[HISTORY: Adopted by the City Council of the City of Rahway 11-13-1990
by Ord. No. A-16-90. Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter is enacted pursuant to N.J.S.A. 26:3A2-21 et seq., the
County Environmental Health Act.
As used in this chapter, the following terms shall have the meanings
indicated:
The City of Rahway.
Any intentional or unintentional action or omission resulting in
the releasing, spilling, leaking, pumping, pouring, emitting, emptying or
dumping of hazardous substances into any waters which flow within the jurisdiction
of this city.
Any items used to extinguish or prevent any hazardous material fire
or stop or contain any leak release or spill involving any hazardous material,
which cannot be reused or cannot be replenished without cost after that particular
incident. These "expendable items" include but are not limited to fire-fighting
foam, chemical extinguishing agents and absorbent materials, sand, recovery
drums and any protective equipment and clothing to include, but not restricted
to, chemical protective suits, chemical protective gloves, goggles and any
other item owned or controlled by the City of Rahway or its employees, agents,
officers and/or officials.
Any material, solid, liquid or gas, listed as such under the National
Fire Protection Association Guide of Hazardous Materials, the Department of
Transportation Guidebook, the list of hazardous substances adopted by the
Federal Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) pursuant to Section 311 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act Amendment of 1972, as amended by the Clean
Water Act of 1977 (33 U.S.C. § 1251 et seq.), and the list of toxic
pollutants designated by Congress or the EPA pursuant to Section 307 of the
Federal Water Pollution Control Act, and any hospital or medical waste, including
but not limited to syringes, bandages and discarded pharmaceutical products.
Any motorized equipment, registered or unregistered, including but
not limited to a passenger car, motorcycle, truck, tractor trailer, construction
equipment, farm machinery, watercraft, aircraft and trains.
Any container, drum, box, cylinder or tank used to hold or contain
or carry or store any hazardous materials, whether or not said container was
manufactured for the containment of a hazardous material.
A.
This chapter provides for the reimbursement for, or the
replacement of, any and all equipment utilized by the City of Rahway for costs
expended, without regard to ownership, for the purpose of mitigating, controlling
or containing any incident in which a hazardous material is involved in a
fire, leak, release or spill, or where the potential thereof exists, or for
the prevention of the same.
B.
This chapter also provides for the reimbursement for
the expenses incurred by the city for the wages, regular or overtime, paid
to its employees, agents or servants as a result of an incident involving
a hazardous material, fire, leak, release or spill of a hazardous material
and for the costs of medical and hospital treatment for injuries incurred
by agents, servants and employees of the City of Rahway.
C.
This chapter mandates reimbursement to the City of Rahway
and for any expendable items used by the city or any of its employees, agents,
servants, officers or officials in extinguishing any hazardous material fire
or stopping or containing or controlling or mitigating any spill, release
or leak of any hazardous material.
A.
The discharge of hazardous substances is prohibited.
This section shall not apply to the discharge of hazardous substances pursuant
to and in compliance with the conditions of a federal or state permit.
B.
Any person who may be subject to liability for a discharge
or becomes aware of a discharge which occurred prior to or after the effective
date of this chapter shall immediately notify the City of Rahway Emergency
Management at 381-8000.
C.
Whenever any hazardous substance is discharged, the city
may, at its discretion, act to remove or arrange for the removal of such discharge.
D.
Any person who has discharged a hazardous substance or
is in any way responsible for any hazardous substance which has been or shall
be removed by the City of Rahway shall be strictly liable, jointly and severally,
without regard to fault, for all cleanup and removal costs and shall be liable
for the wages, regular and overtime, paid and the costs of medical and hospital
treatment for injuries incurred by the agents, servants and employees of the
City of Rahway.
Reimbursement to the City of Rahway for expendable items used shall
be made by the owner or operator of the vehicle responsible for the hazardous
material fire, leak or spill of hazardous material; the owner or person responsible
for the vessel containing the hazardous material involved in such fire, leak
or spill on public or private property, whether stationary or in transit and
whether accidental or through negligence; the owner or person responsible
for any property from which any leak or spill of hazardous material emanates,
whether accidental or through negligence; and the person responsible for the
hazardous material fire, leak or spill of hazardous material on public or
private property, whether accidental or through negligence.
Any person causing any hazardous material, fire, leak, spill or release
involving a hazardous material must provide reimbursement for services rendered
by any recovery company, towing company or any other technical assistance
called for by the city to handle such incident. In the event of a vehicle
having been responsible for an incident, such vehicle shall be impounded until
such time as it has been deeded safe to proceed by the incident commander
in conjunction and cooperation with the City of Rahway's Hazardous Materials
Unit and until such time as arrangements have been made to reimburse the city
and the towing company for their expenditures under the terms of this chapter.
The person or entity responsible for any fire, leak or spill of hazardous
materials shall reimburse the city the full price of expendable items and
costs hereto used to extinguish such fire or to stop or contain such leak
or to control such spill, within 45 days after receipt of a bill therefor.
The collecting agency shall utilize its best efforts to collect costs hereunder
and shall reimburse its agents or the local units of the amounts collected.
In the event that the collecting agency is not able to collect said costs
or only a portion thereof, the collecting agency shall not be responsible
to its agents or the local units for the full amount of the same.
The person or entity responsible for any fire, leak or spill of hazardous
material who fails to reimburse the city within the time required shall be
subject to a fine of not less than $50 nor more than $500 per day or by imprisonment
for a period of not more than six months, or both.
