[1]
Editor's Note: Ord. No. 817, § 305, adopted Aug. 13, 1979, repealed, in its entirety, Art. X of Ord. No. 483, adopted May 16, 1966. Said article was comprised of §§ 1000.1—1000.6, 1000.8, 1000.9, 1001.1—1001.9, 1002.1—1002.8, 1003.1 and 1003.2, from which sections former Art. VI, §§ 8-93—8-105 pertaining to sanitary landfills, was derived. The remaining substantive provisions of Ord. No. 817, being nonamendatory of this Code, are included herein as a new Art. VI, §§ 8-93—8-108, at the discretion of the editor.
[Ord. No. 817, § 100, 8-13-1979]
This article shall be known as the "Plymouth Township Solid Waste Management Ordinance."
[Ord. No. 817, § 101, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
It is hereby determined that improper and inadequate solid waste practices create public health hazards, public nuisances, environmental pollution, other adverse environmental impacts, and economic loss. It is, therefore, the purpose of this article to:
(a) 
Establish and maintain cooperation with state, county and municipal agencies to achieve effective planning and technical and financial assistance for effective solid waste management;
(b) 
Utilize, wherever feasible and desirable, the capabilities of private enterprise in accomplishing the desired objectives of an effective solid waste management program; and
(c) 
Require permits for the establishment and operation of solid waste processing and disposal facilities.
[Ord. No. 817, § 102, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(A) 
The definitions of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act, Act 241, adopted July 31, 1968, P.L. 788, 35 P.S. 3001, et seq., and of the Regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, Chapter 25 Pennsylvania Code, Section 75.1 et seq., as amended from time to time, are incorporated herein by reference as if set forth herein at length.
(B) 
The following definitions are in addition to those set forth in the Solid Waste Management Act:
(1) 
Environmental Impairment. The emission, discharge, dispersal, disposal, seepage, release or escape of any liquid, solid, gaseous or thermal irritant, contaminants or pollutant into or upon the land, the atmosphere or any watercourse or body of water within Plymouth Township, or the generation of smell, noises, vibrations, light, electricity, radiation, changes in temperature or any other sensory phenomena arising out of or in the course of the operation of a solid waste processing or disposal facility.
(2) 
Resource Recovery. A term describing the extraction and utilization of materials and energy from solid waste.
(a) 
Energy recovery. A form of resource recovery in which the organic fraction of solid waste is converted to some form of usable energy. Recovery may be achieved through the combustion of processed or raw refuse to produce steam (e.g., as a supplemental fuel in electric utility power plant boilers or as the primary fuel in incinerators), through the pyrolysis of refuse to produce oil or gas; or through the anerobic digestion of organic wastes to produce methane.
(b) 
Materials recovery. The extraction of materials from solid waste including, but not limited to, glass, metal, paper and rags for recycling.
(3) 
Solid Waste Processing or Disposal Facility. Any installation, structure or land area used in the disposal of solid waste, whether in the nature of a sanitary landfill, incinerator, resource recovery facility, trash transfer station or recycling center.
[Ord. No. 817, § 103, 8-13-1979]
The township may employ the services of such person or persons to enforce the terms and provisions of this article as the township council shall direct.
[Ord. No. 817, § 200, 8-13-1979]
This article shall be administered by the township manager with the assistance of the township code enforcement department. The township manager is further authorized to seek the aid and counsel of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources, which is charged with the responsibility of administering the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act of July 31, 1968, P.L. 788, as amended.
[Ord. No. 817, § 201, 8-13-1979]
The township and its officers shall cooperate with appropriate federal, state, county and other municipal units of government and with appropriate private organizations in carrying out the powers and duties under this article.
[Ord. No. 817, § 202, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985; Ord. No. 981, § 14(a), 12-14-1987]
(a) 
It shall be unlawful for any person or business entity to use or continue to use land within the township as a solid waste processing or disposal facility without first obtaining a permit therefor from the township.
(b) 
Each application for a permit shall be accompanied by a permit fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00) and a further deposit of an amount equal to five (5) per cent of the estimated construction cost of the proposed solid waste processing or disposal facility, the minimum deposit being ten thousand dollars ($10,000.00) and the maximum deposit being one hundred thousand dollars ($100,000.00), to be applied against the actual cost to the township for technical review of the application and the impact statement. A refund of the excess of the deposit over the actual cost of the technical review will be made to the applicant.
