Public forum held on Sioux City grease disposal plans

SIOUX CITY | A public forum was held Tuesday to discuss proposed new city regulations for intercepting and disposing of fats, oils and grease.

The forum took place at the Wastewater Treatment Plant, 3100 S. Lewis Blvd. The city is proposing more precise rules to manage how businesses deal with their output.

"Thiswill bring everyone under a uniform cloud, with specific guidelines they can follow and understand," said Vicki Baker, lab supervisor. "The ordinance will contain everything you need, from size to location to type."

The move was spurred by a request from the Environmental Protection Agency. Homeowners would be exempt under the ordinance.No owners of affected businesses were in attendance at the public forum.

Desiree McCaslen, a pretreatment manager with the Sioux City Public Works Department, said poorly managed disposal mechanisms can cause infrastructure issues, basement backups and unwanted discharges to storm drains.

If passed, the ordinance will only apply to establishments that sell or prepare food, but will eventually expand to cover maintenance garages and equipment manufacturers.

Existing businesses will have their control mechanisms grandfathered in under an older regulation. However, these businesses could forfeit their exemption if there have been plumbing changes, major remodeling projects or changes of ownership.

The first violation of the new rule would carry a fine of $100, but if left unchecked it could increase to $1,000 per violation per day.

Some local business owners say they're confident their current systems will be adequate under the new ordinance.

"I just have a small french fry I'm not a big restaurant where we produce a lot of grease," said Steve Margeas, owner of the Coney Island Wiener House, at 510 Nebraska St. "I have a system that catches all of it, and I pour it into a container and dispose of it."

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Public forum held on Sioux City grease disposal plans