[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of Shirley as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 6-27-1988 by Ord. No. 1988-1]
A. 
The governing body of Shirley Township (hereafter called "the municipality"), recognizing its responsibilities under the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act, 35 P.S. § 6018.101 et seq., and pursuant as well to the powers given it under the Township Code, particularly 53 P.S. § 67101, hereby determines, declares, and finds as follows:[1]
(1) 
The closure of municipal waste disposal sites in the Bedford-Fulton-Huntingdon Solid Waste Authority (hereafter called "the Authority") service area, and the closure or pending closure of disposal sites in neighboring counties, has created an increasingly difficult disposal problem for the municipality;
(2) 
The municipality's waste haulers must travel increasingly greater distance at increasing cost to municipality's residents for proper disposal;
(3) 
The continuation of these conditions indicate that the municipality and the Authority will face a crisis of waste accumulation that threatens the sanitation, health, and safety of the municipality's residents;
(4) 
Improper and inadequate solid waste practices would create public health hazards, environmental pollution, and economic loss, would cause irreparable harm to the public health, safety and welfare;
(5) 
The provisions of this article set forth hereinafter will promote the public health, safety, and welfare, and eliminate or reduce the public health hazards, environmental pollution, and economic losses caused by inadequate and improper solid waste practices;
(6) 
The actions hereafter prescribed are in furtherance of the goals and policies of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act and the Official Plan for a solid waste management system in the Authority Service Area;
(7) 
The actions hereafter prescribed are in conformity with the existing Official Plan of Solid Waste Management adopted for the municipality, particularly as it relates to the eventual development of a solid waste disposal system for the Authority and a requirement that waste collection be done by independent, private collectors under license by the municipalities; and
(8) 
The actions herein prescribed are in conformity with the planning now underway by the Three County Planning Offices for revising the Official Plan for Solid Waste Management.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
Accordingly, it is the purpose of the Act to accomplish the following:
(1) 
Provide for the effective implementation of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act, 35 P.S. § 6018.101 et seq., and the Official Plan for Solid Waste Management of the municipality;
(2) 
Provide for the effective collection, transportation, processing, and interim and final disposal of municipal waste which is generated or present within the municipality;
(3) 
Require licenses for municipal waste collection and transportation;
(4) 
Provide for the collection of municipal waste in an appropriate, sanitary fashion so as to protect the public health, safety and welfare;
(5) 
Reduce the costs of municipal waste collection and disposal by providing for integrated and efficient processing of municipal waste at a transfer or disposal facility hereinafter described.
A. 
The following words and terms as used in this article shall have the meanings ascribed to them unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:
AUTHORITY
Bedford-Fulton-Huntingdon Solid Waste Authority, a municipal body created under the Municipality Authorities Act, 53 Pa.C.S.A. § 5601 et seq., as amended.[1]
BULKY WASTE
Large items of refuse, including but not limited to appliances, furniture, large auto parts, trees, branches and stumps.
CARTWAY
Paved area of street, avenue, alley, etc.
GARBAGE
Municipal waste resulting from animal, grain, fruit or vegetable matter.
HAULER
Any person, firm, copartnership, association or corporation who has been licensed by the Authority to collect, transport, and dispose of refuse for a fee as herein prescribed.
HAZARDOUS WASTE
(1) 
Any garbage, refuse, sludge from an industrial or other wastewater treatment plant, sludge from a water supply treatment plant, or air pollution control facility and other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material resulting from municipal, commercial, industrial, institutional, mining, or agricultural operations, and from community activities, or any combination of the above, but does not include solid or dissolved material in domestic sewage, or solid or dissolved materials in irrigation return flows or industrial discharges which are point sources subject to permits under § 402 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Act, as amended (86 Stat. 880), or source, special nuclear, or by-product material as defined by the U.S. Atomic Energy Act of 1954, as amended (68 Stat. 923), which because of its quantity, concentration of physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics, may:
(a) 
Cause or significantly contribute to an increase in mortality or an increase in morbidity in either an individual or total population; or
(b) 
Pose a substantial present or potential hazard to human health or the environment when improperly treated, stored, transported, disposed of or otherwise managed.
