[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Carroll 10-5-2010 by Ord. No. 2010-3. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Solid waste — See Ch. 212.
This chapter shall be known and may be cited as the "Carroll
Township Air Pollution Control Ordinance of 2010."
The Township of Carroll, under and by virtue of and pursuant
to the authority granted, hereby enacts and ordains this chapter.
Whereas the Township of Carroll has determined that air pollution
from open burning may be detrimental to the health, comfort, living
conditions, welfare and safety of the citizens of the Township of
Carroll, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the Township of
Carroll to safeguard the citizens of the Township of Carroll from
such air pollution.
The following words, terms and phrases, when used in this chapter,
unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, shall have the following
meanings ascribed to them:
A mechanical device which forcefully projects a curtain of
air across a pit in which open burning is being conducted so that
combustion efficiency is increased and smoke and other particulate
matter are contained.
The act of consuming by fire; to flame, char, scorch or blaze.
As used in this chapter, "smoldering" shall have the same meaning
as "burning," and any smoldering shall be deemed a burning.
Trees, shrubs and other native vegetation which are cleared
from land during or prior to the process of construction. The term
does not include demolition wastes and dirt-laden roots.
The process by which organic solid waste is biologically
decomposed under controlled anaerobic or aerobic conditions to yield
a humus-like product.
Board of Supervisors of the Township of Carroll
Waste which is generated from the normal occupancy of a structure
occupied solely as a dwelling by two families or less. The term does
not include appliances, carpets, demolition waste (insulation, shingles,
siding, etc.), furniture, mattresses or box springs, paint, putrescible
waste, solvents, tires or treated wood.
A city, incorporated town, township, borough, county, municipal
authority, or other public body created under state law having jurisdiction
over the disposal of sewage, industrial wastes, or other wastes.
A fire, the air contaminants from which are emitted directly
into the outdoor atmosphere and not directed thereto through a flue.
Any individual, public or private corporation for profit
or not for profit, association, partnership, firm, trust, estate,
department, board, bureau or agency of the commonwealth or the federal
government, political subdivision, municipality, district, authority
or any other legal entity whatsoever which is recognized by law as
the subject of rights and duties.
Glass (amber, green, clear, mixed); metal and bimetal cans;
aluminum cans; plastics (milk and soda containers, food containers,
etc.); newsprint and magazines.
Leaves, grass clippings, garden residue, tree trimmings,
chipped shrubbery, and other vegetative material.
All open burning in the Township of Carroll shall comply with
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Code, Department of
Environmental Protection, Title 25, § 129.14, Open burning operations;
where any conflicts with this chapter, the strictest regulations of
either Title 25 or this chapter shall apply in order to best serve
the interests of citizens of the Township of Carroll regarding health,
safety and protection from the annoyance of open burning. In addition,
all open burning shall comply with the following:
A.
A fire set to prevent or abate a fire hazard, when approved by the
Department of Environmental Protection's Regional Air Quality
Program office and set by or under the supervision of a public officer.
B.
Any fire set for the purpose of instructing personnel in firefighting,
when approved by the Department of Environmental Protection's
Regional Air Quality Program office.
C.
A fire set for the prevention and control of disease or pests, when
approved by the Department of Environmental Protection's Regional
Air Quality Program office.
D.
A fire set for the purpose of burning, clearing and grubbing waste.
If an air curtain destructor must be used, it must be approved by
the Department of Environmental Protection's Regional Air Quality
Program office.
E.
A fire set in conjunction with the production of agriculture commodities
in their unmanufactured state on the premises of the farm operation.
F.
A fire set for the purpose of burning that amount of domestic refuse
generated from one dwelling, when the fire is on the premises of a
structure occupied solely as a dwelling by two families or less and
when the refuse results from the normal occupancy of said structure;
provided, however, that branches or trees in excess of six inches
in diameter in accordance with DEP regulations cannot be burned.
G.
It shall be unlawful for residents of Carroll Township to burn any
recyclable that is included in its curbside or annual leaf collection
programs.
H.
A fire set solely for cooking food.
I.
A fire set solely for recreational or ceremonial purposes.
J.
