§ 11B-1. Legislative findings.

The County Commission finds and declares that disposal of a considerable portion of combustible waste materials and refuse in Dade County is accomplished by the operation of dumps and landfill sites in Dade County, and further finds and declares that the operation of such dumps and landfill sites necessarily involves a high risk of fires. The County Commission finds and declares that because of the large size of the dumps and landfill sites, a fire thereon becomes an extreme hazard to the health, safety and welfare of the community, in that such a fire produces great and abnormal quantities of smoke. The County Commission finds and declares that such smoke creates a hazardous condition in the community by: (1) seriously reducing visibility of the highways and streets, thus jeopardizing the safety of the motorists, pedestrians, and residents; (2) seriously reducing visibility in the air, thus jeopardizing the safe operation of aircraft and endangering passengers' lives and cargo and the lives of residents of the community; and (3) polluting the air and endangering the health of residents. The County Commission finds and declares that a fire itself on a dump or landfill site subjects surrounding lands to fires and thus endangers the lives and properties of the owners thereof. The County Commission finds and declares that in order to protect the health, safety and welfare of the citizens of this community from the hazards of smoke and fires resulting from the use of dumps and landfill sites, it is necessary to impose minimum requirements upon the operation of dumps or landfill sites to avoid the possibility of fires thereon and to expedite the extinguishing of fires which may occur thereon. Further, the County Commission finds and declares that in order to insure compliance with such minimum requirements, it is necessary to require persons operating or causing to be operated a dump or landfill site to obtain a permit therefor, which permit shall be issued only upon a satisfactory showing of compliance with such minimum requirements.

(Ord. No. 69-81, § 1, 11-19-69)