[Adopted 7-20-1977 by Ord. No. 1801[1]]
[1]
Editor's Note: This ordinance also repealed
former Art. I, Connections, adopted 4-21-1926 by Ord. No. 209.
Whenever any sewer constituting a branch or
extension of the Township sewer system has been considered complete
by the payment of all fees, submission of as-built plans and necessary
deeds of dedication being approved and recorded and is available for
public use, it shall be the duty of the Director of Public Works to
cause a printed or written notice of the completion of such sewer,
together with a copy of this article, to be served in the manner hereinafter
provided on the owners of each property abutting on the highway, road,
street or walk along which such sewer has been laid, and, if the Director
of Public Works shall so elect, notice of such completion may also
be advertised in not less than two newspapers, published within the
Township limits, such notice in each instance to state that it is
the duty of such owners to cause the buildings erected on their premises
requiring sewage drainage and situate within 200 feet of such sewer
to be connected therewith at their own expense and subject to the
payment of the annual sewer rental for the use of the same; and that
upon the failure of any such owner to comply with the requirements
of such notice and of this article, the Director of Public Works will
cause such connection to be made at the expense of such owner, who
shall thereupon also become subject to the penalty or fine provisions
of this article.
[Amended 4-20-1994 by Ord. No. 3359]
A.
Newly constructed sewers. It shall be the duty of
every owner of premises abutting on any newly constructed sewer, within
60 days of the service of notice, to cause each building thereon erected
requiring sewage drainage and located within 200 feet of such sewer
to be separately connected therewith, unless special permission to
the contrary shall have been granted by the Public Works Committee
of the Board of Commissioners. All connections shall be made directly
to the sewer and not through any intermediate well. Further, from
and after the expiration of 60 days from notice to connect to any
sewer as aforesaid, no well shall be used for sewage drainage from
any building within 200 feet of such sewer.
B.
Newly constructed buildings. It shall be the duty
of every owner of premises abutting a sewer which has been made ready
for public use, in the case of the erection of a newly constructed
building thereon and within 60 days from the completion of such building,
to cause each new building erected on such premises and requiring
sewage drainage to be separately connected therewith, unless special
permission to the contrary shall have been granted by the Public Works
Committee of the Board of Commissioners.
C.
Existing buildings on premises abutting existing sewers.
It shall be the duty of every owner of premises abutting a sewer which
has been made ready for public use to connect existing buildings requiring
sewage drainage to such sewer only upon notice from the Township.
If at any time the Director of Public Works shall deem it necessary for the public health to require that any building erected on premises abutting on, adjoining or adjacent to any Township sewer, wheresoever any such building may be located on such premises, shall be connected with such sewer, the Director of Public Works shall report the matter to the Board of Township Commissioners and, after receiving the approval and authorization of said Board in any such case, shall thereupon cause to be served upon the owner or owners of any such building, in the manner hereinafter provided, a copy of this article and a printed or written notice directing that the necessary connections be made within 60 days from the date of its service, such notice to be similar in form to that referred to in § 126-1 of this article.
Upon the failure of any owner of premises situate
along the line of a Township sewer, who has been duly notified as
hereinbefore provided to cause any building or buildings erected on
such premises to be connected with any such sewer, to comply with
the requirements of any such notice or with the provisions of this
article, the Director of Public Works shall report such failure to
the Board of Township Commissioners, and, if said Board shall then
so direct, the Director of Public Works shall cause the necessary
connections to be made and, upon completion of the work for the same,
shall render a bill covering the cost of said work to the owner of
such premises and file a duplicate thereof with the Township Treasurer,
to whom such bill shall be made payable for the use of the Township.
All such bills shall contain a notice that, if said bills be not paid
within 30 days after the date thereof, the same will be collected
in the manner provided by law. Upon the expiration of 30 days after
said bills shall have been rendered to the owners of such premises,
it shall be the duty of the Township Treasurer to refer to the Township
Solicitor all such bills remaining unpaid, and the Township Solicitor
shall thereupon take the necessary action to effect the collection
of such unpaid bills in the manner provided by law.
[Amended 10-20-1999 by Ord. No. 3544]
A.
The owner of premises abutting on such sewer and,
as well, the owner of premises not abutting thereon but so situated
as to permit connection therewith through adjoining or intermediate
properties (a right-of-way is required) may make connections with
the Township sewers for the purpose of having carried off all sewage
drainage, including the liquid refuse from any factory, laboratory,
workshop, stable, garage or other building, but excluding any drainage
resulting from rainwater, springs, wells or other groundwater, provided
that, before sewer connections of any kind shall be made, a permit
shall first be obtained from the Director of Public Works and that
all such connections shall be made in accordance with the rules and
regulations adopted by resolution of the Board of Township Commissioners,
and provided further that under no circumstances shall any sewage
or drainage containing matter of any sort liable to form a deposit
in the sewer or drainpipes, or to create obstructions therein, be
discharged into any Township sewer.
B.
