[Adopted 7-31-1972 as Ch. XV, Part 7, of the 1972 Code]
It shall be unlawful for any person to drill
or bore any oil or gas well anywhere within the limits of the Borough
of Wilkinsburg.
It shall be unlawful for any person to mine
coal beneath any street or alley in the Borough of Wilkinsburg.
[Amended 11-30-1994 by Ord. No. 2472]
Any person who shall violate any provision of
this article shall, for each and every such violation, upon conviction
thereof, be sentenced to pay a fine of not more than six hundred dollars
($600.) and costs of prosecution and, in default of payment of such
fine and costs, to imprisonment for not more than thirty (30) days.
Each day's violation of any provision of this article shall constitute
a separate violation.
[Adopted 7-20-2011 by Ord. No. 2870]
Council of the Borough of Wilkinsburg believes that the protection
of residents, neighborhoods, and the natural environment constitutes
the highest and best use of the police powers that this municipality
possesses. The Borough Council also believes that local legislation
that embodies the interests of the community is mandated by the doctrine
of the consent of the governed and the right to local, community self-government.
Thus, the Borough Council hereby adopts this article, which establishes
a bill of rights for the residents and communities of the Borough,
bans commercial extraction of Marcellus Shale natural gas within the
Borough of Wilkinsburg because that extraction cannot be achieved
without violating the rights of residents and extraction corporations
operating within the Borough of Wilkinsburg, and nullifies state laws,
permits, and other authorizations which interfere with the rights
secured by this article.
As used in this article, the following terms shall have the
meanings indicated:
CORPORATIONS
For the purposes of this article shall include any corporation,
limited partnership, limited liability partnership, business trust,
or limited liability company organized under the laws of any state
of the United States or under the laws of any country, and any other
business entity that possesses state-conferred limited liability attributes
for its owners, directors, officers, and/or managers.
EXTRACTION
The digging or drilling of a well for the purposes of exploring
for, developing or producing natural gas or other hydrocarbons.
NATURAL GAS
Any gaseous substance, either combustible or noncombustible,
which is produced in a natural state from the earth and which maintains
a gaseous or rarified state at standard temperature or pressure conditions,
and/or gaseous components or vapors occurring in or derived from petroleum
or natural gas.
This article shall be effective five days after the date of
enactment, at which point the article shall apply to any and all commercial
extractions of natural gas in the Borough of Wilkinsburg regardless
of the date of any applicable DEP permits.