[Editor's Note: Ord. No. 391, § 1, adopted 1-29-1981, amended Ch. 8, Garbage, Rubbish and Wastes, in its entirety, to read as herein set out, with minor, nonsubstantive additions and deletions made for purposes of clarity. The substantive provisions of former Ch. 8, §§ 8-1—8-15, were derived from R.O. 1947, ch. 42, §§ 1—3, 5; R.O. 1947, ch. 24, §§ 10, 11 and from: Ord. No. 626, § 6; Ord. No. 63, §§ 1—4, 9-10-1968; Ord. No. 182, §§ 1, 2; Ord. No. 171; Ord. No. 183, § 1; Ord. No. 148, § 1, 4-28-1971; Ord. No. 196, § 1, 9-13-1973. Amended by Ord. No. 393, §§ 1, 2 and 4, 2-27-1981; Ord. No. 475, § 1, 4-27-1984; Ord. No. 518, 8-19-1985; Ord. No. 560, § 1, 12-1-1986; Ord. No. 611,  1, 7-13-1988; Ord. No. 652, 1-11-1990; Ord. No. 674, § 4, 5-29-1991; Ord. No. 693, § 1, 3-25-1992; Ord. No. 803, § I, 6-26-1996; Ord. No. 856, §§ I and II, 5-25-1999; Ord. No. 883, §§ I and II, 1-9-2001; Ord. No. 884, § 1, 1-9-2001; Ord. No. 987, § 1, 10-10-2006; Ord. No. 1127, § I, 3-10-2015; Ord. No. 1149, §§ I, II, III, IV, V, and VI, 9-29-2015; Ord. No. 1162, § I, 10-13-2015; Ord. No. 1215, § I, 3-26-2019, eff. 1-1-2020.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Penalty for violation of Sec. 8-11 — See Sec. 10-16.
Junk dealers and waste collectors — See Ch. 10.
Depositing refuse, ashes, etc., in rivers, etc. — See Sec. 14-2.
Public Utilities Advisory Committee — See Ch. 18 1/2.
Streets and sidewalks — See Ch. 20.
STATE LAW REFERENCES
Disposal of garbage, etc., on highways and private property — See MGL c. 270, §§ 16, 17.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
For the purposes of this chapter, the following words and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them by this section:
BULKY WASTE
Any waste item that does not fit into the standard legal container as defined by this section. These items include but are not limited to broken-down wood furniture, upholstered chairs and couches, carpet rolls not to exceed two feet in diameter by feet in length, wooden posts or fencing, oversized plastic toys, and automotive tires.
COMMERCIAL AND DEMOLITION WASTE
Any waste that is the result of construction remodeling, repair or demolition activities on buildings or structures.
DESIGNATED LICENSEE
Any person, firm or concern permitted by the City to deliver, on its behalf, waste to the resource recovery facility duly licensed under Chapter 10 of the Code of the City of Pittsfield.
ELECTRONICS
Waste items that include but are not limited to televisions, radios, stereos, computer monitors or components, fax machines, copiers, video games consoles or components.
FOOD WASTE
All waste, fish, fowl, fruit, vegetable, or animal matter, exclusive of animal carcasses.
LANDFILL
A disposal facility for final disposition of residue or solid waste on land in compliance with all federal, state and local regulations.
RECYCLABLE MATERIALS
Discarded nonhazardous solid waste materials of domestic origin which have the potential to be recycled and are identified, listed and accepted by the City or its agent as part of the dual-stream recycling program. Items shall include, but not be limited to, paper products, newspapers, magazines, corrugated cardboard; unbroken, empty glass bottles and containers; and clean, empty aluminum, tinned, steel or bimetal beverage or food cans and containers.
RESIDUE
Ash, fly ash and other unburnable portions of the incinerated refuse, including minor quantities of combustible and putrescible matter.
SOLID WASTE
Discarded material consisting of rubbish, and food waste of domestic, commercial or industrial origin. Solid or semisolid in form, shall include wood, paper, fabric, food wastes, yard wastes, plastics, metals, glass, earthenware and other unwanted materials. Excluded shall be waste material generated by the razing of buildings and other structures (including roads and fences), waste requiring special handling or procedures (such as radioactive, pathological and explosive wastes), and recyclable materials.
VEHICLES, PRIVATE
Passenger cars and trucks having a gross weight not in excess of 10,000 pounds and not used for business purposes.
