About the Department
Appearance & Sanitation Codes
Contacts
Cross Connection Information
Municipal Center Hiker/Biker Trail
Sanitation Service
Highway 52 Hiker/Biker Trail Extension
Stormwater
Home : Public Works : Appearance & Sanitation Codes


Article V: Solid Waste Collection and Disposal
ARTICLE V: SOLID WASTE COLLECTION AND DISPOSAL

Section 11-5: RESPONSIBILITY

Section 11-5.1.1
OWNER

The Owner, agent or tenant of a premise shall be responsible for adhering to and obeying this Code in order to enhance the collection and disposal of solid waste from the highways, streets and properties within the corporate limits of the City and to achieve the purposes of this Code.

Section 11-5.1.2
CITY

The City shall provide solid waste and disposal services to all single-family residential homes within the City, as well as, buildings owned and occupied by the City as described in this Code. No commercial solid waste collection or disposal services shall be provide by the City. It shall be the responsibility of all commercial agencies within the City to contract with private companies for solid waste collection and disposal services.

Section 11-5.2:  PROHIBITED WASTE

Section 11-5.2.1
GENERAL INCLUDING OIL

Ashes, shingles, rocks, bricks, concrete slabs, sidewalks, driveways, large automobile parts, and oil shall not be deposited for solid waste collection. These items shall be disposed of at the owner's expense.

Section 11-5.2.2
CONTRACTOR GENERATED

Refuse, brick, scraps of lumber, mortar, plaster, roofing, gutters, dry trash, litter, trees, stumps and all like materials generated by a contractor shall be removed by the contractor and disposed of according to the solid waste laws of the State and County by the end of each work week.

Section 11-5.2.3
HAZARDOUS WASTE

Waste that is classified and identified from time to time by the SCDHEC as hazardous waste.

Section 11-5.2.4
LIQUIDS

All liquids must be drained from the refuse or garbage prior to being collected by the City.

Section 11-5.2.5
MIXED

No household garbage is to be mixed with dry trash.

Section 11-5.2.6
LEAVES, GRASS, STRAW ETC.

Loose leaves, grass, and straw shall not be collected except for those contained according to this Code. (Sec. 11-5.6)

Section 11-5.2.7
ANIMALS

Dead animals or animal waste shall not be placed in containers for collection.

Section 11-5.3: SOLID WASTE COLLECTION.

Section 11-5.3.1
COLLECTABLE SOLID WASTE

The Solid waste collected by the City shall include but not be limited to the following:

  1. White goods, furniture and pieces of metal and tin with dimensions exceeding nine (9) inches by forty-eight (48) inches (9" X 48") must be placed by the street or highway right-of-way on the designated day. The owner shall remove the door(s) from all white goods if they are of such size to cause entrapment of any person or animal. NOTE: For clarity, metal items which do not exceed the 9" X 48" will be considered as household garbage and litter. These will be collected on the designated days
  2. All dry trash meeting the requirements of this code.
  3. Leaves, grass, and straw must be placed in strong paper bags or yard-debris roll-carts on the designated collection days.
  4. Logs, limbs, brush, branches, and other similar materials not exceeding four (4') feet in length, fifty (50) pounds in weight and not greater than four (4") inches in diameter.
  5. All normal household solid waste including but not limited to food, bags, paper, household plastics, etc.

Section 11-5.4
PLACEMENT REQUIREMENTS; HOUSEHOLD SOLID WASTE

Normal household solid waste must be placed in the proper containers and not mixed with other solid waste as described in this article.

Section 11-5.5
BUNDLING OF SOLID

All loose materials (boxes, newspapers, magazines, etc.) which are normally placed into containers but exceed the container's capacity must be bundled and tied securely to enhance the collection process.

Section 11-5.6
SOLID WASTE CONTAINERIZATION AND REMOVAL

All owners that receive solid waste collection services from the City will be provided with one 95-gallon or one 65-gallon roll-cart refuse container to accommodate their normal volume of solid waste.

Bags used for dry trash (leaves, straw, grass etc.) must be made of strong paper. No dry trash will be collected in plastic bags. Owners may also elect to purchase from the City of Goose Creek and use a 95-gallon or 65-gallon yard-debris roll-cart.

Section 11-5.6.1
USE OF NON-STANDARD CONTAINERS

Only roll-cart containers provided by or purchased from the City of Goose Creek will be collected. No other type of container is authorized for household refuse or yard-debris.

Section 11-5.6.2
SERVICE FOR OWNERS REQUIRING ADDITIONAL CONTAINERIZATION FOR HOUSEHOLD REFUSE

Owners may obtain the use of an additional roll-cart refuse container by making a request to the Department of Public Works and paying an Annual Service Fee of $75.00.

