§ 166-161. Definitions.

The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed to them in this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

Aquifer means a groundwater bearing geologic formation, or formations, that contains enough saturated permeable material to yield a minimum of 100 gallons per minute quantities of water.

Classification of groundwater, usage, reclassification. All groundwater of the county is classified by the board of county commissioners according to designated uses as follows:

(1)

Class G-1: Potable water use, groundwater in aquifers which has a total dissolved solids content of less than 3,000 mg/l in an unconfined or leaky confined aquifer and is restricted to zones of protection around major public community drinking water supplies, and has been classified as G-1 by the board of county commissioners.

(2)

Class G-II: Potable water use, groundwater in aquifers which has a total dissolved solids content of less than 10,000 mg/l, unless otherwise classified by the board.

(3)

Class G-III: Non potable water use, groundwater in unconfined aquifers which has a total dissolved solids content of 10,000 mg/l or greater, or which has total dissolved solids of 3,000—10,000 mg/l and which has been classified by the board as having no reasonable potential as a future source of drinking water, or has been designated by the county water system as an exempted aquifer using the standards contained in section 17-28.130(C), Florida Administrative Code (F.A.C.).

(4)

Class G-IV: Nonpotable water use, groundwater in confined aquifers which has a total dissolved solids content of 10,000 mg/l or greater.

Closure permit means that permit required by activities which must cease operation pursuant to the provisions of section 166-165 of this article, the criteria for which are set forth under section 166-166 of this article.

Completed application means an application which includes all materials and documents which are necessary to support the application and which has been accepted as complete by the county water system.

County administrator means the county administrator of Pinellas County or the administrator's designee.

Designated public utility means that public utility which has been designated by federal, state, regional or local law, regulation, resolution, rule, ordinance or requirement as having jurisdiction to provide potable water or residential wastewater service to the property on which the nonresidential activity is located.

Discharge to groundwater means treated or untreated wastewater, stormwater leachate, leachate from a solid waste facility, or leaked product generated by the construction or operation of an installation and discharging directly or indirectly to groundwater.

Emergency hazardous situation means a situation which exists whenever there is an immediate and substantial danger to human health, safety, or welfare or to the environment.

EPA means the United States Environmental Protection Agency.

Facility means main structures, accessory structures and activities which store, handle, use or produce regulated substances. Where contiguous facilities exist and such facilities are separate in the nature of the businesses, they shall remain separate under this article.

FDEP means the Florida Department of Environmental Protection.

Generic substance list means those general categories of substances set forth in appendix A to Ordinance No. 90-2 and incorporated herein by reference. This list is equivalent to the regulated substances.

Groundwater means water that fills all the unblocked voids of underlying material below the ground surface, which is the upper limit of saturation, or water which is held in the unsaturated zone by capillarity.

Laboratory means a designated area or areas used for testing, research, experimentation, quality control, or prototype construction, but not used for repair or maintenance activities (excluding laboratory equipment), the manufacturing of products for sale, or pilot plant testing.

Major public community drinking water supply means those community water systems as defined in section 17-550.200(7), F.A.C., that are permitted by consumptive use permit to withdraw an average daily amount of 100,000 gallons or greater of groundwater.

New discharge means, for the purpose of the zone of protection, a discharge from a new installation, or a discharge for which a permit is required which is significantly different and causing a negative impact on groundwater, from the permit conditions as of the effective date of the zone of protection classification for the chemical, microbiological, physical quality, quantity, or point of discharge.

New installation means, for the purpose of the zone of protection, facilities located in areas receiving protection through classification by the board of county commissioners within the zone of protection that have neither filed a complete permit application nor received an appropriate permit prior to the effective date of classification.

Nonresidential activity means any activity which occurs in any building, structure or open area which is not used primarily as a private residence or dwelling.

Open interval of a well means the uncased or screened length of the well within the saturated zone of an aquifer.

Operating permit means the permit required of certain activities under section 166-165 to operate, the criteria for which are set forth under section 166-166.

Person means any natural person, individual, public or private corporation, firm, association, joint venture, partnership, municipality, governmental agency, political subdivision, public officer, owner, lessee, tenant or any other entity whatsoever or any combination of such, jointly or severally.

Potable water means water that is intended for drinking, culinary or domestic purposes, subject to compliance with county, state or federal drinking water standards.

Public utility means any privately owned, municipally owned, county-owned, special district-owned, or state-owned system providing water or resident wastewater service to the public which has at least 15 service connections or regularly serves at least 25 individuals daily for at least 60 days of the year.

Regulated substances means those deleterious substances, contaminants, priority pollutants (in accordance with chapter 17-22, F.A.C.), and potable water quality primary and secondary standards parameters (in accordance with chapter 3, part 4, F.A.C., and appendices A and E), which, because of quality, concentration, or physical, chemical, including ignitability, corrosivity, reactiveness, synergistic, and toxicity; or infectious characteristics, radioactivity, mutagenicity, carcinogenicity, teratogenicity, bioaccumulative effect, persistence, or nondegradability in nature, or any other characteristic, may cause significant harm to human health and the environment, including surface water and groundwater, plants, and animals.

Spill means the unpermitted release or escape of a regulated substance directly or indirectly to soils, surface waters or groundwaters.

Underground facilities for transportation of wastewater of industrial chemical products means underground facilities for transportation of waste effluent of industrial chemical products, including piping, sewer lines, and ducts or other conveyances designed to transport industrial pollutants as defined in F.S. § 376.301(12), and contaminants as defined in F.S. § 403.031(1).

Underground storage facility means and includes any enclosed structure, container, tank or other enclosed stationary devices used for storage or containment of pollutants as defined in F.S. § 376.301(18) or any contaminant as defined in F.S. § 403.031(1). Nothing in this definition is intended to include septic tanks, enclosed transformers or other similar enclosed underground facilities.

Utility means a public utility (power company or telephone company) which serves the general public.

Variance means a grant of relief to a person or entity from the requirements of this article, which permits construction in a manner otherwise prohibited by this article where specific enforcement would result in inequitable hardship. The county administrator shall have the authority to grant variances.

Water table means the surface between the vadose zone and the groundwater, that surface of a body of unconfined groundwater at which the pressure is equal to that of the atmosphere.

Well means a pit or hole sunk into the earth to reach a resource of potable supply, such as water, to be used for domestic purposes by municipalities. Irrigation wells and privately owned wells for domestic consumption are not included in the scope of this article.

Wellfield means an area of land which contains more than one well for obtaining water.

Zone of protection means the total area contributing water to a well under a given set of circumstances. This area changes over time in response to changes in the water table or potentiometric surface, well pumpage, and other withdrawals in the vicinity. It is determined by the construction of a flow net, based on potentiometric surface contours.

Zone of protection map means the map at the scale determined by the county administrator showing the location on the ground of the outer limits of the zone of protection for present and future public potable water supply wells and wellfields of 100,000 gallons per day or more. This zone is described in section 166-164.

(Ord. No. 18-36 , § 3(Att. E), 10-23-18)