[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Glenville 8-20-2003
by L.L. No. 4-2003 (Ch. 7 of the 1966 Code). Amendments noted
where applicable.]
It is the intent of the provisions of this chapter to regulate the use
of explosives and to strictly control blasting operations which are in any
way associated with excavations or activities within the Town of Glenville
so as to provide for the safety of those engaged in such blasting as well
as those who may be affected thereby.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
That area of land of the owner or applicant which will be directly
affected by any blasting operations conducted thereon, which area shall be
not less than 50 yards in all directions from the location of any explosives
which are ignited or set off.
The peak atmospheric overpressure, when measured with a measuring
system that has a flat response (3 dE) at frequencies of six hertz or lower.
Any person, firm or corporation or other entity making application
to the Town of Glenville to conduct blasting operations within the Town of
Glenville. The owner of any lands upon which blasting operations are proposed
to be conducted shall join in and is a necessary party to any application
for a license to be issued.
Any detonation of explosives which shall occur within a time not
to exceed one second, inclusive of any time-delay method which may be employed.
The area in which explosives, loading and blasting operations are
being conducted.
The person or persons authorized and licensed by the State of New
York to use explosives for blasting purposes.
Any activity or conduct carried on or conducted within the Town of
Glenville in which explosives are used.
Includes black powder, guncotton, giant powder, dynamite, nitroglycerin,
fulminate of mercury or any other substance, compound, mixture or article
having properties of such a character that alone or in combination or contiguity
with other substances or compounds may decompose suddenly and generate sufficient
heat, gas or pressure to produce rapid flaming combustion or to administer
a destructive blow to persons or property, including but not limited to all
materials classified as Class A, B or C explosives by the United States Department
of Transportation.
Any pits, depressions or underground workings from which any mineral
is produced for sale, exchange or commercial, industrial or municipal use
and all slopes or inclines leading thereto, including all equipment above,
on or below the surface of the ground used in connection with such pits, depressions
or workings.
The applicant's proposal for the mining and reclamation of the affected
land. The mined land use plan shall consist of a mining plan and reclamation
plan which shall include maps and other documents as required to describe
and illustrate environmental, physiographic, cultural and surface conditions
at and surrounding the mine as well as the applicant's proposed mining and
reclamation methods.
The extraction or removal of minerals from the ground or the breaking
of the surface soil in order to facilitate or accomplish the extraction or
removal of minerals, including any activities or processes or parts thereof
for the extraction or removal of minerals from their original location and
the preparation or processing of minerals at the mine location so as to make
them suitable for sale, exchange or commercial, industrial or municipal use,
but shall not include excavation or grading when conducted solely in aid of
farming or on-site construction.
The rate of movement in inches per second on any single component
of motion: longitudinal (horizontal motion along the line between the blast
and the seismograph location), transverse (horizontal motion at right angles
to the longitudinal) or vertical. For the purposes herein, measurements of
particle velocity shall be made on the ground adjacent to the nearest public
building, school, church or residential or other commercial or institutional
building or structure nearest to the blast area and shall be measured with
a three-component portable seismograph yielding a direct recording of particle
velocity.
The area of land of the owner or applicant for which an excavation
license has been issued and a license fee paid in accordance with the provisions
of the fee schedule of the Town of Glenville.[1]
A.
It shall be unlawful to engage in blasting operations
or in any other activity in which explosives are used in the Town of Glenville
without having secured a license therefor and having fully complied with the
provisions of this chapter. It is the intention of this provision that explosives
shall not be stored within the Town of Glenville.
B.
The license shall be applied for and issued in the name
of the owner of the work area upon which such blasting operations shall be
conducted, and the application for such license shall state the purpose, nature
and extent of the proposed blasting operations as well as the location of
the affected area.
A.
Licenses shall be issued by the Town Clerk of the Town of Glenville, provided that all of the requirements set forth in § 97-8 hereof have been complied with by the applicant.
B.
The applicant shall complete and file with the Town Clerk
an application for a license upon a form established by the Town Board from
time to time. Upon the filing of a completed application for a license, the
Town Clerk shall transmit the same to the Town Board. The Town Board shall
hold and conduct a public hearing upon such completed application and shall
cause public notice of such hearing to be given by publishing notice thereof
in the official newspaper of the Town, which notice shall be published at
least once, such publication to be not less than seven days nor more than
20 days prior to the actual date established for such public hearing. The
Town Clerk shall also post public notice of such public hearing on the official
bulletin board maintained by the Town, such posting to be not less than seven
days prior to the actual date established for such public hearing.
C.
After the public hearing conducted hereunder, the Town
Board shall consider all evidence presented to it for consideration and shall
thereafter act upon such application, stating specifically its reasons for
approval, disapproval or modification of the application for a license. If
approved, the license shall be issued by the Town Clerk, provided that the
other requirements of this chapter have been complied with by the applicant.
The applicant shall pay, prior to the issuance of a license hereunder,
the appropriate fee therefor as established by the Town Board by resolution,
from time to time.
A.
