Use of Water Only Submeters for Commercial and Industrial Water/Sewer Accounts

Purpose

This Standard Policy describes Howard County’s Policy to provide water submeters for commercial and industrial water and sewer accounts for the purpose of deducting metered water from the sanitary sewer bill for water which does not enter the County’s sanitary sewer system.

Scope

This Policy is applicable only to Commercial Accounts and Industrial Accounts, as defined, connected to the Howard County public water and sewer system located within the Metropolitan District, and with the following uses, as defined:

1. Cooling Towers
2. Public Swimming Pool
3. Commercial Irrigation System
4. Industrial Process Water
5. Commercial Laundry
6. Accounts with submeters installed before the effective date of this Policy will be subject to this Policy at the time of any change or modification to the submeter structure of the existing submetered account.

Policy

Howard County wishes to promote the use of submeters for Commercial Accounts and Industrial Accounts, as defined, that have certain uses of metered water. The Howard County Department of Public Works, Bureau of Utilities, is responsible for administering this policy.

Definitions

• Water Only Submeter – A privately owned and maintained water meter with an electronic register/encoder that is installed on the downstream side of a Howard County owned water meter servicing a specific process or application.
• Sewer Effluent Meter - A privately owned and maintained sewer meter with an electronic register/encoder that is installed on the downstream side of a Water Only Submeter servicing a specific process or application.
• Water Master Meter – The main water meter, owned by Howard County, which carries a water and sewer charge to the Applicant’s account and to which the Water Only Submeter and Sewer Effluent Meter are linked in the Department of Finance’s billing system.
• Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rate - A percentage of the Water Only Submeter reading that is considered by Howard County to be returned to the sanitary sewer as part of the process, and deducted from the Water Only Submeter usage reading. The Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rate, for those processes or uses that Howard County has approved, may be used by the applicant in lieu of a Sewer Effluent Meter. The approved uses and the corresponding rate are listed in this policy.
• Commercial Account – A Howard County public water and sewer account that is a non-manufacturing business establishment including hotels, restaurants, retail stores, warehouses, storage facilities and health, social, and educational institutions.
• Industrial Account - Any Howard County public water and sewer account that is involved in manufacturing, food processing, metal processing, or other production facility used to produce goods.
• Bureau of Utilities – The division within the Department of Public Works for Howard County Maryland that is tasked with operating and maintaining the public water and wastewater services within the County.
• Applicant – The entity applying for a Commercial Account or Industrial Account Water Only Submeter.
• Howard County DPW will make the final determination as to the classification of the account, the applicability of a Water Only Submeter and a Sewer Effluent Meter.
• Note: if the use of the submeter water changes from the use stated in the permit a new application shall be submitted in order to assure continued submeter benefit.
• In Aid of Construction charges - The In Aid of Construction Charges are applicable to the Water Master Meter Only, not the submeters. If the property is hooked to the public sewer in any fashion, the In Aid of Construction charge will be collected at the full rate without any discount for a submeter.
• Public Swimming Pool - " means any structure, chamber, or tank containing an artificial body of water used by for swimming, diving, wading, recreation, or therapy, together with buildings, appurtenances, and equipment used in connection with the body of water, regardless of whether a fee is charged for its use, except a private swimming pool serving a single family residence. The term includes municipal, community, school, hotel, motel, apartment, boarding house, athletic club, or other membership facility pools and spas.
• Cooling Tower - A cooling tower is a heat rejection device, which extracts waste heat to the atmosphere though the cooling of a water stream to a lower temperature. The type of heat rejection in a cooling tower is termed "evaporative" in that it allows a small portion of the water being cooled to evaporate into a moving air stream to provide cooling.
• Commercial Irrigation System – A turf or landscape watering system for a Commercial Account that applies water by means of an above ground or subsurface sprinkler system, with no connection to the public sewer.
• Industrial Process Water – Water used to facilitate an industrial process by chemical or mechanical operations that result in the manufacture of a product.

