[HISTORY: 1988 Code §§ 52-1 — 52-11
adopted as amended through December 31, 2013. Amendments noted where
applicable.]
The Township Council finds that the effects of blasting in conjunction
with land development are detrimental to the health, safety and well-being
of the residents of the Township of Wayne, as well as dangerous to
the structure of homes and other improvements located adjacent to
and in the area undergoing blasting.
Whenever any words and phrases are used in this chapter, the
meanings respectively ascribed to them in the statutes of the State
of New Jersey and the rules and regulations of the New Jersey Department
of Labor and Workforce Development shall be deemed to apply to such
words and phrases used herein.
The provisions of this chapter shall not relieve any person
of the duty to observe other and more restrictive provisions as set
forth in the statutes of the State of New Jersey and the rules and
regulations of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development.
Any person desiring to do blasting or related operations in
the Township of Wayne shall file an application with the Township
Engineer containing the following information: his/her name and address,
the name of his/her insurance company, the amount of insurance, the
type of insurance and the date and number of the State permit.
A.
The permit fee for blasting or use of blasting materials shall be as provided in Chapter 75, Fees.
B.
Permits
shall be valid for one year unless sooner revoked.
C.
Revocation
of permit; reinstatement.
(1)
A blasting permit may be revoked by the Township Engineer for the
following reasons:
(2)
A blasting permit shall be reinstated upon submission to the Township
of the documents set forth above and the approval of said documents
by the Township Engineer.
The permittee shall notify the Police Department and the Township
Engineer prior to blasting. The Township reserves the right to change,
alter or restrict the hour of blasting in the interest of public safety.
B.
Pre-blast
survey; blasting hours.
(1)
Before any blasting may be performed on individual lots or common
improvements, a developer shall at its sole expense be responsible
for supplying a pre-blast survey for all properties that the Planning
Board and/or Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, after a hearing
and in consultation with the Township Engineer and Township Planner
and such other experts as the Planning Board and/or Board of Adjustment,
as the case may be, may engage, determines are likely to be adversely
affected in any way from blasting. The properties to be surveyed may
be beyond a two-hundred-foot radius and in no event shall any property
within a two-hundred-foot radius of the perimeter of the project be
excluded from the pre-blast survey required by this section. The pre-blast
survey shall be furnished in a finished readable format, including
but not limited to the development of photographs and tapes transcribed.
It shall also include but not be limited to the following:
(a)
Rock formations.
(b)
The topography.
(c)
The subsurface water table.
(d)
The soil mantle thickness, consistency, quality and condition.
(e)
The forest cover quality and size/density of trees and underbrush.
(f)
The man-made walk/berms of solid fencing.
(g)
The type of rock and condition of the same.
(h)
The proximity to highways and roadways.
(i)
The location and type of water supply wells and septic systems.
(3)
The pre-blast survey shall be filed with the Township Engineer and
Planning Board and/or Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, and
copies of the same shall be distributed to all property owners affected.
(4)
Blasting shall be permitted during the hours of 9:00 a.m. and 2:30
p.m., and no blasting shall be permitted on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays
or during the times when children are going to and from school.
(5)
Within 30 days of completion of the blasting the developer shall
be responsible for supplying at its sole expense a post-blast survey
for all properties that were included in the pre-blast survey required
by this subsection. The Township Engineer may require the inclusion
in the post-blast survey of dwellings and/or structures not included
in the pre-blast survey that have been adversely affected by the blasting.
The post-blast survey shall be furnished in a finished readable format,
including but not limited to the development of photographs and tapes
transcribed. It shall also include but not be limited to the following:
(a)
Inspection of the foundations.
(b)
Inspection of the interior walls.
(c)
Inspection of the ceilings.
(d)
Inspection of the windows.
(e)
Inspection of the exterior structures.
(f)
Inspection of the accessory buildings.
(g)
Inspection of the masonry walls.
(h)
Inspection of the concrete patios.
(i)
Inspection of the decks.
(j)
Inspection of the inground swimming pools.
(k)
A retest for water potability.
(l)
A retest of all existing pumps for proper function in connection
with the maximum flow test.
(6)
The developer shall notify the owners and occupants of the properties
included in the pre-blast survey, in writing by certified mail, return
receipt requested, no less than five days prior to conducting the
pre-blast survey that the survey will be conducted, stating the date
or dates of the survey and the names of the individuals and/or company
that will be conducting the pre-blast survey.
C.
Said
developer shall be primarily responsible for damage from blasting,
regardless of whether the blasting is performed by said developer
or a subcontractor of said developer.
D.
Insurance.
(1)
The developer and any party or subcontractor performing the blasting
shall obtain insurance coverage as follows:
(2)
In addition, the developer shall post a bond in an amount of not
less than $500,000 to ensure compliance with the provisions of this
chapter. The bonding company issuing the bond shall be authorized
to do business in the State of New Jersey and have an A.M. BEST rating
of not lower than A-.
E.
In
conjunction with a pre-blast survey as required herein, the developer
shall perform or cause to be performed sufficient test borings in
accordance with the recommendations of the Planning Board and/or Board
of Adjustment, as the case may be, and Township Engineer to determine
the amount, location and number of cubic yards of rock formation to
be removed as a result of the blasting of said rock formation that
is necessary for the development of the site.
F.
In
addition to the foregoing requirements regarding a pre-blast survey,
the developer shall, prior to the commencement of any blasting, submit
to the Township Engineer a blasting plan in which the developer shall
set forth the following information:
G.
The
developer shall submit to the Township Engineer, upon request, seismograph
records and blasting logs for each blast.
If any damage is incurred due to blasting, the Township may
stop the blasting pending an investigation by the State Department
of Labor and Workforce Development. The permittee shall not be permitted
to proceed until approval is obtained from the State Department of
Labor and Workforce Development.
Unless another penalty is expressly provided by New Jersey statutes or by the rules and regulations of the New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development, every person convicted of a violation of a provision of this chapter or any supplement thereto shall be liable to a penalty as indicated in Chapter 1, Section 1-15, Violations and penalties.
The Township Council directs the Township of Wayne Planning
Board and/or Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, to impose reasonable
conditions for approval in all applications where blasting may be
required to prepare or develop the site; the condition to be so imposed
shall include, but shall not be limited to, the following:
A.
Requiring as a condition for Municipal Planning Board and/or Board
of Adjustment, as the case may be, approval that the developer agree
on behalf of himself/herself as well as on behalf of his/her blasting
contractor that the developer and his/her blasting contractor will
participate in a preconstruction conference for the purpose of minimizing
the adverse effects of the proposed blasting operation.
B.
Requiring as a condition precedent to Municipal Planning Board and/or
Board of Adjustment, as the case may be, approval that the developer
agree on behalf of himself/herself as well as on behalf of his/her
blasting contractor that an on-site observer representing the Township
of Wayne shall be permitted to observe and monitor all blasting operations;
the Township's designated on-site observer shall receive advance
written notice of not less than 24 hours in each instance where blasting
takes place. All costs and expenses associated with the on-site observer
shall be paid by the developer.
Any utility company, its agents, servants and/or employees,
shall be exempt from the provisions of this chapter in connection
with the installation of any equipment necessary for the operation
of the utility, provided that the excavated material resulting from
the blasting shall not exceed 1.5 cubic yards.