(2) 
The term "hazardous waste" shall not include coal refuse as defined in the Act of September 24, 1968 (P.L. 1987, No. 394), known as "The Clean Streams Law."
MUNICIPAL WASTE
Any garbage, refuse, industrial lunchroom or office waste and other material, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material resulting from operation of residential, municipal, commercial, or institutional establishments and from community activities and any sludge not meeting the definition of residual or hazardous waste hereunder from a municipal, commercial, or institutional water supply treatment plant, wastewater treatment plant, or air pollution control facility.
MUNICIPALITY
The Township of Shirley, and its agencies.
NUISANCE
Any condition, structure, or improvement which shall constitute a threat to the health, safety, or welfare of the citizens of the municipality.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, corporation, association, institution, cooperative enterprise, or any other legal entity whatsoever which is recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties. In any provisions of this article prescribing a fine, imprisonment or penalty, or any combination of the foregoing, the term "person" shall include the officers and directors of any corporation or other legal entity having officers and directors.
REFUSE
All municipal waste except garbage and other decomposable matter. This category includes but is not limited to ashes, bedding, cardboard, cans, crockery, glass, paper, wood and yard cleanings.
RESIDUAL WASTE
Any garbage, refuse, other discarded material or other waste, including solid, liquid, semisolid, or contained gaseous materials resulting from industrial, mining and agricultural operations and any sludge from an industrial, mining and agricultural water supply treatment facility or air pollution control facility, provided that it is not hazardous. The term "residual waste" shall not include coal refuse as defined in the Coal Refuse Disposal Control Act. "Residual waste" shall not include treatment sludges from coal mine drainage treatment plants, disposal of which is being carried on pursuant and in compliance with a valid permit issued pursuant to the Clean Streams Law.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
B. 
In this article, the singular shall include the plural, and the masculine shall include the feminine and the neuter.
C. 
Other words not defined herein shall have the meanings set forth in Section 103 of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act.[2]
[2]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6018.103.
A. 
No person may haul, collect, or remove municipal waste other than his own within the municipality without having a valid license to do so from the Authority.
B. 
Applications shall be granted provided the applicant is found to meet the requirements of this article, 25 Pa Code Section 75.29, the Solid Waste Management Act of 1980 (Act 97),[1] and the applicant executes an agreement with the Authority under which he agrees to comply with the provisions of this article and the rules and the regulations promulgated hereunder.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6018.101 et seq.
A. 
Collection.
(1) 
All municipal waste within the municipality upon collection by the hauler will be deemed to be the property of the hauler until delivered to a disposal facility designated by the Authority.
(2) 
Residential collections shall be made at least once every week.
(3) 
Collections from commercial establishments must be made once every week, and shall be made more often if necessary to control health hazards, flies, odors, and unsightly appearances.
(4) 
No vehicle used in collecting, transporting, disposing or removing municipal waste shall scatter any of the contents on the streets, highways, alleys, or private property within the municipality. Vehicles used to haul municipal waste must be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition and shall meet all the requirements of the municipality and the Department of Environmental Protection. Any deficiency must be corrected promptly by the hauler. The hauler shall maintain his equipment in such a condition as to be able to maintain the collection schedule.
(5) 
Trucks and other vehicles used by licensed haulers for collecting, transporting, disposing, or removing any municipal waste shall meet the following requirements:
(a) 
Packers. All municipal waste shall be enclosed within the confines of the cargo area, which area shall be watertight.
(b) 
Dump trucks. If constructed with completely metal beds and lacking additional wooden side boards, such trucks shall be covered with a waterproof tarp.
(c) 
Dump trucks or pickup trucks on which additional wooden side boards have been installed shall not have the side boards extending above the legal height and shall be covered with a waterproof tarp.
(d) 
Passenger vehicles used for transporting municipal waste shall keep the waste within the confines of the vehicle at all times. Access in the vehicle to the cargo area shall be kept closed at all times, without the use of additional aids such as ropes, tie-downs, and other similar mechanisms.
