[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Health of the Borough of
Raritan 12-11-1974 (Ch. 26 of the 1966 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Environmental
Protection Ordinance."
For the purpose of this chapter, certain terms are defined as
follows:
The Borough of Raritan in the County of Somerset and State
of New Jersey.
Any waste or decayed animal or vegetable matter originating
in homes, kitchens, restaurants, hotels, produce markets, stores and
other places where food and food products are stored and prepared
for sale and/or consumption.
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 or any top, cap
or detachable tab of 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.
[Amended 3-24-1992]
A building used for manufacturing, offices, stores or other
commercial purposes, whether or not such activities are engaged in
for profit.
Any public street, road, alley, park, grounds and buildings
owned by the Borough or the Board of Education.
All buildings, grounds, parks, streets, roads, schools and
all sewers owned by the Borough or the Board of Education.
Apartment houses, single-family or multifamily dwellings,
rooming houses or any other buildings occupied as living quarters
for which a rental is paid by the occupants, or any privately owned
dwellings occupied by the owner thereof, and shall include any yards
and grounds connected with any of the above-described dwelling units.
Broken or discarded crockery, glass bottles, metal cans,
cooking utensils, food and milk containers, papers, magazines, pasteboard
boxes, large and small cardboard cartons, paper or plastic cups, plates
and spoons, discarded building materials or other waste materials.
Any brook, river, pond or other body of water in the Borough.
Every device in, upon or by which any person or property
is or may be transported or draws upon any street, road or highway
in the Borough or upon privately owned property.
[Amended 3-24-1992; 8-23-2005 by Ord. No. 05-09; 10-25-2005 by Ord. No. 05-12]
A.
No person shall throw, dump or deposit any litter, grass, yard trimmings
or other waste material upon any open fields, woods, private properties,
public places, public streets, roads or highways within the limits
of the Borough.
B.
The owner, his or her agent, or other person who occupies, manages
or controls any public or private property shall not allow to remain
thereon any timber, lumber, wood, brush or similar material greater
in diameter than eight inches or greater in length than eight feet
for any period in excess of 24 hours. Any timber, lumber, wood, brush
or similar material which is eight inches or less in diameter or eight
feet in length shall be left along the property curbline on such strip
of property between the curb and the sidewalk of a property, or, if
there is no sidewalk, as adjacent to the curb as possible, for pickup
by the Borough Public Works. Such material may not be placed for pickup
by the Borough Public Works during any week in which the Borough bulk
pickup is scheduled for the property for that week.
C.
No timber, lumber, wood, brush, leaves or similar material shall
be allowed to remain in the road, gutter or otherwise adjacent to
the property so as to interfere with stormwater management.
[Amended 4-9-1975; 6-6-2007 by Ord. No. 07-07; 6-27-2017 by Ord. No. 2017-12]
A.
Receptacles of garbage and rubbish shall comply with the Borough's
Solid Waste Code of New Jersey, adopted by ordinance enacted by the
Board of Health on February 8, 1967,[1] and shall not be set out at the curbline for collection
except during the hours of the day or days scheduled for collection
of garbage and rubbish, or from 4:00 p.m. through 12:00 midnight of
the day preceding such collection, and the receptacles shall not be
left out at the curbline for more than 12 hours after collection.
[1]
Editor's Note: Said ordinance was repealed 10-23-2012 by Ord.
No. 12-14.
B.
Nothing herein shall be construed to prohibit the use of heavy-gauge
plastic bags having a thickness of at least 0.8 mil as receptacles
of garbage and rubbish, provided that such bags are securely fastened
so as to allow no leakage or spillage therefrom.
C.
The maximum
receptacle size for trash cans in the Borough of Raritan is hereby
designated to be a maximum of 50 gallons.
[Added 3-1-2022 by Ord. No. 2022-01]
A.
No person shall permit land to be covered with or contain rubbish
resulting from the construction of or the demolishing of a building.
All such resulting rubbish must be removed from the premises. Any
existing concrete floors or foundations of a demolished building need
not be removed so long as they do not lie less than two feet below
the finished and existing property grade, that being the level to
which all buildings must be demolished.
B.
All landfill materials shall be of noncombustible materials and shall
comply with Borough and state codes. All sewer connections and utilities
shall be permanently sealed at the curb and approved by Borough officials
before they are covered. In addition, any existing private well on
the premises also must be permanently sealed so as to comply with
Borough and state codes. All existing dry wells, septic tanks, cesspools
and underground voids must be filled to prevent possible subsequent
cave-ins.
[Amended 3-24-1992]
No person will be permitted to 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 must keep the sidewalk in front of his
or her premises free of litter. All litter sweepings must be collected
and properly containerized for disposal.
[Amended 3-24-1992]
No person, while a driver or a passenger in a vehicle, whether
said vehicle is moving or parked, shall throw or deposit any litter
upon any street, road, highway, public place or private property in
the Borough. It is unlawful for any vehicle to be driven, moved, stopped
or parked on any public roadway unless such a vehicle is constructed,
covered or loaded to prevent any of its load from dropping, sifting,
leaking or otherwise escaping therefrom. Any person operating a vehicle
from which any materials which constitute litter have fallen or escaped,
which could cause an obstruction, damage a vehicle or otherwise endanger
travelers or public property, must immediately cause the public property
to be cleaned of all such materials and must pay the costs therefor.
No person shall throw or deposit any litter in any stream, river,
pond or in any other body of water in the Borough.
No person shall throw or discharge into any stream, river, pond
or any other body of water in the Borough any polluting matter, including,
but not limited to, sawdust, gasoline, grease, oil, wash water or
other wastes.
No person shall load or drive a vehicle over the streets or
roads in the Borough unless said vehicle is covered so as to prevent
its contents or litter from falling, spilling or leaking upon any
street, highway or private or public place.
[Amended 3-24-1992]
A.
Premises and yards where commercial and residential buildings are
located shall be kept free of litter and waste materials. Litter from
said buildings must not be left outside unless the receptacles or
waste materials are in an enclosure which will prevent said materials
from being blow over property on which said building is located. Empty
soft drink and milk cases, large and small cardboard cartons and other
discarded materials not in receptacles or enclosures must be removed
daily from commercial premises.
B.
It is unlawful for any residential or commercial property owner to
permit open or overflowing waste disposal bins on his or her property.
Shopping carts shall be kept on the property of the owner at
all times and put inside the store at night or otherwise locked up
so as to prevent their removal after store closing hours. Broken or
damaged shopping carts must be removed from the premises forthwith.
The owner, his agent or other person who occupies, manages or
controls any mercantile building, public or private property, shall
be jointly and/or severally responsible for carrying out the regulations
set forth in this chapter.
[Amended 10-22-2013 by Ord. No. 2013-13]
The Building Inspector, police, Plumbing Inspector, Property
Maintenance Officer, and Public Works Superintendent shall enforce
this chapter.
[Amended 4-12-2005 by Ord. No. 05-04; 6-6-2007 by Ord. No. 07-07; 9-14-2010 by Ord. No. 10-09]
Any person or entity violating any of the provisions of this
chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, pay a fine of not more than
$2,000 for each offense or be imprisoned in the county jail for not
more than 90 days or perform community service for not more than 90
days. Each twenty-four-hour period that the violation continues shall
constitute a separate and distinct offense. Any member of the Police
Department, Property Maintenance Office or Public Works Department
of the Borough shall be and is hereby authorized to issue a summons
or violation notice upon his or her belief that probable cause exists
for such issuance.