Open burning may be set on, and only on, Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday
after 7:00 a.m., provided such fire is extinguished with no smoke
and smoldering no later than 2:00 p.m. that day. On any other day,
if exceptional circumstances require, only with the approval of the
authorized enforcement, and any or all fires set under the provisions
of this chapter are subject to the following condition:
(1)
Domestic refuse only is burned.
A.
The Carroll Township Code Enforcement Officer and the officers of
the Carroll Township Police Department and the Pennsylvania State
Police shall have the power and duty to enforce the provisions of
this chapter.
B.
The Township of Carroll may issue such orders as are necessary to
aid in the enforcement of the provisions of this chapter. These orders
shall include, but shall not be limited to, orders requiring persons
to cease unlawful open burning which in the course of its occurrence
is in violation of any provision of this chapter; orders to take corrective
action or to abate a public nuisance; orders requiring the testing,
sampling or monitoring of any open burning; or orders requiring production
of information. Such an order may be issued if the Township of Carroll
finds that any condition existing in or on the facility or source
involved is causing or contributing to open burning or if the Township
of Carroll finds that any person is in violation of any provision
of this chapter.
C.
The Township of Carroll may, in its order, require compliance with
such conditions as are necessary to prevent or abate open burning
or effect the purposes of this chapter.
D.
An order issued under this section shall take effect upon notice,
unless the order specifies otherwise. An appeal to the Board of Supervisors
of the Township of Carroll's order shall not act as a supersedeas;
provided, however, that, upon application and for cause shown, the
Board of Supervisors may issue such a supersedeas under rules established
by the Board of Supervisors.
E.
The authority of the Township of Carroll to issue an order under
this section is in addition to any remedy or penalty which may be
imposed pursuant to this chapter. The failure to comply with any such
order is hereby declared to be a public nuisance,
A.
Whenever the enforcing officer finds that open burning is occurring in the Township of Carroll, other than those exceptions noted in § 106-5 above, the enforcing officer may order the owner or operator to take corrective action in a manner satisfactory to the Township of Carroll, or the enforcing officer may order the owner or operator to allow access to the land by the enforcing officer or a third party to take such action.
B.
For purposes of collecting or recovering the costs involved in taking corrective action or pursuing a cost-recovery action pursuant to an order or recovering the cost of litigation, oversight, monitoring, sampling, testing and investigation related to a corrective action, the Township of Carroll may collect the amount in the same manner as civil penalties are assessed and collected following the process for assessment and collection of a civil penalty contained in § 106-9 of this chapter.
Any person who violates any provision of this chapter or any
order of the Township of Carroll issued pursuant to this chapter commits
a summary offense and shall, upon conviction, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 for each separate
offense and, in default of the payment of such fine, may be sentenced
to imprisonment for 90 days for each separate offense. Employees of
the Township of Carroll authorized to conduct inspections or investigations
are hereby declared to be law enforcement officers authorized to issue
or file citations for summary violations under this chapter, and the
Township of Carroll Board of Supervisors is hereby authorized to prosecute
these offenses. For purposes of this section, a summary offense may
be prosecuted before any Magisterial District Judge in the Township
of Carroll. There is no accelerated rehabilitative disposition authorized
for a summary offense.
A.
In addition to proceeding under any other remedy available at law
or in equity for a violation of a provision of this chapter or any
order issued pursuant to this chapter, the Township of Carroll may
assess a civil penalty for the violation. The penalty may be assessed
whether or not the violation was willful. The civil penalty so assessed
shall not exceed $1,000 per day for each violation. In determining
the amount of the penalty, the Township of Carroll shall consider
the willfulness of the violation; damage to air, soil, water or other
natural resources of the Township of Carroll or their uses; financial
benefit to the person in consequence of the violation; deterrence
of future violations; costs to the Township of Carroll; the size of
the source or facility; the compliance history of the source; the
severity and duration of the violation; degree of cooperation in resolving
the violation; the speed with which compliance is ultimately achieved;
whether the violation was voluntarily reported; other factors unique
to the owners or operators of the source or facility; and other relevant
factors.
B.
When the Township of Carroll proposes to assess a civil penalty,
it shall inform the person of the proposed amount of the penalty.
