ORDINANCE NO. 2025-153
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF GONZALES UPDATING CHAPTER 10.16 SEWER USE OF THE GONZALES MUNICIPAL CODE WHEREAS, Wastewater discharged to the City sewer system is governed by the City’s Sewer Ordinance codified in Municipal Code Chapter 10.16; and WHEREAS, expanding the City’s wastewater system by building an Industrial Wastewater System (currently under construction) and upgrading the Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant necessitated the City to update the Sewer Ordinance; and WHEREAS, the updated Sewer Ordinance will align City requirements with current State regulations, Regional Water Board permit requirements, and formalize existing City processes; and
WHEREAS, the updated Sewer Ordinance includes:
1. A Source Control Program, prepared under Title 40 of the Code of Federal Regulations to regulate significant wastewater dischargers.
2. Requires pretreatment of ag-wash water by processing facilities before discharging to the City’s sewer system.
3. Establishment of a formal Pretreatment Permit Program
4. Enforcement measures (inspections, regular self-reporting and penalties); and WHEREAS, the objectives of the Source Control Program are to prevent:
• Interference and/or upset with biological treatment process at the MWWTP • Pass-through of conventional and toxic pollutants
• Harm to the sanitary sewer system or WWTP infrastructure from pollutants • Contamination of biosolids at the MWWTP
• Worker or public exposure to chemical hazards; and
WHEREAS, the City engaged Larry Walker Associates to prepare the updated Sewer Ordinance and supporting documents, including but not limited to a Local Limits Report, Source Control Program Administrative Procedures Manual and Enforcement Response Plan; and WHEREAS, the updated Sewer Ordinance has been reviewed by Staff and legal counsel, and City staff provided the draft sewer ordinance to the major wastewater dischargers (Taylor Farms, Del Monte/Mann Packing, Braga Fresh, Green Valley Farm Supply, Silva Farms) for their review and no comments were received; and
WHEREAS, staff now recommends adoption of Ordinance No. 2025-153 amending Chapter 10.16 Sewer Use of the Gonzales Municipal Code.
NOW THEREFORE, BE IT HEREBY ORDAINED by the City Council of the City of Gonzales as follows:
Section 1. All the recitals set forth above are true and correct and incorporated herein as findings.
Section 2. Existing Chapter 10.16 of the Gonzales City Code is hereby deleted in its entirety.
Section 3. New Chapter 10.16, attached hereto as Exhibit A, is hereby added to the Gonzales City Code.
Section 4 - Severability. If any provision of this ordinance or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held invalid, the remainder of the ordinance or the application of such provision to other persons or circumstances shall not be affected thereby.
Section 5. CEQA Compliance. The adoption of this ordinance is exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act, based on 14 California Code of Regulations Section 15061(b)(3), where, as the case here, it can be seen with certainty that there is no possibility that the activity in question may have a significant effect on the environment; and Section 15060(c) (3)- the activity is not a project as defined in Section 15378. The adoption of the sewer use ordinance is a regulatory act, and will not physically alter the City’s infrastructure, but instead, will establish standards for its use.
Section 6. Effective Date. This ordinance shall be in full force and effect thirty (30) days following a second reading hereof. Before the expiration of fifteen (15) days following passage, this Ordinance shall be published once with the names of the members of the City Council members voting for or against the ordinance in a newspaper of general circulation in Gonzales.
This ordinance was introduced at a regular meeting of the City Council of the City of Gonzales on the 3
rd day of November, 2025, and was adopted at a regular meeting of the City Council on the ___ day of November , 2025, by the following vote:
AYES: COUNCILMEMBERS:
NOES: COUNCILMEMBERS:
ABSTAIN: COUNCILMEMBERS:
ABSENT: COUNCILMEMBERS:
_______________________________
Jose L. Rios, The Honorable Mayor
ATTEST:
______________________________
Mary Villegas, Deputy City Clerk