[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Vernon 2-6-1978.
Section 106-3C added and § 106-9 amended at time of adoption of
Code; see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I. Other amendments noted where
applicable.]
A.
Pursuant to Article 9, § 130, Paragraph 2,
of the Town Law of the State of New York, the Town Board of the Town of Vernon
does hereby make and publish the following rules and regulations for the purpose
of protecting the public health, safety and well-being.
B.
The purpose of these regulations shall be to protect
the health and safety of the residents of the Town of Vernon by regulating
sewage disposal systems to ensure that:
(1)
Drinking water supplies will not be contaminated.
(2)
A breeding place for insects, rodents and other possible
carriers which may come into contact with food and drinking water will not
be created.
(3)
A health hazard will not be created as the result of
sewage exposed on the surface of the ground.
(4)
Waters of any recreational area will not be polluted.
(5)
A nuisance resulting in obnoxious odors and unsightliness
will not be caused.
Nothing contained in these regulations shall be construed to require
removal of any sewage disposal system that has operated effectively although
said system may not meet the criteria established in these regulations.
A.
No installation of any septic tank, tile field, leaching
pit, chemical toilet, privy, pipe or other means for the disposal or discharge
of sewage or sink wastes shall be commenced, nor shall the construction or
erection of any structure intended for human occupancy be commenced, until
an application duly filled out in triplicate by the applicant on forms supplied
by the Town Clerk and drawings showing the intended location of the disposal
system proposed to be used in connection with such structure shall have been
filed in the Town Clerk's office and approved in the manner hereinafter
prescribed.
B.
After a written complaint has been received in accordance
with this chapter, no installation, alteration or extension of any septic
tank, tile field, leaching pit, chemical toilet, privy, pipe or other means
for the disposal or discharge of sewage or sink wastes shall be commenced,
nor shall the construction or erection of any structure intended for human
occupancy be commenced, until an application duly filled out in triplicate
by the applicant on forms supplied by the Town Clerk and drawings showing
the intended location of the disposal system proposed to be used in connection
with such structure shall have been filed in the Town Clerk's office
and approved in the manner hereinafter prescribed.
C.
The required drawings shall conform to the requirements
promulgated by the Codes Enforcement Officer.
[Added 12-6-1993 by L.L. No. 1-1993]
These regulations in no way waive the requirement of the applicant to
seek approval from the Oneida County Department of Health or the New York
State Department of Environmental Conservation for the sewage discharges or
sewage systems requiring appropriate state or County review and approval.
[Amended 10-7-2002]
A fee of $25 shall be paid to the Town Clerk simultaneously with the
filing of the application, which fee shall be the property of the Town.
A.
The Town Board shall appoint a competent Codes Enforcement
Officer, who shall be responsible to the Town Board for the performance of
the duties hereinafter mentioned and whose appointment shall be held at the
pleasure of the Town Board.
B.
It shall be the duty of the Codes Enforcement Officer:
(1)
To receive applications filed with the Town Clerk.
(2)
To promptly investigate before, during and after installation
any proposed disposal devices indicated in said applications.
(3)
To see that the provisions of this chapter are observed.
(4)
To issue to the applicant a certificate of approval permitting
the use of such installations that conform to the provisions of this chapter.
C.
No such installation shall be covered until it has been
inspected and approved.
D.
The Town Clerk shall forward two copies of the application
to the Codes Enforcement Officer. One copy of the application shall be returned
to the Town Clerk with a duplicate of the certificate of approval issued by
the inspector in case such certificate of approval is issued, or with the
reason for declining to issue a certificate of approval in case one is not
issued. The third copy of the application shall be given to the applicant
with the certificate of approval or with the reason for declining to issue
the same.
The Town Health Officer or the Health Officer of the Consolidated Board
of Health, or, in the absence of a Town Health Officer, the Codes Enforcement
Officer, shall, upon a written complaint, notify the owner of said premises
in writing of such fact, and a copy of such notice shall be sent to the Town
Clerk. Upon receipt of such notice it shall be the duty of the owner, within
10 days, to make application to the Town Clerk for a permit to reconstruct
or alter such disposal system, and to complete such reconstruction or alteration
within 60 days after approval of the application. Unless such reconstruction
or alteration as is required shall have been completed within the said 60
days, weather permitting, it shall be unlawful and improper to use the said
premises for human occupancy until such reconstruction or alteration is completed
and approved.
If the Codes Enforcement Officer declines to approve any proposed installation,
the applicant may appeal to the Town Board, whose approval or rejection shall
be final and conclusive.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon
conviction thereof, be punishable by a fine not exceeding $250 for each offense
or by imprisonment for a term not to exceed 15 days, or by both such fine
and imprisonment.
A.
Soil and site appraisal. An investigation of subsoil
conditions and a percolation test shall be made in conformance with the procedures
described in the New York State Department of Health's Waste Treatment
Handbook, Individual Household Systems, or in an amended and revised edition
of the handbook. At least five days before the percolation test is made, the
applicant shall notify the Town Codes Enforcement Officer of the date and
time of the percolation test so that the Codes Enforcement Officer can witness
the percolation test and the deep hole test.
B.
Sewage flows. The design capacity of sewage systems shall
be calculated as provided for in the Waste Treatment Handbook, Individual
Household Systems. Discharge into the sewage system shall be limited to only
wastes from plumbing fixtures. As required by the Waste Treatment Handbook,
Individual Household Systems, salt wastes from water softeners and surface
and subsurface water shall be excluded from the sewage disposal system.
C.
House sewer. The house sewer shall be designed and constructed
in conformance with the requirements of the Waste Treatment Handbook, Individual
Household Systems.
D.
Capacity and design of septic tank. The capacity, design
and construction of a septic tank shall be in conformance with requirements
of the Waste Treatment Handbook, Individual Household Systems.
E.
Distribution devices. The design and construction of
the distribution devices shall be in conformance with the requirements of
the Waste Treatment Handbook, Individual Household Systems.
F.
Tile field. The design and construction of the tile field
shall be in conformance with the requirements of the Waste Treatment Handbook,
Individual Household Systems.
G.
Maintenance of installations. The maintenance of septic
tanks and disposal fields (tile or seepage pits) shall be in conformance with
requirements of the Waste Treatment Handbook, Individual Household Systems.
H.
Alternative systems. In some cases existing sewage disposal systems that fail cannot be corrected in accordance with the prescribed practices aforementioned. In such cases either the applicant should contact the Oneida County Department of Health or the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation for assistance, or a licensed professional engineer, experienced in sewage disposal, should be retained to design and prepare plans for the system, or a suitable plan shall be submitted to the Town Board pursuant to the appeals procedure (see § 106-8).
All amendments to these regulations shall be in accordance with the
provisions of the Town Law applicable thereto.
Upon compliance with this chapter, a certificate of approval will be
issued.