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City of Rochester, NH
Strafford County
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Table of Contents
Table of Contents
[HISTORY: Adopted by the City of Rochester 6-6-1995 as Ch. 19 of the 1995 Code; amended 6-4-2005; 4-15-2008. Subsequent amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Building construction and property maintenance — See Ch. 40.
Health and sanitation — See Ch. 94.
Junk and secondhand dealers — See Ch. 110.
Nuisances — See Ch. 149.
The following definitions shall apply in the interpretation and enforcement of this chapter:
ACCEPTABLE CONSTRUCTION AND DEMOLITION DEBRIS
Any material generated from minor renovation or demolition activities on primary personal residences within the City. Debris generated at apartment or condominium units not used as primary personal residence of the taxpayer shall not be accepted for free. Residents must bring any material to the dropoff themselves. Letters of authorization on the owner's behalf brought to the dropoff by nonresidents will not be accepted, unless approved by the City's contracted solid waste management company (the City's waste collection contractor). Residents requesting approval must submit an application to the Department of Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services.
[Amended 10-15-2013; 3-5-2019]
BAGS
Specially marked bags (or stickers for bags up to 30 gallons in size) designed for refuse as approved by the City of Rochester Commissioner of Public Works. Bags (stickers) shall be sold by the City for waste that will not fit into the cart provided by the City's waste collection contractor for residential solid waste.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
BULKY WASTE
Any acceptable municipal solid waste that is not capable of being placed in an approved container. Said waste shall include such items as oversized furniture, carpeting, large metal items and appliances. Bulky wastes must be less than 200 pounds, capable of being collected by two people and of a dimension no larger than six feet by six feet by four feet. Bulky waste shall not include appliances that contain or once contained CFCs.
BUNDLE
Bulky waste materials securely tied together forming an easily handled package not exceeding four feet in length or 50 pounds in weight.
CFCS (CHLOROFLUOROCARBONS)
Refrigerants used in appliances such as dehumidifiers, water coolers, freezers, refrigerators, and air conditioners.
CITY
Refers to the City of Rochester, New Hampshire.
CONTRACTOR
The individual, firm, partnership, joint venture, corporation or association performing refuse collection and disposal under contract with the City.
DISPOSAL SITE
A refuse depository for the processing or final disposal of refuse, including but not limited to sanitary landfills, transfer stations, incinerators and waste processing separation centers, licensed, permitted or approved by all governmental bodies and agencies having jurisdiction.
DUMPSTER
A commercially designed large metal container for refuse that has a closable top lid(s) and/or side slide doors.
FOOD WASTES
Animal, vegetable or mineral matter derived from the preparation or packaging of foodstuffs.
GARBAGE
Putrescible animal or vegetable wastes resulting from the handling, preparation, cooking, serving or consumption of food and including food containers.
HAZARDOUS WASTE and UNACCEPTABLE WASTES
Wastes classified as hazardous under federal, state or local law, and/or waste the acceptance of which in the City's waste collection contractor's judgment would pose a nuisance or threat to human health or the environment, and/or waste that cannot be accepted under the City's waste collection contractor's waste acceptance policy (waste acceptance policy) as amended from time to time.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
HOUSEHOLD HAZARDOUS WASTE
Hazardous waste generated from noncommercial usage by persons in their residence.
MULTIFAMILY DWELLING
Any building or structure used and occupied for human habitation or intended to be so used which contains five or more suites of one or more rooms each suite having facilities for regular cooking. It also includes combinations of buildings upon a given property with five or more units.
NORMAL HOUSEHOLD ACTIVITIES
Any activity occurring at a household located within the City that may generate material that requires disposal, not including new home construction or demolition of primary personal residences.
PRIMARY PERSONAL RESIDENCE
A unit that a resident taxpayer claims as his/her residence for voting.
PUBLIC STREET
Refers to all streets and highways maintained by the City or state. Class VI and private roads are specifically excluded.
RECYCLABLE MATERIAL
Any material, including various glass, paper, cardboard, metal cans, plastics or other materials, that can be processed or treated at a Material Recovery Facility in order to produce reusable materials.
[Amended 7-2-2019]
REFUSE
Discarded waste materials in a solid or semi-liquid state, consisting of garbage, residential solid waste or a combination thereof.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
RESIDENCE
A dwelling unit such as a home, manufactured housing, or multifamily dwelling and condominium, but not including commercial establishments, businesses, hotels, motels or campgrounds, that is located within the City.
RESIDENTIAL DROPOFF CENTER
Facility located at TREE for City of Rochester residents to bring acceptable waste from normal household activities. Hours for residential dropoff center shall be publicized. Recycling is mandatory at the residential dropoff center.
RESIDENTIAL RECYCLING CART
A specifically designated wheeled container or cart distributed by the City's waste collection contractor to be used for the storage of acceptable recyclables in the automated collection process. No other receptacles will be permitted for collection by the City's waste collection contractor.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
RESIDENTIAL SOLID WASTE
All nonhazardous garbage, food wastes, and trash resulting from the normal household activities.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
RESIDENTIAL WASTE RECEPTACLE
The specifically provided or designated container distributed by the City's waste collection contractor. No other receptacles will be permitted.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
TRASH
Combustibles such as paper, wood, fabric, etc., and noncombustibles such as metal, glass, stone, dirt, sawdust, etc.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
SPECIAL WASTE
As defined in 40 CFR 240.101(z).
