[Adopted 5-11-2023 by Ord. No. 2023-01]
It is recognized that honey bees are beneficial to humankind
and to Pennsylvania by providing both home garden and agricultural
pollination services as well as furnishing honey, beeswax, and other
useful products. The purpose of this article is to establish requirements
for beekeeping within the Township.
As used in this article, the following words and terms shall
have the meanings ascribed in this section unless the context of their
usage clearly indicates another meaning.
Any place where bees are kept by a beekeeper.
Hybrids of the African honey bee (Apis mellifera scutellate)
with various European Honey bees that are aggressive compared to the
European subspecies.
Any stage of honey bee (Apis mellifera) or other species
of the genus Apis.
Disease such as American or European foulbrood, sac brood,
bee paralysis, or other disease or abnormal condition of eggs larval,
pupal, or adult stages of the honey bee, or other actionable disease
as determined by the Department of Agriculture.
An aggregate of honey bees consisting of workers, drones,
and a queen.
Refers to the Springettsbury Township Department of Community
Development.
A barrier composed of dense vegetation or man-made materials
which directs bees quickly into the sky upon exiting the hive.
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 domicile
for bees which is expected to establish a permanent nest.
All life stages of the common domestic honey bee, Apis mellifera
species ("European" honey bee).
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 domicile
for bees which is expected to establish a temporary nest, used to
stem overwinter losses, mate or rear new queens, split production
hives to prevent swarming, create a colony for sale, or other similar
purposes not to exceed one standard nine-and-five-eighths-inch depth,
ten-frame hive body with no attached supers.
Springettsbury Township, County of York, Pennsylvania.
A.
Registration, certification and permits.
(1)
Registration with Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
(a)
No beekeeper may own or maintain an apiary within the Township
without first registering and providing to the Township a current
permit for all apiaries with the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture
Bureau of Plant Industry as required by the Pennsylvania Bee Law,
3 Pa.C.S.A. § 2101 et seq., as amended.
(b)
A beekeeper owning or maintaining an apiary in the Township
shall promptly notify the Township Department of Community Development
in writing, without unnecessary delay, and in no event longer than
72 hours, if the Department revokes said apiary registration or if
said registration has lapsed.
(2)
Registration with the Township.
(a)
No beekeeper shall own or maintain an apiary within the Township
without first obtaining a registration permit from the Township Department
of Community Development.
(b)
An application for a one-time registration permit shall be made
in writing and upon a supplied form or in such format as established
by the Township and shall grant explicit permission to the Township
or its designees to enter upon the property upon which the apiary
is to be located, with notice, to determine compliance with this article.
(c)
The application shall be accompanied by a plot plan that includes
the size of the lot, the location of and number of hives, the location
of the water source, the distance of the hives from any property lines,
and, if required, the location of any flyway barriers. The issuance
of a permit shall not obviate the necessity for compliance with all
other Township ordinances.
B.
Mandated education. The application for a Township permit shall also
be accompanied by written evidence that the applicant has completed
a beekeeping educational course/program with a minimum of eight hours
of instructions or has a letter of validation from an officer of the
PA State Beekeepers Association, an officer of a local bee club or
master beekeeper.
C.
Compliance with best management practices. The application for a
Township permit shall also be accompanied by a signed "Voluntary Best
Management Practices for Maintaining European Honey Bee Colonies in
the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania" prepared by the Pennsylvania Apiary
Advisory Board. Failure to comply with the written Best Management
Practices shall be grounds for the Township Code Enforcement Officer
to revoke the permit of the Township for the beekeeper to maintain
apiaries.
D.
Fee. The application for a registration permit shall be accompanied
by fee payable to the Township as set forth in the Township fee schedule.
E.
Permission of owner. Beekeepers that wish to own or maintain an apiary
on property that they do not own must include written permission from
the property owner or landlord that explicitly indicates that the
beekeeper has permission to own or maintain an apiary on the subject
property. The property owner shall also grant written permission to
the Township to enter upon the property for the purpose of determining
compliance with this article. Such written permission shall be supplied
to the Township as part of the beekeeping registration application.
F.
Permit decision. Within 15 days of receipt of an application, the
Department shall notify the applicant of a decision on the application
and, if denied, the reasons therefor.
G.
Transfer of permit prohibited. Permits issued hereunder are not transferable
and no person holding a permit shall transfer the permit to another
person.
Placement of any apiary shall conform to the following regulations
to minimize and eliminate any possible concerns to adjoining property:
A.
Apiary location.
(1)
Location of an apiary must comply with the following criteria:
(a)
An apiary shall not be located within 10 feet of any side or
rear property line unless a flyway barrier is in place or the hive(s)
are located at least 10 feet above grade.
(b)
An apiary shall not be located within 50 feet of a preexisting
swimming pool or a preexisting kenneled animal.
