Source: http://ecode360.com/6707111
Timestamp: 2017-08-18 08:47:19
Document Index: 743147105

Matched Legal Cases: ['§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 130', '§ 10', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 220', '§ 80']

Town of Clarkstown, NY Quarrying and Blasting
§ 220-1 Findings and legislative intent.
§ 220-3 Hours of operation.
§ 220-4 Ground blast and air blast standards.
§ 220-5 Recordkeeping requirements.
§ 220-6 Exemption from maximum charge standards.
§ 220-7 Illegal blasting operations.
Chapter 220: Quarrying and Blasting
[HISTORY: Adopted by the Town Board of the Town of Clarkstown 5-13-1986 by L.L. No. 2-1986 (Ch. 81 of the 1974 Code). Amendments noted where applicable.]
Explosives — See Ch. 136.
Chapter 220 : Quarrying and Blasting
The Town Board hereby finds and determines that the existence and continued operation of blasting operations at quarries and elsewhere within the Town of Clarkstown has potential for adverse effects upon residents and property, not only due to the existence of heavy trucking, noise, dust and debris associated with such operations, but also because there is hazard to life and property from the direct and indirect effects of blasting at quarries and elsewhere within the Town of Clarkstown. Pursuant to the authority contained in the Town Law, § 130 Subdivision 23, and the Municipal Home Rule Law, § 10, it is the intention of the Town of Clarkstown to regulate the hours of operation and the degree of blasting that takes place at quarries and elsewhere so as to ensure that such business operations do not result in impairment of the health and safety of Town residents or unduly expose private and public property to risk of damage.
Because the dimension of nuisance is added to intrusions affecting health and safety when quarries and others engaging in blasting activities operate during hours when Town residents expect relative tranquility, the Town Board hereby asserts its right to designate acceptable hours for blasting operations and to control the degree of velocity and displacement of vibrations during those hours when blasting is authorized.
Includes any activity whereby layers of earth and rock are dislodged or torn apart by the use of any explosive, and includes the displacement of any vegetation, ground cover, earth or rock by the explosion or detonation of any explosive material.
No blasting shall be permitted in the unincorporated portion of the Town of Clarkstown except between the hours of 7:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m., excluding Sundays and public holidays, when no blasting shall be permitted at any time.
During the hours when blasting is permitted, peak particle velocity and overpressure produced by any blast, at a distance measured by the distance from the blast to the closest structure or building not owned or used by the entity conducting the blast, shall not exceed 0.75 inch per second for frequencies less than 40 hertz or 2.0 inches per second for frequencies of 40 hertz or more. In addition, air pressure levels emanating from such blasts shall not exceed 131 decibels for a high pass filter of 0.1 hertz, or 128 decibels for a high pass filter of two hertz, or 125 decibels for a high pass filter of six hertz.
It shall be the responsibility of any person, firm or organization which engages in blasting to maintain verified records of the place, date, time and amount of the charge set for each blast and also to monitor and maintain a permanent record of all blasts with measurements at distances indicated in § 220-4. Such person, firm or corporation shall, not less than quarterly and upon demand, provide to the Director of the Department of Environmental Control of the Town of Clarkstown all such records and other proof of compliance to the standards established by § 220-4. Seismograph and air pressure readings of blasts shall be taken by a person regularly or routinely employed in the processes of seismograph readings and competent to qualify as an expert witness as to the results.
The person, firm or corporation conducting the blast is not required to monitor a blast if such blast is designed such that the maximum charge per delay (expressed in pounds) does not exceed the following:
Where D (expressed in feet) is the distance from the blast site to the closest structure or building not owned or used by the entity conducting the blast.
A contemporaneous log of all such blasts must be maintained, and proof of compliance with the standard of maximum charge per delay shall be furnished to the Town upon demand.
The person, firm or corporation conducting a blast is not required to meet the standards of maximum charge per delay set forth in § 220-5B if the entity monitors the blast and meets the standards of ground vibrations and air pressure levels set forth in § 220-4.
Any failure to comply with the recordkeeping requirements established by § 220-5 and any blasting which exceeds the ground blast and air blast standards established by § 220-4 shall constitute an offense punishable as provided in § 220-8.
Any failure to comply with the recordkeeping requirements of § 220-5 shall constitute a separate and distinct offense punishable as provided in § 220-8.
[Amended 4-9-2013 by L.L. No. 2-2013; 8-20-2013 by L.L. No. 6-2013]
Any person, firm or corporation or their respective agents, servants or employees found guilty of a violation of any provision of this chapter shall be punished by a fine of up to $2,500. Any person, firm or corporation or their respective agents, servants or employees found guilty of a second offense of any provision of this chapter within 18 months from the date of the first conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than $2,500 and not more than $5,000. Any person, firm or corporation or their respective agents, servants or employees found guilty of a third offense of any provision of this chapter within 18 months from the date of the second conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than $7,500 and not more than $10,000. Any person, firm or corporation or their respective agents, servants or employees found guilty of a fourth or subsequent offense of any provision of this chapter within 18 months from the date of the third conviction shall be punished by a fine of not less than $10,000 and not more than $15,000. For such offenses which are continuing offenses, each day such offense shall continue to exist shall constitute a separate offense.
The application of the above penalty shall not be held to prevent the enforced removal of the prohibited conditions by any other means available to the Town Board of the Town of Clarkstown.
In the case of violation of any provision of this chapter by a corporation, the sentence to be imposed shall conform to the provisions of § 80.10 of the Penal Law and the fines provided for therein.