[HISTORY: Adopted by the Borough Council
of the Borough of Wilkinsburg as indicated in article histories. Amendments
noted where applicable.]
[Adopted 7-31-1972 as Ch. XV, Part 7, of the 1972 Code]
A.
PERSON
As used in this article, the following terms shall
have the meanings indicated:
Includes any natural person, partnership, association, firm
or corporation.
B.
In this article, the singular shall include the plural,
the plural shall include the singular, and the masculine shall include
the feminine and the neuter.
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:
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.
The digging or drilling of a well for the purposes of exploring
for, developing or producing natural gas or other hydrocarbons.
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.
A.
It shall be unlawful for any corporation to engage in the extraction
of natural gas within the Borough of Wilkinsburg, with the exception
of gas wells installed and operating at the time of enactment of this
article.
B.
No permit, license, privilege or charter issued by any state or federal
agency, commission or board to any person or any corporation operating
under a state charter, or any director, officer, owner, or manager
of a corporation operating under a state charter, which would violate
the prohibitions of this article or deprive any Borough resident(s),
natural community, or ecosystem of any rights, privileges, or immunities
secured by this article, the Pennsylvania Constitution, the United
States Constitution, or other laws, shall be deemed valid within the
Borough of Wilkinsburg.
A.
Any person, corporation, or other entity that violates any prohibition
of this article shall be guilty of a summary offense and, upon conviction
thereof by a District Justice, shall be sentenced to pay the maximum
fine allowable under state law for that violation and shall be imprisoned
to the extent allowed by law. A separate offense shall arise for each
day or portion thereof in which a violation occurs and for each section
of this article found to be violated.
B.
The Borough of Wilkinsburg may also enforce this article through
an action in equity brought in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny
County. In such an action, the Borough of Wilkinsburg shall be entitled
to recover all costs of litigation, including, without limitation,
all costs and attorney's fees expended by the Borough of Wilkinsburg.
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.
