[Adopted 8-16-1994 by Ord. No. 81694]
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Township of German Waste Reduction and Recycling Ordinance."
This article is enacted pursuant to the Solid Waste Management Act, No. 97, July 7, 1980 and the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act, No. 101, July 28, 1988.
It is the purpose of this article to:
A. 
Require waste reduction and recycling as a means of managing municipal waste, conserving resources and supplying energy.
B. 
Protect the public health, safety and welfare from the short and long term dangers of collection, transportation, processing and storage of municipal waste.
C. 
Utilize, wherever feasible, the capabilities of private enterprise in accomplishing the desired objections of an effective, comprehensive solid waste management program.
D. 
Establish and implement within the Township of German a recycling program to return valuable materials to productive use, to conserve energy and to protect capacity at municipal waste processing or disposal facilities.
E. 
Recycle at least 25% of all municipal waste and source-separated recyclable material generated in the Township of German on and after __________.
F. 
The weight or volume of municipal waste generated per capita in this Township of German on __________ should, to the greatest extent practicable, be less than the weight or volume of municipal waste generated per capita on the effective date of this article.
G. 
Each person living or working in the Township of German shall be taught the economic, environmental, and energy value of recycling and waste reduction, and shall be encouraged through a variety of means to participate in such activities.
H. 
The Township of German shall, to the greatest extent practicable, procure and use products and materials with recycled content, and procure and use materials that are recyclable.
The following words and phrases when used in this article shall have the meanings given to them in this section unless the context clearly indicates otherwise:
ABATEMENT
The restoration, reclamation, recovery, etc., of a natural resource adversely affected by the activity of a person.
AVERAGE DAILY VOLUME
The mean daily volume received at a facility taking into account weather, seasonal variations, scheduled community cleanup days and other factors.
COMMONWEALTH AGENCY
The commonwealth and its departments, boards, commissions, and agencies, commonwealth owned universities, and the Sate Public School Building Authority, the State Highway and Bridge Authority, and any other authority now in existence or hereafter created or organized by the commonwealth.
DEGRADABLE PLASTIC BEVERAGE CARRIER
Plastic beverage carriers that degrade by biological process, photodegradation, chemodegradation or degradation by other natural processes. The degradation process does not produce or result in a residue or by-product considered to be hazardous waste.
DEPARTMENT
The Department of Environmental Protection of the commonwealth and its authorized representatives.[1]
DISPOSAL
The deposition, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking or placing of solid waste into or on the land or water in a manner that the solid waste or a constituent of the solid waste enters the environment, is emitted into the air or is discharged to the waters of this commonwealth.
FEASIBILITY STUDY
A study which analyzes a specific municipal waste processing or disposal system to assess the likelihood that the system can be successfully implemented, including, but not limited to, an analysis of the prospective market, the projected costs and revenues of the system, the municipal waste-stream that the system will rely upon and various options available to implement the system.
HOST MUNICIPALITY
The municipality other than the county within which a municipal waste landfill or resource recovery facility is located or is proposed to be located.
LEAF WASTE
Leaves, garden residues, shrubbery and tree trimmings, and similar material, but including grass clippings.
LOCAL PUBLIC AGENCY
A. 
Counties, cities, boroughs, towns, Townships, school districts and any other authority now in existence or hereafter created or organized by the commonwealth.
B. 
All municipal or school or other authorities now in existence or hereafter created or organized by any county, city, borough, Township, or school district or any combination thereof.
C. 
Any and all other public bodies, authorities, councils of government, officers, agencies or instrumentalities of the foregoing, whether exercising a governmental or proprietary function.
MANAGEMENT
The entire process, or any part thereof, of storage, collection, transportation, processing, treatment and disposal of solid wastes by any person engaging in such process.
MUNICIPAL RECYCLING PROGRAM
A source separation and collection program for recycling the Township of German's waste or source-separated recyclable materials, or a program for designated drop-off points or collection centers for recycling the Township of German's waste or source-separated recyclable materials, that is operated by or on behalf of the Township of German. The term includes any source separation and collection program for composting yard waste that is operated by or on behalf of the Township of German. The term shall not include any program for recycling construction/demolition waste or sludge from sewage treatment plants or water supply treatment plants.
