The City of Portland's septage hauler programme, run by its Bureau of Environmental Services, covers haulers who discharge at the Columbia Boulevard plant, and it defines septage to include waste from chemical toilets. This guide explains what the programme requires, what it leaves open for operators outside the city, and what a customer should ask for.
Key takeaways
- The programme names an annual permit, a valid state sewage disposal service licence and pumping-equipment inspection forms for each truck.
- Chemical toilet waste is within the programme's definition of septage, so pumping a portable restroom is part of the same regulated chain.
- Whether an operator pumping units elsewhere in the metro area must hold the same permit was not confirmed. It stays open until the operator answers in writing.
- This site does not hold, claim or print any operator's permit or licence number.
- A customer can ask for the facility name, the inspection record and the pumping dates, and check each one.
- Waste routing has three legs: the truck, the discharge and the records. Each leg has a document.
What the City's programme requires
The programme requires an annual permit, a valid state sewage disposal service licence and pumping-equipment inspection forms for each truck. These are conditions on the hauler, and they describe what the operator must show.
The programme sets its conditions for haulers that discharge at the City's plant. The conditions are an annual permit, a valid state sewage disposal service licence, and DEQ pumping-equipment inspection forms for each truck. They are the programme's own terms, and they attach to the hauler that pumps and carries the waste.
Because the programme defines septage to include waste from chemical toilets, the pumping of a portable restroom falls within the same definition as other septage. The truck that empties the unit is the vehicle the programme describes, and the discharge point is the one the programme controls.
This site does not hold any of those permits and does not claim them. It states the requirement so that a customer knows what to ask the operator to show, and so that the answer can be checked against the programme's own wording.
The open question for operators outside the city
Whether an operator that pumps units elsewhere in the metro area must hold the same permit was not confirmed for this guide. Treat the question as open until the operator answers it in writing.
The programme is written for haulers discharging at the City's plant. A unit pumped in Beaverton or Gresham may be taken to a different facility on different terms, and the programme may or may not reach that load. This guide does not guess which applies.
Ask the operator which facility receives the waste, and whether its permits and forms cover that facility. If the waste goes to the City plant, the programme's conditions apply to the load. If it goes somewhere else, ask what that facility requires for acceptance and where those terms are written.
The question matters because the pumping is done by the operator, and the operator answers for where the waste goes. A customer should not accept an answer that the waste is handled as usual without a name for the facility.
Waste routing, step by step
Waste routing runs from the unit to the truck, from the truck to a named discharge, and into the operator's records. Each leg has a document, and each document is something a customer can ask to see.
First, the unit is emptied into the truck under the operator's procedure. The truck is inspected on the forms the programme names, and the operator keeps those records with the vehicle.
Second, the load is taken to the facility the operator has named. The discharge is recorded with a date, a time and the source of the load. A record that stops at the truck does not show where the waste went.
Third, the operator's records of visits and discharges are kept, so the customer of a long placement can see that the units were pumped on the schedule written on the order, and that the waste went where it was said to go.
The state licence, and why it is a question rather than a claim
The programme names a valid state sewage disposal service licence for the hauler. This site does not claim that licence for anyone, and a customer should check it with the state regulator directly.
A licence is a fact about the hauler that pumps and carries the waste, not about the company that placed the unit. The customer should not assume that a rental company's paperwork covers the pumping, and should ask who does the pumping and see that operator's details.
The state regulator is the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality. Ask the operator for the licence number and check it with the regulator before the first pumping visit. A number that cannot be checked is not a verified credential, however confidently it is stated.
This site does not print a licence number and does not say that any operator holds one, because it has not verified any operator's documents.
What to keep with the order
Keep the operator's permit details, the inspection record for the truck, the facility name and the pumping dates with the order. These are the documents a customer or an inspector is most likely to ask for.
Write the name of the operator who pumps the units on the order, not only the name of the company that supplied them. The customer is entitled to know who is doing the pumping, and the operator is the one answerable for the waste.
Keep a copy of the permit and the licence number as the operator supplies them, with the date they were checked. A licence checked on the day of the first visit is a stronger record than a number written down from memory.
Keep a log of pumping dates and any fill or overflow reports. A log that shows the schedule, the visits and the discharges lets the customer see whether the servicing plan was followed, and gives a clear answer if a question is raised later.
Questions to put to the operator
A short set of written questions settles most of the open points: the permit, the licence, the facility, the truck's inspection record and the visit schedule. Ask them before the order is placed.
Ask whether the operator holds the City's annual septage hauler permit, and whether its trucks carry the inspection forms the programme names. Ask for copies of both, with their dates.
Ask which facility receives the waste from units in Portland, and whether that facility is the City's Columbia Boulevard plant. If it is not, ask what permit the facility holds and where its acceptance terms are written.
Ask how often the units will be pumped, what triggers an extra visit, and how a fill or an overflow is reported to the customer. A plan that answers these questions in writing is one the customer can hold the operator to.
What to decide before you order from an operator
Four decisions set the hauling side of the job: which operator pumps the units, which facility receives the waste, how often the units are pumped, and who calls for an extra visit. Each is a written answer, not a verbal one.
Choose the operator on the answers to the written questions, not on the name of the company that places the unit. A rental company that cannot say which operator pumps its units, or which facility takes the waste, has not yet answered the question that matters for the waste.
Set the pumping frequency from the use, not from a habit. A unit used by a crew all day fills faster than one used a few times a week, and the frequency should be written from the expected use. Ask the operator what triggers an extra visit.
Name the person on the customer's side who receives a fill or overflow report, and the number they call. The hauling side works best when a problem is reported the same day, to a person who can authorise the extra visit.
Records a customer can ask to see on site
On a placement, the customer can reasonably ask to see the operator's permit details, the truck's inspection record, the facility name and the most recent pumping date. Asking is a normal part of the order, not an accusation.
Ask for the operator's details in writing before the first pumping visit, and check the state licence number with the regulator. Keep the check date with the record, so the next person who reads it knows when it was verified.
Keep a short sheet on site with the operator's name, the pumping schedule and the number to call. A crew member or a site visitor who needs to know who pumps the units should find the answer on the sheet, not in the rental company's office.
Where a record cannot be produced, say so in writing and ask for it by a set date. A missing record is a question to resolve with the operator, and the order should not carry on as if the question had been answered.
Frequently asked questions
Does a portable toilet count as septage in Portland?
The City's programme defines septage to include waste from chemical toilets, so pumping a portable restroom falls within that definition. Whether a particular load is covered depends on where it is discharged.
Does the customer need a licence?
The state licence the programme names is held by the hauler that pumps and carries the waste. The customer is not expected to hold it, but should ask for the operator's details and check them.
Is there a licence number on this site?
No. This site does not print or claim any operator's licence number, and it has not verified one. Ask the operator for the number and check it with the state regulator.
Which regulators should be asked?
The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality for the state licence and the disposal rules, and the City's Bureau of Environmental Services for the programme that applies to the City's plant.
Sources
This guide is general information for Multnomah County homeowners, not a substitute for an on-site inspection. Prices are estimates. See our disclaimer.