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1. Howard County only recognizes the use of 3/4” thru 2” Water Only Submeters. The Water Only Submeter shall have a register, read in cubic feet, which is capable of accepting a Badger/Orion radio transmitter compatible with the County’s mobile radio reading system. The Water Only Submeter shall be labeled as “Water Only Submeter”.
2. All Water Only Submeters shall be mounted horizontally, within five (5) feet of the floor, and accessible by the Howard County meter reading staff. Backflow prevention devices, in accordance with the Howard County Plumbing Code, shall be required.
3. Each Water Only Submeter shall have a separate account with the Howard County Department of Finance, and the account shall be attached to a main Water Master Meter which carries both a water and sewer charge. There shall only be one (1) Water Only Submeter permissible per Water Master Meter.
4. The Water Only Submeter shall be read by Howard County, and a deduction for the totalized flow of the Water Only Submeter will be deducted from the totalized flow of its accompanying Water Master Meter to determine the period charge for sewer on the Water Master Meter.
5. The cost of the Water Only Submeter and radio head, installation, maintenance, and repair costs shall be the responsibility of the Applicant.
6. No water obtained through the Water Only Submeter shall be discharged to the sanitary sewer system unless a) a separate Sewer Effluent Meter is installed, or b) a Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rate has been approved and is applied by the County.
7. The Water Only Submeter is to meet minimum AWWA (American Water Works Association) new meter accuracy standards when installed.
8. The Water Only Submeter shall be made available for testing by Howard County no more than every 5 years. As an alternative the Water Only Submeter may be tested by a certified testing company and the owner’s expense.
9. The Water Only Submeter shall be sized according to AWWA standards

1. A Sewer Effluent Meter may be approved for use by the Department of Public Works when a portion of the water used through a “Water Only Submeter” is returned to the sanitary sewer system as part of the Applicant’s process. The Sewer Effluent Meter will be read by Howard County, and a deduction for the totalized flow of the Sewer Effluent Meter will be deducted from the totalized flow of its accompanying “Water Only Submeter” to determine the period charge for sewer on the Water Master Meter.
2. Each Sewer Effluent Meter shall have a separate account with the Howard County Department of Finance, and the account shall be attached to a Water Only Submeter which carries the water only sewer deduction. There shall be no more than one (1) Sewer Effluent Meter per Water Only Submeter.
3. The Sewer Effluent Meter shall sized to handle all of the water discharged to the sanitary sewer through a Water Only Submeter. The Sewer Effluent Meter shall have a register, read in cubic feet, which is capable of accepting a Badger/Orion radio transmitter compatible with the County’s mobile radio reading system.
4. The Sewer Effluent Meter shall be mounted horizontally, and be accessible by the Howard County meter reading staff.
5. The cost of the Sewer Effluent Meter, radio head, installation, maintenance, and repair costs shall be the responsibility of the Applicant.
6. Any malfunction of the Sewer Effluent Meter shall be repaired by the applicant within 30 days of notification by the Department of Public Work. Failure to effect repairs within the specified time period shall result in the loss of the Water Only Submeter deduction to the Water Master Meter account.

Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rates

1. For cooling towers; the Howard County Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rate: 27%
2. For commercial laundries; the Howard County Standard Sanitary Sewer Return Rate: 25%

Submission of Water Only Submeter Application

1. Permit application: A permit application shall be sent to the Howard County Bureau of Utilities, Meter Services Division, 8270 Old Montgomery Road, Columbia MD, 21045, for approval prior to installation of any Water Only Submeter. An internal building plumbing diagram is required to be submitted with permit application. Plans must show the outside public water and wastewater service connection and meters, location of the service line backflow prevention device, floor plan showing location of cooling tower(s) and tower capacities, Water Only Submeter type, size, and location(s), and Sewer Effluent Meter (if applicable) size, type, and location. Submit three (3) plans sets with the permit application form.
2. A Plumbing Permit issued by the Howard County Department of Inspections, Licenses, and Permits may be required.

Download the : Water Only Submeter Policy and Permit Application (PDF file - 489 Kb )