WASTE TRANSFER STATION
A facility at which solid waste, recycling materials, bulky items and yard waste are processed for the purpose of being transported to landfills, the Materials Recycling Facility, or any other disposal facility as determined by the operator of the facility. Said facility shall serve as a residential drop-off location.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
Subject, so far as applicable, or in case of convict, to the power of the Board of Health through its agent, the Director of Public Health, to make rules and regulations under MGL c. 111, §§ 31A and 31B, and to the rules and regulations made by such Commissioner thereunder, this chapter, Chapter 14 of this Code and the rules and regulations promulgated hereunder, shall regulate the collection and disposal of solid waste in the City of Pittsfield.
B. 
The Commissioner of Public Services and Utilities shall make additional rules and regulations as necessary relating to the collection and proper disposal of solid waste which are not inconsistent with this chapter or the laws of the commonwealth.
C. 
In an emergency situation caused by weather or other unforeseen circumstance, the Mayor or their designee, who may be the Commissioner of Public Services, may exempt daily trash and/or recycling collection. Upon such emergency exemption, the Commissioner of Public Services or their designee shall announce the exemption through local media outlets and other manners of public outreach utilized by the City, including but not limited to Code Red notifications.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
Except as set forth below, the City or its agent collector shall collect all solid waste once each week and specified recyclables once each week on assigned days in accordance with the schedule of collection. The City or its agent will not pick up any refuse or household waste which fails to comply with the provisions of this chapter or any rules or regulations established in accordance with this chapter.
B. 
The City's collection of solid waste shall be limited to residential structures containing four or fewer living units. A solid waste service charge shall be levied against the owners of four-family properties, but owner-occupied four-family properties shall be exempt from this charge. The solid waste service charge shall be adopted by the City Council.
C. 
Approved standard legal container for garbage and rubbish shall be the forty-eight-gallon City-provided toter and shall no weigh more than 168 pounds when filled. The cover of the toter must be reasonably closed for pickup to occur. All weekly garbage and rubbish must fit into the City-provided forty-eight-gallon toter. Any and all garbage and/or rubbish not contained within a City-provided toter will not be picked up by the City or its agent and shall be removed by the property owner.
D. 
Garbage and rubbish shall be prepared for collection by being drained of all waters and liquids.
E. 
The City shall collect recyclables from any location, providing such recyclables are prepared and placed at the curb for collection in a City-issued recycling toter. Recyclables shall be properly contained in a manner and to an extent as to not create any health or other hazard; cardboard boxes and cartons shall be knocked down, flattened or collapsed. All weekly recyclables must fit into the City-provided forty-eight-gallon toter.
F. 
Wastes and recyclables so separated shall be properly contained in a manner and to an extent as to not create any health or other hazard and shall be placed for collection so as to be clearly identifiable to the collector.
G. 
No yard or agricultural waste consisting of leaves, grass or hedge clippings, tree branches, brush, stumps or other similar materials shall be mixed in with other solid waste in any container or bundled and placed at the curb at the same time as other solid waste for collection by the City or its agent collector.
H. 
Bulky wastes shall be collected by the City's agent collector on collection days mutually agreed upon by the City and its agent collector. All bulky items are required to have a City-issued sticker. Any item without a sticker shall not be collected.
I. 
The City shall not collect for disposal any hazardous waste, explosive waste, demolition waste, infectious waste, waste prohibited for disposal by incineration or landfill by any federal or state law or regulation, or any other special waste which, by itself or in combination with other wastes, exists in any chemical or physical state such that particular management controls and nonstandard municipal refuse collection equipment and practices are required to prevent an adverse impact from its collection, transportation, transfer, storage, processing, treatment or disposal.
J. 
Recyclable materials properly separated and deposited for collection shall become the property of the City or its agent collector for collection and disposal to the exclusion of any other person, party or agent.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
Containers for waste and recycling shall be available for collection at the curbside, no more than five feet from edge of road, and in such places as not to constitute a nuisance. Following collection, containers shall be promptly removed from curbside but no later than 24 hours. Any container which does not conform to prescribed standards or which has defects likely to hamper collection shall be replaced promptly.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
Private collectors of bones, fat, hides and tallow from markets and slaughterhouses shall be licensed hereunder. Such bones, fat, hides and tallow shall be carried through the streets only in covered, watertight containers, which shall be clean inside and out. These containers shall have tight-fitting covers.
B. 
Such private collectors shall, before engaging in such business, be licensed by the Director of Public Health and shall conduct their work so as to ensure the safe and sanitary transportation of such materials through the City. Before a license required by this section is issued by the Director of Public Health, applicants shall be required to pay to the City a fee of $50 per year. Such license may be revoked by the Director of Public Health at any time if they find that the manner of collection, transportation, storage or disposal is not in conformity with the provisions of the license.
