[Adopted 6-7-2011 by Ord. No. 2011-04; amended 2-21-2012 by Ord. No.
2012-01]
This article shall be known and may be cited as the "Lawrence
Township Municipal Solid Waste Storage and Disposal Ordinance" or
"Ordinance."
For the purposes of this article, the following terms, phrases,
words and their derivations shall have the meaning given herein. When
not inconsistent with the context, words used in the present tense
include the future, words in the plural number include the singular
number, words in the singular number include the plural number, and
words in the masculine gender shall include the feminine gender. The
word "shall" is always mandatory and not merely directory.
The open space on any premises.
Any owner of a waste transportation vehicle licensed under
Pennsylvania Act 90 and/or any owner of a waste transportation vehicle
who for a fee removes municipal waste from premises and transports
it to a licensed disposal facility.
As defined under 25 Pa. Code § 271.1, any garbage,
refuse, industrial lunchroom, or office waste, and any other material,
including solid, liquid, semisolid, or contained gaseous material,
resulting from the operation of residential, municipal, commercial,
farm, industrial, or institutional establishments and from community
activities; and sludge not meeting the definition of residual or hazardous
waste in the Solid Waste Management Act from a municipal, commercial,
farm, industrial, or institutional water supply treatment plant, waste
water treatment plant, or air pollution control facility. Excluded
is any material meeting the definition of residual waste or of hazardous
waste and any source-separated recyclable material.
A person, corporation, partnership, or group, whether or
not the legal owner of record, occupying a building or portion thereof
as a unit.
Any person, agent, operator, firm, or corporation having
a legal or equitable interest in real estate in Lawrence Township
or otherwise having control of the property, including the guardian
of an estate of such person and the executor or administrator of the
estate of such person.
A lot, plot, or parcel of land, including any structures
thereon.
All municipal solid waste according to the definition above
that is accepted for disposal by an approved landfill. Items not accepted
for disposal or not accepted for disposal without prior approval include
but are not limited to: hazardous waste, residual waste, source-separated
recyclables, friable asbestos waste, liquid wastes in containers greater
than one gallon (paint cans shall be open and the paint dried or absorbed
by kitty litter and disposed of), car batteries and rechargeable batteries.
For the purposes of this article, refuse is the municipal solid waste
that may be removed from premises within the Township by being collected
by a licensed hauler or otherwise transported to a licensed disposal
facility.
As defined under 25 Pa. Code § 271.1 and pertinent
to this article, garbage, refuse, other discarded material or other
waste, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous materials
resulting from industrial, mining, and agricultural operations; and
sludge from an industrial, mining, or agricultural water supply treatment
facility, waste water treatment facility, or air pollution control
facility, if it is not hazardous.
The governmental jurisdiction and legal entity of the Township
of Lawrence, Clearfield County, Pennsylvania.
Municipal solid waste that is not stored as specified below
is prohibited from accumulating on all exterior property of any premises
within Lawrence Township.
Municipal waste generated or accumulated on any premises within
the Township shall be stored in containers until such time that it
is removed from the premises by a hauler, transported to a disposal
facility permitted by DEP, or otherwise disposed of as required by
state and federal regulations. It is the responsibility of the owner
of any premises to ensure that such containers are provided and kept
on the premises at all times. Containers used for the storage of municipal
waste shall be watertight, leakproof, plastic or metallic cans or
dumpsters or durable plastic bags. It is the responsibility of the
owner of any premises to ensure that all containers are kept in good
repair and sanitary condition. No container shall be so filled that
it cannot be tightly closed.
The owner of any premises shall ensure the disposal of refuse
generated or accumulated on the premises by one or both of the following
means: By contracting or ensuring that the occupant(s) of the premises
has contracted with a licensed hauler (or hauler) to have the refuse
removed and transported to a permitted disposal facility or by transporting
or ensuring that the occupant(s) of the premises transports the waste
to a permitted disposal facility. It is herein further required that
the interval of time between the collections of stored refuse by a
hauler or between removals of stored refuse by the owner or occupant
of any premises for transport to a licensed disposal site shall not
be of such length that, for a period of more than one day, containers
cannot be tightly closed, that there is an accumulation of more than
three plastic bags, or that there is an accumulation of more than
two plastic bags in addition to any storage containers. Municipal
solid waste other than refuse shall be disposed of as required by
township, state, or federal regulations.