(c) 
The application for a permit shall be in writing and shall set forth such information and be accompanied by such data and materials as this article and current regulations of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources may require for such permits. Applications shall be submitted for review at least six (6) months prior to the date for which a permit is sought. The applicant shall provide ten (10) copies of the application for review by the township engineer, township code enforcement department, and such township boards, agencies and committees as council shall direct.
(d) 
Upon approval of the application, the township shall issue its permit for the operation of each solid waste processing or disposal facility set forth in the application at such time as a permit for the facility is issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources.
(e) 
Plans, designs and relevant data for the location and construction or alteration of solid waste processing and disposal facilities shall be prepared by a licensed professional engineer registered in Pennsylvania and shall bear the signature and seal of that individual.
(f) 
Every applicant for a permit under this article shall, at the time of the filing of the application, submit to the township an environmental impact statement in the form required by this article.
(g) 
The township may hold a public hearing on the questions of:
(1) 
The proposed solid waste processing or disposal facility's effect on water and air pollution, the environment, the aesthetic or visual impact upon the community, and on the health of the people of Plymouth Township and surrounding areas; and
(2) 
Its effect on the economic development of the township.
[Ord. No. 817, § 203, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(a) 
The environmental impact statement required by section 8-99(f) hereof shall include all of the following:
(1) 
A description of the proposed solid waste processing and disposal facility;
(2) 
A physical description of the environment affected including summary technical data and maps and diagrams adequate to permit an assessment of potential environmental impact by commenting agencies and the public. Highly technical and specialized analyses and data should be attached as appendices or footnoted with adequate bibliographic references;
(3) 
The interrelationships and cumulative environmental and economic impacts of the proposed solid waste processing or disposal facility when coupled with other solid waste processing or disposal facilities shall be stated and supported by adequate technical analysis;
(4) 
The sources of data used to identify, quantify, or evaluate any and all of environmental consequences must be expressly noted;
(5) 
The relationship of the proposed solid waste processing or disposal facility to land use plans, policies and controls for the affected area, including a statement as to how the proposed solid waste processing or disposal facility may conform or conflict with the objectives and specific terms of existing or proposed federal, state, county and township land use plans, policies and controls;
(6) 
An analysis of:
(a) 
The primary and secondary effects of the solid waste processing or disposal facility and its capacity to stimulate or induce changes in patterns of social and/or economic activities;
(b) 
The impact on existing community facilities and activities, changes in natural conditions, etc.; and
(c) 
The effect on natural and cultural features such as streams, mountains, historic sites, landmarks, principal roads, lakes and towns;
(7) 
Specific data relating to the impact of the solid waste processing or disposal facility on local vehicular traffic; and designating the routes to be utilized by vehicles seeking access to that proposed facility;
(8) 
Specific data relating to the impact of the solid waste processing or disposal facility on local water supplies, streams and rivers;
(9) 
Specific data relating to the impact of the solid waste processing or disposal facility on natural and man-made local storm drainage facilities and areas;
(10) 
Specific data relating to the impact of the solid waste processing or disposal facility on the existing flood hazard areas of the township, including details of any measures or precautions which may have to be taken in order to provide adequate flood control in the township;
(11) 
A statement of any probable adverse environmental effects which cannot be avoided (such as water or air pollution, undesirable land use patterns, damage to life systems, congestion, threats to health or other consequences adverse to the environment). Included for purposes of contrast should be a clear statement of how other avoidable adverse effects will be mitigated;
(12) 
The relationship between local short-term uses of the environment and the maintenance and enhancement of long-term productively. This section should contain a brief discussion of the extent to which the proposed action involves short-term environmental gains at the expense of long-term losses, or the converse, and a discussion of the extent to which the proposed action forecloses future options. In this context, the words short-term and long-term should be viewed in terms of the environmentally significant consequences of the proposed action;
(13) 
The esthetic impact of the proposed action including its impact upon visual quality of the surrounding community;
(14) 
An analysis of the success and/or failure of similar projects;
(15) 
A statement of any adverse effects on employment, taxes and property values;
(16) 
A statement of any effects on desirable community growth; and
(17) 
A statement describing the location and impact of the project on nearby recreation areas.
(b) 
In developing the above data, applicant shall convey the required information succinctly in a form easily understood both by members of the public and by public decision-makers, giving attention to the substance of the information conveyed rather than to the particular form, or length, or detail of the statement. Statements should indicate, at appropriate points in the text, any underlying studies, reports and other information obtained and considered by the applicant in preparing the statement. Care should be taken to ensure that the statement remains an essentially self-contained instrument capable of being understood without the need for cross reference.