C. 
The total number of such private collectors shall be limited by the Director of Public Health to such number as may be in the best interests of the City.
D. 
These wastes are not considered acceptable waste for disposal at the waste transfer station.
E. 
Animal carcasses within the public way shall be removed and disposed of by the Department of Public Services and Utilities.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
All disposal of solid waste, unless legally disposed of at the site of origin, shall be at the waste transfer station or such other place mutually agreed upon by the agent collector and the City as set forth in the solid waste disposal and resource recovery agreement.
B. 
Nothing in this chapter shall prohibit the legal disposal of waste in a home, commercial or industrial establishment without the necessity of storage or collections, provided such disposal meets all applicable local, state and federal regulations.
C. 
Private collectors of solid waste for disposal at the waste transfer station shall be licensed as provided for in Chapter 10 of this Code.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
No person owning or operating a vehicle traveling on a public way shall, by themselves, their agents or servants, carry in it or cause or allow it to contain waste materials, sand, gravel, ashes, rubbish, junk, paper, paper, boxes, covers, bottles, tins or like materials unless such materials are covered, fastened, or contained in such fashion that they may not fall from or be blown off or scattered from such vehicle. The fact that such materials do fall from or are blown off or scattered from vehicles traveling on public ways shall create a presumption that they were not properly covered, contained, or fastened as provided by this section. Violators of this section shall be subject to the cost of removal of said debris, in addition to any penalties as set forth in this chapter and under Chapter 10 of this Code.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
No person, by themselves, their agents or servants, shall place or deposit or cause to be placed or deposited in or on any public way or place except at the designated disposal site, or in or on any place, public or private, where the same may be reasonably expected to be blown or scattered by the wind or other natural forces, any rubbish, paper, paper boxes, covers, bottles, tins or like materials. Violators of this section shall be subject to the cost of removal of said debris, in addition to any penalties as set forth in this chapter and under Chapter 10 of this Code.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
The Board of Health, through its agent, shall have primary responsibility for enforcement of this provision and shall have authority to issue citations for violation(s). The Health Department or its designee is authorized to establish regulations or administrative procedures and to take any and all actions reasonable and necessary to further the purposes of this chapter or to obtain compliance with this chapter in accordance with applicable law.
B. 
An agent of the Board of Health may enforce this chapter or enjoin violations thereof through any lawful process, and the election of one remedy by the Board of Health shall not preclude enforcement through any other lawful means. Any member of the public who observes a potential violation of this section shall be able to file a complaint with the Board of Health, who shall investigate whether there is a violation of this chapter.
C. 
Penalties and fines for violations of this chapter may be enforced as follows: This chapter shall be enforced by the Board of Health through its agent. Whoever violates any provision of this chapter may be penalized by a noncriminal disposition process as provided in MGL c.40, § 21D, and Chapter 4 1/2, Section 4 1/2-2. If noncriminal disposition is elected, then any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall be subject to the following penalties:
(1) 
First offense: a written warning.
(2) 
Second offense: a fine of $50.
(3) 
Third offense: a fine of $100.
(4) 
Fines are cumulative, and each day or portion thereof shall constitute a separate offense. If more than one, each condition violated shall constitute a separate offense.
(5) 
Whoever violates any provision of this chapter may be penalized by virtue of a civil complaint brought in the District Court.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
This section shall apply to all businesses in the City with dumpsters.
A. 
It shall be unlawful to place or permit to remain anywhere in the City any garbage or other material subject to decay other than leaves or grass, excepting in a tightly covered metal container.
B. 
It shall be unlawful to cause or to permit to accumulate any dust, ashes, garbage, or trash that can be blown away by the wind or accessible to persons who may strew its contents, excepting in a tightly covered metal container.
C. 
Any businesses initially found violating the provisions of this section shall be ordered by the Director of Municipal Inspections to make its dumpster secure by placing a padlock on the dumpster to prevent the strewing or blowing away of its contents. Any business that fails to comply with such an order by the Director of Municipal Inspections under this section shall be subject to the provisions of Chapter 4 1/2.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
Purpose: This section is enacted pursuant to the general police power in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of the inhabitants of the City of Pittsfield.
B. 
Findings: The elimination of expanded polystyrene food containers is in the best interests of the health and welfare of City inhabitants because, in 2011, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, through its National Toxicology Program, has determined that styrene is reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen which can leach into food and beverages via polystyrene containers.
C. 