Applicants for licenses hereunder shall state upon such
application the period of time for which they wish such license to be issued,
which license period shall be, in any event, not less than 72 hours nor more
than three years.
B.
So far as practical, the license period shall be such
so as to coordinate with the expiration date of any other state, federal or
local permits which may be held by the applicant which are relevant to or
associated with the applicant's blasting operations. All license fees as hereinbefore
set forth shall be prorated accordingly. Suspension or revocation of any license
issued hereunder shall not entitle the applicant to any refund of any part
of the license fee paid.
Application for renewal of a license previously issued hereunder shall
be made not later than six months prior to the expiration of the current license
period. The applicant shall present satisfactory evidence of the existence
of all other required state, federal and/or local permits which may be required,
as well as evidence of continued compliance with all provisions of this chapter.
Violations of the provisions of this chapter during the current license period
may be sufficient reason for denial of the license renewal application. Any
blasting conducted by the applicant within the Town of Glenville without having
previously obtained a license therefor shall be considered as a factor in
passing upon any application for a license or renewal thereof. Renewal of
the license upon its termination shall follow the same procedures as those
required in this chapter for the issuance of the original license.
A.
General requirements.
(1)
No license to blast within the Town of Glenville shall
be issued until the applicant shall post and file with the Town Clerk a policy
of liability insurance in at least the amount of $1,000,000/$3,000,000, such
policy of insurance to name the Town of Glenville as an additional insured
so as to provide for the payment of any damages arising from the permitted
blasting. The Town may also require that the applicant execute and deliver
to the Town an indemnity agreement indemnifying the Town of Glenville from
any claims of any nature whatsoever arising out of the permitted blasting.
The license shall automatically terminate and close should the bond or policy
of insurance be cancelled or otherwise terminated.
(2)
The applicant shall comply with all requirements of the
State Environmental Quality Review Act (Environmental Conservation Law § 8-0101
et seq.), and no license to blast shall be issued until a final determination
authorizing the same has been issued in accordance with the provisions of
such law.[1]
[1]
Editor's Note: See also, Ch. 132, Environmental Quality Review.
(3)
Prior to the issuance of the license, the applicant shall
file with the Town Clerk a copy of the current license of the blaster as issued
by the State of New York. Such license shall be kept on file in the office
of the Town Clerk and shall be open to inspection at any time. The applicant
shall file with the Town Clerk any amendment, change or revision of such license
so filed, and should the blaster's license at any time expire, then, in that
event, no further blasting shall occur until a current license shall be filed.
B.
Specific requirements.
(1)
Reclamation. Should the conduct of the blasting be such
that it may create a mine or should the blasting be used in conjunction with
mining operations, the applicant shall file with the Town a mined land use
plan indicating the applicant's proposal for mining and reclamation of the
affected area, and the applicant shall further be subject to and shall evidence
compliance with all provisions of the New York State Mined Land Reclamation
Law, Title 27 (Environmental Conservation Law §§ 23-2701 through
23-2727). The applicant shall post and file with the Town of Glenville a bond
or letter of credit in an amount deemed sufficient by the Town Board so as
to assure to the Town that the proposed reclamation plan will be completed
as proposed.
(2)
Safety.
(a)
During the conduct of any blasting operations and until
such time as the ground surface of the affected area shall be restored to
an elevation equal to that of the average ground surface elevation of the
surrounding area, the applicant shall securely fence the affected area with
fencing of not less than six feet in height so as to assure no access to the
affected area either during the actual conduct of blasting operations or after
such blasting operations have been completed. Such fencing shall be adequately
posted with “DANGER, BLASTING AREA, KEEP OUT” signs clearly visible
at all times from the boundaries of the affected area.
(b)
The applicant shall be subject to and shall at all times
be in compliance with all applicable provisions and regulations of the Occupational
Safety and Health Administration, and in particular, without limitation, Subpart
U of OSHA Standards, §§ 1926.900 to 1926.914, Blasting and
the Use of Explosives. The applicant shall be subject to and shall at all
times be in compliance with all applicable provisions and regulations of Rule
No. 23 of the Industrial Code of the New York State Department of Labor, §§ 23-61
to 23-63, Explosives. Should the applicant be found to be in violation of
either of the above regulations or any part thereof, the license issued hereunder
may be suspended or revoked until such time as the applicant shall have come
into compliance.
A.
The applicant shall file with the Town Clerk at the time
of the application for the license hereunder, and no later than every six
months thereafter during the license period, a schedule of the dates and times
of the anticipated detonation of explosives at the affected area. Such schedule
may be amended in writing from time to time by the applicant, but in no event
less than 24 hours in advance of any anticipated blasting operations.
B.
All detonation of explosives shall take place between
the hours of 10:00 a.m. and 3:00 p.m., and no detonation of explosives shall
take place on either Saturday or Sunday or on any legal holiday.
C.
During scheduled blasting operations, the applicant shall
prominently display adequate signs warning against the use of mobile radio
transmitters on all roads within 1,000 feet of the affected area.
D.
