[HISTORY: Adopted by the Township of Washington
(now Township of Robbinsville) as indicated in article histories.
Amendments noted where applicable.]
[Derived from Art. I of Ch. BH:5 of the 2001
Code]
The Board of Health of the Township deems it
necessary in regard to the public health within the municipality,
pursuant to N.J.S.A. 26:3-31a, to protect the citizens of the Township
from any abuses relating to the drilling of wells and inspection of
water from wells and to prevent the use of or to close any well, the
water of which is polluted or detrimental to the public health.
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
The Robbinsville Township Health Officer, any and all deputies
under his or her supervision or control and/or any designees acting
on behalf of the Robbinsville Township Health Officer.
Every property owner and every well driller
licensed to drill wells in the State of New Jersey shall, prior to
the drilling of same, file an application with the Health Officer
of the Township for a permit to drill the well, showing the names
of the owners of the property, the name of the licensed well driller
proposing to drill the well, the street address and Tax Map lot and
block of the property in question and an informal sketch showing as
accurately as possible the location of the proposed well upon the
property as well as the location of any existing or proposed septic
systems and laterals thereof located on the property and/or adjacent
properties within 100 feet.
Permits will be granted to all applicants unless
it appears that the location of the well is too close to an existing
or proposed septic system or laterals thereof or is in some other
way likely to cause a potential health hazard. If a public water supply
is available to the property, a new private water well may be drilled
or existing one kept, provided that no cross-connection possibility
exists and that compliance with state and local laws relating thereto
is assured.
See Chapter 109, Fees.
Notwithstanding anything set forth above, any
person proposing to commence work on a well must give a least 48 hours'
written notice to the Robbinsville Township Health Officer before
commencing any such work. In addition, the Robbinsville Township Health
Officer must be allowed to be present during any and all phases of
construction that the Health Officer chooses to be present at up to
and through completion.
Water quality analysis shall be required as
set forth in N.J.A.C. 7:10. Additional water tests may be required
as deemed necessary by the Health Officer. Upon obtaining a permit,
the well driller in charge must, before completion of the well, notify
the Health Officer and arrange a date when the water sample to be
taken for potability, as required by the State of New Jersey Department
of Environmental Protection and for the Robbinsville Township Board
of Health, will be taken so that the Health Officer may, if he/she
chooses, be present when it is taken.
At the Health Officer's discretion, he/she may
require that each sample taken be placed in an approved enclosed container;
affixed with the Robbinsville Township Seal by the inspector, that
seal to be removed only at the laboratory; labeled with a label noting
the date the sample was taken and the permit number under which it
was taken, and initialed by both the Robbinsville Township Health
Officer and the well driller in charge. The Robbinsville Township
Health Officer may require a second sample be taken at the same time
and labeled in the same manner for use by the Robbinsville Township
Health Department as a control or check sample.
Upon completion of the well, the well driller
must provide to the Robbinsville Township Health Officer a written
copy of the results the water sample analysis performed by a New Jersey
state-certified testing laboratory.
The Robbinsville Township Health Officer may
have access and entry to any property upon which there is located
a private well to inspect same and/or take samples of the water therefrom
at any time.
The Robbinsville Township Health Officer may
order any well, which is determined to be polluted or detrimental
to the public health closed until and unless the water is made potable.
Such order shall notify the well driller or property owner that a
hearing may be held upon five business days' notice before the Health
Officer of the Township upon written request from the owner or the
well driller. In the event that such written request is made and no
hearing is held, the order of closure shall be immediately and automatically
voided. In the event that no hearing is requested or the well driller
or property owner is unsuccessful after a hearing demanded, the order
of closure shall remain in full force and effect until the well water
is determined to be safe for human consumption by the Health Officer.
The notice shall be in writing delivered to the premises in question
or to the licensed driller by regular mail and shall state the reason
for the proposed order to close.
Any well declared abandoned must be sealed in
accordance the N.J.S.A. 58:4A-4.1 et seq. Any well, which is not properly
maintained or utilized, as determined by the Health Officer, may be
declared abandoned and ordered to be sealed.
[Derived from Art. II of Ch. BH:5 of the
2001 Code]
As used in this article, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Any building or structure heretofore or hereafter constructed
and designed or used for dwelling purposes or occupancy by persons,
whether temporary or permanent, or in which water is used for human
consumption or otherwise.