[Added 3-5-2019]
TREE
Turnkey Recycling and Environmental Enterprises facility located on Rochester Neck Road in the City of Rochester.
WHITE GOODS and SCRAP METAL
Materials include the following:
A. 
Light iron; a magnet will stick to it.
B. 
White goods: stoves, washers, dryers, etc.
C. 
Aluminum.
D. 
Metals with contaminants attached, including but not limited to bicycles, small motors with fluids drained, and small appliances that do not or have not contained CFCs.
E. 
Metal strapping.
YARD WASTE
Any soft leaf, grass, brush or vegetable wastes generated from residences within the City of Rochester. The City will operate semiannual roadside collections of leaves, brush, grass clippings and other yard wastes. The Commissioner of Public Works will announce the collection schedules. Brush shall be properly bundled as defined above.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
[Amended 3-5-2019]
No person, firm or corporation shall place any residential solid waste, cans, iron, wood, special or hazardous wastes, including but not limited to flammables, toxic or rubber dust, liquid or fecal waste, sludge, demolition materials, animals and animal parts, yard waste and other waste material upon or near a City street or highway for collection except in accordance with the following provisions of this chapter.
[Amended 3-5-2019; 7-2-2019]
The City of Rochester shall only collect residential solid waste on public streets or highways. For those properties served by streets other than public streets or highways, including but not limited to mobile home parks, condominiums, or streets not yet accepted by the City, residential solid waste shall not be placed curbside for collection unless agreed to by the Commissioner of Public Works or his/her designee and the City's waste collection contractor.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
No person, firm or corporation shall place or cause to be placed garbage, refuse or residential solid waste, yard waste, bulky waste or construction and demolition debris in or on private property unless authorized by the owner of the property and except in accordance with any applicable state law.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Residential solid waste collection will be made Monday through Friday of each week, except those weeks in which a holiday occurs, when a revised pickup schedule will be announced by the Commissioner of Public Works. Residents shall place their residential solid waste and recycling to be collected along the roadside or street side where normally the curbing would be no earlier than the evening before, or by 7:00 a.m. on their scheduled pickup day.
[Amended 3-5-2019; 7-2-2019]
All residential solid waste shall be placed in receptacles provided by the City's waste collection contractor, as defined under § 210-1. Residential solid waste that does not fit in the approved receptacle shall not be collected unless such waste is recyclable materials as defined in § 210-1 and placed at curbside as described in § 210-17.
The contractor shall not be required to collect solid waste unless it is in approved containers, as described in § 210-1 of this chapter.
[Amended 3-6-2018]
Except on the day scheduled for collection and during the time period provided in § 210-5 of this chapter, no person shall place or store any refuse in any street, alley or other public place or upon any private property within the City of Rochester unless such refuse is placed in proper containers/dumpsters.
It is prohibited to bring materials from outside of Rochester into the City of Rochester for disposal or recycling by the City.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Residential solid waste containers, once emptied, must be removed by the owner from the roadside within 24 hours. Any debris strewn from this residential solid waste by animals, wind, etc., will be cleaned up by the owner within 24 hours. Residential solid waste collection crews will be responsible for any debris they drop or spill on the ground and will clean it up before moving on to the next stop.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Acceptable construction and demolition debris as defined in § 210-1 may be brought to an approved residential dropoff center at no cost. Debris generated at apartment or condominium units not used as the primary personal residence of the taxpayer shall be charged the same fees as any other commercial user.
The owners of any multifamily dwelling as defined in § 210-1 of this chapter shall supply a dumpster or cart sufficient to provide storage for all solid waste generated within the multifamily dwelling. The owner is responsible for cost of collection.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Bulky waste, white goods and scrap metal as defined in § 210-1 may be placed at roadside for collection by the contractor. The schedule shall be as determined by the Department of Public Works and publicized.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Hazardous waste and unacceptable wastes, as defined in § 210-1, the definition of "hazardous waste and unacceptable wastes," will not be accepted for roadside pickup by the contractor.
[Amended 10-15-2013]
This chapter shall be enforced by the Police Department, the Public Works Department or the Department of Building, Zoning, and Licensing Services or their duly authorized agents.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Any person, firm or corporation found to be in violation of any provision of this chapter shall be guilty of a violation punishable by a civil penalty up to three thousand dollars ($3,000.).
[Amended 3-5-2019; 7-2-2019]
Recyclable material will be collected from residences (as defined by § 210-1) on the same day as residential solid waste collection. Recyclable material must be placed in the approved residential recycling receptacles (as defined by § 210-1). The approved residential recycling receptacles must be placed at the curbside on the evening before or by 7:00 a.m. on the scheduled pickup day. Unacceptable material found in the approved residential recycling receptacles will not be collected.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Rochester residents may purchase the City's approved bags (stickers) for residential solid waste to be brought to an authorized residential dropoff center. Recycling is mandatory at the residential dropoff center.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
Residential roadside collection of leaf and yard waste shall be scheduled in the spring and fall. The schedule shall be determined by the Public Works Department and shall be publicized. Such materials shall be placed in paper bags or bundled as defined in § 210-1 of this chapter.
[Amended 3-5-2019]
No person other than an agent of the City acting in the course of his/her employment shall collect or pick up or cause to be collected or picked up any recyclable material, as defined in § 210-1, placed at roadside.
Should any provision or section of this chapter be held invalid for any reason, such holding shall not be constructed as affecting the validity of the remaining provisions or sections.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: Original § 19.22, Savings clause, which immediately followed this section, was repealed 3-5-2019.