[Adopted 6-27-1990 by Ord. No. 90-253 (Ch.
136, Art. III, of the 1996 Code)]
A.
This article
shall be known and may be cited as "A Sewage Management Program for
Patton Township."
B.
As mandated by
the municipal codes, the Clean Streams Law (35 P.S. § 691.1),
and the Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities Act (Act of January 24, 1966,
P.L. 1535 as amended, 35 P.S. § 750.1 et seq., known as
"Act 537"), municipalities have the power and the duty to provide
for adequate sewage treatment facilities and for the protection of
the public health by preventing the discharge of untreated or inadequately
treated sewage. The Official Sewage Facilities Plan for Patton Township,
entitled the "1990 Centre Region Act 537 Sewage Facilities Plan" indicates
that it is necessary to formulate and implement a sewage management
program to effectively prevent and abate water pollution and hazards
to the public health caused by improper treatment and disposal of
sewage.
C.
The purpose of
this article is to provide for the inspection, maintenance and rehabilitation
of on-lot sewage disposal systems, to further permit the municipality
to intervene in situations which are public nuisances or hazards to
the public health and to establish penalties and appeal procedures
necessary for the proper administration of a sewage management program.
Unless the context specifically and clearly
indicates otherwise, the meanings of terms and phrases used in this
article shall be as follows:
The Act of July 31, 1968, P.L. 805, No. 247, as amended,
53 P.S. § 10101 et seq., known as the "Pennsylvania Municipalities
Planning Code."
[Added 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
The Act of January 24, 1966, P.L. 1535 as amended, 35 P.S.
§ 750.1 et seq., known as the "Pennsylvania Sewage Facilities
Act."
A certified sewage enforcement officer, code enforcement
officer, professional engineer, plumbing inspector, municipal secretary
or any other qualified or licensed person who is delegated by the
municipality to function within specified limits as the agent of the
municipality to carry out the provisions of this article.
The Board of Supervisors, Patton Township, Centre County,
Pennsylvania.
An individual employed by the municipality to administer
and enforce other ordinances in the municipality.
Any system, whether publicly or privately owned, for the
collection of sewage from two or more lots, and the treatment and/or
disposal of the sewage on one or more lots or at any other site.
The Department of Environmental Protection of the Commonwealth
of Pennsylvania (DEP).
A system of piping, tanks or other facilities serving a single
lot and collecting and disposing of sewage in whole or in part into
the soil or into any waters of this commonwealth.
The condition which occurs when an on-lot sewage disposal
system discharges sewage onto the surface of the ground, into groundwaters
of this commonwealth, into surface waters of this commonwealth, backs
up into the building connected to the system or otherwise causes a
nuisance hazard to the public health or pollution of ground or surface
water or contamination of public or private drinking water wells.
Systems shall be considered to be malfunctioning if any of the conditions
noted above occur for any length of time during any period of the
year.
Patton Township, Centre County, Pennsylvania.
The 2006 Centre Region Act 537 Sewage Facilities Plan.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any system for disposal of sewage involving pretreatment
and subsequent disposal of the clarified sewage into the soil for
final treatment and disposal, including both individual sewage systems
and community sewage systems. Also includes septic holding tanks and
septic retaining tanks.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
Any individual, association, public or private corporation
for profit or not for profit, partnership, firm, trust, estate, department,
board, bureau or agency of the commonwealth, political subdivision,
municipality, district, authority or any other legal entity whatsoever
which is recognized by law as the subject of rights and duties. Whenever
used in any clause prescribing and imposing a penalty or imposing
a fine or imprisonment, the term "person" shall include the members
of an association, partnership or firm and the officers of any local
agency or municipal, public or private corporation for profit or not
for profit.
Work done to modify, alter, repair, enlarge or replace an
existing on-lot sewage disposal system.
A portion of a lot or a developed property, sized to allow
the installation of subsurface sewage disposal area, which is reserved
to allow that installation in the event of the malfunction of the
originally installed on-lot sewage disposal system.
The residual scum and sludge pumped from septic systems.
[Added 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
Any substance that contains any of the waste products or
excrement or other discharge from the bodies of human beings or animals
and any noxious or deleterious substances being harmful or inimical
to the public health or to animal or aquatic life or to the use of
water for domestic water supply or for recreation or which constitutes
pollution under the Act of June 22, 1937 (P.L. 1987, No. 394), known
as the "Clean Streams Law," as amended.[1]
The official of the local agency who issues and reviews permit
applications and conducts such investigations and inspections as are
necessary to implement Act 537 and the rules and regulations promulgated
thereunder.
