Article 1. General Provisions  

4.101.   Designation of Activities of State Interest

Any activity wholly or partially within the unincorporated jurisdiction of El Paso County which falls within one or more of the following categories shall be considered to be site selection and construction of major new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and/or major extension of existing domestic water and sewage treatment systems, which activities are hereby designated as activities of state interest requiring a permit under these Regulations. No person may engage in construction, expansion, reoperation or other significant change in use of the following activities wholly or partially within unincorporated El Paso County without first obtaining a Permit pursuant to these Regulations.

(1)

New water supply systems, new water treatment plants, or extensions of those systems or plants including water storage tanks, and line extensions that serve more than 250 single-family equivalents.

(2)

Water service for commercial and/or industrial use equal to or greater than an amount equivalent to that in paragraph (1) above.

(3)

Domestic Sewage Systems. A project which is planned for or requires the creation of a major new sewage treatment system(s) or a major extension(s) of an existing sewage treatment system(s), which means any new collector sewer lines, return flow lines, pumping structure or treatment facilities proposed for:

(a)

New wastewater treatment plants, extensions or expansions to existing plants, or individual sewage disposal systems (on-site wastewater treatment systems) that have an average flow of more than 2,000 gallons per day;

(b)

Wastewater lift stations that pump wastewater from areas too low to drain into available sewers receiving an average flow of more than 2,000 gallons per day;

(c)

Wastewater interceptors, as defined at Section 4.103;

(d)

Service for commercial and/or industrial use that serves an equivalent of more than 250 single-family equivalents, and that is not served at the time of permit application.

(4)

This designation does not include extensions of water or sewer lines for which construction plans have been or are subject to approval as part of a subdivision development under the LDC.

4.102.   Purpose and Intent

The purpose and intent of this Chapter shall be:

(1)

To ensure that new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and/or major extensions of the same are constructed in areas which will result in the proper utilization of existing treatment plants and the orderly development of domestic water and sewage systems of adjacent communities.

(2)

To ensure that site selection and construction of major new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and/or major extensions of the same are conducted in such a manner as to minimize environmental impacts associated with such development.

(3)

To ensure that site selection and construction of major new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and/or major extensions of the same are planned and developed in a manner so as not to impose an undue economic burden on existing or proposed communities.

(4)

To ensure that the impacts to County roads of site selection and construction of major new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and/or major extensions of the same are adequately mitigated.

4.103.   Definitions

For the purpose of this Chapter, the following definitions will apply:

(1)

Collector sewer line means a sewage treatment system's pipe, conduit, ditch, natural water course, or combination thereof which is designed to accept and transport wastewater from privately owned service lines from individual structures and properties to the system's treatment plant. A collector sewer line for the purpose of this regulation includes common lateral sewers and interceptor sewers. Not included in this definition are privately owned individual on-site sewage disposal system lines and privately owned service lines.

(2)

Domestic water and sewage treatment system means a wastewater treatment plant, water treatment plant, or water supply system, including systems whose service area is, or will be, outside the unincorporated area of El Paso County.

(3)

Interceptor means a waste water interceptor sewer with an internal pipe diameter of equal to or greater than 24 inches intercepting wastewater from a final point in a collection system and conveying the waste directly to a treatment plant, or meeting other requirements of the CDPHE to be classified as an interceptor.

(4)

Return flow means a sewage treatment system's pipe, conduit, ditch, natural water course, or combination thereof, which is designed to transport wastewater, commonly known as effluent, from the system's treatment plant to a point of discharge. A point of discharge includes a natural water course, ditch, groundwater recharge area, injection well, evaporation basin, or water supply system's transmission line.

(5)

Wastewater treatment plant means the facility or group of units used for treatment of wastewater from sewer systems and for the reduction and handling of solids and gases removed from such wastes.

(6)

Water distribution line means a water supply system's pipe, conduit, ditch, natural water course, or combination thereof which is designed to transport water of a potable or non-potable quality, commonly referred to as treated or raw water, and having the characteristic that it allows customer service taps.

(7)

Water supply system means the system of pipes, structures and facilities through which a water supply is obtained, treated and sold or distributed for human consumption or household use, including systems whose service area is, or will be, outside the unincorporated area of El Paso County.

(8)

Water transmission line means a water supply system's pipe, conduit, ditch, natural water course, or combination thereof which is designed to transport water of a potable or non-potable quality, commonly referred to as treated or raw water, and having the characteristic that it does not allow customer service tap.

(9)

Water treatment plant means the facility or facilities within the water supply system, which can alter the physical, chemical or bacteriological quality of the water.

4.104.   Applicability

These Regulations shall apply to the site selection for all major new domestic water and sewage treatment systems and the construction thereof as described at Section 4.101 and defined at Section 4.103. They shall also apply to the expansion or major extension of existing domestic water or sewage treatment systems.