Saratoga Municipal Code Art. 8-60 Miscellaneous

(a) The degree of protection required by this Chapter is considered reasonable for regulatory purposes. The standards set forth herein are minimal standards and this Chapter does not imply that compliance will ensure that there will be no unauthorized discharge of hazardous material. This Chapter shall not create liability on the part of the County, the City, or any officer or employee thereof for any damages that result from reliance on this Chapter or any administrative decision lawfully made hereunder. All persons handling, storing, using, processing, and disposing of hazardous materials within the City should be and are advised to determine to their own satisfaction the level of protection in addition to that required by this chapter necessary or desirable to ensure that there is no unauthorized discharge of hazardous materials.

(b) This Chapter is not intended to create any different standard or obligation for the storage of carcinogens than is imposed for the storage of other hazardous materials. Hazardous materials are identified as carcinogens herein for public record purposes only and the identification of a material as a carcinogen shall not require a different or stricter application of the provisions of this Chapter, nor notice to any person under any circumstances other than those expressly specified in this Chapter, nor shall such identification create any other duty or obligation upon the County different from or additional to those duties or obligations applicable to the storage of other hazardous materials.

Guidelines approved by the County Executive shall be maintained in the Office of the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors. Such guidelines, in the areas addressed therein, shall serve as an interpretation of this Chapter.

Subject to the limitations of due process, notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter whenever the words "shall" or "must" are used in establishing a responsibility or duty of the County, its elected or appointed officers, employees, or agents, it is the legislative intent that such words establish a discretionary responsibility or duty requiring the exercise of judgment and discretion.

Notwithstanding any other provision of this Chapter:

(a) A storage facility regulated by any state or federal agency will be exempted from any conflicting provision of this Chapter.

(b) If the storage facility is required to have a permit from the Department of Health Services under Health and Safety Code Section 25100 et seq., it shall be exempted from any provision of this Chapter which is covered by the regulations adopted under the above cited statute.

(c) Whenever any provision of this Chapter conflicts with the Fire Code as adopted by the City or by any fire district providing service to the City, the stricter shall prevail.

(a) New storage facilities.

(1) As of the effective date of this Chapter, a Hazardous Materials Storage Permit for a facility must be obtained prior to the installation or use of any new storage facility unless a building permit for such new storage facility was issued prior to such date.

(2) The Hazardous Material Management Plan must be filed at the time of application for a Hazardous Material Storage Permit.

(b) Existing storage facilities.

(1) A facility which has any existing hazardous materials storage facilities or had obtained a building permit for such a storage facility prior to the effective date of this Chapter, and to which no new storage facility is added, shall have one year from such effective date to file a completed application for a Hazardous Materials Storage Permit, including a monitoring plan in accordance with Section 8-15.030. The time limitation for determination specified in Section 8-40.110 shall not apply but the applicant shall be deemed to have a provisional permit of indefinite term, until the County makes such determination.

(2) Notwithstanding the above, a Hazardous Material Inventory Statement, if applicable, must be filed within ninety days of the effective date of this Chapter.