Any area or areas of a municipality for which a sewage management
program is defined by a resolution of the municipality.
A comprehensive set of legal and administrative requirements
encompassing the requirements of this article and other administrative
requirements adopted by the municipality to effectively enforce and
administer this article.
The division or redivision of a lot, tract or other parcel
of land into two or more lots, tracts, parcels or other divisions
of land, including changes in existing lot lines. The enumerating
of lots shall include as a lot that portion of the original tract
or tracts remaining after other lots have been subdivided therefrom.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 690.1
et seq.
From the effective date of this article, its
provisions shall apply in any portion of the municipality identified
as a Sewage Management District. Within such an area or areas, the
provisions of this article shall apply to all persons owning any property
serviced by an on-lot sewage disposal system and to all persons installing
or rehabilitating on-lot sewage disposal systems. If necessary, the
entire municipality may be identified as a Sewage Management District.
A.
No person shall
install, construct or request bid proposals for construction or alter
an individual sewage system or community sewage system or construct
or request bid proposals for construction or install or occupy any
building or structure for which an individual sewage system or community
sewage system is to be installed without first obtaining a permit
indicating that the site and the plans and specifications of such
system are in compliance with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Sewage
Facilities Act[1] and the standards adopted pursuant to that Act.
[1]
Editor's Note: See 35 P.S. § 750.1
et seq.
B.
No system or
structure designed to provide individual or community sewage disposal
shall be covered from view until approval to cover the same has been
given by the Municipal Sewage Enforcement Officer. If 72 hours have
elapsed, excepting Sundays and holidays, since the Sewage Enforcement
Officer issuing the permit received notification of completion of
construction, the applicant may cover said system or structure unless
permission has been specifically refused by the Sewage Enforcement
Officer.
C.
The municipality
may require applicants for sewage permits to notify the municipality's
certified Sewage Enforcement Officer of the schedule for construction
of the permitted on-lot sewage disposal system so that inspection(s),
in addition to the final inspection required by Act 537, may be scheduled
and performed by the municipality's certified Sewage Enforcement Officer.
D.
No building or
occupancy permit shall be issued by the municipality or its Code Enforcement
Officer for a new building which will contain sewage generating facilities
until a valid sewage permit has been obtained from the municipality's
certified Sewage Enforcement Officer.
E.
No building or
occupancy permit shall be issued and no work shall begin on any alteration
or conversion of any existing structure, if said alteration or conversion
will result in the increase or potential increase in sewage flows
from the structure, until the municipality's Code Enforcement Officer
and the structure's owner receive from the municipality's Sewage Enforcement
Officer either a permit for alteration or replacement of the existing
sewage disposal system or written notification that such a permit
will not be required. The certified Sewage Enforcement Officer shall
determine whether the proposed alteration or conversion of the structure
will result in increased sewage flows.
F.
Sewage permits
may be issued only by a certified Sewage Enforcement Officer employed
by the municipality for that express purpose. The Department of Environmental
Protection shall be notified by the municipality as to the identity
of their currently employed certified Sewage Enforcement Officer.
G.
No final Act
247 approval of a subdivision or land development plan may be made
and no recording of deeds for newly created lots completed until formal
Act 537 planning approval by DEP is received.
[Added 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
A.
Any supplements
or revisions to the municipality's Official Sewage Facilities Plan,
which are prepared pursuant to the applicable regulations of the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection for subdivision or development
of land within an identified Sewage Management District, shall provide
for the testing, identification and reservation of an area of each
lot or developed property suitable for the installation of a replacement
on-lot sewage disposal system. This requirement is in addition to
the testing, identification and reservation of an area for the primary
sewage disposal system.
B.
No permit shall
be issued for any proposed new on-lot sewage disposal system on any
newly created or subdivided property in any Sewage Management District
unless and until a replacement area is tested, identified and reserved.
In the case of an IRSIS, a second acceptable absorption area will
not be required.
[Amended 2-12-1997 by Ord. No. 97-337]
[Amended 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
A.
Any on-lot sewage
treatment, holding, or disposal system may be inspected by the municipality's
authorized agent at any reasonable time as of the effective date of
this article but in no case shall an inspection of every on-lot disposal
system be conducted less frequently than once every six years. This
requirement applies to all private systems, including but not limited
to drain fields, sand mounds, small flow systems (SFTF), spray irrigation
(IRSIS), drip irrigation, holding tanks, and privies. Inspection of
COLDS systems shall include inspection at each structure connected
to the COLDS and inspection of the common elements.
B.
