Part 2
Curbside Collection

§20-201 Title.

This Part shall be known as the “Selinsgrove Borough Curbside Collection Ordinance.”

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §1; as amended by Ord. 679, 5/3/1999, §3(c))

§20-202 Statutory Authority.

This Part is adopted in conformance with and pursuant to authority granted by the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act, 53 P.S. §4000.101 et seq., as amended, and by §§1006 and 1202(5), (8) of the Borough Code, 53 P.S. §§46006 and 46202(5), (8), as amended.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §2)

§20-203 Purpose.

This Part is enacted to regulate the disposal of certain materials, namely, for residential establishments, clear glass, colored glass, aluminum and, if not composted, leaf waste and, for commercial, municipal or institutional establishments and community activities, high-grade office paper, aluminum, corrugated paper and leaf waste, by requiring persons in the Borough to recycle these materials when intended for disposal. This regulation is consistent with the Solid Waste Management Act and in accordance with the policies stated in the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act 53 P.S. §4000.101 et seq. Those policies include the notion of removing certain materials from the municipal waste stream that is, recycling materials such as those mentioned above to decrease the flow of solid waste to municipal waste landfills, aid in the conservation and recovery of valuable resources and increase the supply of reusable materials for industries and for other economic and environmental reasons. To ensure that the recycling required under this Part is effective, this Part also provides for penalties to persons violating it.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §3)

§20-204 Background.

Under the Municipal Waste Planning, Recycling and Waste Reduction Act, 53 P.S. §4000.101 et seq., the General Assembly has required the Borough to establish and implement a source-separation and collection program for recyclable materials in accordance with that Act. Following this law, the Borough has established and implemented such a program, of which this Part is a part.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §4)

§20-205 Definitions.

Unless the context specifically and clearly indicates otherwise, the meanings of terms used in this Part shall be as follows:

Aluminum–any object made entirely of aluminum, including cans so labeled by the manufacturer, aluminum windows, frames and sashes and aluminum foil.

Borough–Selinsgrove Borough, Snyder County, Pennsylvania.

Clear glass–all products made from silica or sand, soda ash and limestone, which products are clear and used for packaging or bottling, and all other material commonly known as “clear glass,” excluding blue and flat glass commonly known as “window glass.”

Colored glass–all products made from silica or sand, soda ash and limestone, which products are colored and used for packaging or bottling, and all other material commonly known as “colored glass,” excluding blue and flat glass commonly known as “window glass.”

Corrugated paper–heavy paper with alternating ridges and grooves and the objects made thereof.

Council–the Borough Council of the Borough.

Dispose, disposal–to deposit, inject, dump, spill, leak or place into or on land or water for the purpose of discarding or to place in a manner for eventual deposit, injection, dumping, spilling, leaking or placement into or on land or water for the purpose of discarding.

High-grade office paper–high-grade, machine finished paper used by commercial, municipal or institutional establishments and in community activities, including letters, envelopes, ledger paper, bond paper or computer paper. The term does not include paper used in newspapers, books, glossy magazines, cartons, boxes and bags, wrapping paper or packaging paper.

Leaf waste–leaves, garden residues, shrubbery and tree trimmings and similar material, but excluding grass clippings.

Person–any natural individual, partnership, association, corporation or other group or entity which is the subject of legal rights and duties. Whenever used in any clause prescribing or imposing a penalty, “person,” when applied to firms, partnerships or associations, shall mean the partners or members thereof, and when applied to corporations, the officers thereof.

Recyclable, recyclable item–for residential establishments, clear glass, colored glass, aluminum and, if not composted, leaf waste and, for commercial, municipal or institutional establishments and community activities, high-grade office paper, aluminum, corrugated paper and leaf waste.

Recycle, recycling–to separate, collect and recover certain types of waste which would otherwise be disposed.

Waste–a thing or material discarded as useless or unwanted by the person discarding it.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §5)

§20-206 Mandatory Recycling.

