[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council of the Borough of
Albion 3-19-2015 by Ord. No. 01-2015. Amendments noted where applicable.]
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated, unless a different meaning clearly appears from
the context:
Any duct, pipe, stack, chimney or conduit which conducts
air contaminants into the open air.
All putrescible animal and vegetable matter resulting from
the handling, preparation, cooking and consumption of food.
Any individual, natural person, syndicate, association, partnership,
firm, corporation, institution, agency, authority, department, bureau
or other instrumentality of federal, state, local or regional government
or other entity recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties.
A person.
Garbage, rubbish, and trade waste.
Solids not considered to be highly flammable or explosive,
including, but not limited to: rags, old clothes, leather, rubber,
carpets, wood, excelsior, paper, ashes, furniture, tin cans, glass,
crockery, masonry and other similar materials.
The use of a grill, outdoor barbecue, fireplace or similar
device to cook food with charcoal or wood; or any other fire from
which the properties of combustion are emitted directly into the air
without first passing through a structural flue, stack or chimney
(except through a small integral flue, chimney or stack built into
a freestanding grill or residential chiminea-type device using only
such materials as authorized hereunder and otherwise complying with
this chapter) and conducted in such location, conditions, and in a
manner which contributes only a negligible amount of air contaminants.
"Smoldering" has the same meaning as "burning," and any smoldering
shall be deemed a burning.
All solid or liquid material or rubbish resulting from construction,
building operation or the prosecution of any business, trade or industry,
including, but not limited to: plastic products, cartons, paint, grease,
oil and other petroleum products, chemicals, cinders and other forms
of solid or liquid waste materials, provided that trade waste shall
not include any coal refuse associated with the mining or preparation
of coal.
Leaves, tree trimmings, garden residue and other property
vegetative material.
A.
From and after the effective date of this chapter, no person shall
burn any materials of any kind in the Borough, except as authorized
by this chapter.
B.
A fire set for purposes of burning that amount of yard waste generated
from the premises of a structure occupied solely as a dwelling by
two families or fewer, when the fire is on the premises of said structure,
shall comply with all sections of this chapter. Persons burning such
waste shall have a supply of water available through a hose or other
extinguisher at the site of such fire for purposes of extinguishing
said fire if it should become necessary.
A.
Subject to rules, regulations, and limitations contained in this
chapter, an adult property owner or other adult authorized by the
property owner may conduct or allow a small open fire on his or her
property, solely for the following purposes:
B.
Burning of small open fires will be permitted from 7:00 a.m. to 7:00
p.m. from Monday through Thursday. Friday, Saturday, and Sunday burning
will be permitted from 7:00 a.m. through 2:00 a.m. Burning on Memorial
Day, the Fourth of July, and Labor Day will be permitted from 7:00
a.m. through 2:00 a.m.
A.
Permitted receptacles/containers.
(1)
Open fires. All other small open fires authorized under this chapter
must be contained within one of the following authorized containments:
in a grill, barbecue, fireplace, chiminea, stone perimeter, noncombustible
fire ring, or in a firepit no larger than six feet in diameter.
B.
Permitted locations.
(1)
Portable grills/barbecues, with the exception of propane or natural-gas-burning
grills, designed for and used strictly for cooking only shall, while
in use, be no less than five feet from a house, a structure, combustible
materials, a roadway, a utility, or a property line.
(2)
Permanently constructed (nonportable) outdoor stoves, ovens, grills,
barbecues and fireplaces, with the exception of propane or natural-gas-burning
grills, used for cooking only shall be no less than five feet from
a house, structure, roadway, property line, utility, tree, or other
combustible materials.
(3)
Other small open fires shall be maintained only in an authorized
containment which, unless otherwise approved by the Fire Marshal or
Fire Chief, shall be located not less than 10 feet from the nearest
house, structure, roadway, property line, utility, tree, or other
combustible materials.
C.
Permitted and prohibited materials.
(1)
Permitted materials. All open fires authorized by this chapter shall
be conducted using only charcoal, natural gas, or other clean-burning
fuel; dry, clean logs; twigs; or other untreated wood products. Only
smokeless fuels, or small kindling, if any, may be used to start a
fire.
