It is hereby declared that the unnecessary emission of smoke,
soot, cinders, noxious gases, dust or fly ash from buildings using
fuel-oil-burning equipment in the City of Mount Vernon is detrimental
to the health of the inhabitants of the City and their property, and
the same is hereby prohibited. For the purpose of controlling and
reducing atmospheric pollution, it is hereby declared to be the policy
of the City to establish and maintain active and continuing supervision
of combustion processes and of the emission of certain harmful or
objectionable elements into the atmosphere. The necessity for legislative
intervention by the enactment of the provisions of this chapter is
hereby declared as a matter of legislative determination, and this
title shall be liberally construed so as to effectuate the above purposes.
Nothing herein contained shall be construed to abridge the emergency
powers of the Department of Health or the right of the Department
of Health to engage in any of its necessary or proper activities,
including the enforcement of the Sanitary Code.
As used in this chapter, the following terms are defined as
follows:
COMMISSIONER
The Fire Commissioner of the City of Mount Vernon.
DENSE SMOKE
Smoke of a density to or in excess of No. 3 of the Ringelmann
Smoke Chart or the Microringelmann Smoke Chart.
DUST
Air- or gasborne solid particles, including fly ash and soot.
FLY ASH
Solid particles resulting from combustion or incomplete combustion
of coal, wood or other fuels.
FUEL
Combustible materials, solid, liquid or gaseous, used primarily
either to kindle or sustain fire or produce heat.
MICRORINGELMANN CHART
A chart on file in the office of the Department of Health
and the Fire Department of the City of Mount Vernon, prepared from
the Ringelmann Chart of the United States Bureau of Mines.
SMOKE
Solid particles emitted from a chimney, stack, flue or open
fire as a result of the combustion of fuel or refuse.
SOOT
Agglomerated particles consisting essentially of carbonaceous
material.
STACK
A smokestack, chimney, flue, duct or other conveyor for carrying
products of combustion or incomplete combustion, smoke, dusts or odors
into the open air.
TEST
An accepted technical procedure for determining the amount
of solids, smoke, dust or fly ash in the stack gases or atmosphere.
All previous ordinances inconsistent with this chapter are hereby
repealed.
This chapter shall take effect immediately.