Shafter Zoning Code § 11.190 Recycling Facilities (CA)

Intent

This Section is intended to provide the community with regulations controlling the siting of recycling, redemption and processing facilities, and to ensure that recycling facilities do not create adverse impacts on the surrounding community.

Applicability
- a. The provisions of this Section shall apply to the following use types, as defined in this Section and Section 1.190 (Definitions) of this Title.
  - (1) Reverse Vending Machines
  - (2) Small Recycling Facilities
  - (3) Recycling and Reprocessing Facilities
- b. Such use types shall comply with the provisions of this Section in addition to applicable standards and permit procedures of the zone district in which the use type is located.
Development Standards

Reverse Vending Machines shall comply with the following standards:

a. Shall be established in conjunction with a commercial use or public facility which is in compliance with this Title and the building and fire codes of the City;
b. Shall be located within thirty (30) feet of the entrance to the commercial structure and shall not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular circulation;
c. Shall not occupy required parking spaces;
d. Shall occupy no more than fifty (50) square feet of floor area per installation, including any protective enclosure, and shall be no more than eight (8) feet in height;
e. Shall be constructed and maintained with durable, waterproof, and rustproof material;
f. Shall be clearly marked to identify the type of material to be deposited, operating instructions, and the identity and phone number of the operator or responsible person to call for repair and ownership;
g. Shall have a maximum sign area of four (4) square feet per machine, exclusive of operating instructions;
h. Shall be maintained in a clean, litter-free condition on a daily basis;

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i. Shall be illuminated to ensure comfortable and safe operation, if operating hours are between dusk and dawn; and
j. All machines shall be clean and not dented, bent or otherwise disfigured.

Small Collection Facilities
- a. Development Standards

Small Collection Facilities shall comply with the following standards:

(1) Shall be established in conjunction with an existing commercial use or public facility which is in compliance with this Title and the building and fire code of the City;
(2) Shall be no larger than five hundred (500) square feet and occupy no more than five (5) parking spaces, not including space that will be periodically needed for removal of materials or exchange of containers. Occupation of parking spaces by the facility and by the attendant may not reduce available parking spaces below the minimum number required for the primary land use unless all of the following conditions exist:
- (a) The facility is located in a convenience zone or a potential convenience zone as designated by the California Department of Conservation;
(b) A parking study shows that existing parking capacity is not fully utilized during the time the recycling facility will be on the site;
- (c) The approval will be reconsidered at the end of eighteen (18) months;
- (d) A reduction in available parking spaces in an established parking facility may then be allowed as follows:

Number of Parking Spaces 0–25 25–35 36–49 50–99 100+	Maximum Reduction
	0 1 2 3 4

(3) Shall be set back at least ten (10) feet from any property line and shall not obstruct pedestrian or vehicular circulation;

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(4) Shall accept only glass, metals, plastic containers, papers, and reusable items;
(5) Shall use no power-driven processing equipment, except for Reverse Vending Machines;
(6) Shall use containers that are:
- (a) constructed and maintained with durable waterproof and rustproof material;
- (b) covered when site is not attended and secured from unauthorized entry or removal of material; and
- (c) of a capacity sufficient to accommodate materials collected in accord with a collection schedule;
(7) Shall store all recyclable material in containers or in a mobile unit vehicle, and shall not leave materials outside of containers when attendant is not present;
(8) Shall be maintained free of litter and any other undesirable materials. Mobile facilities, at which a truck or containers are removed at the end of each collection day, shall be swept at the end of each collection day;
(9) Shall not exceed noise levels of fifty-five (55) dBA as measured at the property line of residentially zoned or occupied property, otherwise shall not exceed seventy (70) dBA;
(10) Shall operate only during the hours between 9:00 a.m. and 7:00 p.m. when located within one hundred (100) feet of a property zoned or occupied for residential use;
(11) Shall locate containers for the twenty-four (24) hour donation of materials at least one hundred (100) feet from any property zoned or occupied by residential use, unless there is a recognized service corridor and acoustical shielding between the containers and the residential use. All containers shall be painted and shall not be dented, bent or otherwise disfigured; and
(12) Shall utilize clearly marked containers which identify the type of material which may be deposited; the facility shall be clearly marked to identify the name and telephone number of the facility operator and the hours of operation, shall display a notice stating that no material shall be left outside the recycling enclosure or containers.