(2)
Prohibited materials. The use of any material(s) to start or maintain a fire other than those specifically permitted under Subsection C(1) hereof, including but not limited to any of the following materials, is strictly prohibited: no paints; painted or chemically treated woods; railroad ties; telephone poles; plastics; cardboard boxes; paper or paper products; garbage or any other household or residential wastes; construction waste or demolition/salvage debris; commercial or industrial materials or waste; oil, grease, gasoline, asphalt products, or any other petroleum products; rubber; tires; tar or tar paper; dead animals; animal or human waste; pathogenic waste; insulated wire; or toxic or noxious materials.
D.
Maximum size. In all cases, the fire shall be of such size that the
combustible material and flame are contained completely within the
perimeter of the authorized containment receptacle.
E.
No excessive smoke, odors or malodorous emissions. No persons shall
allow or maintain a fire which creates excessive smoke, excessive
odor, or malodorous emissions. Smoke and odors shall be considered
excessive if they contribute more than a negligible amount of air
contaminants perceptible beyond the property line of the source of
the fire.
F.
Adult supervision, control, and extinguishment. Only an adult property
owner or other adult authorized by the property owner shall authorize
or conduct a small open fire. The adult property owner or other adult
authorized by the property owner to conduct such a fire shall at all
times be present at and shall tend to the fire from the time it is
lit through the time of total extinguishment. Adequate means to control
and extinguish the open fire shall be readily available at all times
during any burning. Suitable covering or means of disposal of ashes
shall be provided to prevent them from becoming airborne. The adult
property owner or other authorized person supervising the fire shall
be responsible to assure that all aspects of the fire comply with
this chapter and shall assure that the fire is completely extinguished
before that person leaves the site. Immediately upon the discovery
of any unauthorized or noncompliant fire or burning, the property
owner or other person responsible for the property on which such burning
occurs shall immediately extinguish, or cause the extinguishment of,
such burning. Proof that the defendant in any enforcement action owns
or controls the property on which open burning occurs shall be prima
facie evidence that such person has conducted, or allowed to be conducted,
such open burning.
A police officer, or other duly authorized law or code enforcement
officer of the Borough of Albion, may, upon investigation, order that
any fire be immediately extinguished, abated, diminished, or corrected
(in his or her sole discretion) if, in the officer's sole judgment,
the fire:
A.
Is emitting excessive smoke, excessive odor, or malodorous emissions;
B.
Contains prohibited materials or is using a prohibited or inadequate
containment device or mechanism;
C.
Is in a prohibited location or of a prohibited size;
D.
Is emitting sparks or hot ashes that may pose a threat to nearby
structures, trees, other combustible materials, or to the safety of
persons or property;
E.
Where its size, materials, containment, location, emissions, proximity
to structures, trees, other combustible materials, conduct of participants,
weather conditions (including but not limited to wind, drought, dry
or other conditions) or air quality, or other circumstances are such
that continuation of the fire poses a risk of harm to persons or property,
or a public attractive nuisance;
F.
Where a complaint of noise has been made.
A.
No person, firm or corporation shall permit, authorize, conduct,
or participate in the burning of any open fire except in compliance
with this chapter.
B.
No person, firm or corporation shall refuse to comply immediately
and fully with any order of an Albion Borough police officer, or other
duly authorized law enforcement officer or code official, to contain,
control, correct, or extinguish any fire or burning due to drought
or burning ban during such period.
It shall be unlawful to burn or cause to be burned any rubbish,
refuse, or other waste materials in the Borough; unlawful to burn
or cause to be burned any rubbish, refuse or other waste material
upon any private property, including private roadways or drives, at
any time in the Borough.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision
of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than the greater of $25 to $1,000 or the maximum
amount per offense permitted under law, plus costs, and, in default
of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to
exceed 30 days. Each violation of any provision of this chapter shall
constitute a separate offense. In addition, in any civil enforcement
action brought by the Borough to collect unpaid fines or penalties
imposed pursuant to this chapter, the Borough shall also be entitled
to collect all costs, expenses, and attorneys' fees associated
with such action. Residents will be given a one-time warning.
This chapter shall take effect March 19, 2015.