(c) 
Each environmental statement should utilize a systematic, interdisciplinary approach which will ensure the integrated use of the natural and social sciences and the environmental design arts in planning and decision making which may have an impact on man's environment. Application of such an approach should help assure a systematic evaluation of reasonable alternative courses of action and their potential social, economic and environmental consequences.
[Ord. No. 817, § 204, 8-13-1979]
(a) 
Applicant shall include with the application for a permit hereunder:
(1) 
The names and current addresses of any and all persons or firms which own any interest, real or equitable, in the real estate which is the subject of the application;
(2) 
The names and current addresses of any and all persons or firms having any ownership interest in any corporations or other business entities which may be set forth in answers to subsection (a)(1) above, where such persons or firms possess an ownership interest of ten (10) per cent or more;
(3) 
The names and current addresses of any and all persons or firms having any interest in the operation or proposed operation, maintenance and use of the real estate in question as a solid waste processing and disposal area, facility or landfill;
(4) 
The names and current addresses of any and all persons or firms having any ownership interest in any corporations or other business entities which may be set forth in answer to subsection (a)(3) above, where such persons or firms possess an ownership interest of ten (10) per cent or more; and
(5) 
The identities and qualifications of personnel designated to manage the proposed facility, together with their intended responsibilities.
(b) 
Applicant shall further provide the township with complete copies of any and all materials, plans, applications, studies and data which may be submitted by applicant to the Department of Environmental Resources pursuant to requirements of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act and related regulations and standards of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources. All such materials shall be certified by the applicant to be true and correct copies of original materials filed with that department.
(c) 
All requirements of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act and regulations and standards of the Department of Environmental Resources relating to solid waste processing and disposal systems are incorporated herein by reference, and the applicant shall be required to submit the data, materials, studies and information to the township as is required to be submitted to the Department of Environmental Resources pursuant to said Act, regulations and standards.
[Ord. No. 817, § 205, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
No permit issued hereunder may be transferred or assigned unless and until an application is received from the proposed transferee(s) setting forth the information required by section 8-101(a) hereof.
[Ord. No. 817, § 206, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985; Ord. No. 981, § 14(b), 12-14-1987]
(a) 
Any person or entity granted a permit by the township shall be required to renew the permit annually. Renewal permits shall be issued by the township upon filing of a renewal application, an annual report summarizing the types and quantities (tons) of solid waste received during the previous calendar year, and the payment of an annual permit fee of one thousand five hundred dollars ($1,500.00). It shall also be a condition of the issuance of a renewal permit that any and all solid waste processing taxes payable by the applicant shall have been paid as and when due and that there are no delinquencies in such payments as of the date of submission of the renewal application.
(b) 
Permits must be renewed on or before January 31st of each year.
[Ord. No. 817, § 301, 8-13-1979]
The township shall, from time to time, cause its authorized representatives to inspect the situs of the solid waste processing and disposal area and facilities to assure continued compliance with all applicable federal, state and local regulations and standards as well as all plans, specifications and procedures set forth in the application of the permittee. It shall be the duty of the permittee to make the situs available for inspection at all times.
[Ord. No. 817, § 207, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(a) 
Denial of access to certain vehicles. The operator of any permitted solid waste processing or disposal facility or area shall be required to deny access to the facility for a period of thirty (30) days to any person or business entity whose vehicles used in delivering solid waste thereto:
(1) 
Do not have loads fully enclosed within the truck body or which are not covered by appropriate covering and restraining devices;
(2) 
Are discovered by the township to be utilizing routes other than those designated in the operating permit.
(b) 
Cleaning of litter required. The operator of any permitted solid waste processing or disposal facility shall be required to clean litter each day from all feeder roads utilized by trucks depositing solid waste therein for a distance of one thousand five hundred (1500) feet in each direction from the entrance of the facility or area.
(c) 
Vector control procedures. Vector control procedures shall be carried out a minimum of twice each month, or more often as required, to prevent health hazards or nuisances. The permittee shall submit a control program for the approval of the health department, including evidence of a contractual agreement for services with an exterminator. The permittee is required to submit proof of extermination to the health department.
(d) 
Waste remaining at transfer stations. There shall be no solid waste remaining at a transfer station at the end of the working day unless it is stored in containers constructed to be watertight, leak-proof, weatherproof and rodent-proof. Special provisions shall be made for the transfer of bulky waste (e.g., tree branches and stumps, appliances, etc., junk automobiles, machinery) at the transfer station, otherwise such waste shall be excluded from the provisions stated in paragraph (e) of this section.
