This chapter shall be known as the "Conewago
Township Junk Dealer, Junkyard and Scrap Yard Ordinance of 1997."
Except where otherwise indicated by context,
the following definitions shall apply in the interpretation and enforcement
of this chapter:
JUNK
Scrap, copper, brass, rope, rags, batteries, paper, trash,
rubber debris, waste, iron, steel, glass and other old or scrap ferrous
or nonferrous material, including wrecked, ruined, dismantled, abandoned,
nonoperable, disabled or junked motor vehicles or parts thereof, including
fluids drained therefrom, or motor vehicles no longer used as such
and otherwise meeting the terms of this definition.
JUNKED MOTOR VEHICLE
Any motor-driven vehicle, regardless of size, which is incapable
of being self-propelled or is unable to move under its own power upon
the public streets of the Township or is incapable of being utilized
for its intended purpose; also included in this definition is any
trailer, semitrailer or any other article which would be classified
as a vehicle under the Vehicle Code of Pennsylvania. The term "junked motor vehicle" shall include any disabled,
abandoned, nonoperable, nonregistered, wrecked, ruined or dismantled
motor vehicle.
JUNKYARD
Yard, lot or place, covered or uncovered, outdoors or in
an enclosed building, containing junk, as defined herein, upon which
principally occurs one or more acts of buying, keeping, dismantling,
processing, recycling, salvaging, selling or offering for sale any
such junk, in whole units or by parts for a business or commercial
purpose, or for the storage of four or more junked motor vehicles
outside of any building or enclosure, but shall not include a transfer
station licensed or permitted by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
LICENSEE
Any person holding a valid, current license issued pursuant
to this chapter or any predecessor ordinance in the municipality.
MUNICIPALITY
The Township of Conewago, Adams County, Pennsylvania.
PERSON
Any natural person, firm, partnership, association, corporation,
company or organization of any kind or any officer, principal, agent
or employee thereof.
PRELIMINARY APPROVAL
Approval of the application by the Supervisors which permits
the applicant to develop his yard as per the requirements of this
chapter. Preliminary approval does not permit the applicant to operate
the junkyard or accumulate junk in the approved location.
Any person wanting to establish, operate or
maintain a junkyard within the Township must seek a preliminary approval
of an application by submitting an initial application and application
fee after which:
A. The Board of Supervisors shall review the application
and plans for completeness and for compliance with this chapter, other
Township ordinances and regulations and any state or federal laws
or regulations.
B. The Board of Supervisors or others, at its direction,
shall inspect the site, taking into consideration the suitability
of the property proposed to be used for the purposes of the license,
the character of the properties located nearby and the effect of the
proposed use upon the municipality, with specific reference to the
general health, safety and welfare of the public and the residents
of the Township.
C. The Board of Supervisors, in its sole discretion,
may hold a public hearing on the application.
D. The Board of Supervisors may impose, in addition to
the general requirements set forth in this chapter, such other terms
and conditions as it may deem necessary to carry out the spirit and
intent of this chapter and to effect the protection of the general
health, safety and welfare of the public and the residents of the
Township.
E. After completion of the above items and the determination
by the Board of Supervisors that the applicant's plans and representations
comply with this chapter and all other applicable ordinances, laws,
rules and regulations, the Supervisors shall issue, in writing, a
preliminary approval of the site.
F. Preliminary approval shall be in writing and shall
contain a statement that the application and plan as submitted are
acceptable to the Board of Supervisors without modification. If the
application is not approved as submitted, the applicant shall be provided
with a list of other terms, conditions and requirements which must
be met before final approval.
G. Preliminary approval shall commit the Township to
issue a license, pursuant to this chapter, only after the site is,
in fact, in complete compliance with the terms of the preliminary
approval and the requirements of this chapter.
H. No junkyard, scrap yard or junk dealer shall conduct
business on the site until a license is issued.
I. It shall be solely the obligation of the applicant
to communicate to the Township, within six months of preliminary approval,
that the site fully complies with this chapter and any terms, conditions
and requirements of the preliminary approval and that the site is
ready for inspection.
J. Preliminary approval shall be valid for not more than
six months, unless notice has been provided that the site is in compliance
within the six-month period but the Supervisors have not yet inspected
the premises, in which case the time period is extended to permit
inspection. If the site is not in full compliance with this chapter
and all other terms, conditions and requirements of the preliminary
approval have not been met within the mandatory time frame, the application
shall be deemed void and of no effect.
After a license has been issued for a junkyard,
in order to continue the operation and maintenance of such junkyard,
the licensee shall be required to apply for license renewal on a form
to be provided by the Township. Such application for renewal shall
be filed with the Township within such time as to allow the Township
an opportunity for on-site inspection of the junkyard prior to the
date on which the license must be renewed; but in no event shall such
application be filed fewer than 60 days before the expiration of the
current license. The Board of Supervisors shall, from time to time,
establish rules and regulations governing the application for and
issuance of renewal licenses.
The following general requirements shall apply
to all junkyards licensed in accordance with the provisions of this
chapter:
A. Such premises shall at all times be maintained so
as not to constitute a nuisance or menace to the health, safety or
welfare of the community and maintained so as not to provide a breeding
place for rodents, vermin, insects or other vectors of disease.