Annual Service Fee Calculation:

$75.00 annual sanitation tax / 52 weeks per year = $1.44 /week

($1.44/week) / (3 service days/week) = $0.48 / service day

$0.48 per service day x 2 household refuse collection days each week = $0.96 / week

$0.96 per week household refuse collection charge x 52 weeks = $50.00 Collection Fee

$50.00 Collection Fee + $25.00 Roll-Cart Usage Fee = $75.00 Annual Service Fee

Section 11-5.7
OWNERS, AGENTS AND TENANTS RESPONSIBILITY.

The owner, agent or tenant shall be responsible for:

  1. The disposal of all solid waste that is not collected by the City. These items must be disposed of in a manner which is consistent with the laws, rules, and regulations, of the State and County;
  2. Placing all solid waste by the street or highway by 7:00 A.M. on the designated collection days and placed in a manner that allows easy access and does not create a safety hazard to road traffic or the general public
  3. The removal of all solid waste containers by 7:00 P.M. on the designated collection day;
  4. Any damages occurring from placing of or the removal of solid waste that has been placed on top of or near any utility appurtenance, drainage structure or other property (public or private);
  5. The separation of mixed waste;
  6. The placement of lids on containers to prevent spillage of waste and littering the surrounding area;
  7. Paying the annual sanitation tax as required by City Council;
  8. Placing the roll-cart container away from cars and mailboxes, with the handle toward the street;
  9. Not placing hot ashes, flammable liquids, construction debris, dirt or rocks in roll-cart container;
  10. Not overloading roll-cart container;
  11. The owner, agent or tenant shall be responsible for reporting stolen or missing roll-cart refuse containers to the Department of Public Works. Missing or stolen household refuse roll-cart containers will be replaced at no cost if the loss is determined to have occurred through no fault of the owner, agent or tenant.
  12. Actively engaging in the reduction of solid waste by promoting and practicing recycling.

Section 11-5.8
REFUSAL OF SERVICE

The City reserves the right to refuse solid waste services to any owner, agent or tenant who consistently violates this Code.

Section 11-5.9
FREQUENCY OF SOLID WASTE COLLECTION

The City shall have complete authority to collect and dispose of the City's solid waste at such times and intervals as is deemed necessary for the health and welfare of its citizens as well as to provide efficient service.

Section 11-5.10: ASSESSMENT RATES FOR CITY RESIDENTS.

Section 11-5.10.1
PERIOD, PURPOSE

A sanitation tax to cover the period from January 1, through December 31, both inclusive for the sums and in the manner hereinafter mentioned, is and shall be levied, collected and paid into the treasury of the City of Goose Creek for the use and service thereof, i.e., a tax as determined by City Council and is assessed on every single-family occupied residential lot within the corporate limits of the City of Goose Creek, to be paid into the City treasury for the credit to the City of Goose Creek, for the corporate purposes, permanent improvements and for the purpose of paying current expenses of said municipality.

Section 11-5.10.2
COLLECTION METHOD

By mutual agreement between the City of Goose Creek and Berkeley County, Berkeley County will bill and collect the taxes enumerated herein, and pay the same to the treasury of the City of Goose Creek in the manner as agreed by both parties.

Section 11-5.10.3
PENALTY DATES, AMOUNTS

The billing dates, the penalty dates and the amount of the penalty which shall be levied for delinquent taxes shall be the same as those adopted by Berkeley County Council.

Section 11-5.11
THROWING WASTE FROM ELEVATED PLACES PROHIBITED.

It shall be unlawful for any owner, agent or tenant of property within the City to allow any refuse, garbage, litter, dirty water, ashes, paper or other unclean or unsanitary useless waste material to be thrown, poured, let fall or permit to drop from any window, roof, porch, vehicle, or other elevated place(s) except for materials used during the construction of any structure having a building permit.

Section 11-5.12
SCATTERING OF HAND BILLS.

  1. It shall be unlawful for any person to place, scatter, toss, or throw handbills, booklets, cards, posters, or other printed matter into or upon any street, sidewalk, alley or other public highway or portion thereof, or to place, scatter, toss, or throw any handbill, circular, advertising card, pamphlet, booklet, or other printed matter into or attach the same to a motor vehicle parked or being driven upon any street, or other highway in the City, or on any yard, lawn, vacant lot, driveway, porch, or in the vestibule of any building, or attach any of the same to any door or place where they may be reasonably be expected to be blown by the wind or thrown by the occupant of the premises or by others into or upon the streets, sidewalks, alleys, or other public highways, or portions thereof, so as to litter such streets, sidewalks, alleys or public highways, clog catch basins, and sewers, create fire hazards, obstruct passage or create an unclean or filthy condition.
  2. Nothing in this section shall apply to newspapers or magazines or to anything delivered by the United States Postal Service.
  3. This section shall be liberally construed to permit the reasonable circulation of printed information so as not to suppress the freedom of the press, but shall be so enforced as to promote the health, safety and general welfare of the City.