Politics & Government
July 1 Deadline: Keeping FOG From Entering the Sewer Line
"FOG" stands for fats, oils and grease created by commercial food preparers
FOG is neither good for navigating the highways over the 4th of July weekend, nor is it good for the fluids navigating Norwalk's 200 miles of sewer lines on the way to the sewage treatment plant.
There's not much you can do about the atmospheric kind of fog, but Ralph K. Kolb is determined to remove as much FOG - that stands for fats, oils and grease - as possible from points of entry to the sewer line from food preparation establishments.
Kolb is the civil engineer who manages the wastewater systems at the Water Pollution Control Authority complex at 15 South Smith Street on the Norwalk River in East Norwalk.
Find out what's happening in Norwalkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The state has imposed new regulations for FOG releases and July 1 is the drop-dead date for existing (pre-September 30,2005) restaurants to comply by installing either in-ground or interior tanks to intercept the FOGgy wastewaters.
The Department of Environmental Protection regulations required new food preparation establishments (opening after September 30, 2005) to install the interceptors prior to opening.
Find out what's happening in Norwalkwith free, real-time updates from Patch.
The FOG-capturing systems can cost upwards of $1,000 (plus fees for removal by contractors) and at least one hopeful restaurateur who balked was not allowed to open without a FOG system and he folded his tent, Kolb said in a recent interview.
But all told, restaurants are generally complying with the new mandates, he said. There are small fees for registering for permits and the city has authority to impose penalties if it chooses.
The complex waste treatment system in place is designed to remove FOG wastes and other pollutants which arrive through underground conduits before release into the river.
The point of the FOG regulations is to intercept the wastes at their source and avoid to the fullest extent possible jamming of the wastewater streams which can lead to unpleasant back-ups, foul odors and costly repairs.
Kolb and his staff of two have been busy making the rounds of the nearly 400 food preparation establishments around town to offer technical assistance and check for compliance. Earlier this month, the compliance rate for existing businesses was at 50 per cent.
The compliance rate for new businesses was 100 per cent because they can't open without a WPCA FOG system check-off.
