[Adopted 4-9-1990 by Ord. No. 428 (Ch. 20, Part 1, of the
1981 Code of Ordinances)]
This article shall be known and referred to as the "Solid Waste
Ordinance."
A.
ACT 97
ACT 101
BULKY WASTE
COMMERCIAL ESTABLISHMENT
CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION WASTE
DISPOSAL
DOMESTIC WASTE or HOUSEHOLD WASTE
GARBAGE
HAULER or PRIVATE COLLECTOR
INDUSTRIAL ESTABLISHMENT
INSTITUTIONAL ESTABLISHMENT
MUNICIPALITY
MUNICIPAL WASTE
OCCUPIED DWELLING
PERSON
PROCESSING
RECYCLING
RECYCLING FACILITY
REFUSE
RESIDUAL WASTE
RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITY
RUBBISH
SCAVENGING
SEWAGE TREATMENT RESIDUES
SOLID WASTE
SOURCE-SEPARATED RECYCLABLE MATERIALS
STORAGE
TRANSFER STATION
The following words and phrases as used in this article shall have
the meaning ascribed herein, unless the context clearly indicates
a different meaning:
The Pennsylvania Solid Waste Management Act of 1980 (P.L.
380, No. 97, July 7, 1980).[1]
The Pennsylvania Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and
Waste Reduction Act (SB 528, Act 1988-101, July 1988).[2]
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 their size, shape, or weight.
Any establishment engaged in nonmanufacturing or nonprocessing
business, including, but not limited to, stores, markets, office buildings,
restaurants, shopping centers and theaters.
Solid waste resulting from the construction or demolition
of buildings and other structures, including, but not limited to,
wood, plaster, metals, asphaltic substances, bricks, block and unsegregated
concrete. The term does not include the following if they are separate
from other waste and are used as clean fill:
The deposition, injection, dumping, spilling, 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 to the waters of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
Solid waste, comprised of garbage and rubbish, which normally
originates in the residential private household or apartment house.
Any solid waste derived from animal, grain, fruit, or vegetable
matter that is capable of being decomposed by microorganisms with
sufficient rapidity to cause such nuisances as odors, gases, or vectors.
Any person, firm, copartnership, association or corporation
who has been contracted with by the municipality or its designated
representative to collect, transport, and dispose of refuse for a
fee as herein prescribed.[3]
Any establishment engaged in manufacturing or processing,
including, but not limited to, factories, foundries, mills, processing
plants, refineries, mines and slaughterhouses.
Any establishment engaged in service, including, but not
limited to, hospitals, nursing homes, orphanages, schools and universities.
Peters Township, Washington County, Pennsylvania.
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 water
supply treatment plant, wastewater treatment plant, or air pollution
control facility. The term does not include source-separated recyclable
materials.
A permanent building or fixed mobile home that is currently
being used on a regular or temporary basis for human habitation.
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 provisions
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 other legal entity having
officers and directors.
Any technology used for the purpose of reducing the volume
or bulk of municipal or residual waste or any technology used to convert
part or all of such waste materials for off-site reuse. Processing
facilities include, but are not limited to, transfer facilities, composting
facilities, and resource recovery facilities.
The collection, separation, recovery and sale or reuse of
metals, glass, paper, leaf waste, plastics and other materials which
would otherwise be disposed or processed as municipal waste, or the
mechanical separation and treatment of municipal waste (other than
through combustion) and creation and recovery of reusable materials
other than a fuel for the operation of energy.
A facility employing a technology that is a process that
separates or classifies municipal waste and creates or recovers reusable
materials that can be sold to or reused by a manufacturer as a substitute
for or a supplement to virgin raw materials. The term recycling facility
shall not mean transfer stations or landfills for solid waste nor
composting facilities or resource recovery facilities.
Solid waste materials which are discarded as useless.
Any garbage, refuse, other discarded material or other waste
including solid, liquid, semisolid, or contained gaseous materials
resulting from industrial, mining and agricultural operations and
any sludge from an industrial, mining or agricultural water supply
treatment facility, wastewater treatment facility or air pollution
control facility, provided that it is not hazardous. The term "residual
waste" shall not include coal refuse as defined in the "Coal Refuse
Disposal Control Act."[4] Residual waste shall not include treatment sludges from
coal mine drainage treatment plants, disposal of which is being carried
on pursuant to and in compliance with a valid permit issued pursuant
to the Act of June 22, 1937 (P.L. 1987, No. 394) known as the "Clean
Streams Law."[5]
A processing facility that provides for the extraction and
utilization of materials or energy from municipal waste that is generated
off site, including, but not limited to, a facility that mechanically
extracts materials from municipal waste, a combustion facility that
converts the organic fraction of municipal waste to usable energy,
and any chemical and biological process that converts municipal waste
into a fuel product.