(c)
An apiary is not permitted within 10 feet of any buildings located
on adjacent properties.
(d)
An apiary located in the front yard shall be at least 30 feet
from the street right of way.
(e)
Hives shall not be located within 10 feet of a primary residential
entranceway.
B.
Hive density.
(1)
It shall be unlawful to keep more than the following number of production
hives on any tract within the Township, based upon the size or configuration
of the tract on which the apiary is situated:
(a)
One-quarter acre (10,890 square feet) or less tract size: four
production hives;
(b)
More than 1/4 acre but less than 1/2 acre (21,780 square feet)
tract size: eight production hives;
(c)
More than 1/2 acre but less than one acre (43,560 square feet)
tract size: 10 production hives;
(d)
One acre or larger tract size: 15 production hives; and
(e)
Regardless of tract size, where all hives are situated at least
200 feet in any direction from all property lines of the tract on
which the apiary is situated, there shall be no limit to the number
of production hives.
(2)
Exceptions. A beekeeper may exceed these regulations under the following
conditions:
(a)
For each allowed production hive, a single nucleus colony may
be kept year round to allow a beekeeper to mitigate winter bee losses.
(b)
Apiaries that are legally preexisting prior to enactment of
this article shall not be subject to the limitations of this Section
and shall not exceed the number of hives active at the time of the
ordinance and shall be confirmed by the preexisting apiary registration
of the location as reported by the Pennsylvania Department of Agriculture.
A.
All beekeepers shall comply with rules and regulations set forth
by the Pennsylvania Bee Law, 3 Pa.C.S.A. § 2101 et seq.,
as amended.
B.
All beekeepers, shall, to the best of their ability, maintain their
colonies per the "Voluntary Best Management Practices for Maintaining
European Honey Bee Colonies in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania,"
as provided and amended by the Pennsylvania Apiary Advisory Board.
C.
To the extent possible, hive entrances shall face away from the closest
neighboring property and in such a direction that the bees fly across
the beekeeper's property at sufficient distance to gain a height
of at least the 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 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 fence, vegetation, hedge, or combination thereof. No flyway barrier
is required for hive(s) that are located greater than 10 feet from
property lines or on porches, balconies or roof tops that are at least
10 feet above grade except on adjacent properties where such porch,
balcony or roof is located less than 10 feet from a property line.
D.
A flyway barrier is not required if the property adjoining the apiary
lot line is:
E.
A supply of fresh water shall be maintained in a location readily
accessible to all bee colonies on the site throughout the day to prevent
bees from congregating at neighboring swimming pools or other sources
of water on nearby properties between April 1 and November 1.
F.
All beekeepers shall ensure that no bee comb or other materials that
attract honey bees are left upon the ground of the apiary site. Upon
removal from the apiary, all such materials shall be properly maintained
in a sealed container or placed within a building or other bee-proof
enclosure, so long as bees are kept on the property.
A.
If an inspection is required as a result of a nuisance complaint,
the designated Township Code Enforcement Officer will inspect the
property only and not the bee hives. Should an internal hive inspection
be needed, the state or a local beekeeping organization shall be contacted
by the Township to assist in understanding how the complaint arose
and to what extent it is caused by the honey bees or beekeeper. A
personal notice of 48 hours shall be given to the beekeeper prior
to any inspection by telephone, acknowledged email, or by posting
at a conspicuous location on the premises.
B.
The Township Code Enforcement Officer and such other person(s) designated
by that Officer shall have the authority to enter upon the land where
any beekeeping services and/or beekeeping operations are being conducted
and to inspect any apiary to ensure compliance with this article and
to conduct any other inspections authorized under this article.
A.
The Township Code Enforcement Officer or his designee shall have
authority to enforce this article. Upon determining that there exists
any violation of this article, the Code Enforcement Officer shall
first issue and serve by first-class mail upon the violator a notice
of violation, which notice shall be in writing, specify the violation,
the steps necessary to correct the violation, and the specified time
from the date of the notice to correct the violation. Failure to correct
the violation within the specified time frame shall authorize the
Code Enforcement Official to institute and prosecute summary enforcement
proceedings before a Magisterial District Judge.
B.
The Township reserves the right to institute appropriate actions
at law or in equity to restrain, correct or abate violations under
this article and to impose against the violator the costs for removal
of hives or to abate a violation, including the filing of a municipal
claim.
Any person who violates any provision of this article shall,
upon conviction in a summary proceeding, be fined not less than $200
nor more than $1,000, and shall pay the costs of prosecution or, in
default of payment, undergo imprisonment pursuant to the Rules of
Criminal Procedure for failure to pay a fine. A violation of each
section of this article shall be deemed a separate violation and each
day during which a violation continues shall constitute a separate
offense.