The applicant may be required to provide additional reasonable
safety precautions as may be required by the Town Board or its representative
as required by the particular field conditions or conduct of the blasting
operation.
E.
Notice containing a schedule of blasting shall be delivered,
either personally or by certified mail, to all owners of property within 200
feet of the property where the blasting is to occur. When blasting occurs
during the course of developing a subdivision, the 200 feet shall be measured
from the outside boundary of the entire subdivision and not merely from the
lot line of the lot being created.
A.
No blasting operations shall be conducted within the
Town of Glenville when the purpose and/or effect of such proposed blasting
may be accomplished by some other feasible means available to the applicant;
it being the intention hereof to limit the blasting within the Town of Glenville
to those activities or purposes which cannot be accomplished by the applicant
by any other practical means other than that of actual blasting.
B.
No explosives shall be detonated pursuant to the license
issued hereunder, and/or no series of explosives shall be detonated pursuant
to such license in excess of any of the following levels and standards:
(1)
Particle velocity. No detonation of explosives or series
of explosive charges shall produce at any time a particle velocity in excess
of 1.0 inch per second.
(2)
Air pressure. No detonation of explosives or series of
explosive charges shall produce at any time a peak overpressure in excess
of 0.0092 pound per square inch (psi) or 130 decibels (dB).
(3)
Time delay. No detonation of explosives or blast, whether
in series, by way of time delay or otherwise, shall take place where the weight
of such explosives, measured in pounds or its equivalent, shall exceed for
any blast the maximum weight allowed in accordance with the following formula:
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W = (D/60)2
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Where:
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W =
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The maximum weight of explosives, in pounds, per delay that can be detonated
within any time interval of eight milliseconds or more.
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D =
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The distance in feet to the ground adjacent to the nearest public building,
school, church or residential or other commercial or institutional building
or structure nearest to the blast area which may be affected by the conduct
of such blasting operations.
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C.
The applicant shall state separately, on the applicant's
filed schedule of blasting, the number of pounds of explosives per eight-millisecond
time delay or more to be detonated during each scheduled blast. The applicant
shall further file with the Town Clerk every 60 days a certification from
the blaster indicating compliance with the filed schedule of number of pounds
of explosives per eight-millisecond time delay or more for each blasting operation
conducted during the preceding sixty-day period.
D.
The Town of Glenville may, during the license period,
monitor the blasting operations of the applicant in accordance with the standards
herein set forth, and should it be found and determined by the Town of Glenville
that the applicant shall have exceeded any of the standards hereunder, the
Town of Glenville may suspend and/or revoke the license issued hereunder until
it is satisfied that compliance with the standards set forth herein is assured.
E.
For the purposes of these provisions, measurements of
particle velocity and air pressure shall be made on the ground adjacent to
the nearest public dwelling, school, church or residential or other commercial
or institutional building or structure not on the property of the applicant.
A.
Any person, firm or corporation, whether licensed pursuant
to the provisions of this chapter or not, who commits or permits any acts
in violation of any of the provisions of this chapter shall be deemed to have
committed an offense against such chapter and also shall be liable for any
such offense or the penalty therefor. Each day such violation shall continue
or be permitted to exist shall constitute a separate violation.
B.
For every violation of any provision of this chapter,
the person violating the same shall be subject to a fine of not more than
$250 or imprisonment not exceeding 15 days, or both such fine and imprisonment.
C.
Conviction for violation of this chapter shall constitute
and effect an immediate forfeiture of the license.
D.
Any person violating this chapter shall be subject to
a civil penalty enforceable and collectible by the Town in the amount of $100
for each such offense. Such penalty shall be collectible by and in the name
of the Town for each day that such violation shall continue.
E.
In addition to the above-provided penalties and punishment,
the Town Board may also maintain an action or proceeding in the name of the
Town in a court of competent jurisdiction to compel compliance with or to
restrain by injunction the violation of such chapter.
Whenever it appears that any of the provisions of this chapter are in
conflict with any provisions of any state, federal or Town law, ordinance,
rule or regulation, such conflicting provisions shall be read and construed,
as far as possible, so as to give purpose and effect and carry out the expressed
intention of each of such conflicting provisions. Should any of the provisions
of this chapter impose more stringent requirements than those imposed by any
state, federal or Town law, ordinance, rule or regulation, then in that event,
the provisions of this chapter shall take precedence over and shall supersede
the provisions of such less-restrictive state, federal or Town law, ordinance,
rule or regulation. Should any provisions of any state, federal or Town law,
ordinance, rule or regulation impose more stringent requirements than those
imposed by the provisions of this chapter, then in that event, the provisions
of such state, federal or Town law, ordinance, rule or regulation shall take
precedence over and shall supersede the provisions of such less-restrictive
provisions of this chapter.
Where there are practical difficulties or unnecessary hardships in the
way of carrying out the strict letter of this chapter, the Town Board of the
Town of Glenville shall have the power in passing upon the application required
herein to vary or modify any of the regulations or provisions contained herein
so that the spirit of the chapter shall be observed, public safety and welfare
secured and substantial justice done.