(e) 
All tarps as required in this section shall be secured on all four sides at all times, except during actual loading and unloading.
(f) 
None of the above subsections shall hinder the separate collection of recyclable materials in special bins, racks, etc., so long as the materials are not allowed to scatter or create a nuisance.
B. 
All municipal waste collected as aforesaid shall be delivered exclusively to a facility as may be designated in writing by the Authority for processing and ultimate disposal as determined by the Authority. Haulers shall take only municipal waste to the facility designated by the Authority. No nonconforming waste, including but not limited to hazardous or radioactive waste, may be brought to the facility designated by the Authority; except that residual waste may be brought to the facility if the Authority has given advance written approval.
C. 
All vehicles shall be emptied at the designated facility as often as deemed necessary by the Authority so as to avoid creating a public nuisance as hereinafter described.
D. 
The fees charged to haulers by the operators of the designated facility shall be added on a pro rata basis to the rates charged by the haulers to the persons whose municipal waste is being collected and hauled. All haulers shall remit as often as directed by the Authority to the operator of the designated facility the charges for waste deposited.
A. 
No person shall permit anyone other than a hauler licensed pursuant to this article to collect or haul municipal waste generated by that person; except a person may haul his own waste to a designated facility.
B. 
Each person within the municipality who employs a licensed hauler to collect municipal waste shall prepare the waste as follows:
(1) 
All waste shall be drained of liquid insofar as practical, and shall be placed in sanitary sealed containers, and/or cans made of nonabsorbent material.
(2) 
Containers shall not exceed 30 gallons in size; cans shall be of rust-resistant material and shall be furnished and kept clean by the customer and shall be replaced by such customer when no longer in satisfactory condition.
(3) 
All refuse which cannot be disposed of in containers shall be assembled, boxed or bundled separately in such a way that it can be handled conveniently and will not be disseminated by wind or otherwise, while awaiting collection.
(4) 
All refuse except bulky waste shall be of units which can be handled by one person and shall be placed in containers or piled and assembled in such a way as to facilitate collection.
(5) 
All containers shall be kept on the customer's property until the night before scheduled pickup at which time it may be placed on the edge of the cartway.
Unless they have a currently valid disposal permit from the Department of Environmental Protection, no person, firm, or corporation shall use or permit to be used any spot or place within the municipality as a disposal site for municipal waste material.
A. 
No person shall accumulate or permit to accumulate municipal waste materials upon private property in the municipality except in such limited quantities and for such limited periods of time as shall insure that no annoyance, nuisance, health or fire hazard shall be created thereby, and any unauthorized accumulation of municipal waste on any premises is hereby declared to be a nuisance and is prohibited.
B. 
Disposal of construction and demolition waste shall be in conformance with the rules and regulations of the Department of Environmental Protection. Composting shall be permitted to the extent authorized by the regulations of the Department of Environmental Protection.
Any violation or failure to comply with any of the provisions of this article, or the rules and regulations promulgated pursuant to this article, is hereby declared to be a public nuisance which may be abated by either the municipality or the Authority. All costs incurred by either the municipality or the Authority in abating a nuisance may be recovered from the responsible party. Any person who violates or permits a violation of this article shall, upon conviction in a summary proceeding brought before a Magisterial District Judge under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, be guilty of a summary offense and shall be punishable by a fine of not 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 90 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. The municipality and the Authority, jointly and separately, are authorized to enforce this article and to obtain injunctive relief mandating compliance with the requirements of this article and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).
All monies collected pertaining to this article, either by fees or fines, shall be remitted to the Authority for use in implementing the Official Solid Waste Plan applicable to the county of which the municipality is a part.
The Authority is hereby authorized to promulgate rules and regulations and to issue forms and set fee schedules as necessary to implement this article.
Actions taken pursuant to this article are subject to the Local Agency Act[1] to the extent required by law.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 2 Pa.C.S.A. § 101 et seq.
Both the municipality and the Authority are authorized to conduct inspections, issue citations and notices, and to take all other necessary and appropriate action to enforce this article.