[Adopted 4-25-1973 by Ord. No. 1973-5]
Unless the context specifically indicates otherwise,
the meaning of the terms used in this article shall be as follows:[1]
That part of the sewer system extending from a sewer to the
curb line or, if there shall be no curb line, to the edge of the street
abutting the property affected or, if no such lateral shall be provided,
then of, or in place of, a sanitary sewer which is provided for the
connection of any service line.
Any outlet into a water course, ditch, pond, lake or other
body of surface or groundwater.
Each single dwelling unit, household unit, flat or apartment
unit, store, shop, office, business, commercial or industrial unit
or family unit contained within any structure, erected and intended
for continuous or periodic habitation, occupancy or use by human beings
or animals and from which structure sanitary sewage and industrial
wastes, or either thereof, is or may be discharged, located in the
Township.
Any person vested with ownership, legal or equitable, sole
or partial, of any property situated in the Township.
Any individual, partnership, company, association, society,
corporation or group.
A sewer which is part of the sewer system and which carries
sanitary sewage and/or treated industrial waste permitted to be discharged
into the sewer system.
That part of the main house drain or sewer line extending
from a point five feet outside the outer building wall or foundation
wall to its connection with the lateral sewer.
Sewer mains, lateral sewers from a sewer main to service
line or house connection, sewage ejector and/or pumping stations,
sewer force mains and all appurtenant facilities operated by the Township
in furnishing sewage service.
The Township of East Caln, Chester County, Pennsylvania.
An engineer employed by the Township or an authorized member
of his staff.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any owner of property who is required to connect to the sewer system, pursuant to Subsection B below, to construct or maintain any privy, privy vault, cesspool, sinkhole, septic tank or similar receptacle intended or used for the disposal of sewage within the Township, or unless such discharge is pursuant to a permit issued by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection, to discharge or permit the discharge of any sanitary sewage or industrial waste into any natural outlet in the Township.
B.
Each owner of any occupied building situate on property
abutting on any street, alley or right-of-way in which there has been
constructed a sanitary sewer and where any part of such building is
within 150 feet of said sewer, shall at his own expense install suitable
sanitary facilities therein and connect such facilities directly with
such sewer in accordance with the provisions of this article within
60 days after the date of official notice to do so, given in the manner
provided by law. In the event any such owner shall refuse or neglect
to so connect within said 60 day period, he shall be deemed to be
in violation of this article and the Board of Supervisors of the Township
or their agents may enter upon such property and construct such connection.
In such case, the Board of Supervisors shall forthwith, upon completion
of the work, send an itemized bill of the cost of the construction
of such connection to such owner, which bill shall be payable forthwith.
In case of neglect or refusal by such owner to pay said bill, within
30 days thereafter, it shall be the duty of the Board of Supervisors
to file municipal liens. Notwithstanding the foregoing provisions,
no owner of an occupied building shall be required to connect such
building to a sanitary sewer if the Board of Supervisors determines
that connecting such building would result in an overloading of sewage
treatment facilities.
C.
No privy, privy vault, cesspool, sinkhole, septic
tank or similar receptacle shall be connected with the sewer system
at any time. Each such privy, privy vault, cesspool, sinkhole, septic
tank or similar receptacle shall be abandoned upon the making of connection
to the sewer system and, at the request of the Township, shall be
cleansed and filled under its direction and supervision and any such
privy, privy vault, cesspool, sinkhole, septic tank or similar receptacle
not so abandoned and, if required by the Township, cleansed and filled,
shall constitute a nuisance and such nuisance shall be abated as provided
by law at the expense of the owner of such property.
D.
There is hereby reserved to the Township the right
to refuse to any person the privilege of connecting any occupied building
to the sewer system, or to compel discontinuance of the use of any
sewer by any person, or to compel the pretreatment of industrial wastes
in order to prevent discharge into the sewer system of wastes which
may be deemed by the Authority, the Authority Engineer, the Township
or the Township Engineer to be harmful to the sewer system or to have
a deleterious effect on sewage treatment processes or to be injurious
to personnel operating the sewer system.
A.
No person shall uncover, connect with, make any opening
into or use, alter or disturb in any manner any sewer or the sewer
system without first making application for and obtaining a permit,
in writing, from the Township.
B.
Application to the Township for a permit required
under this section shall be made by the owner of the property to be
served, in such form as may be prescribed by the Township. The application
shall be accompanied by the required connection charge and tapping
fee imposed by the Township.
C.
No person other than the Township, or its agents,
shall make or cause to be made the connection of any property with
a lateral sewer until such person shall have fulfilled each of the
following conditions:
(1)
Such person shall have notified the Township of the
desire and intention to connect to a lateral sewer.
(2)
Such person shall apply for and obtain permit as required
by this article.
(3)
Such person shall have given the Township at least
24 hours notice of the time when such service line is to be connected
and such connection made so that the Township may inspect the service
line, the work of connection and perform necessary testing.
D.
All costs and expenses of construction of a service
line and all costs and expenses in connection of such service line
to a lateral sewer shall be borne by the owner of the property to
be connected, and such owner shall indemnify and save harmless the
Township from all loss or damage that may be occasioned, directly
or indirectly, as a result of the construction of a service line or
the connection of a service line to a lateral sewer.
E.
Whenever the surface of any public street, sidewalk
or cartway is disturbed by the construction of a service line, it
shall be the responsibility of the applicant for a connection to obtain
street opening permits from the Township or highway occupancy permits
from the Pennsylvania Department of Highways. Unless otherwise required,
all surfacing materials must be restored in kind, thickness and construction
to the satisfaction of the Township and for Department of Highway,
as the case may be.
The Township Engineer and other duly authorized
representatives or employees of the Township bearing proper credentials
and identification shall be permitted, at all reasonable times, to
enter upon any premises connected or about to be connected or required
to be connected to the sewer system for the purpose of inspection,
observation, measurement, sampling and testing in accordance with
the provisions of this article.
No person shall maliciously, willfully or negligently
damage, destroy, deface, block or otherwise tamper with any sewer
or any other structure or equipment which is part of the sewer system,
or discharge any substance into the sewer system contrary to or in
violation of Ord. 1988-4 of the Township which, inter alia, prohibits
discharge of wastes into the sewer system and provides for rules and
regulations.
A.
Any person who shall violate any provisions of this article other than §§ 160-4 and 160-5 shall be served by the Township with written notice stating the nature of the violation and providing a reasonable time limit for the satisfactory correction thereof. (The notice provided in § 160-2A above being deemed to be notice of a violation for this purpose in respect of violations of this section.) The offender shall within the period time (if any, otherwise forthwith) stated in such notice, permanently cease all violations.
B.
Any person, firm or corporation who shall violate
any provision of this article, upon conviction thereof in an action
brought before a Magisterial District Judge in the manner provided
for the enforcement of summary offenses under the Pennsylvania Rules
of Criminal Procedure, shall be sentenced to pay a fine of not more
than $1,000 plus costs and, in default of payment of said fine and
costs, to a term of imprisonment not to exceed 90 days. Each day that
a violation of this article continues or each section of this article
which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate
offense.
C.
Any person violating any of the provisions of this
article, in addition to becoming liable for a fine and penalty, shall
become liable to the Township for any expense, loss or damage occasioned
by the Township by reason of such violation.
