[R.O. 2011 § 500.700; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
The purpose of this Article is to adopt standards for identifying dangerous levels of toxic chemicals and residue associated with the manufacture of illegal drugs such as methamphetamine or other hazardous or dangerous chemicals that may be present and to establish protocols whereby the Department of Community Development may cooperate with and rely on the Drug Task Force when applying the Property Maintenance Code of the City of St. Charles to order or cause the abatement of contamination in structures due to the production of methamphetamine.
[R.O. 2011 § 500.710; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
For purposes of this Article, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
CLANDESTINE DRUG MANUFACTURE
Chemistry carried out in secret and particularly in illegal drug laboratories. The term "clandestine lab" is generally used in any situation involving the production of illicit compounds synthesized to smaller amounts of controlled substances, regardless of whether the facilities being used qualify as a true laboratory.
DEPARTMENT
The Department of Community Development of the City of St. Charles.
DRUG TASK FORCE
The St. Charles County Regional Drug Task Force, a multi-jurisdictional enforcement group or MEG established by intergovernmental agreements between St. Charles County and the municipalities of St. Charles, St. Peters, O'Fallon, Lake St. Louis and Wentzville pursuant to the Intergovernmental Drug Laws Enforcement Act, Sections 195.501 to 195.511, RSMo., as amended.
METHAMPHETAMINE
Dextro methamphetamine, levo methamphetamine, and unidentified isomers of the same, any racemic mixture of dextro/levo methamphetamine, or any mixture of unidentified isomers of methamphetamine. The term includes derivatives, conjugates, oxides and reduced forms of the basic structure associated with the formation of methamphetamine. For the purposes of this protocol, this term includes methamphetamine, ephedrine and pseudoephedrine.
PROPERTY MAINTENANCE CODE
The International Property Maintenance Code adopted by the City of St. Charles by reference in Section 500.110 of the Code of Ordinances including all subsequent amendments and supplements thereto.
QUALIFIED COMPANY OR QUALIFIED CONTRACTOR
A company or contractor that tests structures for the presence of unsafe contamination and/or abates such unsafe contamination and that:
1. 
Complies with the guidelines of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Voluntary Guidelines for Methamphetamine Laboratory Cleanup (August 2009);
2. 
Complies with the regulations of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration of the United States Department of Labor relating to hazardous waste operations and emergency response, including 29 CFR 1910.120;
3. 
Requires that at least one (1) employee or supervisor assigned to and on duty at any work site shall have completed the forty (40) hour Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response (HASWOPER) training [Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) 29 CFR 1910]; and
4. 
Requires its personnel to complete a clandestine drug lab assessment and decontamination course offered by a sponsor acceptable to the Drug Task Force and/or department.
UNSAFE CONTAMINATION
The presence of chemicals in a structure at levels exceeding the levels for such chemicals as provided in Section 500.720.
[R.O. 2011 § 500.720; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
A. 
A structure shall be considered unsafe for purposes of the Property Maintenance Code of the City of St. Charles if it is found to contain any of the chemicals listed below at exposure limits above the levels listed below established by the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH):
1. 
Red Phosphorus: any amount.
2. 
Iodine Crystals: C 0.1 ppm (1 mg/m3).
3. 
Sulfuric Acid: TWA 1 mg/m3.
4. 
Hydrogen Chloride: C 5 ppm (7 mg/m3).
5. 
Hydrochloric Acid (Hcl gas): C 5 ppm (7 mg/m3).
6. 
Methamphetamine: in a concentration equal to or greater than 1.5 µgram/100 cm2.
7. 
Lead and Mercury: if it is determined that the phenyl-2-propanone (P2P) method of methamphetamine manufacturing was used, surface levels for lead in excess of 20 µg/ft 2 and vapor samples for mercury in excess of 50 ng/m3.
[R.O. 2011 § 500.730; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
A. 
When the Drug Task Force reports to the department that a structure or one (1) or more units in a multi-unit structure in the City has been used for the production of methamphetamine/clandestine compounds or as a storage facility for chemicals used in the manufacturing of methamphetamine as identified in Section 500.720, the department may order that structure or unit closed pursuant to Section 109 or applicable Section of the Property Maintenance Code. The department shall rescind such an order if the Drug Task Force later reports that after testing and investigation, it has not found unsafe contamination in that structure.
