Section 12-15-5. Sewage holding tank specifications; removal of sewage from tanks; disposal of sewage; manifests

   (a) Sewage holding tanks shall be maintained in a clean, sanitary, and functional condition and shall be constructed of impervious materials. Sewage holding tanks shall be watertight and capable of containing the sewage in a sanitary manner and shall be adequate in size to contain the sewage from the flush toilets being served by the tank and shall be serviced at least once per week while in use so that the tank will not be filled to more than one-half of its volume between regularly scheduled service. The prime contractor at a construction site or sponsor at a special event must monitor sewage holding tank capacity and ensure that the tank volume will not exceed one-half of the tank capacity at any time.

(b) Any defective or inadequate holding tank shall be repaired immediately or removed from service.

(c) Removal of sewage from sewage holding tanks shall be accomplished in a clean and sanitary manner by means of a vacuum hose and shall be received into a leakproof tank truck, approved and licensed for such service by the local health department for transport. Any sewage spilled, leaked, discharged, or otherwise released or removed from a sewage holding tank to any location other than a leakproof tank truck shall be deemed a violation of Article 2 of Chapter 5 of this title, the "Georgia Water Quality Control Act," and such violation shall be punishable under the provisions of said Article 2.

(d) The sewage from sewage holding tanks carried by tank trucks shall be disposed only at a sewage treatment plant which is owned and operated by a city or county government and which holds a valid permit from the division. Such disposal shall occur only with the permission of the city or county government which owns the sewage treatment plant. Any disposal of sewage from a tank truck at any location other than the place inside the property boundaries of a sewage treatment plant designated by the plant's owner shall be deemed to be a violation of Article 2 of Chapter 5 of this title. Such violation shall be punishable under the provisions of said Article 2.

(e) The sewage holding tank provider shall be responsible for maintaining a manifest system to ensure that all sewage pumped from a holding tank is disposed of in accordance with subsection (d) of this Code section. A responsible employee of the city or county sewage treatment plant which receives the sewage must sign a manifest for each load of sewage received, and the sewage holding tank provider must make the manifests available on each tank truck at any time for inspection by the division or any county board of health.

Code 1981, § 12-15-5, enacted by Ga. L. 1990, p. 861, § 1.