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Sec. 22-180. - Findings and policy.#
The city council does hereby find that disposal of waste, garbage, trash and abandoned manmade objects along the banks of the Buckeye Brook constitutes a hazard to the public health, safety and general welfare of the people of the city. In recognition of the ever-increasing environmental problems resulting from the demands made upon the land and the renewable resources of the city, and in recognition of the need to preserve and protect one of the city's most valuable natural resources, the Buckeye Brook, it is hereby declared to be the policy of the city to provide for the preservation of the Buckeye Brook, the development of the water resources and the improvement of its water quality in order to prevent the impairment of dams and reservoirs by sediment or any waste material, and to protect wildlife and the herring run and preserve the natural beauty of the Buckeye Brook and its banks for the health, safety and general welfare of the people of the city. Nothing herein shall be inconsistent with laws or rules and regulations adopted by or for the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management and the Rhode Island Coastal Resources Management Council.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-181. - Purpose.#
It is the purpose of this article to: (1)
Protect the environment, especially the Buckeye Brook and its environs, from the effects of improper or illegal disposal of waste;
(2)
Establish a program of regulation and enforcement to control and eliminate the improper or illegal disposal of wastes; and
(3)
Protect and promote public health and safety.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-182. - Definitions.#
As used in this article:
Buckeye Brook includes the physical boundaries of the Buckeye Brook, Old Mill Creek, Mill Cove as well as the ponds, brooks, streams and tributaries that empty into the Buckeye Brook, Old Mill Creek, Mill Cove as the same are located in the city.
Dispose means the discharge, deposit, dumping, spilling, leaking, abandoning or placing of waste upon land protected by this article.
Occupier of land includes any person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency who shall hold title to, or shall be in possession of, any lands lying within 200 feet of the Buckeye Brook.
Waste includes the following: (1)
Construction waste. Any building materials and refuse resulting from construction, remodeling and repair operations on any type of building, structure, highway, stormwater basin, underground stormwater galley, stormwater drainage system or utility. It shall also include any pavement or concrete disposed of as a result of construction or otherwise.
(2)
Demolition waste. Any material generated from the destruction or razing of any building or structure.
(3)
Bulky waste. Any large items, including, but not limited to, appliances, furniture, automobile parts, shopping carts, tree stumps, tires and abandoned automobiles.
(4)
Solid waste. Garbage, refuse and other discarded materials generated by any sources whatsoever, other than materials that result from sewage by a person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency holding a valid Rhode Island Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (RIPDES) permit from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
(5)
Stormwater discharges for industrial sources. Stormwater discharges generated by industrial sources as defined by the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, other than that resulting by a person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency holding a valid Rhode Island Pollutant Discharge Elimination System (RIPDES) permit from the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-183. - Disposal of waste by occupier of land.#
It shall be unlawful for any owner or occupier of land to dispose of or deposit or allow to be disposed or deposited any waste on any property located in the city which is within 200 feet of the Buckeye Brook. Any person found in violation of this section, or who shall solicit, counsel, aid or abet any person in the violation of this section, shall be punishable as provided in section 1-4 of the Warwick Code of Ordinances. Each day of noncompliance shall be a separate violation of this section.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-184. - Disposal of waste on land of another.#
It shall be unlawful for any person trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency not an owner or occupier of land to dispose or deposit any waste upon the property of another located in the city which is within 200 feet of the Buckeye Brook. Any person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency found in violation of this section or who shall solicit, counsel, aid or abet any person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency in the violation of this section shall be punishable as provided in section 1-4 of the Warwick Code of Ordinances. Each day of noncompliance shall be a separate violation of this section.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-185. - Presumption of responsibility for violation.#
In any prosecution or proceeding hereunder, the land evidence records of the city shall constitute prima facie evidence that the owner of the property was the person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency who disposed or deposited waste material upon the property where such violation occurred.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)
Sec. 22-186. - Notice of violation.#
(a)
Once a complaint has been brought to or by the police under section 22-114, a notice of violation shall be sent to the person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency involved. Said notice may be hand delivered by a police officer or mailed certified mail, return receipt requested. Refusal to accept the certified mailing shall be deemed to constitute prima facie evidence of its receipt.
(b)
Upon receipt of said notice, the person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency involved shall remove the violating waste from the property within 30 days of receipt of the notice.
(c)
Failure to comply with the notice of violation within 30 days will result in prosecution for violation of this article.
(d)
Nothing contained herein shall prohibit the immediate arrest and prosecution of any person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency found in violation of section 22-114, whether or not a notice of violation was issued.
(e)
The notice of violation, once served upon the person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency involved, shall be recorded in the land evidence records of the city in the same manner as a notice of violation for minimum housing standards. If the person, trust, firm, authority, corporation, municipality, state agency, or quasi-public agency notified is not the property owner, the property owner shall be served with a copy of the notice of violation, which shall be plainly identified as a copy.
(Ord. No. O-04-27, § I, 12-14-04)