When the enforcement agent of the Township observes noncompliance
with the provisions of this article on any premises within the Township,
the agent shall issue a written notice of noncompliance to be served
by registered or certified mail upon the owner of said premises, or,
if the owner's whereabouts or identity be unknown, by posting the
notice conspicuously upon the offending premises. Said notice shall
specify the observed noncompliance and request proof that the owner
or the occupant(s) of the premises has a current contract with a licensed
hauler to dispose of refuse generated on the premises or that the
owner or occupant of the premises is transporting the refuse generated
on the premises to a permitted disposal site on a regular basis. Proof
of the latter disposal method shall consist of copies of the weight
tickets from the disposal facility. Such copies shall be retained
for one year after their issuance. If the owner of any premises to
whom a notice of noncompliance has been sent fails to provide proof
as specified above and that is deemed adequate in the judgment of
the Township's enforcement agent, the enforcement agent shall require
that a contract with a licensed hauler be obtained and proof provided
or that proof of disposal at a permitted disposal facility for a period
of time to be determined by the enforcement agent be subsequently
provided. If it is the determination of the Township's enforcement
agent that, adequate proof as specified above notwithstanding, more
frequent disposal is necessary to prevent the accumulation of solid
waste on the exterior of any premises as prohibited above, the agent
may require more frequent disposal and may subsequently require proof
that collection by a licensed hauler on a more frequent basis has
been contracted for or that disposal at a permitted disposal site
on a more frequent basis is taking place.
All vehicles utilized by any hauler for the picking up of municipal
waste from any property in the Township shall be enclosed structures
appropriate for hauling such municipal waste. The container portion
of the vehicle shall not be open or configured in such a way as to
permit municipal waste from escaping from the vehicle while the vehicle
is utilized in normal operating manner.
Any hauler picking up municipal waste in the Township shall
be required to advise the Township in writing within 72 hours after
request from the Township as to whether an owner or occupant of any
premises within the Township has a current contract for the collection
of municipal waste from the premises. Furthermore, all haulers shall
cooperate with the agent of the Township in providing information
in the event that an action is instituted to enforce the terms and
conditions of this article. In the event that any municipal waste
is spilled while the hauler is in the process of picking up such waste,
or while transporting the waste, or otherwise while under the control
of any hauler, said hauler shall be responsible for the immediate
clean-up of said waste, including the cost thereof.
A.
Any person aggrieved by the decision of the enforcement agent of
the Township may request and shall then be granted a hearing before
the Lawrence Township Board of Supervisors provided that a written
petition requesting such a hearing and setting forth the grounds therefore
is filed at the Township office within 10 days after notice of the
enforcement agent's decision. The hearing shall commence not later
than 30 days after the date on which the petition was filed unless
postponed for sufficient cause. After such a hearing, the Lawrence
Township Board of Supervisors shall sustain, modify, or overrule the
action of the enforcement agent.
B.
The Township shall set a fee schedule for hearings. The fee schedule
may be reviewed from time to time to determine reasonable rates for
hearing costs.
Any person who shall violate the terms or conditions of this
article shall, upon conviction thereof, be subject to a fine of not
more than $300 and/or imprisonment for a term not to exceed 90 days,
or both. Each day that a violation continues after notice of the violation
has been served shall be deemed to be a separate offense.
A.
Nothing contained herein shall prohibit a farmer from carrying out
normal farming operations, including composting or spreading of manure
of other farm-produced agricultural waste not otherwise prohibited
or regulated for land applications. All such practices must be conducted
in compliance with applicable Township, state, and federal laws and
regulations as may be in effect.
B.
Notwithstanding the terms of this article, compost piles kept by
occupants of a premises shall not violate the terms and conditions
of this article, provided that the materials in the compost piles
do not generate any offensive odors and provided further that said
compost piles are secure so that animals do not spread the materials
from the compost piles around the premises.
C.
The provisions of this article do not apply to anything but the storage
and disposal of municipal solid waste and do not apply therefore to
hazardous or residual waste as defined under 25 Pa. Code § 271.1
and its amendments. All hazardous or residual waste must be disposed
of in compliance with applicable Township, state, and federal laws
and regulations as may be in effect.
