[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
Apiaries may be located in all districts under the following conditions as defined and outlined throughout this Part.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
As used in this Section, all terms shall be defined in the manner set forth in §2102 of the Pennsylvania Bee Law, 3 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. §2102, as amended, unless a different definition is stated below or a different meaning clearly appears from the context:
Hybrids of European honeybees with African Honeybees that are aggressive compared to the European subspecies. Prohibited.
Any place where one or more colonies or nuclei of bees are kept.
Any stage of the common hive or honeybee (Apis mellifera) or other species of the genus Apis.
Any American or European foul brood, sac brood, bee paralysis or other disease or abnormal condition of eggs, larval, pupal or adult stages of the honeybee.
An owner of an apiary or a person who has charge of an apiary or one or more colonies of bees in the Township.
The policies, procedures, and methods contained in the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture’s Compliance Agreement for beekeepers.
An aggregate of bees consisting principally of workers, but having under optimal conditions one queen and drones.
The Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
A barrier composed of dense vegetation or a fence which direct the bees quickly into the sky.
Any frame hive, box hive, box, barrel, log, gum, skep or other receptacle or container, natural or artificial, or any part thereof, which may be used or employed by a beekeeper as a home for bees which are expected to establish a permanent nest.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
1.
Beekeepers must register all apiaries with the Department as required by the Pennsylvania Bee Law, 3 Pa. Cons. Stat. Ann. §2101 et seq., as amended.
2.
The Township recommends that beekeepers obtain best management certification from the Department and executing the Department’s compliance agreement for beekeepers.
3.
Beekeepers on nonowner occupied properties must have written permission from the property owner to own or maintain an apiary. Such written permission shall be supplied to the Township upon request.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
For property with a minimum of 2,000 square feet of lot area, a beekeeper is permitted to keep two hives. For every additional 2,000 square feet of lot area, the beekeeper is permitted two additional hives to a total of 10 hives in all.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
Beekeepers shall keep or maintain bees in a modern, removable frame hive which permits thorough examination of every comb to determine the presence of bee diseases.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
1.
Location of hives must comply with the following criteria:
A.
Hives shall not be located within 10 feet of any side or rear property line;
B.
Hives shall not be located within a front yard; and
C.
Hives shall not be located within 50 feet of a swimming pool or permanently kenneled animal.
D.
Hives may be located on porches or balconies that are at least 10 feet above grade.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
Hive entrances shall face away from neighboring property and in such a direction that bees fly across the beekeeper’s property at sufficient distance to gain a height of at least six feet at the property line. The use of barriers may be employed to redirect the bees’ flight pathway and establish bee flight pathways above six feet. Should the flight path not be able to be obtained as described above, then a “flyway barrier” shall be placed at least six feet in height, shall be placed along the side of the hive(s) that contains the entrance to the hive(s), shall be located within five feet of the hive(s), and shall extend at least two feet on either side of the hive(s). A “flyway barrier” shall consist of a solid fence, dense vegetation, dense hedge, or combination thereof. No flyway is required for hives that are located on porches or balconies.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
All beekeepers in the Township shall ensure that a convenient source of fresh water is available to the bees from April 1 through November 1 each year and is located closer to the apiary than any other water source.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
The Township recommends that all beekeepers owning or maintaining an apiary shall practice the best management practices as set forth by the Department.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
All beekeepers shall ensure that no bee comb or other materials are left upon the ground of the apiary site. Upon removal from the apiary, all such materials shall promptly be disposed of in a sealed container or placed within a building or other beeproof enclosure.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
1.
It shall be unlawful for any beekeeper to keep any hive in such a manner as to cause any unhealthy condition, interfere with the normal use and enjoyment of human or animal life, or interfere with the normal use and enjoyment of the properties surrounding the property on which the bees are kept. The Township, with the guidance of an experienced beekeeper or apiary inspector, may seize and relocate or destroy the hives or bee receptacles that are a public nuisance pursuant to this Part without remuneration to the beekeeper. By way of example and not of limitation, the following activities are hereby declared to be a public nuisance and are, therefore, unlawful:
A.
Multiple instances of bees stinging, or attacking individuals, pedestrians, bicyclists, motor vehicle passengers, or domestic animals;
C.
Hive placement and related bee movement such that the bees, without provocation, interfere with the freedom of movement of persons in a public rightof-way, or the location of bees pose a threat to the general safety, health, and welfare of the general public; and
D.
The keeping of overcrowded, bee diseased or abandoned hives.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
Africanized Honeybees may not be kept on any property in the Township.
[Ord. 649, 6/6/2016]
The sale of honey must comply with State and Federal laws and regulations.