[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough of Rutherford
Council 10-17-1989 by Ord. No. 2558-89. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Commercial property maintenance — See Ch. 21A.
Garbage, rubbish and refuse — See Ch. 40.
Littering — See Ch. 53.
Deposit and removal of materials — See Ch. 56.
Municipal property and grounds — See Ch. 61.
Nuisance Code — See Ch. 64.
Property Maintenance Code — See Ch. 78.
Recycling — See Ch. 82A.
Trees and shrubbery — See Ch. 120.
Abandoned or junked vehicles — See Ch. 125.
Vehicles and traffic — See Ch. 126.
This chapter is enacted pursuant to N.J.S.A.
13:1E-92 et seq., the Clean Communities Act of the State of New Jersey.
For the purpose of this chapter, certain words
and terms herein are defined as follows:
An uncontaminated non-water-soluble, nondecomposable, inert
solid, such as rock, soil, gravel, concrete, glass and/or clay or
ceramic products.
Waste building materials and refuse resulting from construction,
remodeling and repair operations on houses, commercial buildings,
pavements and other structures.
Waste generated from the razing of buildings, factories and
other man-made structures, including streets, roads and fences.
A solid waste facility which is designed and operated for
the purpose of composting leaves, either exclusively or in combination
with other type ID 23 wastes, as identified in N.J.A.C. 7:26-2.13.
Any used or unconsumed substance or waste material which
has been discarded, whether made of aluminum, glass, plastic, rubber,
paper or other natural or synthetic material, or any combination thereof,
including but not limited to any bottle, jar or can, any unlighted
cigarette, cigar, match or any flaming or glowing material or any
garbage, trash, refuse, debris, rubbish, grass clippings or other
lawn or garden waste, newspaper, magazines, glass, metal, plastic
or paper containers or other packaging or construction material but
does not include the waste of the primary processes of mining or other
extraction processes, logging, sawmilling, farming or manufacturing.
A land site at which solid waste is disposed of in a manner
which does not protect the environment, is susceptible to open burning
or is exposed to the elements, vectors and scavengers.
Any garbage, refuse, sludge and other discarded materials
resulting from industrial, commercial and agricultural operations
and from domestic and community activities, and shall include all
other waste materials, including liquids, except for liquids which
are treated in public sewage treatment plants and except for solid
animal and vegetable wastes collected by swine producers licensed
by the State Department of Agriculture to collect, prepare and feed
such wastes to swine on their own farms.
An organism, including insects, other arthropods or rodents,
that is capable of transmitting a pathogen from one organism to another.
This chapter provides for regulatory authority
designed to promote a clean, litter-free environment for the citizens
of the Borough of Rutherford.
It shall be unlawful for any person to throw,
drop, discard or otherwise place litter of any nature upon any public
or private property other than in a litter receptacle or waste container
designed for the purpose of litter storage or disposal.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to discard or
dump along any street or road, on or off any right-of-way, any solid
waste, including but not limited to rubbish, refuse, junk, vehicles
or vehicle parts, rubber tires, appliances, furniture, packaging materials,
construction waste or demolition waste.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person to discard or
dump on any property, public or private, any solid waste, including
but not limited to rubbish, refuse, junk, vehicles or vehicle parts,
rubber tires, appliances, furniture, packaging materials, construction
waste or demolition wastes or any manner of solid waste, without the
express consent of the property owner and then only in a litter receptacle
or waste container designed for the express purpose of solid waste
storage or disposal.
C.
Open dumps are declared to be a nuisance, hazardous
to human health, and are prohibited.
D.
The land application of clean fill, provided that
it is wholly uncontaminated by the presence of any other solid waste
and further provided that it is applied by a property owner or with
the express written consent of a property owner shall not be regulated
by this section.
Litter receptacles and their servicing are required
at the following public places which exist in the municipality, including
sidewalks used by pedestrians in active retail commercially zoned
areas, such that at a minimum there shall be no single linear quarter
mile without a receptacle; buildings held out for use by the public,
including schools, government buildings and railroad and bus stations;
parks; drive-in restaurants; all street vendor locations; self-service
refreshment areas; construction sites; gasoline service stations islands;
shopping centers; parking lots; and at special events to which the
public is invited, including sporting events, parades, carnivals,
circuses and festivals. The proprietors of these places or the sponsors
of these events shall be responsible for providing and servicing the
receptacles such that adequate containerization is available.
