[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Supervisors of the Township
of Charleston as indicated in article histories. Amendments noted
where applicable.]
[Adopted 10-1-1980 by Ord. No. 111]
A.
COMBUSTIBLE REFUSE
GARBAGE
HAULER
INCOMBUSTIBLE REFUSE
INDUSTRIAL WASTE
PERSON
REFUSE
RIFFRAFF
RUBBISH
TOWNSHIP
The following words and terms as used in this article shall have
the meanings ascribed thereto, unless the context clearly indicates
a different meaning:
All paper, straw, excelsior, rags, rubber, shoes and such
other refuse as may result from ordinary housekeeping or commercial
pursuits and which may be burned by fire.
All table refuse, animal and vegetable matter, offal from
meat, fish and fowls, vegetables and fruits and parts thereof, and
other articles and materials ordinarily used for food and which have
become unfit for such use for which reason they are discarded.
Any person, firm, copartnership, association or corporation
who has been licensed by the Township to collect, transport and dispose
of refuse for a fee as herein prescribed.
All discarded articles or materials, except sewage, liquid
waste, garbage and combustible refuse.
All materials and refuse as may result from manufacturing
and industrial activities but not including liquids of a poisonous
or nuclear nature.
Any natural person, association, partnership, firm or corporation.
All combustible refuse and incombustible refuse referred
to collectively.
All waste materials too large for collection in the ordinary
containers, such as furniture, tanks, stoves and the like.
All miscellaneous waste material not otherwise included herein
such as ashes, tin cans, glass, pottery, prunings from vines and junk
of all kinds resulting from the ordinary conduct of business or housekeeping.
The Township of Charleston, Tioga County, Pennsylvania.
B.
In this article, the singular shall include the plural and the masculine
shall include the feminine and the neuter.
From and after the effective date of this article, and for reasons
of health and sanitation, it shall be unlawful for any person to accumulate
or permit to accumulate upon private property in the said Township,
garbage, refuse, riffraff and combustible or incombustible refuse
or rubbish.
It shall be unlawful for any person to dispose of any refuse,
garbage, rubbish or riffraff in said Township except in accordance
with the terms of this article.
It shall be unlawful for any person to haul, transport, collect,
remove and dispose of garbage, refuse, rubbish or riffraff over the
streets and alleys of the said Township without first securing a license
to do so. The Township, upon application and after investigation,
as the Township shall deem necessary, may issue a license to a hauler
for a period of one year. The fee for such license shall be the sum
of $100 per year. Any person desiring to secure a license shall present
a written application thereof to the Township Secretary and such license
shall be issued only after proper action by the Township Supervisors
after due and proper investigation into the terms of service set forth
in a proper application for a certificate of public convenience and
necessity. In order to promote the health and welfare of the Township,
and to control the hauling of garbage, rubbish, refuse and riffraff,
the Township Supervisors reserve the right to limit the number of
licenses issued in accordance with the terms of this article.
Any license issued pursuant to the provisions of this article
shall be revocable by the Township Supervisors upon failure of the
licensee to comply with any of the provisions of this article, or
to the terms of the agreement entered into between the Township and
the hauler, or any of the regulations of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,
Department of Health, Department of Environmental Protection, or any
other government agency having jurisdiction, relating to the collection
and disposition of garbage, rubbish, riffraff and other refuse material.
Before any license is issued to any hauler, the hauler must:
A.
Submit an application accompanied by the fee for a license;
B.
Secure at his expense a performance bond with surety to be approved
by the Township Solicitor in the amount of at least $10,000; and
C.
Provide the Township with certificates of public liability insurance
in an amount of not less than $100,000, and property damage insurance
in an amount of not less than $50,000.
A.
Rates for service shall be fixed by the Board of Supervisors or an
appropriate Rate Committee appointed by the Supervisors, and said
rates shall be based upon a rate base as fixed under Pennsylvania
Public Utility Regulation, together with operating expenses, and provide
for a rate of return to the operator fixed in the manner of rates
for other public utilities.
B.
Where rates of a licensed hauler are based on or include fees for
use of a land fill in this county, rate jurisdiction shall extend
to the rates as quoted by said land fill, and may be altered in fixing
the allowance to be collected by licensed haulers in this Township.
