Township of Union, PA Article II Storage and Collection

[Adopted 9-25-1991 by Ord. No. 89]

§ 218-12 Short title.

This article shall be known and referred to as the "Municipal Solid Waste Ordinance."

§ 218-13 Definitions.

A. The following words and phrases, as used in this article, shall have the meanings ascribed herein, unless the context clearly indicates a different meaning:

ACT 97

The Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act of 1980 (P.L. 380, No. 97, July 7, 1980).[1]

ACT 101

The Pennsylvania Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act of 1988 (Act 101).[2]

BULKY WASTE

Large items of solid waste, including, but not limited to, appliances, furniture, large auto parts, trees, branches or stumps which may require special handling due to size, shape or weight.

COLLECTOR or WASTE HAULER

Any person, firm, partnership, corporation or public agency engaged in the collection or transportation of municipal waste.

COMMERCIAL ESTABLISHMENT

Any establishment engaged in a nonmanufacturing or nonprocessing business, including, but not limited to, stores, markets, office buildings, restaurants, shopping centers and theaters.

CONTAINER

A portable device in which waste is held for storage or transportation.

COUNTY

The County of Washington or the Washington County Board of County Commissioners.

DEPARTMENT or DEP

The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).

DISPOSAL

The disposition, injection, dumping, spilling, such leaking or placing of solid waste into or on the land or water in a manner that the solid waste enters the environment, is emitted into the air or is discharged into the waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

DOMESTIC WASTE or HOUSEHOLD WASTE

Solid waste, comprised of garbage and rubbish, which material normally originates in a residence, private household or apartment house.

GARBAGE

Any solid waste derived from animal, grain, fruit or vegetable matter, capable of being decomposed by microorganisms with sufficient speed as to cause such nuisances as odors, gases or vectors.

INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT

Any establishment engaged in manufacturing or processing, including, but not limited to, factories, foundries, mills, processing plants, refineries, mines and slaughterhouses.

INSTITUTIONAL ESTABLISHMENT

Any establishment engaged in service, including, but not limited to, hospitals, nursing homes, orphanages, schools and universities.

LICENSED COLLECTOR or LICENSED WASTE HAULER

Any municipal waste collector or hauler possessing a license from the appropriate agency as provided by law.[3]

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 under Act 97 from a municipal, commercial or institutional waste supply treatment plant, wastewater treatment plant or air pollution control facility. The term does not include source-separated recyclable materials.

MUNICIPALITY

The Township of Union, Washington County, Pennsylvania.

PERSON

Any individual, partnership, corporation, association, institution, cooperative enterprise, municipal authority, federal government or agency, state institution and agency, or any other legal entity which is recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties. In any provision 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 any other legal entity having officers and directors.

RUBBISH

All nonputrescible 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.

SCAVENGING

The controlled removal or recycling of material from a solid waste processing or disposal facility.

SOLID WASTE

Any waste, including but not limited to municipal, residual or hazardous wastes, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material.

STORAGE

The containment of any waste on a temporary basis in such a manner as not to constitute disposal of such waste. It shall be presumed that the containment of any waste in excess of one year shall constitute disposal. This presumption can be overcome by clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.

TRANSPORTATION

The off-site removal of any solid waste at any time after generation.

[1] Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 6018.101 et seq.

[2] Editor's Note: See 53 P.S. § 4000.101 et seq.

[3] 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.

§ 218-14 Prohibited activities.

A. It shall be unlawful for any person to accumulate, or permit the accumulation of, on any public or private property within the municipality, any garbage, rubbish, bulky waste or any other municipal or residual waste except in accordance with all applicable Department rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101.

B. It shall be unlawful for any person, except in accordance with all applicable Department rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101, to burn any solid waste within the municipality or to burn any material which will tend to cause noxious fumes or create hazardous living conditions or be deemed to constitute a nuisance.

C. It shall be unlawful for any person to process or dispose any solid waste in the municipality except in accordance with all applicable Department rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101.

D. It shall be unlawful for any person to collect, haul, transport or remove any solid waste from public or private property within the municipality without first obtaining a license from the appropriate agency as provided by law.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

E. It shall be unlawful for any person, without prior written approval from the municipality, to scavenge any materials from any solid waste that is stored or deposited for collection within the municipality.

F. It shall be unlawful for any person to salvage or reclaim any solid wastes within the municipality except at a resource-recovery facility approved and permitted under any applicable Department rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101.

§ 218-15 Standards for storage of solid waste.

A. The storage of all solid waste shall be so conducted as to prevent the attraction, harboring or breeding of insects or rodents and to eliminate conditions harmful to public health or which create safety hazards, odors, unsightliness or public nuisances.

B. Any person producing municipal waste shall provide a sufficient number of approved containers to store all waste materials generated during periods between regularly scheduled collections and shall place and store all such waste therein.

C. Any person storing municipal waste for collection shall comply with the minimum standards for the storage of municipal waste set forth in the Department's Title 25, Chapter 285, Subchapter A, Regulations for the Storage of Municipal Waste.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See 25 Pa. Code § 285.101 et seq.

§ 218-16 Standards and regulations for collection.

A. All households, homeowners, commercial, industrial and institutional establishments within the municipality shall utilize the services of a licensed collector for disposal of domestic or household waste generated by such source.

B. All licensed collectors and waste haulers shall comply with the minimum standards for collection and transportation of municipal waste set forth in the Department's Title 25, Chapter 285, Subchapter B, Regulations for Collection and Transportation of Municipal Waste.[1]

[1] Editor's Note: See 25 Pa. Code § 285.201 et seq.

C. All municipal waste collected within the municipality shall be conveyed or transported only to a transfer station, processing facility or disposal site permitted by the Department of Environmental Protection or other regulatory agencies pursuant to the approved Municipal Waste Management Plan for Washington County.

§ 218-17 Licensing requirement. [1]

No person shall collect, remove, haul or transport any solid waste upon or through any streets or alleys of the municipality without first obtaining a license from the appropriate agency as provided by law.

[1] Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).

§ 218-18 Injunction powers.

The municipality may petition the Washington County Court of Common Pleas for an injunction, either mandatory or prohibitive, to enforce any of the provisions of this article.

§ 218-19 Violations and penalties. [1]

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.

[1] Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art. I).