The 30th day next ensuing after a public waterline, which
is owned and operated by the Township or by the Township of Robbinsville
Utilities Department or by a private utility authorized to do business
in the Township, is made available to serve a building which was constructed
prior to the date of initial operation of the waterline. Any building
built after the date when a waterline is available to serve the building
shall connect to such waterline at the time such construction is completed
and prior to occupancy.
[Amended 10-11-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-50]
Any pipe or conduit designed or used for the transmission
of potable water within the Township, whether owned and operated by
the Township itself, the Township of Robbinsville Utilities Department
or any regulated public utility authorized to supply water for domestic
and other purposes within the Township.
[Amended 10-11-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-50]
The owner of any building or lot which the Department
of Environmental Protection has declared, in writing to the Township,
to have been adversely affected by hazardous substances or potentially
adversely affected by hazardous substances, emanating from a toxic
spill, which has upon it, for use in connection with domestic or nondomestic
purposes, a well or wells, the water of which either has been contaminated
or is exposed to a high potential of contamination, shall, when a
public water supply is made ready and available for hookup in the
street upon which the lot or building fronts, within 250 feet of the
lot or building, whichever is greater, do the following:
A.
Properly seal the abandoned, contaminated or potentially contaminated well(s) in conformance with N.J.S.A. 58:4A-4.1 et seq. within 30 days after such time as public water, as referred to in Subsection B, has been hooked up to the building or, within 30 days of notice received, to hook into the public water supply as hereinafter set forth, whichever first occurs.
B.
Hook into the public water supply so that the public
water supply shall be used for all domestic purposes, dwelling purposes
or for any purpose relating to human occupancy within 30 days of notice
being given to the owner. Nothing contained in this subsection shall
prevent the use of the public water supply for uses other than domestic.
C.
Immediately upon public water connection to the building,
the contaminated or potentially contaminated well water service shall
be removed from the building in a manner approved by the Health Officer.
At no time may the public water supply and a known contaminated well
source both be permitted to be operational in a single building.
Every connection required by this chapter shall
comply in all respects to the codes and regulations enforced by the
Robbinsville Township Plumbing Inspector and/or Construction Code
Official.
[Amended 10-11-2007 by Ord. No. 2007-50]
Upon receipt by the Board of Health of notification from Township of Robbinsville Utilities Department or from the Township Administrator or from the private utility authorized to do business in the Township, that any waterline is available to serve buildings on any properties in the Township declared to be potentially hazardous as described in § 297-14 above, the Board of Health shall order each owner of a building or lot within 250 feet of the waterline to connect each building on such property with the waterline in accordance with the terms of this article.
The Board of Health shall designate one of its proper officers to give notice to the owner of property with respect to which an order is issued pursuant to § 297-16. Such notice shall be addressed to the owner of the property as the name of the owner appears in the last tax duplicate of the Township and shall describe the property by lot and block designation as the same appears on the Tax Map of the Township of Robbinsville and by the street address if a street address exists. The notice shall state that, by order of the Board of Health, the owner is required to connect each building on the property with the waterline in accordance with the terms of this article on or before the connection date shall have passed, within 30 days after service of such notice as hereinafter provided; and the notice shall also describe the penalty which may be imposed hereunder for failure to comply with the notice and order in accordance with the terms of this article. The notice may also be served within or without the limits of the Township by mailing the same by certified mail to the last known post office address of the owner as the same appears on the last tax duplicate of the Township. The notice may be served on the owner personally or by leaving it at his/her usual place of abode with a member of his/her family above the age of 18 years.
Property owners who voluntarily choose to connect
public water to buildings which had previously been served by a private
well shall do so in accordance with the rules and regulations set
forth by the Department of Environmental Protection, the Board of
Health, the Robbinsville Township Plumbing and/or Construction Subcode
Official, the local water purveyor, and any other board, agency or
department having jurisdiction over this activity.
A.
In the event that any person or corporation shall not have connected the building or buildings on his/her or its property to an available waterline after the connection date and after the thirty-day notice sent to such person or corporation under § 297-17, such person or corporation shall upon conviction thereof, be punished as provided in Chapter 1, Article II, General Penalty. An additional penalty shall be imposed for each day of delay after the expiration of the 30 days in which the provisions of this article are not complied with.
B.
Penalties under this article shall be enforced by
the Municipal Court of the Township.
This is a special article to deal with specific
conditions, if and when they occur, and it is not intended to repeal
any ordinances or section thereof presently in effect in the Township,
but is to be considered supplementary thereto.