(e) 
Emergency operation plans; storage of material. All solid waste processing or disposal facilities shall have a written emergency operational plan to provide for an alternative waste handling system during periods when the facility is inoperative. This plan shall delineate the procedures to be followed in case of equipment breakdown which will require standby equipment, extension of operating hours or diversion of solid waste to other facilities. Solids waste material shall not be stored at a permitted processing facility for more than forty-eight (48) hours before ultimate disposition by transfer, disposal in a landfill, or incineration, except for material to be recycled such as glass, metal, paper, rags, etc., and material to be processed at an incinerator or resource recovery facility which is stored within the confines of a building in a holding pot or bunker.
(f) 
Vehicles to originate from transfer-transport facility; load capacity. Fifty (50) per cent of all vehicles delivering solid waste generated outside of Plymouth Township to an incinerator or resource recovery facility within Plymouth Township shall originate from a transfer-transport facility permitted by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources and shall have a load capacity of not less than forty (40) cubic yards.
(g) 
Hazardous materials. Any hazardous waste material detected in the solid waste stream shall be separated, properly contained, and disposed of in accordance with the Solid Waste Management Act of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Act of July 7, 1980 (Act 97) or subsequent amendments thereto.
[1]
Editor's Note: Section 8-106, providing for a user fee, and derived from Ord. No. 934, § 1, adopted July 8, 1985, was repealed in its entirety by § 15 of Ord. No. 981, enacted Dec. 14, 1987.
[Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(a) 
When a disposal site has been filled to capacity, the permittee shall be required to submit to the township a plan delineating procedures which will be utilized to monitor potential water and air pollution resulting from the site for a period of twenty-five (25) years following closure of the site. The plan shall be submitted at least six (6) months prior to the expected closure date.
(b) 
The permittee is required to submit payment of the user fee described in section 8-103(a) of this article for the closing calendar quarter within thirty (30) days following the date of closure.
(c) 
Permittees shall restore the landscape of any landfill site before vacating the premises which restoration shall include, but shall not be limited to, planting of trees and shrubs of a species approved by the township.
[Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(a) 
A permit shall be denied to an applicant for failure to comply with all of the requirements of this article.
(b) 
Any permit granted by the township under the provisions of this article shall be revocable or subject to suspension at any time upon the determination by the township that the solid waste processing or disposal facility:
(1) 
Is, or has been, conducted in violation of this article, the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act, or the regulations or standards of the Department of Environmental Resources;
(2) 
Is creating a public nuisance; or
(3) 
Is creating a health hazard.
(c) 
In the event a permit is denied, suspended or revoked, and should the applicant or permittee request a hearing thereon, such hearing shall be conducted by the council of Plymouth Township in accordance with the Local Agency Law.
[Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
(a) 
License required. It shall be unlawful for any person or business entity to collect or continue to collect solid waste within the township without being licensed to do so by the township health department.
(b) 
Application; required information. Applications for licenses shall be in writing and shall be on forms prescribed by the township. The application shall indicate:
(1) 
The collection firm's name and address;
(2) 
The name and address of the commercial, industrial and institutional establishments the applicant proposes to serve;
(3) 
The solid waste processing or disposal facilities to which the applicant proposes to transport solid waste collected within the Township;
(4) 
The type and estimated quantities (tons) of solid waste to be collected with the Township.
(c) 
Application fee. Applications for licenses shall be accompanied by a license fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00).
(d) 
Renewals and renewal fees. Any person or business entity granted a license by the Township shall be required to renew the license annually on or before January thirty-first of each year. Renewal licenses shall be issued upon filing of a renewal application and the payment of the renewal fee of one hundred dollars ($100.00).
[Ord. No. 817, § 300, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
The applicant shall comply with all regulations and requirements of this article and of the Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act and regulations and standards of the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources.
[1]
Editor's Note: Pursuant to the instructions of the Township, the provisions designated as § 8-111 have been deleted as being a duplication of provisions formerly designated as § 8-106 which now have been numbered as § 8-110.
[Ord. No. 817, § 302, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985]
In addition to any other remedies provided in this article, the Township may institute an action in equity in the court of common pleas of Montgomery County for an injunction to restrain a violation of this article or to mandate corrective action necessary to remedy any violation of the rules, regulations and standards of this article.
[Ord. No. 817, § 303, 8-13-1979; Ord. No. 934, § 1, 7-8-1985; Ord. No. 1000, § 3, 11-14-1988]
Whenever any person, firm or corporation has been notified by any of the duly authorized and constituted representatives of the Township of the violation of any provision of this article, or by service of summons or prosecution, or in any other way that such a violation has been committed, each day of violation shall constitute a separate offense punishable as provided in section 1-9(a) of this Code.