Decontaminated groundwater produced from the process
of cleansing tainted groundwater to achieve standards promulgated
by the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection
may be discharged into the sanitary sewer system where the Director
of the Department of Public Works, upon the advice of the Township
Engineer, has determined that no other method of discharge is reasonably
available and upon issuance of a permit and payment of a permit fee.
All such groundwater shall further be subject to prevailing sanitary
sewer rental charges.
[Added 3-17-1993 by Ord. No. 3316]
C.
No person shall permit or allow sewage, sewage effluent
or human excreta to remain open to the atmosphere or on the surface
of the ground so that it is likely to become an attraction to insects,
to produce insect breeding, to be a source of noxious or offensive
odors, to create a condition dangerous or prejudicial to health or
to constitute a public nuisance.
D.
No person shall permit or allow raw or untreated sewage,
sewage effluent, human excreta or industrial waste to enter any source
of supply of drinking water or to enter any body of water, any watercourse
or any water or storm drain.
E.
The owner of any property connected to a public sanitary
sewer system shall be responsible for the maintenance and repair of
the sanitary sewer lateral(s) extending from any structure on the
property up to and including the point at which it connects to the
Township's sanitary sewer main.
[Added 10-21-2015 by Ord.
No. 4069]
A.
All business establishments performing the preparation of food on
the premises are required to install a grease trap for the collection
of grease generated in the food preparation process.
B.
The property owner and the owner or operator of the business establishment
shall periodically inspect, clean and maintain grease traps in such
manner that the grease trap will serve continuously to prevent any
grease entering the public sewer system. A record of each occasion
that the grease trap is cleaned or otherwise maintained shall be kept
and shall be available on the premises for inspection by the Township
during normal business hours. The Township may inspect such records
and the grease trap in any business establishment without notice during
normal business hours to determine compliance with these regulations.
A copy of this record shall be submitted to the Township no less frequently
than annually upon request.
C.
If, upon inspection, evidence is found that grease has entered into
the public sewer system, including the sewer lateral to the property,
the Township's Public Works Department shall be notified and the owner/operator
shall take the appropriate measures to remove the grease. If the owner/operator
fails to remove the grease from the public sewer system, the Township
may remove the grease, charge the owner/operator for all expenses
associated with such removal, and, in default of payment, file a municipal
claim for such expenses and commence collection proceedings as provided
by law, together with pursuing all other legal remedies.
Whenever the Director of Public Works shall
be required by any of the provisions of this article to serve any
notice on any property owner, such service shall be deemed sufficient
for all purposes if such notice shall have been left with the property
owner personally or left with the known agent or occupant of the premises
or, if there is no agent or occupant known to the Director of Public
Works, then if the same shall have been posted on the premises.
All connections with sewers and use of sewers
in the Township of Lower Merion shall comply with sewer connection
and use rules and regulations which shall be adopted from time to
time by resolution of the Board of Commissioners of the Township of
Lower Merion and which rules and regulations shall be available at
the office of the Director of Public Works.
[Amended 12-16-1981 by Ord. No. 1985]
A.
No sewer lateral connection may be made in the Township of Lower Merion unless the owner of the property being connected has first obtained a permit for such connection from the Director of Public Works. A connection fee and a tapping fee shall be charged for each permit based upon the fee schedule in effect at the time of payment for the sewer district in which the property is located, and such fees shall be as set forth in Chapter A167 of this Code. Fees shall be based upon EDUs (equivalent dwelling units) of 400 gallons per day. All permits shall expire after 60 days from the date of the issuance, and a new permit, issued upon payment of the required fees, shall be required for any connection not completed prior to the expiration of the preceding permit.
[Amended 8-4-1993 by Ord. No. 3333]
B.
All sewer lateral repairs, all tearing down of sewer lateral seals and all new sewer mains and manhole construction shall be subject to the inspection and approval of the Director of Public Works or his duly authorized representatives. A fee shall be charged for each such inspection, and such fee shall be as set forth in Chapter A167 of this Code.
[Amended 8-3-1988 by Ord. No. 3104]
Any property owner or any other person who shall
cause to be discharged into any Township sewer matter of any sort
liable to form a deposit or to create obstructions therein or who
shall break into or otherwise make connection with a Township sewer
without having first procured the permit required by this article
or who shall fail to comply with any of the requirements of any permit
or of this article or who shall fail to comply with any rule or regulation
of the Board of Township Commissioners concerning the manner of making
connections with Township sewers or the use of the same or who shall
in any way violate any of the provisions of this article shall be
liable, upon conviction thereof, to a fine or penalty of no more than
$600 for each and every offense. Whenever any such property owner
or other person shall have been notified by the Director of Public
Works or by service of summons in a prosecution, or in any other way,
that a violation of this article or of the rules and regulations of
the Board of Township Commissioners is being committed by him or them,
each day in which he or they shall continue such violation after such
notification shall constitute a separate offense punishable by a like
fine or penalty. Such fines or penalties shall be collected as like
fines and penalties are now by law collected.
