The Sunnyvale View > News
Town passes ordinance to allow for more control on water supply safety
By Zach Markovic, zmarkovic@starlocalnews.com
In an effort to make sure the town is in full state compliance with plumbing standards, the Sunnyvale Town council approved an ordinance that provides a Cross-Connection Control program.
The ordinance passed 4-0, Ronnie Henderson was not in attendance, Monday evening at town hall.
While most of the town was already in compliance, as most plumbing met standards set by the state, the ordinance gives the town power to enforce the standards set by the state. It was also a move to make sure as the commercial side of Sunnyvale grows they would be able to monitor businesses that might have hazardous materials attached to their water lines.
The town had met with a contractor to go through an evaluate systems already attached to the water supply and highlight trouble areas. The contractor and town staff reported their findings Monday at the meeting.
“We did not want to implement a financial hardship on the individuals,” said a town administrator. “First and foremost the [state] plumbing code requires all system to have backflow protection. What this [ordinance] does is allow the town to come in behind that in the event that there is a problem with the cross connection system. The town has the ability to come in behind that and put in a correction.”
The ordinance allows the town to annually test back flow systems that are considered a hazardous risk to the water supply. Only systems that require an annual testing are ones that pose a health hazard risk to the potable water supply. If the system has some sort of chemical that may be put into the water, such as a fire suppression system that has a chemical additive, those will need to be checked regularly.
Town Manager Scott Campbell said they are looking to into some outside help in keeping all of the test results from the test.
“The cost for that is next to nothing, likely to be $500 a year,” Campbell said. “And there are companies out there that help small cities and big cities, the one we are looking at works for Plano right now. It is an ideal thing for a town this size.”
The contractor group said they examined 50 sites off the master facility list that had been given to them. The spokesman for the group said out of those 50 completed, while there was one significant issue of one place that was not registering water use, there close 20 that only had minor infractions. Those included either needing a backflow prevention installed or just have their unit tested for verification.
“This ordinance meets the minimum standards of the state,” Campbell said. “In conjunction with what had already been established, it clearly defines the role of the town and what it needs to do to enforce any issues.”
Councilmen Jim Wade said his only concern was some wording in the ordinance as he did not want residents whose systems might be older to have to go out and buy new systems. The contractor said most of the residential systems already compkly with the ordinance standards anyways so those systems will not be checked unless they pose a health hazard.
“It is safe to assume that this ordinance only codifies our plumbing code and regulations,” Wade said. “This is not going to require any of commercial properties and none of residential from having to go out and upgrade the systems, because they assume that all are in compliance since they met with the state requirement beforehand.”
The ordinance was passed along with the ordinance establishing fees for non-compliance. The stated purpose for the ordinance reads:
No water connection from any public drinking water supply system shall be
connected to any condensing, cooling, or industrial process or any other system of
nonpotable usage over which the public water supply system officials do not have sanitary control. The purpose of a Cross-Connection Control Program is to promote the public
health, safety, and welfare by regulations designed to:
(a) Protect the public potable water supply of the town of Sunnyvale from the
possibility of contamination or pollution by isolating within a customer’s internal
distribution systems or a customer’s private water systems contaminants or
pollutants that could backflow into the public water system.
(b) Promote the elimination or control of existing cross-connections, whether actual
or potential, between a customer’s in plant potable water system(s) and
nonpotable water system(s), plumbing fixtures, and industrial piping system(s).
(c) Provide for the maintenance of a continuing program of cross-connection control
which will systematically and effectively prevent the contamination or pollution of
the Town’s potable water system.
(d) Comply with Title 30 Texas Administrative Code (30 TAC) Chapter 290,
Subchapter D: Rules and Regulations for Public Water Systems
The ordinance passed 4-0, Ronnie Henderson was not in attendance, Monday evening at town hall.
While most of the town was already in compliance, as most plumbing met standards set by the state, the ordinance gives the town power to enforce the standards set by the state. It was also a move to make sure as the commercial side of Sunnyvale grows they would be able to monitor businesses that might have hazardous materials attached to their water lines.
The town had met with a contractor to go through an evaluate systems already attached to the water supply and highlight trouble areas. The contractor and town staff reported their findings Monday at the meeting.
“We did not want to implement a financial hardship on the individuals,” said a town administrator. “First and foremost the [state] plumbing code requires all system to have backflow protection. What this [ordinance] does is allow the town to come in behind that in the event that there is a problem with the cross connection system. The town has the ability to come in behind that and put in a correction.”
The ordinance allows the town to annually test back flow systems that are considered a hazardous risk to the water supply. Only systems that require an annual testing are ones that pose a health hazard risk to the potable water supply. If the system has some sort of chemical that may be put into the water, such as a fire suppression system that has a chemical additive, those will need to be checked regularly.
Town Manager Scott Campbell said they are looking to into some outside help in keeping all of the test results from the test.
“The cost for that is next to nothing, likely to be $500 a year,” Campbell said. “And there are companies out there that help small cities and big cities, the one we are looking at works for Plano right now. It is an ideal thing for a town this size.”
The contractor group said they examined 50 sites off the master facility list that had been given to them. The spokesman for the group said out of those 50 completed, while there was one significant issue of one place that was not registering water use, there close 20 that only had minor infractions. Those included either needing a backflow prevention installed or just have their unit tested for verification.
“This ordinance meets the minimum standards of the state,” Campbell said. “In conjunction with what had already been established, it clearly defines the role of the town and what it needs to do to enforce any issues.”
Councilmen Jim Wade said his only concern was some wording in the ordinance as he did not want residents whose systems might be older to have to go out and buy new systems. The contractor said most of the residential systems already compkly with the ordinance standards anyways so those systems will not be checked unless they pose a health hazard.
“It is safe to assume that this ordinance only codifies our plumbing code and regulations,” Wade said. “This is not going to require any of commercial properties and none of residential from having to go out and upgrade the systems, because they assume that all are in compliance since they met with the state requirement beforehand.”
The ordinance was passed along with the ordinance establishing fees for non-compliance. The stated purpose for the ordinance reads:
No water connection from any public drinking water supply system shall be
connected to any condensing, cooling, or industrial process or any other system of
nonpotable usage over which the public water supply system officials do not have sanitary control. The purpose of a Cross-Connection Control Program is to promote the public
health, safety, and welfare by regulations designed to:
(a) Protect the public potable water supply of the town of Sunnyvale from the
possibility of contamination or pollution by isolating within a customer’s internal
distribution systems or a customer’s private water systems contaminants or
pollutants that could backflow into the public water system.
(b) Promote the elimination or control of existing cross-connections, whether actual
or potential, between a customer’s in plant potable water system(s) and
nonpotable water system(s), plumbing fixtures, and industrial piping system(s).
(c) Provide for the maintenance of a continuing program of cross-connection control
which will systematically and effectively prevent the contamination or pollution of
the Town’s potable water system.
(d) Comply with Title 30 Texas Administrative Code (30 TAC) Chapter 290,
Subchapter D: Rules and Regulations for Public Water Systems
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