All agreements for the removal and collection of rubbish, garbage,
refuse or riffraff shall be by private contract between the individual
citizen and the hauler licensed for the purpose of collecting, removing,
hauling and disposing of such rubbish, garbage, refuse material and
riffraff; provided, however, that the rate to be charged for collecting
and hauling such garbage, rubbish, refuse material and riffraff shall
not exceed the following schedule of fees.
B.
Commercial rates. To be negotiated during the first year.[1]
(1)
$ _____ Dollars per year per commercial establishment for a maximum
of three thirty-gallon cans, or its equivalent, per week.
(2)
An additional fee of _____ per can for each can in excess of three
thirty-gallon cans per week.
(3)
In the event any commercial customer desires more than one weekly
pickup, this will be by private contract between the hauler and the
commercial establishment.
[1]
Editor's Note: So in original.
C.
Industrial rates. To be negotiated during the first year. These shall
be fixed in such a manner that revenues from such contracts will be
beneficial in fixing domestic rates.
D.
Miscellaneous charges.
(1)
Rates for hauling riffraff will be established between the hauler
and the customer on a fair and equitable basis. The charge is subject
to review by the Township Supervisors.
(2)
Minimum charges are not established by this article.
(3)
Heavy materials such as apples, ashes, concrete, or the like must
be put in containers of not more than one bu. capacity.
E.
Change of rates. The rates herein set forth are subject to change
under the authority of and after review by the Board of Supervisors
at the end of each contract year.
All licensed haulers will be required to comply with the following
regulations:
A.
Any licensed haulers will be responsible for providing refuse collection
to any one in the Township requesting such service;
B.
All licensed haulers shall provide pickups once weekly, during the
twelve-month period of any contract entered into under this article,
of refuse, garbage, rubbish and riffraff from publicly operated buildings
or recreational areas;
C.
Collections from residences must be made at least once a week. Collections
from commercial and industrial establishments must be made as often
as necessary to control health hazards, flies, odors and unsightly
appearances;
D.
Haulers must furnish the customer and the Township Supervisors with
a collection schedule;
E.
Collection of garbage, rubbish, riffraff and other refuse materials
may be made between 5:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., with the following exceptions
when no collections will be made: Sundays, New Year's Day, Memorial
Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Veterans' Day, Thanksgiving Day
and Christmas Day;
F.
Haulers must furnish the Township with a certified list of each of
his customers and the charge being levied each customer. The list
must be in alphabetical order and kept current quarterly;
G.
Haulers must furnish to the Township the phone number and hours during
which the hauler may be contacted;
H.
Trucks or other vehicles used for the transportation of garbage,
rubbish, riffraff and other refuse material shall be of the compactor
type, watertight with an enclosed cargo space. No truck shall be permitted
to scatter any of the contents on any of the streets, highways, or
alleys of the Township. Trucks used to haul garbage, rubbish and other
refuse materials must be maintained in a clean and sanitary condition
so as to be free from any unsanitary conditions or odors and so as
to present a satisfactory outward appearance and shall meet all of
the requirements of the Township Supervisors and the Departments of
Health and Environmental Protection of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.
The trucks may be inspected at any time by members of the Board of
Supervisors, or their appointees, or members of the Townships Board
of Health. Any deficiency must be corrected immediately by the hauler.
The hauler shall maintain his equipment in such a condition as to
be able to maintain his collections schedule.
In order to end the objectionable practice of littering the
countryside with rubbish and in order to eliminate the problem of
health and sanitation due to improper dumping and disposition of garbage,
rubbish, riffraff and other refuse materials, it shall be unlawful
for any hauler licensed to collect and dispose of garbage, rubbish,
riffraff and other refuse materials in said Township to dispose of
said garbage, rubbish riffraff and other refuse materials at any other
place than in a dumping or disposal area which has been approved and
designated by the Township Supervisors. The Township Supervisors will
designate to each hauler, in writing, the place where the garbage,
rubbish, refuse and riffraff collected in the Township shall be disposed
of. The cost of disposal which the Township will be required to pay
must be borne by the hauler, and the hauler must pay such disposal
charge to the Township one month in advance.
A.
Each person who contracts with the licensed hauler to collect and
dispose of his garbage shall prepare the same as follows:
B.
All garbage shall be drained of liquid in so far as practical, and
shall be placed in sanitary covered containers made of nonabsorbent
material, provided with closely fitting covers. The same shall not
exceed 30 gallons in size and shall be of rust-resistant material.
C.
