under this subdivision to act as chief operator or shift operator in the event that the regularly employed chief operator or shift operator is absent for a period of up to 29 days, the owner may continue operating the facility during such absence only if the owner designates the operator with the highest available certification at the facility to act as chief or shift operator during such absence.(10) Within three years of the adoption of the Wastewater Treatment Operator Regulations, owners of wastewater treatment facilities utilizing biological processes to treat exclusively industrial wastewater shall comply with the requirements of this section.(11) If the adoption of section 22a-416-3 of the Wastewater Treatment Operator Regulations results in reclassification of a wastewater treatment facility to a higher classification, within three years of such adoption the owner of such facility shall comply with the requirements of this section.Conn. Agencies Regs. § 22a-416-6
Effective June 25, 1984; Amended June 5, 2000