B. No garbage or other organic waste shall be stored
in open containers on premises.
C. All junk shall be stored and arranged so as not to
interfere with natural drainage of the land and shall be so stored
and arranged as to prevent the accumulation of stagnant water and
to facilitate access for fire-fighting purposes. All junk must be
spaced in rows with at least 20 feet between them. Rows shall not
exceed 20 feet in width.
D. Maintenance shall be such that any adjacent stream
or body of water shall not be polluted or damaged by the drainage
or dumping of organize or inorganic waste materials or waste substance.
E. Junk shall be stored in piles within the enclosed
area not exceeding eight feet in height within 50 feet of screening
or fencing line. Junk shall be permitted to be piled not exceeding
12 feet in height in the remaining area of the junkyard. Junk shall
be arranged so as to permit easy access to all such junk for fire-fighting
purposes.
F. No combustible material of any kind not directly incidental
to the operation of the business shall be kept on the premises, nor
shall any condition be allowed to exist that will create a fire hazard.
G. No oil, grease, tires, gasoline, tar, petroleum products,
shingles or other similar material or junk shall be burned within
a junkyard at any time.
H. The licensee shall permit inspection of the business
premises by the municipality or its appointed representative at any
reasonable time or at any time in case of emergency.
I. All oil, antifreeze, gasoline, transmission fluid
and other vehicular fluids shall be drained from all vehicles before
such vehicles are stored as scrap in the junkyard; and all such fluids
shall be properly containerized, stored, transported and disposed
of in the manner or manners prescribed by or consistent with regulations
promulgated by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
in Title 25, Chapter 75, of the Pennsylvania Code, relating to solid
waste management, and in regulations promulgated by the United States
Environmental Protection Agency at 40 CFR, Subchapter 1, Parts 240
to 280, relating to solid waste, or any other applicable laws or regulations
pertaining to solid waste or solid waste management in effect at the
date of adoption of this chapter or any new or amended regulations
issued under such authority.
J. All spare tires not being used for a useful purpose
must be covered by a tarpaulin and not left exposed to the weather
or enclosed within a structure.
K. Junkyards shall be no less than five acres in size,
including land reserved for setbacks, nor more than 20 acres, including
land reserved for setbacks, and shall be no closer than 1,000 feet
from the property line of any other junkyard. No junkyard shall be
located in any floodplain or wetland as defined in federal wetlands
regulations or in other environmentally sensitive areas.
Existing junkyards are subject to all provisions
of this chapter. However, persons operating a junkyard shall have
60 days to apply for a license from the date of enactment on this
chapter. Furthermore, upon written request accompanying the application
for a license filed by a person operating a preexisting junkyard,
the Supervisors may waive any provision of this chapter which imposes
an undue hardship on the applicant because of the peculiar nature
of the junkyard or its configuration if such waiver will not negatively
effect the public health, safety and welfare. The burden of proof
shall be on the person seeking a waiver of these provisions. Any person
wishing to extend or enlarge the area of an existing junkyard shall
make application for new license in accordance with the provisions
of this chapter and will be required to comply with all provisions
of this chapter as if he were applying for a license for a new junkyard.
No license issued under this chapter shall be
assigned or transferred to any other person without the express written
authorization of the Township Supervisors. Any person wishing to transfer
or assign such license shall make a written request to do so, directed
to the Board of Supervisors and setting forth the name and address
of the transferee and the date the transfer is expected to be effective.
Such written request shall be submitted together with a transfer fee,
the amount of which shall, from time to time, be determined by the
Board of Supervisors; and such transfer fee shall not be returned,
whether or not the transfer or assignment of the license is authorized.
Such written request must be submitted at least 60 days prior to the
date the transfer is expected to be effective.
The Board of Supervisors shall suspend any license
issued hereunder upon failure of any licensee to comply with or to
maintain compliance with or for violation of any provision, standard
or requirement of this chapter. The Township shall notify the licensee,
in writing, of any section or sections of this chapter which the Township
or its representative believes to have been violated. Any notice provided
for herein may also identify a reasonable period of time within which
the licensee may effect compliance without prosecution. Any notice
provided for in this section may be served personally upon the licensee;
or may be posted conspicuously upon the property for which the license
has been granted; or may be posted conspicuously at the address of
the licensee as shown on the application; or may be sent to the licensee
by certified or registered mail to the address shown on the application.
Application fees, renewal fees, transfer fees
and any other fees shall be established, from time to time, by resolution
of the Board of Supervisors. The initial fee shall for each application
and inspection and the fee for any renewal or transfer application
shall be as set from time to time by resolution of the Board of Supervisors.
All fees are due at the time of application.
The Board of Supervisors may, from time to time
review or alter the rules and regulations, the application form, renewal
application form and any other forms reasonable and necessary to the
proper and effective administration of this chapter.
The Supervisors or any one of them or any representative
duly authorized by the Board of Supervisors shall be permitted to
enter and inspect the premises of any licensee or any applicant for
preliminary approval at any reasonable time and with no notice.
The Board of Supervisors may, in its sole discretion,
waiver a provision or requirement of this chapter under exceptional
circumstances, upon written application, but only where the waiver
will not negatively effect the health, welfare and safety of the community
and will not effect the overall regulation of junkyards as set forth
in this chapter in any material way.