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ARTICLE 12A: BACKFLOW PREVENTION
Sec. 750. Purpose and Findings.
Sec. 751. Definitions.
Sec. 752. Cross-Connection Control Committee– Establishment of.
Sec. 753. Departmental Responsibilities.
Sec. 754. Unprotected Cross-Connections Prohibited; Identification of In-House Hazards.
Sec. 755. Enforcement Powers.
Sec. 756. Review of Appeals by Department of Public Health.
Sec. 757. Cross-Connection Control Program.
Sec. 758. Certification of Backflow Prevention Service Testers.
Sec. 759. Insurance Requirements for Testers.
Sec. 760. Special Cases Exempted From Appeals.
Sec. 761. Double Check Valves on Highrises with Roof Tanks.
SEC. 750. PURPOSE AND FINDINGS.
The purpose of this Article is to establish requirements for backflow prevention to supplement those imposed by the State pursuant to Title 17, Sections 7583 et seq. of the California Administrative Code. California Administrative Code Section 7583 expressly authorizes local governments to establish more stringent requirements where local conditions so warrant. The Board of Supervisors finds and declares that the dangers to public health and safety posed by the existing and potential contamination of the drinking water supply in San Francisco warrant the imposition of local standards in excess of those required under State law.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 751. DEFINITIONS.
The following definitions shall apply to this Article.
1. "Backflow" shall mean the flow, from any source or sources, of water which is of unknown or questionable safety for human consumption or other liquids, gases, mixtures or other substances into the potable water distribution system.
2. "Backflow prevention device" shall mean any effective device, means, method, or construction used to prevent the backflow of substances into the potable water distribution system, which has been previously approved for use by the Cross-Connection Control Committee, as that body is defined in this Article, and shall pass all initial testing procedures at the time of installation.
3. "Certified tester" shall mean any person, whether privately employed or in the employ of the City and County, who holds a valid Department of Public Health certificate to test backflow prevention devices.
4. "Cross-connection" shall mean any actual or potential connection between any part of a water system used or intended to supply water for drinking purposes and any source or system containing water which is not or cannot be approved as safe, wholesome and potable for human consumption or any other substance. Temporary or permanent devices through which, or because of which, backflow could occur are also considered to be cross-connections.
5. "Cross-connection control device" shall mean an approved backflow prevention device.
6. "Department of Public Health" shall mean the San Francisco Department of Public Health.
7. "Department of Public Works" shall mean the San Francisco Department of Public Works.
8. "In-house hazard" shall mean a cross-connection within a water consumer's premises.
9. "Water Department" shall mean the San Francisco Water Department.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 752. CROSS-CONNECTION CONTROL COMMITTEE– ESTABLISHMENT OF.
There is hereby created a Cross-Connection Control Committee of the City and County of San Francisco, which shall be comprised of the Manager of Water Quality of the Water Department, the Superintendent of Building Inspection of the Department of Public Works, and the Director of Environmental Health Services of the Department of Public Health, or their respective designees. The Committee's duties shall include, but are not limited to, the review of operations of the City's Cross-Connection Control Program, the establishment of a program within the Department of Public Health to provide for certification of qualified testers, and the development of a schedule to assure annual inspection of all backflow prevention devices within the City and County as well as those on property owned by the City and County but located outside the boundaries of the City and County.
(Added by Ord. 356- 84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 753. DEPARTMENTAL RESPONSIBILITIES.
The Water Department shall have primary responsibility for the prevention of any unauthorized substances or water from unapproved sources from entering the public water supply system. The Department of Public Health shall have the overall and ultimate responsibility under this Article for preventing water from unapproved sources or other unauthorized substances from entering the potable water system. The Department of Public Health shall promulgate any rules or regulations necessary to effectuate this Article. Said rules and regulations shall, at a minimum, be consistent with and meet all requirements imposed by State law.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8- 24-84)
SEC. 754. UNPROTECTED CROSS-CONNECTIONS PROHIBITED; IDENTIFICATION OF IN-HOUSE HAZARDS.
It shall be unlawful for any water consumer or property owner to have, keep, maintain, install or permit the existence of a cross-connection which is unprotected from actual or potential backflow due to the absence of approved and properly functioning backflow prevention devices.
The Department of Public Health, through its Bureau of Environmental Health Services, the Department of Public Works, through its Bureau of Plumbing Inspection, and the Water Department shall, in their normal course of enforcement activity, identify the locations of in-house hazards and shall jointly maintain a continuously updated list of such in-house hazards for enforcement action under this Article.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App., 8/24/84)
SEC. 755. ENFORCEMENT POWERS.
Upon notification by the Department of Public Health, the Department of Public Works or the Water Department, it shall be the responsibility of each water consumer to eliminate any existing or potential unprotected cross-connections on the subject property within 30 to 90 calendar days of said notification. The specific deadline for achieving compliance shall be established by the appropriate department based upon the type and magnitude of the work required to eliminate the cross-connection. The appropriate department shall monitor the progress of the work required to achieve compliance.