The cans shall be furnished and kept clean by the customer and shall
be replaced by such customer when no longer in good condition. All
refuse which cannot be disposed of in containers shall be assembled,
boxed or bundled separately in such a way that it can be handled conveniently
and will not be disseminated by wind, or otherwise, while awaiting
collection. All refuse, except riffraff, shall be of units which can
be handled by one person and shall be placed in containers or piled
and assembled in such a way as to facilitate collection. The same
shall be placed at curb-side of the public street, thoroughfare, accessway
or alleyway where the hauler's vehicle will park to pick up the garbage,
refuse, riffraff and other materials to be collected or disposed of.
No person, firm or corporation shall use or permit to be used
any spot or place within the Township as a public or private dump
for garbage, refuse, riffraff, rubbish or other waste material. Any
person within the Township desiring to burn his own garbage, rubbish,
refuse, riffraff or other materials, and his only, upon private ground
must do so according to the requirements of the Pennsylvania Departments
of Health and Environmental Protection; and in no event shall be permitted
to dispose of his own garbage, rubbish, riffraff or other refuse materials
on his own private property unless the total acreage of the property
being used under his ownership or control is of a size of 10 acres
or larger.
Each private customer of the licensed hauler shall pay the prescribed
fee to the hauler in advance at the beginning of each month or at
his option, at the beginning of each year, if he desires to pay annually.
No garbage, refuse, rubbish, or riffraff shall be collected from any
premises where the owners, occupiers or lessees are in arrears for
a period of 10 days. Fermenting, putrefying or odoriferous garbage,
refuse, riffraff or rubbish in containers, collected or dumped in
the open due to failure to pay collection fees, is hereby declared
to be a nuisance.
No person shall accumulate garbage, rubbish, riffraff, refuse
or other waste materials upon private property in the Township except
in such limited quantities and for such limited periods of time as
shall ensure that no annoyance, nuisance, health or fire hazard shall
be created thereby, and any unauthorized accumulation of garbage,
rubbish, riffraff or refuse on any premises is hereby declared to
be a nuisance and is prohibited. Failure to remove any existing accumulation
of garbage, rubbish, riffraff and other refuse materials within 30
days after the effective date of this article shall be deemed a violation
of this section of this article.
The collection of garbage, rubbish, riffraff or other refuse
material in the Township and the disposal thereof shall be subject
to such reasonable rules and regulations as may from time to time
be promulgated by the Township Supervisors; provided, however, that
all such rules and regulations shall not be contrary to the provisions
of this article. Licensed haulers may be requested to attend meetings
of the Supervisors, or their appointees, or of the Board of Health,
of Township residents aggrieved by any of the provisions of this article.
In the matter of disagreement between a licensed hauler and a customer,
or between the haulers themselves, or the haulers and the Township,
the Township Supervisors, or their appointees, shall attempt to resolve
such difficulties and any disagreements and make decisions relative
thereto. In matters involving a disagreement between a customer and
the licensed hauler, which has not been resolved by action of the
Supervisors, either the customer or the hauler shall have the right
to elect to go to arbitration of said difference, and the Board of
Arbitration shall consist of one arbitrator selected by the hauler,
one by the customer, and the two arbitrators so selected, shall select
a third. The Board of Arbitrators, so selected, shall promptly inquire
into the area of disagreement. In the event the Supervisors elect
not to refer the disagreement to arbitration, then the decision of
the Supervisors in any such disagreement shall be final. Any aggrieved
person shall have the right of appeal against any regulations or decisions
made by the Township Supervisors pursuant to the terms of this article,
or any of the regulations promulgated hereby.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any person who shall violate or fail to comply with any of the
provisions of this article shall, upon conviction thereof in a summary
proceeding before a Magisterial District Judge, be sentenced to pay
a fine of not more than $600, plus all court costs, including reasonable
attorneys' fees, incurred by the Township in the enforcement of this
article. If the defendant neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment,
the Township may enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules
of Civil Procedure. Each day a violation exists shall constitute a
separate offense. Further, the appropriate officers or agents of the
Township are hereby authorized to seek equitable relief, including
injunction, to enforce compliance herewith.
If any sentence, clause or section or part of this article is
for any reason found to be unconstitutional, illegal or invalid, such
unconstitutionality, illegality or invalidity shall not affect or
impair any of the remaining provisions, sentences, clauses or sections
or parts of this article. It is hereby declared as the intent of the
Township that this article would have been adopted had such unconstitutional,
illegal or invalid sentence, clause, section or part thereof, not
been included herein.
