[HISTORY: Adopted by the Board of Trustees
of the Village of Ardsley 5-18-1992 by L.L. No. 5-1992. Amendments noted where applicable]
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The duly appointed Building Inspector of the Village of Ardsley.
The National Fire Protection Association.
Wherever used in this chapter, construed to include a person,
persons, firm, partnership or corporation.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any person to blast or carry
on any blasting operations unless he is the holder of a blaster's
license in the Village of Ardsley and unless he obtains a permit for
the proposed work from the Building Inspector. Application for a blaster's
license shall be made to the Building Inspector on forms prescribed
by him. Applicants shall be at least 21 years of age and of good character
and habits and shall satisfy the Building Inspector as to their experience
in handling explosives and ability to use the same without undue risk.
Each application shall be accompanied by a license review fee of $5.
Licenses shall be for a twelve-month term and may be renewed by the
Building Inspector for a period of one year on the payment of a fee
of $1 for each renewal. Licenses may be revoked if, in the opinion
of the Building Inspector, the holder has proved himself incompetent
or careless. If so revoked, no new license shall be issued to the
same person for a period of three months, and then only upon satisfying
the Building Inspector of his fitness for such license.
B.
Permits; insurance requirements; inspection fee.
(1)
Permits for blasting shall only be issued to persons
holding blaster's licenses or to contractors who have in their employ
persons holding such licenses.
(2)
The permit shall state the location for which it is
approved, the date issued, the name of the person authorized to do
the blasting and such other information as the Building Inspector
may deem necessary.
(3)
The permit shall be good only for the one location
designated therein, shall not be transferable and shall expire not
later than one year from the date thereof.
(4)
The permit shall not be issued until the applicant
shall furnish the Village of Ardsley with a policy of public personal
liability injury insurance in the amount of $10,0000,000 for each
accident, as well as $10,000,000 for property damage. All such insurance
policies shall name the Village of Ardsley as an additional insured.
Should the Building Inspector determine that the extent of the blasting
operations in any particular case and the danger involved require
liability insurance coverage in greater amounts than above specified,
he shall immediately certify his determination to the Village Clerk
and simultaneously request that the Board of Trustees fix the policy
limits. The Board of Trustees shall meet as expeditiously as possible
for said purpose, and said Board of Trustees is hereby authorized
and empowered to fix the policy limits in such amount or amounts as
the Board shall deem commensurate with the scope of the blasting operations
and the dangers involved, not exceeding, however, the following amounts:
$20,000,000 for personal injury for each accident and $20,000,000
property damage. Such liability insurance policy shall be approved
as to form and sufficiency by the Attorney for the Village, and, after
such approval, said policy shall be filed with the Village Clerk.
[Amended 3-18-2002 by L.L. No. 1-2002]
(5)
Application for such permit shall be accompanied by
an inspection fee of $50.
(6)
Application for such permit shall be accompanied by
a pre-blast survey for any property within 500 feet of the blast area,
which blast area shall be defined as the area where the rock will
be cut, satisfactory to the Building Inspector.
[Added 3-18-2002 by L.L. No. 1-2002]
(7)
The Building Inspector may include in any blasting
permit issued such additional terms and conditions as the Building
Inspector deems necessary to protect public health, safety and welfare.
[Added 3-18-2002 by L.L. No. 1-2002]
C.
Before the issuance of any permit, the applicant must
file additionally with the Village Clerk a surety bond, which shall
be in the form prescribed by the Village Attorney and signed by the
applicant as principal and by a solvent surety company authorized
to transact business within the State of New York as surety thereon
and must meet with the written approval of the Village Attorney as
to form and sufficiency of surety, and which bond shall indemnify
all persons and the Village of Ardsley against any loss, expense,
cost or damages of any kind or nature to persons or property resulting
from blasting. The liability hereby imposed upon the applicant shall
be one of absolute liability for any such loss, expense, cost or damages
of any kind or nature to persons or property resulting from blasting,
with or without trespass, and shall not depend upon any question of
negligence upon his part or upon the part of his agents, servants
or employees. The neglect of anyone to direct the applicant, his agents,
servants or employees to take any particular precaution or to refrain
from doing any particular thing shall not excuse the applicant from
the liability hereby imposed upon him.
D.
