Chandler targets arsenic, cadmium and zinc in 2027 pretreatment update
Chandler Municipal Utilities Department, Arizona · Meeting date: November 9, 2026 · Published: November 10, 2026
Chandler City Council is scheduled to consider a new industrial wastewater pretreatment programme that would take effect on 1 March 2027. The update would refresh the city’s rules for industrial discharges to its publicly owned treatment works and revise local limits following a study of 17 contaminants.
Key points
- Ordinance No. 5186 would replace Chandler’s 2013 industrial wastewater pretreatment programme with a 2027 version effective 1 March 2027.
- A study reviewed 17 contaminants; council discussion identified arsenic, cadmium and zinc as the three contaminants prompting changes.
- The rules apply to industrial users discharging to Chandler’s publicly owned treatment works, including users outside city boundaries where Chandler has legal authority.
- The programme allows civil penalties of up to $1,000 per violation, with each day potentially treated as a separate continuing violation.
Full report
Chandler is moving to refresh its industrial wastewater controls after a study identified arsenic, cadmium and zinc as the contaminants requiring changes to local discharge limits.
City Council discussed Ordinance No. 5186 at its 9 November study session and is scheduled to vote on its introduction and tentative adoption on 12 November. If adopted, the City of Chandler 2027 Industrial Pretreatment Program would replace the city’s 2013 programme on 1 March 2027.
The proposed programme governs industrial discharges to Chandler’s publicly owned treatment works (POTW). It applies to every industrial user introducing pollutants into the system, including an industrial user outside Chandler’s municipal boundaries where the city has authority to regulate the discharge.
A staff member said the previous local-limit update was completed in 2013. The city said the new review was prompted by a significant increase in industrial users and upcoming regulatory requirements. The study examined 17 contaminants, with arsenic, cadmium and zinc identified in council discussion as the three parameters requiring changes.
The programme is intended to prevent unlawful discharges, protect the collection system and treatment facilities, protect workers and the public, safeguard receiving waters, and preserve beneficial reuse of wastewater and residuals. Council discussion characterised the local limits as applying to industrial waste entering Chandler’s treatment plants through the collection system, on the reclaimed-water side of the utility’s operations.
The proposed rules retain a broad compliance and enforcement framework. Industrial users can be required to obtain and comply with permits, provide pretreatment, report changes in discharge, maintain sampling and flow-monitoring equipment, allow inspections, retain records and take corrective measures. The utilities director would have authority to prevent or limit discharges, set compliance schedules, issue notices of violation, suspend or revoke permits, and seek injunctive relief, damages or penalties.
Civil penalties could reach $1,000 for each violation, with each day of a continuing violation potentially constituting a separate violation. The city would not seek such penalties where federal or state authorities have received penalties or are diligently prosecuting action over the same allegations, standards, requirements or orders.
The update would amend Chapter 51 of Chandler’s city code, covering wastewater service, by replacing the existing pretreatment programme incorporated under Section 51-24.
This summary was generated by AI based on the source document and may contain errors.
Source: City Council Study Session, Chandler Municipal Utilities Department