Wastewater

Wastewater definitions

Wastewater

Wastewater is defined as liquid waste (and liquids containing waste solids) from domestic, industrial, commercial premises, including, but not limited to, toilet wastes, grey water (household wastewater from kitchens, bathrooms and laundries), sullage, trade wastes and gross solids.

Sewage (Wastewater)

Sewage is a liquid and solid waste from domestic, industrial and commercial premises discharged to the wastewater network. Sewage treatment is the treatment of sewage wastewater in facilities designed for that purpose, excluding any treatment naturally occurring in the sewage network.

Domestic Wastewater

Domestic Wastewater is wastewater or sewage originating from toilets, urinals, kitchen, bathrooms, showers, baths, basins and laundries such as from a dwelling. Domestic type wastewater is wastewater from commercial or other premises, such as cafes, restaurants and schools, but excludes trade wastes, industrial or trade process wastewater or washwater.

Producer Statements (PS4)

Construction review certification issued by engineer/consultant to certify installation of wastewater system to design specifications.

Decentralised Wastewater System

The collection, treatment and disposal/reuse of limited volumes of wastewater, generally from cluster(s) of dwellings and/or accommodation facilities that are usually located relatively close together, with the wastewater system relatively close to the source (also referred to as "community", "neighborhood" or "cluster" systems).

Network Wastewater

The wastewater network includes the construction, operation and maintenance of sewers, pumping station facilities and all associated plant and machinery for the conveyance of wastewater within a defined geographical area and managed by a wastewater network operator, and includes combined stormwater and wastewater networks, but excludes wastewater treatment plants, private connection sewers and small networks.

Decentralised Wastewater Treatment Systems

A Decentralised Wastewater Treatment System (DWTS) provides an alternative to on-site wastewater treatment and disposal, especially for new subdivisions. Wastewater from multiple dwellings can be treated by a shared treatment and disposal system, often owned and operated by a Body Cooperate entity.

The ARC promotes the use of DWTS over multiple onsite wastewater systems as a means of avoiding cumulative effects to the receiving environment. Benefits of choosing an appropriately designed DWTS include:

• ability to select land most suitable for wastewater land disposal system thus avoiding potential for adverse effects to the receiving environment
• improved treatment quality could be provided, better protecting ground and surface water quality
• decreased risk of human contact with treated wastewater
• homeowners secure in knowledge that wastewater system will be well maintained and managed.

Other Discharges

The ARC administers the discharge of contaminants to land and to water under Section 15 of the Resource Management Act (1991).

Other discharges which may require a resource consent from the ARC include:

• the discharge washwater or wastewater from processing or commercial activities e.g. wineries, fish farms etc
• the discharge of contaminants to water or to the coastal marine area
• the discharge of agrichemicals for control of pest plants and/or animals
• the discharge of biosolids/sewage solids.

The Proposed Auckland Regional Plan: Air, Land Water (2005) (PARP:ALW) includes Objectives, Policies and Rules relating to discharges such as those listed above. Rules regarding discharges of wastewater or washwater can be found in Chapter 5 of the plan:

• rules 5.5.57- 5.5.68 have regard to "Other Discharges" of contaminants not specifically referred to in other parts of the Plan
• chapter 4A of the plan provides guidance and rules for the use of agrichemicals
• chapter 5 of this plan has regard to discharges, including stormwater discharges, animal waste discharges and contaminated sites
• chapter 5 of the PARP:ALW is under appeal, and although weight is given to the provision of this Plan, regard must still be had for the provisions of the Transitional Regional Plan (TRP).

Biosolids/Sewage Solids

Solid waste material generated by the process of human sewage and includes any material generated by mixing any material with sewage solids.

Agrichemicals

Any substance, whether inorganic or organic, man-made or naturally occurring, modified or in its natural state, that is used to eradicate, modify or control flora and fauna and includes animal remedies but excludes fertilisers.