Section 206.03. Definitions.

  The following definitions are applicable to terms used in this chapter. Definitions of other terms and the meanings of abbreviations are set forth in ch. NR 205 .

(1)  "Average daily flow" means the average daily wastewater volume discharging to the wastewater treatment system determined for the previous 24 months.

(2)  "Average design flow" means the anticipated average daily wastewater discharge to a sewage treatment facility.

(3)  "Bedrock" means the rocks that underlie soil material. Bedrock may be present at the earth's surface when the weathered in place consolidated material, larger than 2 mm in size, is greater than 50% by volume.

(4)  "Biological treatment" means a level of wastewater treatment accomplished through:

(a) An activated sludge process,

(b) Trickling filters,

(c) An aerated lagoon,

(d) Rotating biological contactors,

(e) A stabilization pond, or

(f) Other equivalent systems approved on a case-by-case basis.

(5)  "Cation exchange capacity" means the sum total of exchangeable cations absorbed by a soil, expressed in milliequivalents per 100 grams of oven dry soil.

(7)  "Domestic wastewater" means the type of wastewater normally discharged from plumbing facilities in private dwellings or commercial domestic establishments and includes, but is not limited to, sanitary, bath, laundry, dishwashing, garbage disposal and cleaning wastes.

(8)  "Groundwater" means any of the waters of the state as defined in s. 299.01 (5) , Stats., occurring in a saturated subsurface geological formation of rock or soil.

(9)  "Groundwater monitoring" means measuring the groundwater level and/or analyzing samples of water taken from one or more wells.

(10)  "Hazardous waste" means a waste identified by the department as hazardous under s. 299.01 (6) , Stats.

(11)  "Highest anticipated groundwater elevation" means the sum of the calculated mounding effects of the disposal discharge and the seasonal high groundwater level.

(12)  "High groundwater level" means the higher of either the elevation to which the soil is saturated as observed as a free water surface in an unlined hole, or the elevation to which the soil has been seasonally or periodically saturated as indicated by soil color pattern throughout the soil profile.

(13)  "Hydraulic application rate" means the average daily volume of effluent discharged to a designated acreage of land of the land application system during a calendar month or other period of time specified in a WPDES permit. The rate is calculated by dividing the total discharge volume for the month or period of time by the acreage of land and by the number of days in the month or period of time (usually expressed in units of gpad). For overland flow systems, the hydraulic application rate is expressed as flow rate per unit width of slope.

(14)  "Hydraulic loading rate" means the average daily volume of effluent discharged to a land disposal system during a calendar month or other period of time specified in a WPDES permit for the discharge. The average is calculated by dividing the total discharge volume for the month or period of time by the number of days in the month or period of time.

(15)  "Injection" means the subsurface emplacement of a fluid or waste.

(16)  "Land disposal system" means a facility for disposing of liquid wastes consisting of:

(a) An absorption or seepage pond system,

(b) A ridge and furrow system,

(c) A spray irrigation system,

(d) A subsurface soil absorption system or mound system,

(e) An overland flow system, or

(f) Any other land area receiving liquid waste discharges.

(17)  "Large scale soil absorption system" means a private sewage system or subsurface soil absorption system which has a design capacity of more than 12,000 gallons per day where design capacity is calculated in accordance with s. NR 200.03 (4) .

(18)  "Privately owned domestic wastewater treatment work" means facilities which treat domestic wastewater and which are owned and operated by non-municipal entities or enterprises such as mobile home parks, restaurants, hotels, motels, country clubs, etc., which are permitted under ch. 283 , Stats.

(19)  "Publicly owned treatment work" has the meaning specified under s. NR 211.03 (8) .

(20)  "Soil" means the unconsolidated material which overlies the bedrock.

(21)  "Total Kjeldahl nitrogen" or "TKN" means the sum of ammonia nitrogen and organic nitrogen.

(22)  "Total nitrogen" means the sum of nitrate plus nitrite nitrogen, ammonia nitrogen, and organic nitrogen.

(23)  "Toxic pollutants" has the meaning specified under s. NR 205.03 (7) .

(24)  "Water table observation well" means any groundwater monitoring well whose screen intersects the water table, installed for the specific purpose of determining either the elevation of the water table or the physical, chemical, biological or radiological properties of groundwater at the water table or both.

(25)  "WPDES permit" means a permit issued under the Wisconsin pollutant discharge elimination system.

(26)  "Well" means any borehole or other excavation or opening in the ground deeper than it is wide constructed for the purpose of obtaining or monitoring groundwater.

History: Cr. Register, March, 1985, No. 351 , eff. 4-1-85; r. (7), (12) and (17), renum. (1) to (6), (8) to (11) and (13) to (16) to be (3), (4), (7) to (10), (14) to (16), (18) to (20), (23) and (25) and am. (16), cr. (1), (2), (5), (6), (11) to (13), (17), (21), (22), (24) and (26), Register, November, 1990, No. 419 , eff. 12-1-90; r. and recr. (17), Register, January, 2000, No. 529 , eff. 2-1-00.