No person shall sweep into or deposit in any
gutter, street, catch basin or other public place any accumulation
of litter from any public or private sidewalk or driveway. Every person
who owns or occupies property shall keep the sidewalk in front of
his or her premises free of litter. All sweepings shall be collected
and properly containerized for disposal.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any residential or commercial
property owner to permit open or overflowing waste disposal bins,
containers or litter receptacles on his or her property.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any residential or commercial
property owner to permit the presence of waste disposal bins, containers
or litter receptacles in a manner which promotes or tends to promote
the presence of any disease vector.
It shall be unlawful for any vehicle to be driven,
moved, stopped or parked on any street, road or highway unless such
a vehicle is constructed or loaded to prevent any of its load from
dropping, sifting, leaking or otherwise escaping therefrom. Any person
operating a vehicle from which any portion of the load has fallen
or otherwise escaped, which could cause an obstruction to traffic,
damage a vehicle or otherwise endanger travelers or damage property,
shall immediately cause the public or private property or roadway
to be cleaned and shall pay the costs therefor.
[Amended 8-7-2023 by Ord. No. 3657-23]
It shall be unlawful for any owner, agent or contractor in charge
of a construction or demolition site to permit the accumulation of
litter before, during or after completion of any construction or demolition
project. It shall be the duty of the owner, agent, or contractor in
charge of a construction site to furnish containers adequate to accommodate
flyable or non-flyable debris or trash at areas convenient to construction
areas and to maintain and empty the receptacles in such a manner and
with such a frequency as to prevent spillage of refuse.
A.
Fences: In all construction sites in zones B-1, B-2, or B-3, in which
a new building is being constructed, or a building is being demolished
to grade, the entire property shall be enclosed with a fence prior
to the commencement of work. The said fence shall be at least six
feet high and shall meet at the ends to the extent necessary to effectively
close off the site.
(1)
Fence materials: Fences and gates shall be constructed of chain link
material, or another material approved by the Streetscape Committee
and Construction Code Official. Chain link fences and gates shall
be made of new material or, where salvaged, the fence shall be in
good condition. The fence posts shall be of galvanized steel pipe
of a diameter that provides rigidity. Posts shall be suitable for
setting in concrete footings, for driving into the ground, or for
inserting in precast concrete blocks. Such posts shall be spaced in
a manner that maintains the required rigidity to form a safe exterior
fence. The fence and gates shall be constructed of woven, galvanized
steel wire mesh and shall be of sufficient strength and rigidity to
prevent access to the site. The fence and gate shall be covered with
an opaque sturdy cloth windscreen fabric at all locations. Fabric
shall be securely attached to the fence or gate in accordance with
manufacturer specifications. The fabric and fence shall be maintained
in a neat, rigid and taut appearance.
(2)
Location of fences: Where the fence is installed to fully enclose
a site, the fence shall be constructed along the inside edge of the
sidewalk or walkway and along the edges of the property line. Where
a fence is installed to partially enclose a site, the fence shall
be installed as necessary to prevent public access to the site. Fences
shall be installed and located so to not unreasonably obstruct, either
visually or physically, traffic, curb cuts, vehicular access points,
street lighting poles, traffic lights or signs, fire hydrants, fire
department connections, bus shelters or other street furniture, trees,
or means of ingress/egress.
(3)
Removal of fences: Fences shall not be removed until the site has
been filled and graded, debris removed and all hazards to the public
removed. Additionally, if construction has taken place, the fence
must remain until the facade has been enclosed with all doors and
windows installed, and all exterior work, except for incidental work
including but not limited to landscaping, painting, weatherproofing,
or installation of signs or fixtures, has been completed.
It shall be the duty of the owner, lessee, tenant,
occupant or person in charge of any structure to keep and to cause
to be kept the sidewalk and curb abutting the building or structure
free from obstruction or nuisance of every kind and to keep sidewalks,
areaways, front yards, back yards, courts and alleys free from litter
and other solid waste.
[Amended 11-10-1998 by Ord. No. 2856-98]
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to place, to cause
to be placed or to hire another person to place any advertisement,
handbill or unsolicited material of any kind in or on any street,
sidewalk, lawn, building, borough shade tree, public facility, utility
pole, fence or vehicle within the borough without the consent of the
property owner. This provision shall not apply to emergency postings
or notices by governmental agencies.
B.
Any person responsible for the placement of any advertisement,
handbill or unsolicited material any kind in or on such location within
the borough shall, in addition to other penalties herein provided,
be under obligation to remove the aforementioned materials and dispose
of them in a litter receptacle or waste container designed for the
purpose of solid waste storage or disposal.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent
with the provisions of this chapter are hereby repealed as to such
inconsistencies only.
This chapter shall take effect immediately upon
passage and publication as required by law.