Definitions:
BIODEGRADABLE FOOD SERVICE CONTAINER
Within three years having the ability to 100% completely break down, or within three years decompose back into the natural environment without causing harm.
DISPOSABLE FOOD SERVICE CONTAINER
Single-use disposable products for serving or transporting prepared, ready-to-consume food or beverages. This includes but is not limited to plates, cups, bowls, trays and hinged or lidded containers. This definition does not include single-use disposable utensils, nor does it include single-use disposable packaging for unprepared foods. The Board of Health shall have final say as to what is or is not a disposable food service container.
EXPANDED POLYSTYRENE (EPS)
Polystyrene that has been expanded or "blown" using a gaseous blowing agent into a solid foam.
FOOD ESTABLISHMENT
An operation that stores, prepares, packages, serves, vends, or otherwise provides food for human consumption, as further defined in 105 CMR 105 CMR 590.001. Any establishment requiring a permit to operate in accordance with the State Food Code, 105 CMR 590.000 et seq., shall be considered a food establishment for purposes of this section. The Board of Health shall determine what is or is not a food establishment.
[Ord. No. 1332, 11-13-2025]
POLYSTYRENE
Expanded polystyrene which is a thermoplastic petrochemical material utilizing a styrene monomer and processed by any number of techniques, including, but not limited to, fusion of polymer spheres (expandable bead polystyrene), injection molding, form molding, and extrusion-blow molding (extruded foam polystyrene).
PREPARED FOOD
Any food or beverage prepared for consumption on the food establishment's premises, using any cooking or food preparation technique. This does not include any raw uncooked meat, fish or eggs unless provided for consumption without further food preparation.
RECYCLABLE FOOD SERVICE CONTAINER
A food service container completely capable of reuse as a food service container 10 or more times, or completely capable of being used as a high-quality recyclate, wherein the materials of the food service container may be completely reclaimed and used in new food service containers at least 10 times.
D. 
Prohibition: A food establishment is prohibited from dispensing prepared food to customers in disposable food services containers that are made in whole or part from expanded polystyrene. This would eliminate any requirement that the product also be biodegradable and recyclable.
E. 
Deferments:
(1) 
Upon written application, the Board of Health, after a public hearing, may defer application of this section for a food establishment for a one-year period upon a showing by the food establishment that the conditions of this section would cause undue hardship. For purposes of this section, an "undue hardship" is a situation unique to the food establishment where there are no reasonable alternatives to the use of expanded polystyrene disposable food service containers and compliance with this provision would cause significant economic hardship to that food establishment.
(2) 
A food establishment granted a deferment by the City must reapply prior to the end of the one-year exemption period and demonstrate continued undue hardship if it wishes to have the deferment extended. Deferments may only be granted for intervals not to exceed one year.
(3) 
A deferment granted in accordance with this section may be extended for no more than one additional one-year period upon written application to the Board of Health at least two months prior to the expiration of the first deferment period and upon a showing that the circumstances justifying the deferment continue to exist.
(4) 
A deferment application shall include all information necessary for the City to make its decision, including, but not limited to, documentation showing the factual support for the claimed deferment. The Board of Health may require the applicant to provide additional information to permit it to determine facts regarding the deferment application.
(5) 
The Board of Health may approve the deferment application, in whole or in part, with or without conditions that it deems necessary to protect the public health and further the interests of this section.
(6) 
Deferment decisions are effective immediately and final.
F. 
Enforcement:
(1) 
An agent of the Board of Health shall inquire on an annual basis regarding any food establishment's compliance with this section as a condition for renewal of the establishment's food service permit.
(2) 
The Board of Health, after a hearing conducted in accordance with the procedures set forth in 105 CMR 590.014 and 105 CMR 590.015, may suspend or revoke the food service permit for any establishment failing to comply with this section.
[Ord. No. 1332, 11-13-2025]
(3) 
An agent of the Board of Health shall have primary responsibility for enforcement of this provision and shall have authority to issue citations for violation(s). The Health Department or its designee is authorized to establish regulations or administrative procedures and to take any and all actions reasonable and necessary to further the purposes of this chapter or to obtain compliance with this chapter, including, but not limited to, inspecting any vendor's premises to verify compliance in accordance with applicable law.
(4) 
An agent of the Board of Health may enforce this section or enjoin violations thereof through any lawful process, and the election of one remedy by the Board of Health shall not preclude enforcement through any other lawful means.
(5) 
Any member of the public who observes a potential violation of this section shall be able to file a complaint with the Board of Health, who shall investigate whether there is a violation of this section.
