Who tests backflow assemblies at a Chandler hazardous-material facility?

Subsection (A) is the quote above. It applies "in the case where a facility handles, stores or uses hazardous materials which may pose a risk to the water system." The rest of the section spells out how the arrangement works:

• Standard (B): the independent agent's tests verify the assembly meets the performance standards set by the Foundation for Cross-Connection Control and Hydraulic Research (FCC and HR). The city pays the agent, then assesses the water user a surcharge to recover its costs. A schedule of fees set by the Director is assessed at the time of testing and is based on city costs.
• Repairs (C): if repairs or replacement are needed, the customer, at the customer's expense, selects from a list of certified testers approved by the Director. That tester must retest before the assembly goes back in service.
• Consequence (D): failure to perform testing, repairs or replacement is grounds for discontinuing water service, at the Director's discretion.
• Notice and witness (E): the customer tells the Director in advance when tests will happen, so the city can witness.
• Records (F): records of tests, repairs and overhaul are kept and made available to the Director.

Section 52-37.1 adds two more. Before performance testing starts, the Water Department notifies the customer and schedules tests to minimize service interruption. And when assemblies on fire lines are tested, repaired or replaced, the Fire Chief or a designee is notified first.

• Hazardous material: Chandler's 52-1 defines it as any material or combination of materials that, "because of its quantity, concentration, or physical, chemical or infectious characteristics, may pose a substantial or potential hazard to human health or the environment."
• Independent agent: a tester chosen by the city, not by you. The code does not name the agent or how it is picked.
• Surcharge: a cost-recovery charge, not a permit fee. The dollar amount is not in 52-37.
• Performance testing: the test against the FCC and HR standards, as the code uses the term. It is different from the repair tester's retest in (C).

It covers a facility that handles, stores or uses hazardous materials that may pose a risk to the water system. The section sets no numeric threshold, so a facility with a small amount of a material is a judgment the Director makes. It does not cover an ordinary office, shop or restaurant that has no such material. Those customers follow 52-36(G), which has the device manufacturer's representative or a certified tester approved by the Director do the annual test, at the user's expense, with the Director able to require it more often where the hazard is great.

A plating shop. Plating plants are one of the examples in 52-36(D)(3) of premises that handle material dangerous to health. The shop needs an air gap or RP device, and the city's agent, not the shop's usual tester, runs the performance test and the city bills the surcharge.

A failed test. The agent finds an RP assembly out of standard. The owner picks a repair tester from the Director's list, pays for the work, and the repair tester retests the assembly before it returns to service.

The edge case: a fire line on the same site. If the shop's assemblies include one on a fire line, 52-37.1(B) requires the Fire Chief to be notified before testing, repair or replacement, and the work goes to a certified individual or agency at the customer's expense.

A neighboring restaurant. It is not a hazmat facility, so the flip does not apply. The owner hires a certified tester, as in Mesa, Scottsdale and Glendale.

1. 1Decide honestly whether you handle, store or use hazardous materials that could reach the water system. If you are unsure, ask Chandler Backflow Reports at 480-782-3665 how the city treats your site.
2. 2Keep the assembly accessible and expect the Water Department's notice before the city's agent arrives, and tell the Director in advance when tests will happen, as 52-37(E) requires, so the city can witness.
3. 3If the test fails, choose a repair tester from the Director's approved list and make sure the repair tester retests the assembly.
4. 4Keep every test, repair and overhaul record, since 52-37(F) says they must be made available to the Director.
5. 5Read the hazard rules for your device in which backflow device Chandler requires.

• Myth: I can use my own tester for the city's test. At a hazmat site the code sends performance testing to an independent agent the city selects.
• Myth: The city pays for all of it. The city pays the agent and then charges the user a surcharge. Repairs are the customer's cost.
• Myth: A repair ends the matter. The repair tester has to retest the assembly before it returns to service.
• Myth: Fire lines are handled like the rest. The Fire Chief has to be notified first.

This page explains the code. The adopted text on Municode governs.