The inspection
may include a physical tour of the property, the taking of samples
from surface water, wells, other groundwater sources, the sampling
of the contents of the sewage disposal system itself and/or the introduction
of a traceable substance into the interior plumbing of the structure
served to ascertain the path and ultimate destination of wastewater
generated in the structure. A copy of the inspection report shall
be furnished to the owner and current resident, which shall include
all of the following information: date of inspection; name and address
of system owner; description and diagram of the location of the system,
including location of access hatches, risers, and markers; size of
tanks and disposal field; condition of baffles in tank(s), current
occupant's name and number of users; indication of any suspected system
malfunction observed; and results of any and all soils and water tests.
C.
The municipality's
certified SEO or authorized agent shall have the right to enter upon
land for the purposes of inspections described above. In the event
access to inspect the property is denied, the following steps shall
be taken:
(1)
The matter
will be officially referred to the governing body of the municipality
for action.
(2)
The governing
body of the municipality may schedule a review at the next scheduled
meeting of the Board of Supervisors or, if the situation threatens
the health or safety of the residents of the municipality, the board/council
may commence an immediate procedure to obtain a search warrant from
the Magisterial District Judge.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
(3)
Upon receipt
of a search warrant to inspect the property, the certified SEO or
authorized agent of the municipality shall be accompanied by an officer
of the municipal or State Police and the inspection shall be completed
in accordance with this subsection.
D.
An initial inspection
shall be conducted by the municipality's certified SEO or authorized
agent within six years of the effective date of this article for the
purpose of determining the type and functional status of each sewage
disposal system in the Sewage Management District. A written report
shall be furnished to the owner of each property inspected, and a
copy of said report shall be maintained in the municipal records.
E.
A routine inspection
of each sewage disposal system in the municipality will be scheduled
every six years to assure the proper function of all systems in the
municipality.
F.
The Sewage Enforcement
Officer shall inspect systems known to be, or alleged to be, malfunctioning.
Should said inspections reveal that the system is indeed malfunctioning,
the Sewage Enforcement Officer shall take action to require the correction
of the malfunction. If total correction is not technically or financially
feasible, in the opinion of the SEO and a representative of the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection, then action by the property
owner to mitigate the malfunction shall be required.
G.
There may arise
geographic areas within the municipality where numerous on-lot sewage
disposal systems are malfunctioning. A resolution of these areawide
problems may necessitate detailed planning and a municipally sponsored
revision to that area's Act 537 official sewage facilities plan. When
a DEP-authorized official sewage facilities plan revision has been
undertaken by the municipality, mandatory repair or replacement of
individual malfunctioning sewage disposal systems within the study
area may be delayed, at the discretion of the municipality, pending
the outcome of the plan revision process. However, the municipality
may compel immediate corrective action whenever a malfunction, as
determined by municipal officials and the Pennsylvania DEP, represents
a serious public health or environmental threat. This corrective action
may include the use of a holding tank.
Only normal domestic wastes shall be discharged
into any on-lot sewage disposal system. The following shall not be
discharged into the system.
A.
Industrial waste.
B.
Automobile oil
and other nondomestic oil.
C.
Toxic or hazardous
substances or chemicals, including but not limited to pesticides,
disinfectants, acids, paints, paint thinners, herbicides, gasoline
and other solvents.
D.
Clean surface
or groundwater, including water from roof or cellar drains, springs,
basement sump pumps and French drains.
[Amended 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
A.
Any person owning
a building served by an on-lot sewage disposal system shall have the
septic tank, and any dosing tank or transfer tank in the system, pumped
by a qualified pumper/hauler within six years of the effective date
of this article. Thereafter, that person shall have the tank pumped
at least once every three years. Receipts from the pumper/hauler shall
be submitted to the municipality or authorized agent within 30 days
of the date of pumping.
B.
An option will
be provided to allow the property owner to request a waiver from pumping
every three years if, because of tank size, household size, or seasonal
use, it is determined to the satisfaction of the municipality's certified
SEO that such pumping is not needed. In such cases, a waiver from
pumping can be granted at the discretion of the municipality's certified
SEO when an inspection of the tank by the municipal SEO reveals that
the solids are less than 1/3 the liquid depth of the tank.
C.
The required
pumping frequency may be increased at the discretion of the municipality's
authorized agent if the septic tank is undersized, if solids buildup
in the tank is above average, if the hydraulic load on the system
increases significantly above average, if a garbage grinder is used
in the building, if the system malfunctions or for other good cause
shown.
D.
If any person
can prove that their system tank(s) had been pumped within three years
of the six-month anniversary of the effective date of this article,
then the municipality may delay that person's initial required pumping
to conform with the general pumping frequency requirement.
E.