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b. Signs may be provided as follows:
- (1) Small collection facilities may have a maximum of four (4) identification signs each a maximum of twenty (20) percent per side of the facility or sixteen (16) square feet, whichever is larger. In the case of a wheeled facility, the side shall be measured from the pavement to the top of the container;
(2) Directional signs, bearing no advertising message, may be installed to facilitate traffic circulation and/or if the facility is not visible from a public right-of-way; and
- (3) Authorization by the Planning Director to increase the number and size of signs upon finding that such an increase is compatible with adjacent businesses.
- c. The facility shall not reduce the landscaping areas which may be required by this Title for any concurrent use or under any permit or approval.
- d. Parking
  - (1) No additional parking spaces will be required for customers of a Small Collection Facility located in the established parking lot of a commercial use.
  - (2) Mobile Recycling Units shall have an area clearly marked in the parking lot of the commercial use to prohibit other vehicular parking during hours when the Mobile Unit is scheduled to be present or operating.

Large Collection Facility

A large collection facility is one which occupies more than five hundred (500) square feet in area or is located on a separate parcel, not associated with an existing commercial use, and may have a permanent structure.

a. Development Standards

Large collection facilities shall comply with the provisions of this Section in addition to the provisions of the zone district in which it is located.

(1) Facility shall be located an appropriate distance, as determined by the Planning Commission, from the property line of any lot zoned or planned for residential use; and
(2) Facility shall be screened from the public right-of-way by operating in an enclosed building or within an area enclosed by an opaque fence at least six (6) feet in height with landscaping and shall meet all applicable noise standards in this Title.

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(3) Setbacks and landscape requirements shall be those provided for the zone district in which the facility is located;
(4) Storage
- (a) All exterior storage of material shall be in sturdy containers which are covered, secured, and maintained in good condition.
- (b) Storage containers for flammable material shall be constructed of non-flammable material.
- (c) No storage excluding truck trailers and overseas containers, shall be visible above the height of the fencing.
(5) The site shall be maintained free of litter and any other undesirable materials, and shall be cleaned of loose debris on a daily basis.
(6) Space shall be provided on site for six (6) vehicles or the anticipated peak customer load, whichever is higher, to circulate and to deposit recyclable materials, except where the Planning Director determines that allowing overflow traffic above six (6) vehicles is compatible with the surrounding land uses.
(a) One (1) parking space shall be provided for each commercial vehicle operated by the recycling facility. Parking requirements shall be as provided for in the zone district in which the facility is located, except that parking requirements for employees may be reduced when it can be shown that parking spaces are not necessary such as when employees are transported in a company vehicle to a work facility;
- (b) Noise levels shall not exceed sixty-five (65) dBA as measured at the property line of residentially zone property, and shall not exceed seventy (70) dBA at any point on the property;
- (c) If the facility is located within five hundred (500) feet of property zoned, planned or occupied for residential use, it shall not be in operation between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.;
- (d) Any containers or enclosures provided for after-hours donation of recyclable materials shall be at least fifty (50) feet from any property zoned, planned or occupied for residential use, shall be of sturdy, rustproof construction, shall have sufficient capacity to

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accommodate materials collected, and shall be secured from unauthorized entry or removal of materials;

(e) Donation areas shall be kept free of litter and any other undesirable material and the containers shall be clearly marked to identify the type of material that may be deposited; the facility shall display a notice stating that no material shall be left outside the recycling containers:
(f) The facility shall be clearly marked with the name and phone number of the facility operator and the hours of operation; identification and informational signs shall meet the standards of the zone district. Directional signs may be installed with the approval of the Planning Director, if necessary to facilitate traffic circulation or if the facility is not visible from a public right-of-way;
(g) Power-driven processing, including aluminum foil and can compacting, baling, plastic shredding, or other light processing activities necessary for efficient temporary storage and shipment of material, may be approved at the discretion of the Planning Director if noise and other requirements are met.

