A By-law Respecting the Regulations of Sewer Charges No. 2001-04
Digby, Nova Scotia
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JULY 2001 Page 1 of 6
TOWN OF DIGBY BY-LAW # 2001-04
A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF
SEWER CHARGES
RESOLVED by the Council of the Town of Digby that the following be enacted and that
the Clerk forward appropriate copies to the Minister of Municipal Affairs.
SEWER CHARGES BY-LAW
1.
This By-law may be cited as the "Sewer Charges By-law".
2.
In this By-law, unless the context otherwise requires, the expression:
(a)
"Building" means any dwelling, house, shop, store, office or any building which
would require sewer services;
(b)
"Building Code" means the Building Code in force in the Town
(c)
"Town" means the Town of Digby;
(d)
"Owner" means a part owner, joint owner, tenant or joint tenant of the whole or any
part of any land or building and includes a trustee, an executor, an administrator, a
guardian, on agent, a mortgagee in possession of any other persons having the care
or control of any land or building in case of the absence or disability of the person
having title thereto.
(e)
"Sewer "means a pipe, conduit, drain, open channel, or ditch used for the collection
and transmission of wastewater, storm water, or uncontaminated process or cooling
water;
(f)
"Sewerage System" means all pipes, mains, equipment, buildings and structures for
collecting, pumping or treatment of wastewater and operated by the Town of Digby,
but does not include a storm sewer;
(g)
"Storm Sewer" means a sewer and all related structures designed exclusively for
the collection and transmission of uncontaminated water, storm water, drainage
from land or from any watercourse or any of them;
(h)
"Water Utility" means the Water Utility of the Digby Water Commission.
(i)
"Year" means the fiscal year of the Town.
A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF SEWER CHARGES # 2001-04
JULY 2001
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(j)
"Engineer" means the Engineer for the Town and includes the Superintendent of
Public Works.
(k)
"User" means the owner or occupant of property which is serviced by, connected
to, or makes use of the sewage system.
(l)
"Industrial Premises" means any structure or part thereof which is occupied by
some person or persons and is not included under the word "Building".
(m)
"Property" means all Land, Buildings, and Industrial Premises.
3.
For the purpose of the administration of this By-Law, any representative of the Town may,
upon production of their identification, enter any building, or industrial premises to
observe, measure and sample the flow of sewage to any sewer.
4.
Sewer services shall not be supplied to any building or industrial premises or establishment
outside the boundaries of the Town, except as provided by special agreement with the
adjacent Municipality. In such cases the Town may charge and collect rates and charges
for the use of its sewerage system based on equivalent units as set out in Schedule A of this
By-Law.
5.
Every owner and or tenant of property;
(a)
on which any building is connected to the sewer system;
(b)
that fronts on any street or highway in which a sewer is situate;
(c)
that fronts on any right of way which connects to a street or highway in which a
sewer is situate; or
(d)
on which a building is situate that council has ordered connected to a sewerage
system;
shall pay to the Town an annual "Sewer Service Charge" for the operations and
maintenance of the sewer system of the Town.
6.
The Town shall annually calculate and collect the Sewer Service Charge as follows:
(a)
The total actual operation & maintenance costs including collection mains or pipes,
force mains, pumping stations, sewerage treatment plant or other similar treatment
facilities for pollution control of the previous year, shall be divided by the water
consumption provided by the water utility. The Sewer Service Charge will be
applied per Schedule B.
(b)
Any surplus or deficit in the Sewer Service Charge shall be included in proceeding
year's calculations.
A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF SEWER CHARGES # 2001-04
JULY 2001
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(c)
A user of the Sewer system who is not a user of the water utility shall pay a Sewer
Service Charge based on the average water usage charged to a similar class of user
of the Water Utility.
(d)
A user of the Water Utility that is determined by the Town's Engineer to be not
serviced by the Sewer System shall be exempt from the Sewer Service Charge.
(e)
The Sewer Service Charge shall be applied to the Water Utility's bi-monthly bill.
All bills are due and payable under the same regulations as the Water Utility Bill.
(f)
Sewer Service charges shall be levied on the owners and or tenants of all properties
liable to pay the same commencing in the year following the year in which a sewer
has been installed or the year in which a building on the property has been
connected to the sewer, whichever is the earlier.
(g)
For the purposes of this by-law, a sewer has been installed when the Municipal
Engineer has certified to the Council that the system or project of which the sewer
forms part is substantially complete.
(h)
The Clerk shall forward a notice to each person who would be liable for the
payment of a sewer service charge, that a sewer has been installed.
(i)
The sewer service charge is a lien on the whole of the property subject to the sewer
charge in the same manner and with the same effect as rates and taxes under the
Assessment Act.
(j)
The sewer service charge and penalties thereon may be sued for the collection in
the same manner as other rates and taxes.
(k)
Property is liable to be sold for unpaid sewer service charges in the same manner
and with the same effect as for the unpaid rates and taxes pursuant to the
Assessment Act.
7.
This bylaw repeals and replaces Town of Digby By-law # 1994-02 A By-law Respecting
the Regulations of Sewer Charges.
A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF SEWER CHARGES # 2001-04
JULY 2001
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A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF SEWER CHARGES # 2001-04
JULY 2001
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A BY-LAW RESPECTING THE REGULATIONS OF SEWER CHARGES # 2001-04
JULY 2001
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SCHEDULE "B "
SEWER SERVICE CHARGE SCHEDULE
Residential and Commercial users shall pay:
Less than 1 million gallons annually 100% of the Sewer Service Charge, or more than 1 million
gallons annually 50% of the Sewer Service Charge based on their annual water consumption of
the previous year.
Industrial Premises users shall pay:
Less than 1 million gallons annually 100% of the Sewer Service Charge, or more than 1 million
gallons shall pay 10% of the Sewer Service Charge, or more than 10 million gallons shall pay 5%
of the Sewer Service Charge based on their annual water consumption of the previous year.