MUNICIPAL WASTE
Any garbage, refuse, industrial lunchroom or office waste and other material, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material, resulting from the operation of residential, municipal, commercial or institutional establishments and from community activities and any sludge not meeting the definition of residual or hazardous waste in the Solid Waste Management Act from a municipal, commercial, or institutional water supply treatment plant, wastewater treatment plant or air pollution control facility. The term does not include source-separated recyclable materials.
MUNICIPAL WASTE LANDFILL
Any facility that is designed, operated or maintained for the disposal of municipal waste, whether or not such facility possesses a permit from the department under the Solid Waste Management Act. The term does not include any facility that is used exclusively for disposal of construction/demolition waste or sludge from sewage treatment plants or water supply treatment plants.
MUNICIPALITY
The Township of German of Fayette County, Pennsylvania.
OPERATOR
A person engaged in solid waste processing or disposal. Where more than one person is so engaged in a single operation, all persons shall be deemed jointly and severally responsible for compliance with the provisions of this article.
PERSON
Any individual, partnership, corporation, association, institution, or cooperative enterprise. In any provisions of this article prescribing a fine, imprisonment or penalty, or any combination of the foregoing, the term "person" shall include the officers and directors of any corporation or other legal entity having officers and directors.
PLASTIC BEVERAGE CONTAINER
Plastic rings or similar plastic connectors used as holding devices in the packaging of beverages, including, but not limited to, all carbonated beverages, liquors, wines, fruit juices, mineral waters, soda and beer.
POLLUTION
Contamination of any air, water, land or other natural resources of the Township of German that will create or is likely to create a public nuisance or to render the air, water, land or other natural resources harmful, detrimental or injurious to public health, safety, or welfare, or to domestic, municipal, commercial, industrial, agricultural, recreational, or other legitimate beneficial uses, or to livestock, wild animals, birds, fish or other life.
POSTCONSUMER MATERIAL
Any product generated by a business or consumer which has served its intended end use, and which has been separated or diverted from solid waste for the purposes of collection, recycling, and disposition. The term includes industrial by-products that would otherwise go to disposal or processing facilities. The term does not include internally generated scrap that is commonly returned to industrial and manufacturing processes.
PROCESSING
Any technology used for the purpose of reducing the volume or bulk of municipal waste or any technology used to convert part or all of such waste materials for off-site reuse. Processing facilities include, but are not limited to, transfer facilities, composting facilities and resource recovery facilities.
PROJECT DEVELOPMENT
Those activities required to be conducted prior to constructing a processing or disposal facility that has been shown to be feasible, including, but not limited to, public input and participation, siting, procurement and vendor contract negotiations, and market and municipal waste supply assurance negotiations.
PUBLIC AGENCY
Any commonwealth agency or local public agency.
RECYCLED CONTENT
Goods, supplies, equipment, materials and printing containing postconsumer materials.
RECYCLING
The collection, separation, recovery and sale or reuse of metals, glass, paper, leaf waste, plastics and other materials which would otherwise be disposed or processed as municipal waste or the mechanized separation and treatment of municipal waste (other than through combustion) and creation and recovery of reusable materials other than a fuel for the operation of energy.
RECYCLING FACILITY
A facility employing a technology that is a process that separates or classifies municipal waste and creates or recovers reusable materials that can be sold to or reused by a manufacturer as a substitute for or a supplement to virgin raw materials. The term "recycling facility" shall not mean transfer stations or landfills for solid waste nor composting facilities or resource recovery facilities.
RESIDUAL WASTE
Any garbage, refuse, other discarded material or other waste, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous materials resulting from industrial, mining and agricultural operations and any sludge from an industrial, mining or agricultural water supply treatment facility, wastewater treatment facility or air pollution control facility, provided that it is not hazardous. The term shall not include coal refuse as defined in the Act of September 24, 1968 (P.L. 1040, No. 318), known as the Coal Refuse Disposal Control Act. The term shall not include treatment sludges from coal mine drainage treatment plants, disposal of which is being carried on pursuant to the Act of June 22, 1937 (P.L. 1987, No. 394), known as The Clean Streams Law.
