[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Council of the Town of Wethersfield
as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 2-20-2018]
The purpose of this article is to protect, preserve and promote
public health, safety and welfare and the environment by prohibiting
within the Town of Wethersfield natural gas waste and oil waste from
natural gas extraction activities or oil extraction activities pursuant
to Section 7-148 of the Connecticut General Statutes.
For the purposes of this article, the following words, terms
and phrases shall have the meanings respectively ascribed to them
by this section, except where the context clearly indicates a different
meaning:
The physical act of placing or spreading natural gas waste
or oil waste on any road or real property located within the Town
of Wethersfield.
The fracturing of underground rock formations, including
shale and nonshale formations, by man-made fluid-driven techniques
for the purpose of stimulating oil, natural gas, or other subsurface
hydrocarbon production.
All geologic or geophysical activities related to the exploration
for or extraction of natural gas, including, but not limited to, core
and rotary drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
Any liquid or solid waste or its constituents that is generated
as a result of natural gas extraction activities, which may consist
of water, brine, chemicals, naturally occurring radioactive materials,
heavy metals, or other contaminants;
Leachate from solid wastes associated with natural gas extraction
activities;
Any waste that is generated as a result of or in association
with the underground storage of natural gas;
Any waste that is generated as a result of or in association
with liquefied petroleum gas well storage operations; and
Any products or by-products resulting from the treatment, processing,
or modification of any of the above wastes.
All geologic or geophysical activities related to the exploration
for or extraction of oil, including, but not limited to, core and
rotary drilling and hydraulic fracturing.
Any liquid or solid waste or its constituents that is generated
as a result of oil extraction activities, which may consist of water,
brine, chemicals, naturally occurring radioactive materials, heavy
metals, or other contaminants;
Leachate from solid wastes associated with oil extraction activities;
and
Any products or by-products resulting from the treatment, processing,
or modification of any of the above wastes.
A.Â
The application for any purpose of natural gas waste or oil waste,
whether or not such waste has received beneficial use determination
or other approval for use by DEEP (Department of Energy and Environmental
Protection) or any other regulatory body, on any road or real property
located within the Town is prohibited.
B.Â
The introduction of natural gas waste or oil waste into any wastewater
treatment facility within or operated by the Town is prohibited.
C.Â
The introduction of natural gas waste or oil waste into any solid
waste management facility within or operated by the Town is prohibited.
D.Â
The storage, disposal, sale, acquisition, handling, transfer, treatment
and/or processing of natural gas waste or oil waste from natural gas
extraction activities or oil extraction activities is prohibited within
the Town.
A.Â
All bids, contracts, or purchase orders related to the retention
of services to construct or maintain any publicly owned and/or maintained
road or real property within the Town shall include a provision stating
that no materials containing natural gas waste or oil waste shall
be utilized in providing such a service.
B.Â
All bids, contracts, or purchase orders related to the purchase or
acquisition of materials to be used to construct or maintain any publicly
owned and/or maintained road or real property within the Town shall
include a provision stating that no materials containing natural gas
waste or oil waste shall be provided to the Town.
C.Â
The following statement, which shall be a sworn statement under penalty
of perjury, shall be included in all bids, contracts, or purchase
orders related to the purchase or acquisition of materials to be used
to construct or maintain any publicly owned and/or maintained road
or real property within the Town and all bids, contracts, or purchase
orders related to the retention of services to construct or maintain
any publicly owned and/or maintained road or real property within
the Town.
"We __________ hereby submit a (bid, contract, or purchase order)
for materials, equipment and/or labor for the Town of Wethersfield.
The (bid, contract, or purchase order) for (project). We hereby certify
under penalty or perjury that no natural gas waste or oil waste will
be used by the undersigned bidder or any contractor, or subcontractor,
agent or vendor agent in connection with the bid, contract, or purchase
order; nor will the undersigned bidder or any contractor or subcontractor,
agent or vendor agent thereof apply any natural gas waste or oil waste
to any road or real property within the Town of Wethersfield as a
result of the submittal of this (bid, contract, or purchase order)."
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Nothing in this article shall be interpreted to ban the transportation
of any product or by-product described herein on any roadway in or
through the Town.
In response to a violation of any provision of § 104-3 of this article, the Town may impose the following fines and penalties:
A.Â
A fine of $250 for each separate offense or violation. This provision may be enforced in accordance with the citation procedures of Section 7-152c of the General Statutes and Chapter 73 of the Wethersfield Code.
B.Â
The Town is also authorized to take any other action, or exercise
any other remedy or assess any other fines or penalties as may be
allowed or permitted at law or in equity.
C.Â
Any and all remedies shall be cumulative and two or more remedies
may be exercised at the same time.
A.Â
This article will expire on the date that regulations adopted by
the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
take effect if the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental
Protection regulations:
(2)Â
Regulate the activities enumerated in § 104-3 of this article, providing that:
(a)Â
Such wastes shall be subject to the state's hazardous waste
management regulations, as set forth in Sections 22a-449(c)-100 to
22a-449(c)-119, inclusive, and Section 22a-449(c)-11 of the regulations
of Connecticut state agencies;
(b)Â
Ensure that any radioactive materials that may be present in
wastes from hydraulic fracturing do not create or will not reasonably
be expected to create a source of pollution to the air, land or waters
of the state and do not otherwise pose a threat to the human health
or the environment of this state; and
(3)Â
Require disclosure of the composition of the waste from hydraulic
fracturing.
The provisions of this article are hereby declared to be severable.
If any clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part of
this article or the application thereof to any person, individual,
corporation, firm, partnership, entity or circumstance shall be adjudged
by any court of competent jurisdiction to be invalid or unconstitutional,
such order or judgment shall not affect, impair, effect or invalidate
the remainder of this article, but shall be confined in its operation
to the clause, sentence, paragraph, subdivision, section or part of
this article or in its application to the person, individual, corporation,
firm, partnership, entity or circumstance directly involved in the
controversy in which such order or judgment shall be rendered.
This article shall become effective 10 days after publication
in a newspaper having general circulation within the Town.