If a water consumer refuses or fails to eliminate a cross-connection after the deadline has expired as set forth in the notification, or if the progress of the work being monitored by the appropriate department indicates that the work cannot be completed within the time limit established in the notification, the Water Department, acting alone or in coordination with the Departments of Public Health or Public Works, shall immediately issue a final notification to the owner of the subject property to eliminate the cross-connection. If the property owner refuses to or does not comply with the requirements set forth in the final notification within ten calendar days of its date of issuance, the Water Department shall thereafter disconnect the water services to the customer directly responsible for noncompliance until the cross-connection has been eliminated and necessary payments have been made for turn-on services in the same manner as specified under the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission Rules and Regulations Section C Rule 4 (or any successor regulations) governing water service to customers. If the property owner and the water consumer are one and the same person, only one notification shall be required prior to disconnecting the water services in the event of noncompliance. The Water Department shall not disconnect the water services until any appeal which may be taken under Section 756 of this Article has become final, except as specified in Section 760 of this Article.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 756. REVIEW OF APPEALS BY DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC HEALTH.
Appeals against the final notice for disconnection of water services may be made to the Department of Public Health by the subject property owner, within five calendar days of the date of said final notice, and shall include current data obtained from a certified tester employed by the property owner or his representative which disapproves the existence of a cross- connection or the adequacy of the time limit set for compliance. The Director of the Bureau of Environmental Health Services, or his designee, shall hold a hearing on the appeal within fifteen calendar days of receipt of said appeal, and shall thereafter issue a decision which shall state whether or not the alleged defect or deficiency constitutes a cross-connection as defined in this Article. The Director shall affirm the Water Department's action if he or she finds that a cross-connection exists. The Director's decision shall issue within two calendar days of the completion of the hearing, and shall be final.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 757. CROSS-CONNECTION CONTROL PROGRAM.
Annual inspections of all existing backflow prevention devices shall be conducted under the direction of the Water Department. The Water Department shall make available for public inspection the current listing of all certified testers required under Section 758 of this Article. The Water Department shall annually notify all water consumers who have cross-connection control devices of the requirements of this Article for annual maintenance and testing and shall annually promulgate a schedule of charges for the cost to the water consumer of the inspections and testing to be done under this Article. Water consumers who fail to comply with the action required by the Water Department's annual notifications shall be subject to the same enforcement procedures as set forth in Sections 755 and 756 of this Article.
When a backflow prevention device is inspected and has passed the testing procedure, the certified tester shall immediately affix a seal or tag to the device. Such seals or tags shall be purchased by the certified tester from the Department of Public Health. Seals or tags may be issued free of charge to testers employed by the City and County for use when testing backflow prevention devices installed on City and County property. Each certified tester shall maintain a continuous record of the dates and locations of each inspection performed, any tests made, and the results thereof. A copy of such record shall be sent by each certified tester to the Water Department within five calendar days of each inspection or test. Appropriate testing and inspection records for potable water systems, including but not limited to the information to be supplied by all certified testers, shall be maintained by the Water Department and shall be made available upon request to the Department of Public Works and the Department of Public Health.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 758. CERTIFICATION OF SERVICE TESTERS.
Procedures for the establishment of a program for the certification of qualified backflow prevention device testers shall be developed and implemented by the Department of Public Health within thirty working days of the effective date of this Article. Independent testers and testers who are City employees shall receive training in backflow prevention device testing. All testers shall thereafter take and pass an examination administered by the Department of Public Health in order to qualify for a valid tester's certificate to be issued by that Department. Testers whose names appear on the Water Department's approved list of backflow prevention testers as of the effective date of this Article shall be exempt from the initial training and examination requirement.
Each tester's certificate issued by the Department of Public Health shall be valid for a period of one year from the date of issuance. Tester's certificates may be renewed upon additional training, re-examination, other demonstration of competency, or any combination thereof, as may be deemed necessary by the Department of Public Health. A tester's certificate may be suspended or revoked at any time for cause by the Department of Public Health. The Department of Public Health shall maintain a current list of the names and business addresses of all certified testers and of all tester's certificates which have been suspended or revoked. The list shall be forwarded to the Water Quality Control Division of the Water Department and the Bureau of Plumbing Inspection of the Department of Public Works, and shall be made available for public inspection by all three departments.
(Added by Ord. 356-84, App. 8/24/84)
SEC. 759. INSURANCE REQUIREMENTS FOR TESTERS.
Each certified tester who is not a City employee shall maintain general liability insurance in full force and effect, at his or her expense, for all cross-connections control and backflow device testing activities. Such insurance shall include coverage for bodily injury, personal injury, including death resulting therefrom, and property damage insurance, with limits not less than $100,000 each occurrence combined single limit. The City and County of San Francisco, its officers and employees shall be named as additional insureds under the policy and a cross-liability clause shall be attached. Such insurance shall provide 10 days prior written notice of cancellation, nonrenewal or material change to the Department of Public Health. A certificate of insurance, in form and with insurers acceptable to City, shall be required prior to the issuance of any tester's certificate or any renewal thereof.