The person charged with the penalty shall then have 30 days to pay
the proposed penalty in full or, if the person wishes to contest the
amount of the penalty or the fact of the violation to the extent not
already established, the person shall forward the proposed amount
of the penalty to the Board of Supervisors within the thirty-day period
for placement in an escrow account with the State Treasurer or any
commonwealth bank or post an appeal bond to the Board of Supervisors
within 30 days in the amount of the proposed penalty, provided that
such bond is executed by a surety licensed to do business in the commonwealth
and is satisfactory to the Township of Carroll. If through administrative
or final judicial review of the proposed penalty it is determined
that no violation occurred or that the amount of the penalty shall
be reduced, the Board of Supervisors shall, within 30 days, remit
the appropriate amount to the person, with any interest accumulated
by the escrow deposit. Failure to forward the money or the appeal
bond at the time of the appeal shall result in a waiver of all legal
rights to contest the violation or the amount of civil penalty unless
the appellant alleges financial inability to prepay the penalty or
to post the appeal bond. The Board of Supervisors shall conduct a
hearing to consider the appellant's alleged inability to pay
within 30 days of the date of the appeal. The Board of Supervisors
may waive the requirement to prepay the civil penalty or to post an
appeal bond if the appellant demonstrates and the Board of Supervisors
finds that the appellant is financially unable to pay. The Board of
Supervisors shall issue an order within 30 days of the date of the
hearing to consider the appellant's alleged inability to pay.
The amount assessed after administrative hearing or after waiver of
administrative hearing shall be payable to the Township of Carroll
and shall be collectible in any manner provided by law for the collection
of debts, including the collection of interest on the penalty amount
computed in accordance with Section 6621(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue
Code of 1986 (Public Law 99-514, 26 U.S.C. § 1 et seq.)
from the date of assessment of the penalty. If any person liable to
pay any such penalty neglects or refuses to pay the same after demand,
the amount, together with interest and any costs that accrue, shall
constitute a debt of such person as may be appropriate to the Township
of Carroll. The debt shall constitute a lien on all property owned
by said person when a notice of lien incorporating a description of
the property of the person subject to the action is duly filed with
the Prothonotary of the Court of Common Pleas where the property is
located. The Prothonotary shall promptly enter upon the civil judgment
or order docket, at no cost to the Township of Carroll, the name and
address of the person, as may be appropriate, and the amount of the
lien as set forth in the notice of lien. Upon entry by the Prothonotary,
the lien shall attach to the revenues and all real and personal property
of the person, whether or not the person is solvent. The notice of
lien, filed pursuant to this section, which affects the property of
the person shall create a lien with priority over all subsequent claims
or liens which are filed against the person, but it shall not affect
any valid lien, right or interest in the property filed in accordance
with established procedure prior to the filing of a notice of lien
under this section.
It shall be unlawful to fail to comply with or to cause or assist
in the violation of any of the provisions of this chapter or to fail
to comply with any order or other requirement of the Township of Carroll;
or to cause a public nuisance; or to cause air, soil or water pollution
resulting from an open burning incident; or to hinder, obstruct, prevent
or interfere with the Township of Carroll or its personnel in their
performance of any duty hereunder, including denying the enforcing
officer access to the source or facility; or to violate the provisions
of 18 Pa.C.S.A. §§ 4903 (relating to false swearing)
or 4904 (relating to unsworn falsification to authorities) in regard
to papers required to be submitted under this chapter. The owner or
operator of an open burning source shall not allow pollution of the
air, water or other natural resources of the Township of Carroll to
result from the source.
A violation of this chapter or of any order issued by the Township of Carroll under this chapter shall constitute a public nuisance. The Township of Carroll shall have the authority to order any person causing a public nuisance to abate the public nuisance. In addition, when abating a public nuisance, the Township of Carroll may recover the expenses of abatement following the process for assessment and collection of a civil penalty contained in § 106-9. Whenever the nuisance is maintained or continued contrary to this chapter or any order issued pursuant to this chapter, the nuisance may be abatable in the manner provided by this chapter. Any person who causes the public nuisance shall be liable for the cost of abatement.
