[Adopted 5-22-1978 by Ord. No. 46]
The purpose of this article is to establish
procedures for the use and maintenance of 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 municipality.
Unless the context specifically and clearly
indicates otherwise, the meaning of terms used in this article shall
be as follows:
Supervisors of West Lampeter Township, Lancaster County,
Pennsylvania.
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:
CHEMICAL TOILETA toilet using chemicals that discharge to a holding tank.
RETENTION TANKA holding tank where sewage is conveyed to it by a water-carrying system.
VAULT PIT PRIVYA holding tank designed to receive sewage where water under pressure is not available.
Any property within the Township upon which there is erected
a structure intended for continuous or periodic habitation, occupancy
or use by human beings or animals and from which structure sewage
shall or may be discharged.
West Lampeter Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole
or partial, of any property located in the Township.
Any individual, partnership, company, association, corporation
or other group or entity.
Any substance that contains any of the waste products or
excrement or other discharge from the bodies of human beings or animals
and any noxious or deleterious substance being harmful or inimical
to the public health, or to animal or aquatic life or to the use of
water for domestic water supply or for recreation.
[Amended 2-8-2010 by Ord. No. 215]
Use of a holding tank may be considered to remedy
an existing problem, or for temporary use prior to the expected installation
of public sewage or as approved by the Authority. Nothing contained
herein shall apply to farming operations, including commercial hog,
poultry or dairy operations having self-contained sewage retention
and disposal systems, or to such operations as may be approved by
the appropriate governmental administrative agency having jurisdiction
over such facility.
Authority is hereby authorized and empowered
to undertake within the Township the control and methods of holding
tank sewage disposal and the collection and transportation thereof.
Authority is hereby authorized and empowered
to adopt such rules and regulations concerning sewage which it may
deem necessary from time to time to effect the purposes herein.
All such rules and regulations adopted by the
Authority shall be in conformity with the provisions herein, all other
ordinances of the Township, and all applicable laws, and applicable
rules and regulations of administrative agencies of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania.
The Authority shall have the right and power
to fix, alter, charge and collect rates, assessments, and other charges
in the area served by its facilities at reasonable and uniform rates
as authorized by applicable low.
[Amended 2-8-2010 by Ord. No. 215]
A.
The collection
and transportation of all sewage from any improved property utilizing
a holding tank shall be done solely by or under the direction and
control of the Authority unless the Authority shall approve, in writing,
a private contract between an owner and an authorized person, firm
or corporation engaged in the collection and disposal of sewage, and
such disposal shall be made only at such site or sites as may be approved
by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
B.
The Authority
will receive, review and retain pumping receipts from permitted holding
tanks.
C.
The Authority
will complete and retain annual inspection reports for each permitted
tank.
The owner of an improved property that utilizes
a holding tank shall:
A.
Prior to the installation thereof execute an agreement
with the Authority specifically acknowledging owner's duty and agreeing
that owner shall be responsible to have the holding tank pumped out
as required by Township rules and regulations and by applicable rules
and regulations of administrative agencies of the Commonwealth of
Pennsylvania.
B.
Maintain the holding tank in conformance with this
article or any ordinance of this Township, the provisions of any applicable
law, and the rules and regulations of the Authority and any administrative
agency of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
C.
Permit only the Authority or a person approved in
writing in advance by Authority to collect, transport, and dispose
of the contents therein.
[Amended 4-11-2005 by Ord. No. 188]
Any person who violates or permits a violation
of this article shall, upon being found liable therefor in a civil
enforcement proceeding commenced by the Township before a District
Justice, pay a fine of not more than $600, plus all court costs, including
reasonable attorney's fees, incurred by the Township in the enforcement
of this article. No judgment shall be imposed until the date of the
determination of the violation by the District Justice. If the defendant
neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the Township may enforce
the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure.
Each day a violation exists shall constitute a separate offense. Further,
the appropriate officers or agents of the Township are hereby authorized
to seek equitable relief, including injunction, to enforce compliance
herewith.
In addition to any other remedies provided in this article, any violation of § 211-17 above shall constitute a nuisance and shall be abated by the municipality or the Authority by either seeking appropriate equitable or legal relief from a court of competent jurisdiction.