RESOURCE RECOVERY FACILITY
A processing facility that provides for the extraction and utilization of materials or energy from municipal waste that is generated off-site, including, but not limited to, a facility that mechanically extracts materials from municipal waste, a combustion facility that converts the organic fraction of municipal waste into a fuel product. The term also includes any facility for the combustion of municipal waste that is generated off-site, whether or not the facility is operated to recover energy. The term does not include:
A. 
Any composting facility.
B. 
Methane gas extraction from a municipal waste landfill.
C. 
Any separation and collection center, drop-off point or collection center for recycling, or any source-separation or collection center for composting leaf waste.
D. 
Any facility, including all units in the facility, with a total processing capacity of less than 50 tons per day.
SOLID WASTE
Any waste, including, but not limited to, municipal, residual or hazardous waste, including solid, liquid, or semisolid or contained gaseous materials. The term does not include coal ash, or drill cuttings.
SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT ACT
The Act of July 7, 1980 (P.L. 380, No. 97).
SOLID-SEPARATED RECYCLABLE MATERIALS
Materials that are separated from municipal waste at the point of origin for the purpose of recycling.
STORAGE
The containment of any municipal waste on a temporary basis in such a manner as not to constitute disposal of such waste. It shall be presumed that the containment of any municipal waste in excess of one-year constitutes disposal. This presumption can be overcome by clear and convincing evidence to the contrary.
TRANSPORTATION
The off-site removal of any municipal waste at any time after generation.
TREATMENT
Any method, technique or process, including, but not limited to, neutralization, designed to change the physical, chemical or biological character or composition of any municipal waste so as to neutralize such waste or so as to render such waste safe for transport, suitable for recovery, suitable for storage or reduced in volume.
WASTE REDUCTION
Design, manufacture or use of a product to minimize weight of municipal waste that requires processing or disposal, including, but not limited to:
A. 
Design or manufacturing activities which minimize the weight or volume of materials contained in a product, or increase durability or recyclability; and
B. 
Use of products that contain as little material as possible, are capable of being reused or recycled or have an extended useful life.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 28, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
Responsibilities. The Township of German shall have the power and its duty shall be to assure the proper and adequate transportation, collection and storage of municipal waste which is generated or present within its boundaries, to assure adequate capacity for the disposal of municipal waste generated within its boundaries by means of the procedure set forth in § 1111 of the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act and to adopt and implement a program for the collection and recycling of municipal waste or source-separated recyclable materials as provided in this article.
B. 
Powers. In carrying out its duties under this section, the Board of Supervisors of the Township of German may adopt resolutions establishing procedures, regulations and standards for the recycling, transportation, storage and collection of municipal wastes, or source-separated recyclable materials which shall not be less stringent than, and not in violation of or inconsistent with, the provisions and purposes of the Solid Waste Management Act, the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto.
C. 
Duties. The Township of German shall implement the provisions of this article by collecting, transporting, processing or marketing source-separated materials or may contract, subject to competitive bidding, with any person to carry out its duties for the recycling, transportation, collection and storage of municipal waste and source-separated recyclable materials, if the recycling, transportation, collection or storage activity or facility is conducted or operated in a manner that is consistent with the Solid Waste Management Act, The Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act, this article and the regulations promulgated pursuant thereto. Any such person shall be jointly and severally responsible with the Township of German when carrying out its duties for transportation, collection or storage activity or facility.
The Township of German hereby establishes and implements a source separation and collection program for recyclable materials in accordance with § 1501 of the Municipal Waste, Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act. The source separation and collection program shall include the following regulations:
A. 
Persons are hereby required to separate three materials, deemed appropriate hereafter, from other municipal waste generated at their homes, apartments and other residential establishments and to store each material until collection. The three materials shall be designated periodically from the following: clear glass, colored glass, aluminum, steel and bimetallic cans, high-grade office paper, newsprint, corrugated paper and plastics. Nothing in this article shall be deemed to impair the ownership of separated materials are placed at curbside or similar location for collection of the Township of German.
B. 
Persons are hereby required to separate leaf waste from other municipal waste generated at their homes, apartments and other residential establishments until collection unless those persons have otherwise provided for the composting of leaf waste. The Board of Supervisors of the Township of German shall allow an owner, landlord, or agent of an owner or landlord of multifamily rental under this section by establishing a collection system for recyclable materials at each property. The collection system must include suitable containers for collecting and sorting materials, easily accessible locations for the containers, and written instructions to the occupants concerning the use and availability of the collection system. Owners, landlords and agents of owners or landlords who comply with this article shall not be liable for the noncompliance of the occupants of their buildings.