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.
The unauthorized and uncontrolled removal of material placed
for collection or from a solid waste processing or disposal facility.
Any coarse screenings, grit and dewatered or air-dried sludges
from sewage treatment plants and pumpings from septic tanks or septage
which are a municipal solid waste and require proper disposal under
Act 97.
Any waste, including, but not limited to, municipal, residual
or hazardous wastes, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained
gaseous material.
Materials that are separated from municipal waste at the
point of origin for the purpose of recycling.
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 constitutes
disposal. This presumption can be overcome by clear and convincing
evidence to the contrary.
Any supplemental transportation facility used as an adjunct
to solid waste route collection vehicles.
B.
In this article, the singular shall include the plural and the masculine
shall include the feminine and the neuter.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to accumulate or permit to accumulate
upon any public or private property within the municipality, any garbage,
rubbish, bulky waste, or any other municipal or residual solid waste
except in accordance with the provisions of this article, and any
rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101 by the
Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
B.
It shall be unlawful for any person to dispose of any solid waste
in the municipality except in accordance with the provisions of this
article and any rules and regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and
Act 101 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
C.
It shall be unlawful for any person to haul, transport, collect,
or remove any solid waste from public or private property within the
municipality without first securing permission to do so in accordance
with the provisions of this article.
D.
It shall be unlawful for any person to scavenge any materials from
any solid waste that is stored or deposited for collection within
the municipality.
E.
It shall be unlawful for any person to salvage or reclaim any solid
wastes within the municipality except at an approved and permitted
resource recovery facility under any rules and regulations adopted
pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101 by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
F.
It shall be unlawful for any person to throw, place or deposit, or
cause or permit to be thrown, placed or deposited any solid waste
in or upon any street, alley, sidewalk, body of water, public or private
property within the municipality except as provided in this article.
A.
The storage of all solid waste shall be practiced so as to prevent
the attraction, harborage 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. All waste materials
shall be placed and stored in approved containers.
C.
Any person storing municipal waste for collection shall comply with
the following preparation standards:
(1)
All municipal waste shall be drained of free liquids before being
placed in storage containers.
(2)
All garbage shall be securely wrapped in paper, plastic or similar
material or placed in properly tied plastic bags.
(3)
Garden clippings and tree trimming shall be placed in approved containers
or shall be cut and tied securely into bundles. Bundles shall be not
more than four feet in length, not more than two feet in diameter
and not more than 40 pounds in weight.
(4)
Newspapers and magazines shall be placed in approved containers or
shall be secured into bundles of not more than 40 pounds in weight.
(5)
When specified by the municipality or its designated representative,
special preparation and storage procedures may be required to facilitate
the collection and recycling of certain recyclable materials.
D.
Individual containers and bulk containers utilized for storage of
municipal waste shall comply with the following standards:
(1)
Reusable containers shall be constructed of durable, watertight,
rust- and corrosion-resistant material, such as plastic, metal or
fiberglass, in such a manner as to be leakproof, weatherproof, insect-proof,
and rodent-proof.
(2)
Reusable containers for individual residences shall have a tight-fitting
cover and suitable lifting handles to facilitate collection.
(3)
Reusable containers for individual residences shall have a capacity
of not less than 10 gallons nor more than 40 gallons. All reusable
containers purchased prior to July 1, 1990, up to 90 gallons, will
continue to be acceptable.
(4)
Disposable plastic bags are acceptable containers, provided the bags
are designated for waste disposal. Plastic bags shall have sufficient
wall strength to maintain physical integrity when lifted by the top,
shall be securely tied at the top for collection, and shall have a
capacity of not more than 40 gallons and a loaded weight of not more
than 40 pounds.
E.
Any person storing municipal waste for collection shall comply with
the following storage standards:
(1)
Containers shall be kept tightly sealed or covered at all times.
Solid waste shall not protrude or extend above the top of the container.
