[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council of the Borough of Branchville 10-4-2000
by Ord. No. 5-2000. Amendments noted where applicable.]
GENERAL REFERENCES
Shade Tree Commission — See Ch. 32.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
Every person, firm, association, partnership and corporation.
As applied to public utility companies, shall mean poles, wires,
cables, subsurface conduits, pipes, manholes and appurtenant facilities of
such companies installed in a street.
Refers to a "public utility" as defined in the Revised Statutes of
the State of New Jersey (N.J.S.A. 48:2-13).
The shade Tree Commission of the Borough of Branchville.[1]
Trees and shrubs.
No person shall do any of the following acts to any tree within the
right-of-way lines of a street or on any property owned by the Borough of
Branchville without the prior permit of the Shade Tree Commission:
A.
Cut, prune, climb with spikes, break, damage or remove
or kill.
B.
Cut, disturb or interfere in any way with any root.
C.
Spray with any chemical.
D.
Fasten any rope, wire, sign or other device. (Nothing
herein shall prevent any governmental agency from affixing in a manner approved
by the Shade Tree Commission a public notice upon a tree in connection with
administering governmental affairs.)
E.
Remove or damage any guard or device placed to protect
any tree or shrub.
F.
Conduct razing, removal or renovation of any structure
if deemed by the Commission to be damaging to neighboring street trees.
G.
Place or distribute chemicals, including but not limited
to salt, deleterious to tree health.
H.
Maintain a stationary fire or device which vaporizes
noxious fumes deleterious to tree health.
I.
Remove soil, either for trenching or otherwise.
J.
Plant any tree or shrub within the designated area under
the control of the Commission.
A.
The Shade Tree Commission may grant to public utility
companies a blanket permit for tree pruning for line clearance and for the
installation and maintenance of subsurface and above ground plant construction
if there is interference with or endangerment to street trees.
B.
Public utility companies may, during periods of emergency
without specific prior permit, install temporary attachments to trees and
make emergency subsurface repairs.
C.
Each public utility company shall exercise reasonable
diligence in the maintenance of its plant construction so as to avoid damage
to trees under the jurisdiction of the Branchville Borough Shade Tree Commission.
Requests for permits required by the provisions of this chapter for
the performance of work should be directed to the Shade Tree Commission, Branchville
Borough, Sussex County, New Jersey 07826.
A.
Any person found guilty of violating any
of the provisions of this chapter shall, upon conviction by the Municipal
Court having jurisdiction, be fined a sum not exceeding $1,500 for each offense.
Each day any violation of this chapter shall continue shall constitute a separate
offense.
B.
In addition to the fine of $1,500 referred to in Subsection A, a municipality may impose an additional penalty of an assessment paid to the municipality based upon the value of the tree as determined by a certified tree expert or trained forester or by the formula of not exceeding $27 per square inch of a cross section of the trunk measured 4.5 feet above ground level. This amount shall be modified by the tree's species variety, location and its condition at the time of damage or destruction.