C. 
Persons are hereby required to separate high grade office paper, aluminum, corrugated paper and leaf waste and other material deemed appropriate generated as commercial, municipal, or institutional establishments and from community activities and to store the material until collection. The Board of Supervisors of the Township of German shall exempt persons occupying commercial, institutional and municipal establishments within its municipal boundaries from the requirements of this article if those persons have otherwise provided for the recycling of materials that they are required by this article to recycle. To be eligible for an exemption under this subsection, a commercial or institutional solid waste generator must, annually, apply for a permit to do so and pay a fee established pursuant to resolution, and provide written documentation to the Township of German of the total number of tons recycled or estimated to be recycled.
D. 
At least once per month, the following separated materials are hereby required to be placed at the curbside or a similar location in the designated containers for collection and a collection charge as indicated below may be billed to each dwelling unit within the Township of German according to procedures established pursuant to a resolution of the Board of Supervisors of German Township in order to recover that portion of the cost of collection which cannot be recovered through the sale of the recycled materials.
E. 
The Township of German shall collect recyclable materials from curbside or similar locations designated by Resolution at least once per month from each residence or other person generating municipal waste in the Township of German.
F. 
The Township of German shall solicit bids and award contracts for the sale of collected materials for recycling, giving preferential consideration, for the collection, marketing and disposition of recyclable materials, to persons engaged in the business of recycling on the effective date of this article.
The Township of German shall establish a comprehensive and sustained public information and education program concerning recycling program features and requirements. As a part of this program, the Secretary of the Board of Supervisors for the Township of German shall, at least 30 days prior to the initiation of the recycling program and at least once every six months thereafter, notify all persons occupying residential, commercial, institutional and municipal premises within its boundaries of the requirements of this article. The Secretary of the Township of German shall, as he or she deems necessary and appropriate, place an advertisement in a newspaper circulating in the Township of German, post a notice in public places where public notices are customarily posted, including a notice with other official notifications periodically mailed to residential taxpayers or utilize any combination of the foregoing.
An operator of a landfill or resource recovery facility may contract with the Township of German to provide recycling services in lieu of the curbside recycling program as determined from time to time by resolution of the Board of Supervisors of the Township of German. The contract must ensure that at least 25% of the waste received is recycled provided that the economic and environmental impact of the proposed technology used for the recycling received prior approval from the Department of Environmental Protection.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 28, General Provisions, Art. I).
A. 
Persons who operate a municipal waste landfill, resource recovery facility or transfer station under contract with the Township of German shall establish at least one drop-off center at a location, designated by the Township of German by Resolution of the Board of Supervisors of the Township of German, for the collection and sale of at least three recyclable materials.
B. 
The three materials shall be chosen by the Board of Supervisors of the Township of German pursuant to a resolution from the following: clear glass, colored glass, aluminum, steel and bimetallic cans, high grade office paper, newsprint, corrugated paper and plastics. The center shall be located at the facility or in a place that is easily accessible to persons generating municipal waste that is processed or disposed at the facility. Each drop-off center must contain bins or containers where recyclable materials may be placed or temporarily stored. If the operation of the drop-off center requires attendants, the center shall be open at least eight hours a week, including four hours during evenings or weekends, pursuant to a schedule established by resolution of the Board of Supervisors of the Township of German.
C. 
Each operator shall, at least 30 days prior to the initiation of the drop-off center program and at least once every six-month thereafter, provide public notice of the availability of the drop-off center. The operator shall place an advertisement in a newspaper circulating in the Township of German or provide notice in another manner approved by the Board of Supervisors of German Township.
On or before __________ of each year, the Secretary of the Township of German shall submit a report to the Fayette County Solid Waste Department which shall describe the weight or volume of materials that were recycled by the municipal recycling program in the preceding calendar year.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate any provision of this article, upon conviction thereof in an action brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules of Criminal Procedure, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not less than $100 nor more than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment of said fine and costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days. Each day that a violation of this article continues or each section of this article which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense.
[1]
Editor's Note: Amended at time of adoption of Code (see Ch. 28, General Provisions, Art. I).