The purpose of this article is to establish
procedures for the use and maintenance of existing and new holding
tanks designed to receive and retain sewage, whether from residential
or commercial uses, and it is hereby declared that the enactment of
this article is necessary for the protection, benefit, and preservation
of the health, safety, and welfare of the inhabitants of this Township.
Unless the context specifically and clearly
indicates otherwise, the meaning of terms used in this article shall
be as follows:
HOLDING TANK
A watertight receptacle which receives and retains sewage
and is designed and constructed to facilitate ultimate disposal of
the sewage at another site. Holding tanks include but are not limited
to the following:
B.
RETENTION TANKA holding tank system where sewage is conveyed to said tank by a water-carrying system.
C.
VAULT PIT PRIVYA holding tank system designed to receive sewage where water under pressure is not available.
IMPROVED PROPERTY
Any property within Kilbuck Township upon which there is
erected a structure intended for continuous or habitual habitation,
occupancy or use by human beings or animals and from which structure
sewage shall or may be discharged.
LESSEE
Any person who has a leasehold interest in any realty within
Kilbuck Township, whether the original lessee or a subtenant.
OWNER
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole
or partial, of any property located within Kilbuck Township.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, company, association, corporation,
or any other group entity.
SEWAGE
Any substance that contains any of the waste products or
excrement or other discharges from the bodies of human beings or animals
and any noxious or deleterious substance being harmful or inimical
to the public health, welfare, or safety, or to animal or aquatic
life or to the streams and rivers, or to the use of water whether
for domestic consumption, supply, or recreation or any substance which
constitutes pollution under the Clean Stream Law (35 P.S. §§ 691.1
to 691.1001).
ZONING OFFICER
The Zoning Officer of the Township of Kilbuck or other person
as designated by the Township of Kilbuck to manage this article.
The Board of Supervisors of Kilbuck Township
may adopt such rules and regulations concerning sewage which it may
deem necessary from time to time to control the methods of holding
tank sewage collection, transportation, and disposal thereof; and
the Board of Supervisors of Kilbuck Township may adopt such rules
and regulations concerning sewage which it may deem necessary from
time to time to effect the purposes herein. Such rules and regulations
shall be adopted by Kilbuck Township by resolution.
All such rules and regulations adopted by Kilbuck
Township shall be in conformity with all applicable laws and applicable
rules and regulations of administrative agencies of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
Prior to any installation of any holding tank
or issuance of a holding tank permit by the Zoning Officer, the owner,
lessee, or person making actual installation of the holding tank,
shall submit in writing to the Zoning Officer, at least two weeks
prior to the intended installation, the following data:
A. The type of holding tank intending to be installed
together with the size and capacity of said tank.
B. The useful life of said tank.
C. A certification from the manufacturer or any other
qualified person that said tank shall not leak its contents during
useful life of said tank.
D. The method of installation and the person hired to
do said installation. However, upon review of the application by the
Zoning Officer, after consultation with the Township Engineer, the
Zoning Officer shall make a determination that the proposed tank,
quantity and size, and installation methods are consistent with the
rules and regulations of the Township regulating this matter, the
rules and regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the County
of Allegheny or any other governmental agency regulating these matters.
If the Zoning Officer approves the application for installation, upon
payment of the required fee, the Zoning Officer shall issue the holding
tank permit. If Zoning Officer disapproves of the tank, he shall set
forth, in writing, the causes and basis for his disapproval.
Any applicant or affected person may, within
10 days of a decision of the Zoning Officer, appeal such decision
to the Kilbuck Township Board of Supervisors for review. The requested
review shall be conducted during a regularly scheduled meeting. The
Board of Supervisors may affirm, reverse, or modify the findings of
the Zoning Officer. Any person adversely affected by a decision of
the Board of Supervisors of Kilbuck Township may appeal to a court
of competent jurisdiction within 30 days of the date of the decision;
provided, however, that no such appeal from the decision of the Zoning
Officer or from the Kilbuck Township Board of Supervisors shall act
as a stay to any decisions rendered by the Zoning Officer or the Board
of Supervisors of Kilbuck Township.
In applying the provisions of this article,
they shall be interpreted to be the minimum requirements for the promotion
of the public health, safety, and general welfare. It is not intended
to interfere with, abrogate, or annul any other ordinance, rules,
regulations, or permits previously adopted or issued, except as amended
hereby, or with any other rules or regulations of any other administrative
agency having jurisdiction of this matter. Where this article imposes
greater restrictions upon the use of holding tanks, this article shall
control. It is the intent of the Board of Supervisors of Kilbuck Township
that the provisions of this article are severable. Should any section
or provisions of this article or subsequent amendments thereto be
declared by the courts to be unconstitutional or invalid for any reason,
such decision shall not affect the validity of this article as a whole
or the validity of any other section or provision of this article
other than the one so declared to be invalid.
Any person violating any of the provisions of
this article or aiding, abetting or assisting the violation thereof
shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a District
Justice under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty
of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not less
than $300 nor more than $1,000, plus costs of prosecution. In default
of payment thereof, the defendant may be sentenced to imprisonment
for a term not exceeding 30 days. Each day or portion thereof that
such violation continues or is permitted to continue shall constitute
a separate offense, and each section of this article that is violated
shall also constitute a separate offense.
In addition to any other remedies provided in
this article, any violation of this article shall constitute a nuisance
and may be abated by either seeking appropriate equitable legal relief
from a court of competent jurisdiction, or, when the Zoning Officer
as authorized by this article, requiring that affirmative steps be
taken to correct the condition by hiring contractors for the collection,
transportation, and disposal of the contents of said holding tank
or conducting an annual inspection, the costs incurred shall be imposed
on the owner of the property and the Solicitor of the Township of
Kilbuck is hereby authorized to lien said property for recovery of
costs and/or file action to recover said costs from the bonding company
of said owner or lessee. In addition, the Solicitor is hereby authorized
to file civil suit in a court of competent jurisdiction to recover
the costs.