[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough
of Neptune City 12-9-1991 by Ord.
No. 1991-18. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings hereinafter prescribed:
Include the Borough of Neptune City's employees, agents,
officers, officials and supporting units as directed by the Office
of Emergency Management.
Hereunder shall be the Borough of Neptune City.
Any intentional or unintentional action or omission resulting
in the releasing, spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying
or dumping of any hazardous substances into any waters which flow
within the jurisdiction of this borough or any land within the jurisdiction
of this borough.
Any items used to extinguish or prevent any hazardous material
fire, or stop or contain any leak, release or spill involving any
hazardous material, which cannot be reused or cannot be replenished
without cost after that particular incident. These expendable items
include, but are not limited to, fire fighting foam, chemical extinguishing
agents, absorbent materials, sand, recovery drums, and any protecting
equipment and clothing to include, but not restricted to, chemical
protective suits, chemical protective gloves, goggles, and any other
item owned or controlled by the Borough of Neptune City or United
Fire Company Number 1, Neptune City.
Any material, solid, liquid or gas, listed as such under
the NFPA Guide Book, the list of hazardous substances adopted by the
Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), pursuant to Section
311 of the Federal Water Pollution Control Amendment of 1972, as amended
by the Clean Water Act of 1977, and the list of toxic pollutants designated
by Congress or the EPA, pursuant to Section 307 of the Federal Water
Pollution Control Act, any hospital or medical waste, including but
not limited to, syringes, bandages, and discarded pharmaceutical products,
and any material warranting removal or cleanup in the opinion of the
Neptune City Office of Emergency Management.
Any motorized equipment, registered or unregistered, including,
but not limited to, a passenger car, motorcycle, truck, tractor trailer,
construction equipment, farm machinery, watercraft, aircraft and trains.
Any container, drum, box cylinder or tank used to hold or
contain or carry or store any hazardous materials, whether or not
said container was manufactured for the containment of hazardous materials.
This chapter provides for the reimbursement of any and all equipment
utilized by the Borough of Neptune City, for costs expended, without
regard to ownership, for the purposes of mitigating, controlling or
containing any incident in which a hazardous material is involved
in a fire, leak, release or spill, or where the potential thereof
exists, or for the prevention of same.
This chapter also provides for the reimbursement for the expenses
incurred by the borough for the wages (regular and overtime) paid
to its employees, agents, or servants as a result of an incident involving
a hazardous material, fire, leak, release, or spill of a hazardous
material and for the costs incurred by agents, servants and employees
of the borough.
This chapter also provides for a penalty for the violation of
the chapter for either committing a spill or for failure to report
same.
A.
The discharge of hazardous substances is prohibited. This section
shall not apply to discharge of hazardous substances pursuant to and
in compliance with the conditions of a federal or state permit.
B.
Any person who may be subject to liability for a discharge, or become
aware of a discharge which occurred prior to or after the effective
dates of this chapter shall immediately notify the Borough of Neptune
City Police Department or the Borough Clerk.
C.
Whenever any hazardous substance is discharged, the borough may in
its discretion act to remove or arrange for the removal of such discharge.
D.
Any person who has discharged a hazardous substance or who has failed
to report a discharge or who is in any way responsible for any hazardous
substance which has been or shall be removed by the borough, shall
be strictly liable jointly and severally, without regard to fault,
for all cleanup and removal costs and shall be liable for the wages
(regular and overtime) paid and the costs of medical and hospital
treatment for injuries incurred by the agents, servants and employees
of the borough.
Reimbursement to the borough for expendable items used shall
be made by the owner or operator of the vehicle responsible for the
hazardous material fire, leak, or spill of hazardous material; by
the owner or person responsible for the vessel containing the hazardous
material involved in such fire, leak or spill on public or private
property, whether stationary or in transit and whether accidental
or through negligence; by the owner or person responsible for any
property from which any leak or spill of hazardous material emanates,
whether accidental or through negligence; and by the person responsible
for the hazardous material fire, leak or spill of hazardous material
on public or private property, whether accidental or through negligence.
Any person causing any hazardous material fire, leak, spill
or release involving a hazardous material must provide for services
rendered by any recovery company, towing company or any other technical
assistance called for by the borough to handle such incident. In the
event of a vehicle having been responsible for an incident, such vehicle
shall be impounded until such time as it has been deemed safe to proceed
by the responsible official in conjunction and in cooperation with
the Borough of Neptune City, and until such time as arrangements have
been made to reimburse the borough and the towing company for their
expenditures under the terms of this chapter.
The person or entity responsible for any fire, leak or spill
of hazardous materials shall reimburse the borough the full price
of expendable items and costs used to extinguish such fire, or to
stop or contain such leak, or to control such spill, within 45 days
after the receipt of a bill therefor. The collecting agency shall
utilize its best efforts to collect costs hereunder and shall reimburse
its agents or the local units of amounts collected. In the event that
the collecting agency is not able to collect said costs or only a
portion thereof, the collecting agency shall not be responsible to
its agents or the local units for the full amount of same.