No person shall dispose of any clear glass, colored glass, aluminum or, if not composted, leaf waste from any residential establishment in the Borough or any high-grade office paper, aluminum, corrugated paper or leaf waste from any commercial, municipal or institutional establishment or from any community activity in the Borough but shall instead recycle these items, when intended for disposal, through the recycling program of the Borough.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §6)

§20-207 Exemption.

Any commercial, municipal or institutional establishment that annually provides written documentation to the Borough of the total number of tons of recyclables it recycles through a program other than that of the Borough shall be exempt from the recycling program of the Borough.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §7)

§20-208 Source Separation and Containment of Recyclables.

All persons in the Borough shall separate at the establishment or activity generating a recyclable the particular recyclable item from all other waste and shall further separate and contain the item for recycling as follows:

A.    Clear and Colored Glass. Lids, plastic covers and any similar non-glass feature shall be removed from the glass item; clear glass and colored glass shall be separated from each other; glass shall be clean and contained in a container supplied by the person discarding the glass.

B.    Aluminum. All liquid shall be removed from aluminum cans; all nonaluminum parts shall be removed from other aluminum objects; aluminum shall be clean and contained in a container supplied by the person discarding the aluminum.

C.    High-Grade Office Paper and Corrugated Paper. High-grade office paper and corrugated paper shall be bundled and secured in bundles not to exceed 50 pounds.

D.    Leaf Waste. Leaf waste shall be contained in a container supplied by the person discarding the leaf waste, unless notice to the contrary is given by the Borough.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §8)

§20-209 Curbside Collection.

All persons in the Borough recycling recyclable items shall place the separated and contained items at curbside for collection by the Borough during times and under rules and regulations designated by the Borough.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §9)

§20-210 Fees.

A per-quarter fee of an amount as established, from time to time, by resolution of Borough Council is imposed upon each residential and commercial establishment within the Borough for use of the curbside collection service established by this Part to help pay for its cost. This fee must be paid whether or not the curbside collection service is used by the establishment. An establishment shall be equivalent to the dwelling unit that quarterly receives a water bill from the Borough for water service, and the fee shall be billed quarterly with that water bill. A bill for curbside collection services that is unpaid after its due date shall be delinquent and shall be subject to a one-time only penalty of 25 percent of the amount due. In order for the establishment to cure the delinquency, the establishment must pay the delinquent bill, together with the penalty. Failure to pay delinquent bills for two quarters may result in a lien being imposed against the delinquent establishment in the amount of the delinquent bills and penalties, together with interest, attorney’s fees and court costs provided for in the Pennsylvania Municipal Claim Law, 53 P.S. §7101 et seq. The procedure for imposition and schedule for the amount of attorney’s fee set forth in §26-112 of Chapter 26, “Water,” shall apply hereto, which Section is incorporated herein by this reference. The Borough Council may from time to time, by duly adopted resolution, change the amount of the fee imposed here, which change in fee shall have full force and effect as a part of this Part.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991; as added by Ord. 708, 12/2/2002, §3(a); and amended by Ord. 825, 10/3/2016, §5(B))

§20-211 Ownership of Recyclable Item.

Nothing in this Part shall be deemed to impair the ownership of recyclable items by the person who generated them unless and until such items are placed at curbside for collection, at which time the recyclable items shall become the property of the Borough or its authorized agent.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §10)

§20-212 Further Rules and Regulations.

The Council from time to time may, by duly adopted resolution, make further rules and regulations and impose fees and charges pertaining to the recyclables and its recycling program, which rules, regulations, fees and charges shall have full force and effect as part of this Part.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §11)

§20-213 Violations and Penalties.

Any person who violates any provision of this Part, which violations include the disposal of a recyclable item and the failure to follow the rules and regulations for separating recyclables and placing them at curbside, shall, 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 less than $100 nor more than $1,000 plus costs and reasonable attorney fees incurred by the Borough in enforcement proceedings 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 Part continues or each Section of this Part which shall be found to have been violated shall constitute a separate offense. Such fine or penalty shall be in addition to any other penalty imposed by any other Section of this Part or by law.

(Ord. 614, 8/5/1991, §13; as amended by Ord. 825, 10/3/2016, §5(B))