Processing Facilities

Development Standards

Processing facilities, both “Light” and “Heavy” as defined in Section 1.190 (Definitions) of this Title, when permitted, shall comply with the provisions of this Section in addition to the applicable provisions of the zone district in which the facility is located.

a. The processing facility shall be located a minimum distance, to be determined by the Planning Commission, from property planned, zoned or occupied for residential use. All operations shall take place within a fully enclosed building or within an area enclosed by a solid wood or masonry fence at least six (6) feet in height.
b. Setbacks from property lines shall be those provided for the zoning district in which the facility is located, but, if the set back is less than twenty-five (25) feet, the facility shall be buffered by a landscape strip at least ten (10) feet wide along each property line;
c. When located within five hundred (500) feet of property planned, zoned or occupied for residential use, hours of operation shall not be between 7:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. The facility shall be administered by on-site personnel during the hours the facility is open;

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d. Noise levels shall not exceed sixty-five (65) dBA as measured at the property line of residentially zoned or occupied property, and shall not exceed seventy (70) dBA at any point;
e. Sign criteria shall be those specified in Chapter 14 (Sign Regulations) of this Title. In addition, the facility shall be clearly marked with the name and phone number of the facility operator and hours of operation;
f. Any containers or enclosures provided for after hours donation of recyclable materials shall be at least fifty (50) feet from any property zoned or occupied for residential use; shall be of sturdy, rustproof construction, shall have sufficient capacity to accommodate materials collected, and shall be secured from unauthorized entry or removal of materials;
g. The facility shall be administered by on-site personnel during hours of operation;
h. Donation areas shall be kept free of litter and any other undesirable material. The containers shall be clearly marked to identify the type of material that may be deposited. Facility shall display a notice stating that no material shall be left outside the recycling containers;
i. No dust, fumes, smoke, vibration or odor above ambient level may be detectable on neighboring properties;
j. Power-driven processing shall be permitted, provided all noise level requirements are met. Light processing facilities are limited to baling, briquetting, crushing, compacting, grinding, shredding and sorting or source-separating recyclable materials, and repairing of reusable materials;
k. A light processing facility shall be no larger than forty-five thousand (45,000) square feet and shall have no more than an average of two (2) outbound truck shipments of material per day and may not shred, compact or bale ferrous metals other than food and beverage containers;
l. A processing facility may accept used motor oil for recycling from the generator in accordance with Section 25250.11 of the California Health and Safety Code;
m. All exterior storage of material shall be in sturdy containers or enclosures which are covered, secured, and maintained in good condition or may be baled or placed on pallets. Storage containers for flammable material shall be constructed of non-flammable material. Oil storage shall be in containers approved by the County Director of Environmental Health Services; no storage, excluding truck trailers and overseas containers, shall be visible above the height of the fencing;

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n. Site shall be maintained free of litter and any other undesirable materials, shall be cleaned of loose debris on a daily basis, and shall be secured from unauthorized entry and removal of materials when attendants are not present;
o. Space shall be provided on site for the anticipated peak load of customers to circulate, park and deposit recyclable materials. If the facility is open to the public, space shall be provided for a minimum of ten (10) customers except where the Planning Director determines that allowing overflow traffic above six (6) vehicles is compatible with surrounding businesses and public safety;
p. One (1) parking space shall be provided for each commercial vehicle operated by the processing center. Parking requirements shall otherwise be as mandated by the zone district in which the facility is located.

Site Cleanup Required

The operator of any recycling collection or processing facility shall, on a daily basis, remove any and all recyclable materials or solid wastes which have accumulated or are deposited outside the containers, bins, or enclosures intended as receptacles for such materials. Upon failure to remove said materials, the City may deem them to be abandoned and may enter the site to remove the materials. The property owner(s) of the premises and the operator of the facility shall be liable for the full cost of any such cleanup work done by the City.