Industrial Pre-Treatment

Environmental Manager: Joseph Gangler

General Information

The City has an active Industrial Pre-Treatment Program approved by the Georgia EPD and works with the industries in Valdosta to control the discharge of metals and other harmful pollutants into the treatment plants. The program goal is to cooperate with industries to keep their raw materials out of the sewer system and utilize them as products. This helps the industries while preventing damage to the treatment system and the environment.

Significant industrial customers discharging water used for industrial processes, large volumes of cooling water, and/or other material into the sanitary sewer system of the City must obtain a permit for such discharge. Please refer to the City of Valdosta's Industrial Sewer Surcharge Ordinance for more information.

General Prohibitions [40 CFR §403.5(a)(1)]

No non-domestic user shall introduce into a Publicly Owned Treatment Works (POTW) any pollutants which cause Interference or Pass Through.

Which Industries Must Be Regulated

1. All Categorical Industrial Users (CIUs) regardless of flow.
2. Significant Industrial Users ("SIUs"), which are industrial users that:
– Discharge an average of 25,000 gpd of process wastewater
– Contribute 5% or more of a POTW's average dry weather hydraulic or organic (BOD) capacity
– Are determined to have "reasonable potential" to adversely affect POTW's operation, or violate pretreatment standards or requirements.
3. Any other non-domestic user that discharges pollutants of concern.