(2)
Reusable containers shall be kept in a sanitary condition at all
times. The interior of the containers shall be thoroughly cleaned,
rinsed, drained and disinfected, as often as necessary, to prevent
the accumulation of liquid residues or solids on the bottom or sides
of the containers.
(3)
Containers shall be used and maintained so as to prevent public nuisances.
(4)
Containers that do not conform to the standards of this article or
which have sharp edges, ragged edges or any other defect that may
hamper or injure collection personnel shall be promptly replaced by
the owner upon notice from the municipality or its designated representative.
(5)
Containers shall be placed by the owner or customer at a collection
point specified by the municipality or its designated representative.
(6)
With the exception of pickup days when the containers are placed
out for collection, the containers shall be properly stored on the
owner or customer premises at all times.
(7)
Bulk waste items such as furniture, automobile parts, machinery,
appliances, and tires shall be stored in a manner that will prevent
the accumulation or collection of water, the harborage of rodents,
safety hazards and fire hazards.
F.
The storage of all municipal waste from multifamily residential units,
commercial establishments, institutions and industrial lunchroom or
office waste sources is subject to the regulations and standards set
forth in this article. The type, size and placement requirements for
bulk containers shall be determined by the waste generator and the
waste hauler, and are subject to approval by the municipality.
A.
The municipality shall provide for the collection of all garbage,
rubbish and bulky wastes from individual owner-occupied residences
or condominium units and rental multifamily residential sources with
less than four units, or it may contract with a private collector
or collectors to provide residential solid waste collection service.
Collection shall not be provided for construction and demolition waste.
B.
All households shall utilize the residential collection service provided
by the municipality.
C.
All multifamily residential sources with more than four rental units,
commercial, institutional and industrial establishments shall negotiate
and individually contract collection service with the municipality's
collector or any other properly licensed waste hauler of their choice.
D.
All commercial, institutional, public and industrial lunchroom and
office waste containing garbage shall be collected at least once a
week. Rubbish collection from these sources shall be made as often
as necessary to control health hazards, odors, flies and unsightly
conditions. The municipality reserves the right to require more frequent
collection when deemed necessary.
E.
Residential collection schedules shall be published regularly by
the municipality or its contracted hauler.
F.
All solid waste collection activity shall be conducted from Monday
through Saturday between the hours of 6:00 a.m. and 6:00 p.m., unless
prior approval of any exception has been granted by the municipality.
No collection, hauling or transporting of solid waste shall be permitted
on Sunday.
G.
All licensed haulers and haulers under contract with the municipality
shall comply with the following standards and regulations:
(1)
All municipal waste collected within the municipality shall be conveyed
by the hauler to a transfer station, processing facility, or disposal
site approved by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
(2)
Any trucks or other vehicles used for the collection and transportation of municipal waste must comply with the requirements of Act 97 and Act 101 and any regulations adopted pursuant to Act 97 and Act 101, including the Title 25, Chapter 285, Subchapter B, Regulations for the Collection and Transportation of Municipal Waste.[1]
(3)
All collection vehicles conveying domestic waste and garbage shall
be watertight and suitably enclosed to prevent leakage, roadside littering,
attraction of vectors, the creation of odors and other nuisances.
(4)
Collection vehicles for rubbish shall be capable of being enclosed
or covered to prevent roadside litter and other nuisances.
(5)
All solid waste shall be collected and transported so as to prevent
public health hazards, safety hazards and nuisances.
(6)
All solid waste collection vehicles shall be operated and maintained
in a clean and sanitary condition.
A.
The rate of charges to each household dwelling for the collection
and disposal of solid wastes shall be in accordance with the agreement
between the municipality and contracted hauler.
A.
All appeals
shall be made in writing to the governing body of the municipality.
B.
Pending a reversal or modification, all decisions of the municipality
shall remain effective and enforceable.
D.
The notice of appeal shall be served in writing and sent by certified
mail with return receipt requested. Within 20 days after receipt of
the notice of appeal, the municipality shall hold a public hearing.
Notice of the hearing shall be sent to both parties in time to adequately
prepare for the hearing. Notice shall be sent to the parties by certified
mail with return receipt requested at the last known address in addition
to publication in the local newspaper.
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.
Any person who violates any provision of this article shall,
upon conviction, be guilty of a misdemeanor which is punishable by
a fine of not less than $100, nor more the $1,000, or in default of
payment of such fine, then by imprisonment for a period of not more
than 30 days, or both. Each day of violation shall be considered a
separate and distinct offense.
