65-164. Sewage; definition; complaints, investigations, orders; administrative review.
65-164
65-164. Sewage; definition; complaints, investigations, orders;administrative review.(a) No person, company, corporation, institution or municipality shallplace or permit to be placed or discharge or permit to flow into any ofthe waters of the state any sewage, except as hereinafter provided.This act shall not prevent the discharge of sewage from any public sewersystem owned and maintained by a municipality or sewerage company, ifsuch sewer system was in operation and was discharging sewageinto the waters of the state on March 20, 1907, butthis exception shall not permit the discharge of sewage from any sewersystem that has been extended subsequent to such date,nor shall it permit the discharge of any sewage which, uponinvestigation by the secretary of health and environment as hereinafterprovided, is found to be polluting the waters of the state in amanner prejudicial to the health of the inhabitants thereof.
(b) For the purposes of this act,"sewage" means anysubstance that contains any of the waste products or excrementitious orother discharges from the bodies of human beings or animals, or chemicalor other wastes from domestic, manufacturing or other forms of industry.
(c) Whenever a complaint is made to the secretary of health andenvironment by the mayor of any city of the state, by a local healthofficer or by a county or joint board of health, complaining ofthe pollution or of thepolluted condition of any of the waters of the state situated within thecounty within which the city, local health officer orcounty or joint board ofhealth is located, it shall be the duty of the secretary of health andenvironment to cause an investigation of thepollution or thepolluted condition complainedof. Also, wheneverthe secretary of health and environment otherwise has reason to believethat any of the waters of the state are being polluted in a mannerprejudicial to the health of any of the inhabitants of the state,the secretary may initiate an investigation ofsuch pollution.
(d) Whenever an investigation is undertaken by the secretary ofhealth and environment, undersubsection (c), itshall be the duty of any person, company, corporation, institution ormunicipality concerned in such pollution to furnish, on demand, to thesecretary of health and environment such information as requiredrelative to the amount and character of the polluting materialdischarged into the waters by such person, company, corporation,institution or municipality. If the secretary of health andenvironment finds that any of the waters of the state have been orare being polluted in a manner prejudicial to the health of any of theinhabitants of the state, the secretary of health and environment shallhave the authority to make an order requiring: (1) Such pollution to ceasewithin a reasonable time; (2) requiring such manner of treatment or ofdisposition of the sewage or other polluting material as, in the secretary'sjudgment, is necessary toprevent the future pollution of such waters; or (3)both. It shall be the duty of the person, company, corporation,institution or municipality to whom such order is directed to fullycomply with the order of the secretary of health and environment.
(e) Any person, company, corporation,institution or municipality upon whom an order has been imposed pursuant tosubsection (d) may appeal to the secretary within 30 days after service of theorder. If appealed, a hearing shall be conducted in accordance with theprovisions of the Kansas administrative procedure act.
History: L. 1907, ch. 382, § 4; L. 1909, ch. 226, § 2; R.S.1923, 65-164; L. 1974, ch. 352, § 25; L. 1980, ch. 182, § 23;L. 1986, ch. 318, § 84;L. 1997, ch. 92, § 1; Apr. 17.