Should the Building Inspector determine that the extent
of the blasting operations in any particular case and the dangers
involved do not require insurance coverage in greater amounts than
$1,000,000 for personal injury for each accident and $1,000,000 for
property damage, then in such case the sum of the surety bond shall
be $1,000,000; but should the Building Inspector determine that said
operations and dangers involved require insurance coverage in greater
amounts and so reports to the Board of Trustees and requests the Board
of Trustees to fix the policy limits, then in such case the Board
of Trustees shall determine and fix the amount of the surety bond,
however, not exceeding $2,000,000.
E.
The applicant shall also satisfy the Building Inspector
that any magazine to be used for the storage of explosives on the
work for which the blasting permit is desired has been duly licensed
by the Industrial Commissioner of the State of New York, as provided
in Article 16, § 458, of the State Labor Law.
A.
In addition to the procedures and standards herein
set forth, the Village of Ardsley recognizes and adopts the procedures
and standards recommended by the NFPA as the procedures and standards
under which all blasting in the Village of Ardsley shall be conducted.
A violation of the NFPA procedures and standards shall be in violation
of this chapter. Should any part of this chapter be inconsistent with
the NFPA standards and procedures, the more restrictive of the two
shall control.
[Amended 3-18-2002 by L.L. No. 1-2002]
(1)
Hours of blasting. It shall be unlawful to blast or
carry on any blasting operations after 3:30 p.m. or before 8:30 a.m.,
nor shall any blasting be done on Saturday, Sunday or a public holiday,
except with the approval of the Building Inspector.
(2)
Covering blasts. No blasting shall be performed in
such a manner or under such circumstances as to eject debris into
the air so as to constitute a hazard or danger or do harm or damage
to persons or property. Before firing a blast which could cause injury
to persons or damage property from fly rock, the material to be blasted
shall be properly covered or screened by a buffer of sufficient mass
and strength to prevent, with a margin of safety, the ejection of
any material capable of causing injury or damage.
(3)
Firing. It shall be unlawful to explode a blasting
charge by means of time, slow-burning or safety fuses or by any means
other than some form of electrical apparatus. At least three minutes
before firing a blast, the blaster shall give warning thereof by causing
a competent person carrying a red flag to be stationed at a reasonable
distance from the blast at each avenue of approach or point of danger.
(4)
Shoring. The blasting of rock contiguous to any structure
shall be so conducted as not to cause damage thereto. To this end,
weak walls or other supports shall be shored up, and rotten or decomposed
rock shall be removed only by use of gads, picks or crowbars. When
blasting in the vicinity of a weak structure is unavoidable, only
light face blasts with short lines of resistance and charges shall
be used.
(5)
Tamping. Blasting charges shall be tamped only by
means of wooden tamping rods, and explosives shall be pressed or set
into place by steady even pressure only. All strokes or blows with
the tampering rods are forbidden, and no tamping rod shall be used
to which is frayed or split at the end.
(6)
Unexploded charge. Immediately after firing a blast,
the blaster shall cause all debris to be removed and shall thoroughly
examine the rock and the drill holes to ascertain whether there remains
any unexploded charge, and until this is done, no drills shall be
set up. In case a charge shall fail to explode, it must be exploded
by drilling one hole at least 12 inches away, which shall be loaded
and fired in the usual manner, but in no case shall the charge and
tamping be removed from the hole without the special permission of
the Building Inspector. In case a blast shall fail to carry away the
entire drill hole and leaves the lower part intact, no further drilling
shall be done in that hole.
(7)
Blaster's helpers. No person shall load holes in blasting
operations except the blaster authorized by the license; provided,
however, that while holes are being actually loaded, drillers and
drill helpers may act as the blaster's helpers under the direct supervision
and responsibility of the licensed blaster.
(8)
Capping cartridges. Cartridges, while being capped,
shall be removed from any magazine to a distance of not less than
50 feet and, after being capped, shall not be returned to a magazine.
Cartridges shall be capped only as required for the work and for immediate
use.
B.
Violations. Any person who shall violate any of the
provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction thereof, be fined
a sum not to exceed $100 for each violation thereof. In addition to
the penalty herein provided, the violation thereof shall constitute
disorderly conduct, and the person violating the same shall be a disorderly
person.
Any ordinance or part of an ordinance inconsistent
with the provisions of this chapter is hereby repealed.
The invalidity of any section, provision or
portion of this chapter shall not invalidate any other section.
This chapter shall take effect immediately upon
due publication and posting thereof.
