This chapter is adopted by the Town under its
police powers to protect public health and welfare and home rule powers
of the Town pursuant to its authority under MGL c. 40, § 21
and implements the Town's authority under MGL c. 40, § 41A,
conditioned upon a declaration of water supply emergency issued by
the Department of Environmental Protection.
[Amended 1997 ATM by Art. 23]
The purpose of this chapter is to protect, preserve,
and maintain the public health, safety, and welfare whenever there
is in force a state of water supply conservation or a state of water
supply emergency by providing for enforcement of any restrictions,
requirements, provisions or conditions imposed by the Town of Chatham
or by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
The following words, for the purposes of this
chapter of these bylaws, shall, unless another meaning is clearly
apparent for the way in which the word is used, have the following
meanings:
ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY
Means the Select Board as the Board of Water Commissioners,
or its designees.
[Amended 6-12-2021 ATM by Art. 55]
PERSON
Means any individual, corporation, trust, partnership, state,
federal, or municipal government or political subdivision or association
or other entity.
STATE OF WATER SUPPLY EMERGENCY
Means a state of water supply emergency declared on petition
of the Town by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection
pursuant to MGL c. 21G, §§ 15 through 17, and c. 111,
§ 160, or by the Governor.
WATER USERS or WATER CONSUMERS
Means all public and private users of the Town's public water
system, irrespective of any person's responsibility for billing purposes
for water used at any particular facility.
The Town of Chatham, through its Board of Water Commissioners, may declare a state of water supply conservation upon a determination by a majority vote of the Board that a shortage of water exists and conservation measures are appropriate to ensure an adequate supply of water to all water consumers. Public notice of a state of water conservation shall be given under §
261-6 of this chapter before it may be enforced.
[Amended 1997 ATM by Art. 23]
Upon publication of public notice, as stated in §
261-6, that a declaration of a state of water supply conservation has been issued by the Town of Chatham's Board of Water Commissioners or a state of water supply emergency has been issued by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection, no person shall violate any provision, restriction, requirement, or condition of any order approved or issued by the Board of Water Commissioners and/or Department of Environmental Protection intended to bring about an end to the state of water supply conservation or water supply emergency.