A public nuisance is a thing, act, omission to act, occupation, or use of property which shall unreasonably annoy, injure or endanger the safety, health, comfort or repose of the public; or shall unlawfully interfere with, obstruct or render dangerous for public use a public park, square, street, alley or highway; or shall render the public insecure in life or in use of property. Any violation of the International Property Maintenance Code, as adopted in BLMC §
15.04.020, shall constitute a nuisance. In addition, public nuisances include, but are not limited to, the following:
A. Carcasses of animals not buried or destroyed within 24 hours after death;
B. Accumulations of manure or rubbish;
C. Privy vaults or outhouses;
D. Dense smoke, noxious fumes, gas and soot, or cinders, in unreasonable quantities;
E. The existence or accumulation of trash, dirt, filth, spilled garbage, waste, stagnant or impure water, decayed or decaying substances, accumulation of lawn or yard trimmings, or other offensive matter, which may cause, or tend to cause, or create a noisome or offensive smell or atmosphere, except in a compost process which adheres to the following:
1. Composting can be completed in one of three following ways:
a. Yard waste shall be composted within a three-sided bin or turning system.
b. Kitchen scraps shall be composted within pest-resistant containers like airtight buckets with spigots, food digesters, and worm bins.
c. Piles shall be limited to one cubic yard and a parcel shall have no more than three such piles, unless zoned for such uses.
2. Composting shall not include domestic septage, sewage sludge, or pet urine or feces.
F. Any accumulation of materials or objects in a location when the same endangers property or safety or constitutes a fire hazard, including piles of wood except neatly stacked firewood;
G. Any litter, unless it is kept in approved covered bins or galvanized receptacles;
H. All snow and ice not removed from public sidewalks within a reasonable time after the snow and ice have ceased to be deposited thereon;
I. All hanging signs, temporary signs, awnings and other similar structures over or placed on streets, public rights-of-way, or sidewalks, or so situated as to endanger public safety;
J. All wells, cisterns or septic tanks without adequate cover while in regular use and all wells and cisterns not filled in with earth when abandoned;
K. Ground vibrations recurrently generated to be perceptible without instruments at any point of the lot line on which the use is located;
L. Emission of an obnoxious or dangerous degree of heat, glare, radiation or smoke;
M. Highly flammable or explosive liquids, solids or gases, unless stored in bulk aboveground. Tanks or drums of fuel directly connected with heating devices or appliances located on the same lot as the tanks or drums of fuel are excluded from this provision;
N. Outdoor storage of fuel containers and construction materials unless screened from view of the adjacent property and rights-of-way by a fence, greenbelt or wall. Construction materials stored outside for up to 60 days as part of an active construction project are excluded from this provision;
O. All materials or waste which might cause fumes or dust which constitute a fire hazard or which may be edible or otherwise be attractive to rodents or insects unless stored outdoors in closed containers;
P. Growth of more marijuana plants in a residence than authorized for personal medical use by RCW
69.51A.210(1) through
(3), or growth of an authorized number of personal medical marijuana plants in a manner that can be readily seen by normal unaided vision or readily smelled from a public place or the private property of another;
Q. Any building or structure where construction was commenced and then ceased and the building or structure was left unfinished and the permit or permit application has expired, or any building or structure that has been constructed or modified without required permits;
R. The discharge of sewage or human excrement except through approved public or private disposal systems that are constructed and maintained in accordance with applicable standards;
S. Unused or abandoned refrigerators, freezers, or other large appliances or equipment or any parts thereof; any structurally unsound or unsafe fence or edifice;
T. Grass, weeds, shrubs, trees, or vegetation growing or which have grown and died upon any property that are classified a fire hazard.
(Ord. 1380 § 6, 2011; Ord. 1547 § 2, 2016; Ord. 1610 § 3, 2019; Ord. 1635 § 2, 2020)