(6) 
Penalties and fines for violations of this section may be enforced as follows: This section shall be enforced by the Board of Health or its designee. Whoever violates any provision of this section may be penalized by a noncriminal disposition process as provided in MGL c.40, § 21D, and Chapter 4 1/2, Section 4 1/2-2. If noncriminal disposition is elected, then unless otherwise specified, any person who violates any provision of this chapter shall pay the fines as stated in Chapter 4 1/2 of this Code.
[Ord. No. 1332, 11-13-2025]
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
A. 
Purpose: The purpose of this section is to protect the City's unique natural beauty and irreplaceable natural resources by reducing the number of single-use plastic checkout bags that are distributed in the City of Pittsfield and to promote the use of reusable bags.
B. 
General definitions: The following words shall, unless the context clearly requires otherwise, have the following meanings:
CHECKOUT BAG
A bag provided by a store to a customer at the point of sale. Checkout bags shall not include bags, whether plastic or not, in which loose produce or products are placed by the consumer to deliver such items to the point of sale or checkout area of the store.
COMPOSTABLE PLASTIC BAG
A plastic bag that conforms to the current ASTM D6400; is certified and labeled as meeting the ASTM D6400 standard specification by a recognized verification entity; and must be capable of undergoing biological decomposition in a compost site such that the material breaks down into carbon dioxide, water, inorganic compounds and biomass at a rate consistent with known compostable materials.
ENFORCEMENT AUTHORITY
The Health Department.
RECYCLABLE PAPER BAG
A paper bag that is 100% recyclable and contains at least 40% post-consumer recycled content, and displays in a visible manner on the outside of the bag the word "recyclable" or a symbol identifying the bag as recyclable; and a label identifying the bag as being made from post-consumer recycled content and the percentage of post-consumer recycled content in the bag.
RETAIL ESTABLISHMENT
Any business facility that sells goods directly to the consumer, whether for or not for profit, including, but not limited to, retail stores, restaurants, pharmacies, convenience and grocery stores, liquor stores, seasonal and temporary businesses.
REUSABLE BAG
A bag with handles that is specifically designed and manufactured for multiple reuse and is either polyester, polypropylene, cotton or other durable material, or durable plastic that is at least 3.0 mils in thickness.
THIN-FILM SINGLE-USE PLASTIC CHECKOUT BAGS
Those bags typically with handles, constructed of high-density polyethylene (HDPE), low-density polyethylene (LDPE), linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE), polyvinyl chloride (PVC), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), or polypropylene (other than woven and nonwoven polypropylene fabric), if said film is less than 3.0 mils in thickness.
C. 
Regulated conduct:
(1) 
No retail establishment shall sell or convey merchandise to consumers in thin-film single-use plastic checkout bags. If a retail establishment provides or sells checkout bags to customers, the bags must be one of the following: recyclable paper bag; reusable bag; or compostable plastic bag.
[Ord. No. 1332, 11-13-2025]
(2) 
A retail establishment that provides any type of checkout bag may sell them for no less than $0.05 per bag. All moneys collected pursuant to this section shall be retained by the retail establishment.
D. 
Exemptions: Subsection C of this section shall not apply to the following items:
(1) 
Thin-film single-use plastic checkout bags typically without handles which are used to contain dry cleaning, newspapers, produce, meat, bulk foods, wet items and other similar merchandise are not prohibited under this section.
E. 
Penalties and enforcement:
(1) 
If it is determined that a violation has occurred, the enforcement authority shall issue a warning notice to the retail establishment for the initial violation.
(2) 
If an additional violation of this section has occurred within one year after a warning notice has been issued for an initial violation, the enforcement authority shall issue a notice of violation and shall impose a penalty against the retail establishment.
(3) 
The penalty for each violation that occurs after the issuance of the warning notice shall be as provided in Chapter 4 1/2.
[Ord. No. 1332, 11-13-2025][1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Former Subsection F, Hardship deferments, and Subsection G, Severability and ordinance numbering, which immediately followed, were repealed 11-13-2025 by Ord. No. 1332.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
In case any one or more of the provisions contained in this chapter shall, for any reason, be held to be invalid, illegal, or unenforceable in any respect, such invalidity, illegality, or unenforceability shall not affect any other provision of this chapter, but this chapter shall be construed as if such invalid, illegal, or unenforceable provision had never been contained herein.
[Ord. No. 1285, § I; 11-12-2024]
Any member of the public who observes a potential violation of this section shall be able to file a complaint with the Board of Health, who shall investigate whether there is a violation of this chapter.