Any person owning
a building served by an on-lot sewage disposal system which contains
an aerobic treatment tank shall follow the operation and maintenance
recommendations of the equipment manufacturer. A copy of the manufacturer's
recommendations and a copy of the service agreement shall be submitted
to the municipality within six months of the effective date of this
article. Thereafter, service receipts shall be submitted to the municipality
at the intervals specified by the manufacturer's recommendations.
In no case may the service or pumping intervals for aerobic treatment
tanks exceed those for those required for septic tanks.
F.
Any person owning a building served by a cesspool or dry well shall have that system pumped according to the schedule prescribed from septic tanks as noted in § 278-37A. As an alternative to this scheduled pumping of the cesspool or dry well, the owner may secure a sewage permit from the certified Sewage Enforcement Officer for a septic tank to be installed preceding the cesspool or dry well. For a system consisting of a cesspool or dry well preceded by an approved septic tank, only the septic tank must be pumped at the prescribed interval.
G.
The municipality
may require additional maintenance activity as needed, including,
but not necessarily limited to, the cleaning and unclogging of piping,
the servicing and the repair of mechanical equipment, the leveling
of distribution boxes, tanks and lines, removal of obstructing roots
or trees, the diversion of surface water away from the disposal area,
etc.
H.
Each time a septic
tank or other subsurface waste disposal tank is pumped out, the municipality,
its authorized agent, or a private septage pumper/hauler, whichever
provides the service, shall provide to the owner of the on-lot disposal
system a signed pumper's report/receipt containing, at minimum, the
following information:
I.
Upon completion
of each required pumping, the pumper/hauler shall fill out and submit
a pumper's report/receipt, copies of which shall be provided by the
municipality or its authorized agent to all registered pumpers/haulers.
The pumper/hauler shall provide one copy of the pumper's report/receipt
to the owner and one copy to the municipality or its authorized agent.
Copies must be received by the municipality or its authorized agent
within 30 days of the date of pumping.
A.
No person shall
operate and maintain an on-lot sewage disposal system in such a manner
that it malfunctions. All liquid wastes, including kitchen and laundry
wastes and water softener backwash, shall be discharged to a treatment
system or tank. No sewage system shall discharge untreated or partially
treated sewage to the surface of the ground or into the waters of
the commonwealth unless a permit to discharge has been obtained from
the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
B.
The municipality
or its authorized agent shall issue a written notice of violation
to any person who is the owner of a property in the municipality which
is found to be served by a malfunctioning on-lot sewage disposal system
or which is discharging raw or partially treated sewage without a
permit.
[Amended 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
C.
Within seven
days of notification by the municipality that a malfunction has been
identified, the property owner shall make application to the municipality's
certified Sewage Enforcement Officer for a permit to repair or replace
the malfunctioning system. Within 30 days of initial notification
by the municipality, construction of the permitted repair or replacement
shall commence. Within 60 days of the original notification by the
municipality, the construction shall be completed unless seasonal
or unique conditions mandate a longer period in which case the municipality
shall set an extended completion date.
D.
The municipality's
certified Sewage Enforcement Officer shall have the authority to require
the repair of any malfunction by the following methods: cleaning,
repair or replacement of components of the existing system, adding
capacity or otherwise altering or replacing the system's treatment
tank, expanding the existing disposal area, replacing the existing
disposal area, replacing a gravity distribution system with a pressurized
system or other alternatives as appropriate for the specific site.
E.
In lieu of, or in combination with, the remedies described in Subsection D above, the municipal Sewage Enforcement Officer may require the installation of water conservation equipment and the institution of water conservation practices in structures served. Water using devices and appliances in the structure may be required to be retrofitted with water saving appurtenances or they may be required to be replaced by water conserving devices and appliances. Wastewater generation in the structure may also be reduced by requiring changes in water usage patterns in the structure served.
F.
In the event that the rehabilitation measures in Subsections A through E are not feasible or do not prove effective, the municipality may require the owner to apply to the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for a permit to install a single residence treatment and discharge system. Upon receipt of said permit the owner shall complete construction of the system within 60 days.
G.
Should none of
the remedies described above prove totally effective in eliminating
the malfunction of an existing on-lot sewage disposal system, the
property owner is not absolved of responsibility for that malfunction.
The municipality may require whatever action is necessary to lessen
or mitigate the malfunction to the extent that it feels necessary.
Costs for the completion of water quality testing
and Municipal Sewage Enforcement Officer inspections shall be assessed
to property owners within the appropriate Sewage Management Districts.
It shall be each individual property owner's responsibility to contract
with a qualified pumper/hauler for the pumping of the owner's septic
tank.
