[HISTORY: Adopted by the Mayor and Council
of the Borough of Park Ridge 2-24-2009 by Ord. No. 2009-05.[1] Amendments noted where applicable.]
This chapter may be cited as the "Borough of
Park Ridge Outdoor Wood-Burning Furnace Ordinance."
As used in this chapter, the following terms
shall have the meanings indicated:
Trunks and branches of trees and bushes, but does not include
leaves, needles, vines or brush smaller than three inches in diameter.
Any equipment, device or apparatus, or any part thereof,
which is installed, affixed or situated outdoors for the primary purpose
of combustion of fuel to produce heat or energy, used as a component
of a heating system providing heat for any interior space.
An accessory structure designed and intended, through the
burning of wood or any solid fuel, for the purpose of heating the
principal structure or any other site, building or structure on the
premises. This does not include fireplaces, fire pits, barbecues or
similar structures not designed to heat a structure.
Dry wood which has been milled and dried but which has not
been treated or combined with any petroleum product, chemical preservative,
glue, adhesive, stain, paint or other substance.
The construction and operation of outdoor furnaces
and outdoor wood-burning furnaces are hereby prohibited within the
Borough of Park Ridge.
Any outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood-burning
furnaces in existence on the effective date of this chapter shall
be permitted to remain, provided that the owner applies for and receives
a permit from the Borough of Park Ridge Construction Code Office,
on the forms provided, within one year of the effective date of this
chapter. Notwithstanding the fact that any outdoor furnaces or outdoor
wood-burning furnaces in existence on the effective date of this chapter
has one year to receive a permit, any existing outdoor furnaces or
outdoor wood-burning furnaces must comply with the applicable sections
of this chapter within 60 days of the effective date of this chapter.
If the owner of an outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace
does not receive a permit within one year of the effective date of
this chapter, the outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace
shall be removed. "Existing" or "in existence" shall mean that the
outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace is in place on the
premises.
A.
Except as hereinbefore provided, the lawful use of
any outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace existing at the
time of the effective date of this chapter may be continued, although
such use does not conform with the provisions of the Borough Code
of Park Ridge.
B.
For those outdoor furnaces or outdoor wood-burning
furnaces that are in existence prior to the effective date of this
chapter, the only fuel allowed shall be those listed fuels recommended
by the manufacturer, including firewood and untreated lumber. Burning
of any and all other materials in any existing outdoor furnace or
outdoor wood-burning furnace shall be prohibited.
C.
Emissions from the outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning
furnace shall not exhibit greater than twenty-percent opacity (six-minute
average), except for one continuous six-minute period per hour of
not more than twenty-seven-percent opacity.
D.
Malodorous air contaminants from the outdoor furnace
or outdoor wood-burning furnace shall not be detectable outside the
property of the person on whose land the outdoor furnace or outdoor
wood-burning furnace is located.
E.
The emissions from the outdoor furnace or outdoor
wood-burning furnace shall not interfere with the reasonable enjoyment
of life or property.
F.
The emissions from the outdoor furnace or outdoor
wood-burning furnace shall not cause damage to vegetation or property.
G.
The emissions from the outdoor furnace or outdoor
wood-burning furnace shall not be harmful to human or animal health.
H.
No outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace
existing at the effective date of this chapter shall thereafter be
extended or enlarged.
I.
No existing outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning
furnace which has been damaged by any reason to the extent of more
than 50% of its assessed value for the Borough of Park Ridge tax purposes
shall be repaired or rebuilt.
J.
Any outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace
existing at the effective date of this chapter which is abandoned
or discontinued for a period of six consecutive months shall not be
permitted to be reestablished as a nonconforming use and must be immediately
removed by the property owner from the subject premises.
(1)
If the property owner fails to remove the outdoor
furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace existing at the effective
date of this chapter by the end of the period of six consecutive months,
the Borough of Park Ridge Zoning Officer shall give written notice,
by certified mail or by personal service, to said owner upon which
the outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace is located. Said
notice shall provide that said owner shall remove the existing outdoor
furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace within 15 days of the date
the notice is either postmarked or personally served upon said owner.
(2)
In the event that the property owner fails to remove
the outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning furnace within the aforesaid
specified period of time, the Park Ridge Zoning Officer shall take
any and all reasonable steps to effect its removal.
(3)
Any costs incurred by the Borough of Park Ridge to
effect said removal (including any legal and other expenses incurred
by the Borough to effect the removal), plus an amount equal to 50%
of said costs of removal, shall be charged to the owner of said premises.
The aforesaid expenses shall be paid by the owner of the said premises
so affected within 30 days from the date said costs are presented
to said owner. If the aforesaid expenses are not paid within said
thirty-day-period time frame, then said expenses shall be charged
to the said premises so affected by including such expenses in the
next annual Borough tax levy against the subject premises.
The Construction Code Office shall be and is
hereby designated as the agency to exercise the powers prescribed
by this chapter and to enforce the provisions thereof.
Any person who violates any provision of this
chapter or of the rules and regulations adopted pursuant thereto shall,
upon conviction thereof, be punished by a fine not exceeding $500
or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 10 days, or both. Any
subsequent offense shall be punishable by a fine not exceeding $1,000
or by imprisonment for a term not exceeding 30 days, or both. In addition,
any permit issued pursuant to this chapter shall be revoked upon conviction
of a second offense, and the subject outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning
furnace shall not be eligible for any future permit. A separate offense
shall be deemed committed on each day during or on which a violation
occurs or continues. The owners of the subject premises upon which
prohibited acts occur shall be jointly and severally liable for violations
of this chapter. Any fine imposed hereunder shall constitute a lien
upon the real property where the outdoor furnace or outdoor wood-burning
furnace is located until said fines and costs are paid in full.
Nothing contained herein shall authorize or
allow burning which is prohibited by codes, laws, rules or regulations
promulgated by the United States Environmental Protection Agency,
New Jersey State Department of Environmental Protection, or other
federal, state, county, regional or local agency. Outdoor furnaces
or outdoor wood-burning furnaces, and any electrical, plumbing or
other apparatus or device used in connection with an outdoor furnace
or outdoor wood-burning furnace, shall be installed, operated and
maintained in conformity with the manufacturer's specifications and
any and all local, state, county and federal codes, laws, rules and
regulations. In case of a conflict between any provision of this chapter
and any applicable federal, state, county or local ordinances, codes,
laws, rules or regulations, the more restrictive or stringent provision
or requirement shall prevail.
All ordinances or parts of ordinances inconsistent
with this chapter are hereby repealed to the extent of such inconsistency
only.
If any section, paragraph, subdivision, clause
or provision of this chapter shall be adjudged invalid, such adjudication
shall apply only to the section, paragraph, subdivision, clause or
provision, and the remainder of this chapter shall be deemed valid
and effective.
This chapter shall take effect immediately following
final passage, adoption and publication as provided by law.
