(a) Purpose; Authority.
(1) The Village of Edgar provides fire and other emergency response services for the protection of the public health, safety and welfare, the costs of which are funded from the general tax revenue of the Village. Such services may involve property which is not owned by a property taxpayer of the Village such as utility transmission and telephone lines, gas lines, cable television equipment, or hazardous materials, or may involve property owned by a taxpayer of the Village of Edgar, but which requires extraordinary response services, such as an open burning site or a hazardous substances or hazardous waste handling or storage site. Such response services benefit the owner or person in charge of such property and the public health, safety and welfare; and
(2) The Village, pursuant to the Wisconsin Statutes, and its police powers may collect the costs of such response services from the owner or person in charge of the property if it is deemed proper and in the best interest of the public health, safety and welfare.
(b) Prohibited Discharges. No person, firm or corporation shall discharge or cause to be discharged, leaked, leached or spilled upon any public or private street, alley, public or private property, or unto the ground, surface waters, subsurface waters, or acquifiers, or within the Village of Edgar, except those areas specifically licensed for waste disposal or landfill activities and to receive such materials, any explosive, flammable or combustible solid liquid or gas, any radioactive material at or above Nuclear Regulatory Restriction levels, etiologic agents, or any solid, liquid or gas creating a hazard, potential hazard, or public nuisance or any solid, liquid or gas having a leleterious effect on the environment.
(c) Definitions.
(1) Hazardous Substances or Hazardous Waste.
As defined in Sec. 289.01(11) and (12), Wis. Stats.
(2) Property.
The personal property or real estate directly involved in the response services, including but not limited to, utility transmission or telephone line, gas line, cable television equipment, open burning site or hazardous substance or hazardous waste handling or storage site.
(3) Village Response Services.
Village of Edgar fire, law enforcement, utilities, emergency medical services, public works, or other similar response services.
(4) Emergency Services Response.
Includes, but is not limited to: Fire Service, Emergency Medical Service, Law Enforcement. A person, firm, or corporation who possesses or controls a hazardous substance which is discharged or who causes the discharge of a hazardous substance shall be responsible for reimbursement to the responding agencies for actual and necessary expenses incurred in carrying out their duties under this Chapter. Actual and necessary expenses may include but not be limited to: replacement of equipment damaged by the hazardous material, cleaning, decontamination and maintenance of the equipment specific to the incident, specific laboratory expenses incurred in the recognition and identification of hazardous substances in the evaluation of response, decontamination, costs incurred in the procurement and use of specialized equipment specific to the incident, clean up and medical surveillance, and incurred costs in future medical surveillance of response personnel as required by the responding agencies medical advisor.
(d) Site Access. Access to any site, public or private, where a prohibited discharge is indicated or suspected will be provided to emergency government/law enforcement officers and staff and to Fire Department personnel for the purpose of evaluating the threat to the public and monitoring containment, cleanup and restoration activities.
(e) Public Protection. Should any prohibited discharge occur that threatens the life, safety or health of the public at, near, or around the site of a prohibited discharge, and that the situation is so critical that immediate steps must be taken to protect life and limb, the Village President or the senior law enforcement or fire officials on the scene of the emergency may order an evacuation of the area or take other appropriate steps for a period of time until the Village Board can take appropriate action.
(f) Enforcement. The Fire Chief and his/her deputies, as well as law enforcement officers, shall have authority to issue citations or complaints under this Section.
(g) Civil Liability. Any person, firm or corporation in violation of this Section shall be liable to the Village for any expenses incurred by the Village or loss or damage sustained by the Village of Edgar by reason of such violation.
(h) Responsibility for Costs.
(1) In the event the Village Board determines the costs incurred for Village response services are extraordinary in amount or the services for which the costs are incurred are extraordinary in type, the Village Board shall review and determine whether to seek reimbursement for the extraordinary costs from the owner of the property. The Village Board shall consider the amount of the costs involved, the nature of the response services, the impact of the response on other Village services, and such other factors it deems appropriate in making its determination.
(2) The Village Board may direct the Village Administrator to issue an invoice for the costs of labor and materials, or a portion thereof, to the owner or person in charge of the property. The invoice shall include an itemization of the costs and a requirement for payment within thirty (30) days.