The municipality, upon written notice from the
municipal Sewage Enforcement Officer that an imminent health hazard
exists due to failure of a property owner to maintain, repair or replace
an on-lot sewage disposal system as provided under the terms of this
article, shall have the authority to perform or contract to have performed,
the work required by the certified Sewage Enforcement Officer. The
owner shall be charged for the work performed and, if necessary, a
lien shall be entered therefor in accordance with law.
[Amended 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487]
A.
All septage originating
within the Municipal Sewage Management District shall be disposed
of at sites or facilities approved by the Pennsylvania Department
of Environmental Protection. Approved sites or facilities shall include
the following: septage treatment facilities, wastewater treatment
plants, composting sites and approved farmlands. The property owner
is required to submit a receipt to the municipality documenting the
tank was pumped and indicating the DEP permitted site where the septage
was disposed.
B.
All septage pumpers/haulers
operating within the municipality shall be licensed by the DEP and
permitted by the municipality or its authorized agent. Pumper/haulers
shall comply with all reporting requirements established by the municipality.
C.
All septage of
pumper/haulers operating within the municipality shall operate in
a manner consistent with the provisions of the Pennsylvania Solid
Waste Management Act (Act 97 of 1980, 35 P.S. §§ 6018.101
to 6018.1003). Any septage pumper/hauler who violates any of the provisions
of this article or regulations of the municipality, the conditions
of its state permit, or any state or local law governing its operation
shall, upon conviction thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine not exceeding
$5,000 and costs and, in default of the payment thereof, shall be
subject to imprisonment for a term not to exceed 30 days. If any pumper/hauler
shall have been convicted on two occasions of any violation of this
article or for violating the conditions of its state permit or of
any state or local law governing its operation, the Board of Supervisors
shall have the power to suspend said pumper/hauler from operating
within the municipality for a period of not less than six months nor
more than two years for each violation, as determined by the municipality.
Each day the violation continues shall constitute a separate offense.
[Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General
Provisions, Art. I)]
A.
The municipality
shall fully utilize those powers it possesses through enabling statutes
and ordinances to effect the purposes of this article.
B.
The municipality
shall employ qualified individuals to carry out the provisions of
this article. Those employees shall include a certified Sewage Enforcement
Officer and may include a Code Enforcement Officer, Secretary, Administrator
or other persons as required. The municipality may also contract with
private qualified persons or firms as necessary to carry out the provisions
of this article.
C.
All permits,
records, reports, files and other written material relating to the
installation, operation and maintenance and malfunction of on-lot
sewage disposal systems in the Sewage Management District shall become
the property of the municipality. Existing and future records shall
be available for public inspection during required business hours
at the official municipal office. All records pertaining to sewage
permits, building permits, occupancy permits and all other aspects
of the municipality is sewage management program shall be made available,
upon request, for inspection by representatives of the Pennsylvania
Department of Environmental Protection.
D.
The Board shall
establish a fee schedule, and subsequently collect fees, to cover
the cost to the municipality of administering this program. Costs
for the completion of water quality testing and municipal Sewage Enforcement
Officer inspections will be assessed to property owners within the
appropriate Sewage Management Districts. It shall be the responsibility
of each individual property owner to contract with a qualified pumper/hauler
for septic tank pumping.
E.
The Board of
Supervisors shall establish all administrative procedures necessary
to properly carry out the provisions of this chapter.
[Added 10-24-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-487; at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 1, General Provisions, Art.
I)]
A.
Appeals from
decisions of the municipality or its authorized agents under this
article shall be made to the Board, in writing, within 30 days from
the date of the decision in question.
B.
The appellant
shall be entitled to a hearing before the Board at its next prior
to that meeting. If the appeal is received within 14 days of the next
regularly scheduled meeting, the appeal shall be heard at the subsequent
meeting. The municipality shall thereafter affirm, modify, or reverse
the aforesaid decision. The hearing may be postponed for a good cause
shown by the appellant or the municipality. Additional evidence may
be introduced at the hearing provided that it is submitted with the
written notice of appeal.
C.
A decision shall
be rendered in writing within 30 days of the date of the hearing.
If a decision is not rendered within 30 days, the release sought by
the appellant shall be deemed granted.
[Amended 8-14-1996 by Ord. No. 96-330]
Any person failing to comply with any provisions
of this article shall be subject to a fine of not less than $100 and
court costs, including reasonable attorney fees, and not more than
$600 and court costs, including reasonable attorney fees. If the defendant
neither pays nor timely appeals the judgment, the municipality may
enforce the judgment pursuant to the applicable Rules of Civil Procedure.
Each day of noncompliance shall constitute a separate offense.