B. 
When the Drug Task Force reports to the department that it has found unsafe contamination in a structure or in one (1) or more units in a multi-unit structure in the City that has been used for the production of methamphetamine/clandestine compounds or as a storage facility for chemicals used in the manufacturing of methamphetamine as identified in Section 500.720, the department shall order that structure or unit closed pursuant to Section 109 or applicable Section of the Property Maintenance Code.
[R.O. 2011 § 500.740; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
A. 
When closure and abatement orders pursuant to Section 109 or applicable Section of the Property Maintenance Code are posted on a structure, entry shall be prohibited to anyone except a qualified company or contractor due to the safety and health concerns commonly associated with the manufacture of methamphetamine/clandestine compounds. Tenants desiring to enter the structure to retrieve personal property must first register with the department. Once registered, tenants may enter the structure only if accompanied by a member of the Drug Task Force and/or the St. Charles Police Department.
B. 
When closure and abatement orders pursuant to Section 109 or applicable Section of the Property Maintenance Code are posted on a structure, the department shall attempt to contact the owner of record and/or the lienholder of the affected property or the owner's agent as provided in Section 107 or applicable Section of the Property Maintenance Code and provide the owner or the owner's agent with notice that the structure has been closed.
C. 
Such notice shall direct the owner to contact the department within twenty (20) calendar days to establish a schedule for decontaminating the structure.
D. 
Such notice shall also inform the owner that if the owner contact the department within the time specified in the notice, the owner may request to have the structure tested to establish that decontamination of the structure is not necessary. Such testing must be performed as follows:
1. 
The owner must employ the services of a qualified company or contractor to perform sampling and to analyze the samples;
2. 
Sampling and testing shall be performed in accordance with the appropriate Sections of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Voluntary Guidelines for Methamphetamine and Fentanyl Laboratory Cleanup (Revised August 2021); and
3. 
The qualified company or contractor engaged by the owner must report the results of its analysis of the samples taken to the Department of Community Development.
[R.O. 2011 § 500.750; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
A. 
If testing confirms the presence of unsafe contamination in a structure, the owner shall employ the services of a qualified company or contractor to decontaminate the structure and shall advise the department of the schedule for decontamination.
B. 
The schedule for decontamination and evidence that the company or contractor meets the requirements of this Article must be submitted for approval to the department within fifteen (15) calendar days of the date of the notice. Approval will be based on the timeliness of the schedule and the qualifications of the company or contractor. Approval or rejection of the schedule will be provided within five (5) working days from the date of receipt. If rejected, the owner will be informed in writing of specific reasons for the rejection and will be required to amend the schedule or the proposed qualified company or contractor. Decontamination shall be performed in accordance with the appropriate Sections of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Voluntary Guidelines for Methamphetamine and Fentanyl Laboratory Cleanup (Revised August 2021).
C. 
If the owner of property determined to have unsafe contamination fails to voluntarily abate that contamination, the department may serve a summons to appear in St. Charles Municipal Court and proceed in accordance with Sections 106 through 108 or applicable Sections of the Property Maintenance Code. The department may also request to disconnect utilities to the structure until the decontamination is complete.
D. 
Following completion of the decontamination the owner shall notify the department that the work is complete. The owner must provide written test results as evidence that the property is compliant with this Article. Sampling and testing must be done in accordance with the appropriate Sections of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Voluntary Guidelines for Methamphetamine and Fentanyl Laboratory Cleanup (Revised August 2021).
[R.O. 2011 § 500.760; Ord. No. 13-107 § 1, 5-22-2013]
After the property has been decontaminated and the department is in possession of evidence that the pertinent chemical levels are below the levels established for unsafe contamination by this Article, the structure will be considered safe and suitable for performance of a full inspection for an occupancy permit in accordance with the Property Maintenance Code. The fee for a post-decontamination inspection shall be forty dollars ($40.00). If utilities have been disconnected, the department shall notify the utility companies that the unsafe conditions have been mitigated and service can be restored. The property owner shall be responsible for any reconnection fees.