“No manure or stable refuse shall be deposited within any building or the cellar thereof unless said receptacle shall be enclosed by eight-inch brick, cement or concrete walls, all of which shall be waterproofed on sides and have cement waterproof floors, and connected with public sewers by suitable tile pipes properly trapped and with suitable fall to carry off all liquid, said outlet to be covered with fine grating or screen, top of said pit or receptacle to be covered with a tight cover and to have a brick, cement, concrete or galvanized iron flue, at least eight inches in diameter, and to be air-tight and to extend to the top or cover of said receptacle or pit up to and through the roof, and at least three feet above said roof and above the roof of any adjoining buildings, access to said pit to be by door hung on suitable hinges and to be kept closed and fastened except when refuse is being deposited in or removed from the same; in no case shall said receptacle be constructed within any building where no connection can be made with public sewers. All receptacles for manure or stable refuse that are constructed outside of any building shall be commenced at least twelve inches below the lowest grade of the land adjoining same and shall be waterproof on both sides and covered with suitable cover properly hinged and to be kept closed except when depositing therein or removing manure or refuse therefrom; the sides of said pit may be constructed of matched plank and as directed by the health officer; all of the above construction must be so done as to make same inaccessible to flies.”
Exceptional regulations have been noted in the following cities: Aberdeen, Washington, does not allow a bin or receptacle to be built nearer to an adjoining house than 25 feet. Manure for agricultural or garden purposes must be thoroughly mixed and covered with soil so as not to attract flies. Bayonne, New Jersey, will not allow any pit nearer than 10 feet to the line of any adjoining lot, alley or public place. Truck gardeners must secure a permit to store manure, and the waste cannot be carted through the streets between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. without a permit. Manure cannot be unloaded, discharged or put upon or along the line of any railroad (except in transit), street or highway. A permit must be secured for cars containing manure to remain on or stand on or along any railroad, street or highway. In Cincinnati disinfectants must be used about those portions of the floor where manure and urine habitually fall or are maintained. Manure stacked for fertilizer on a truck farm must be at least 50 feet from any dwelling and shall be stored in a closed bin or screened receptacle in order to prevent access of flies thereto.
Los Angeles requires a permit from its Health Commissioner for piling manure for fertilization, the permit to designate the place and amount that may be kept. Manure cannot be scattered even if covered in Mankato, Minnesota, except for fertilization or the “protection of plants, shrubs, houses or buildings in winter months.”
North Yakima, Washington, requires that manure used as fertilizer from May 15 to October 15 must be mixed and covered with soil. It cannot be used as grading.
In Oyster Bay, New York, no manure is allowed to be brought in or unloaded or placed on any dock or landing from June 1 to September 1. All manure brought into town must be entirely removed by June 15. All brought in by rail must be unloaded within 250 feet of any station. Several cities provide that all collections or accumulations of any hennery park, stable refuse or manure in or about any hennery park, barn, stable, yard or appurtenance thereof must be removed before the same shall become offensive. Dumping of manure in any river, canal, stream or pond is prohibited in Little Falls, New York. Every person keeping a stable for horses, mules, cows or similar animals in Poughkeepsie, New York, must report his name and the location of the stable to the Health Officer.
There is no general uniformity of regulations as to how often manure shall be removed. In some cities the ordinances are specific, in others the refuse must be removed when ordered by the Board of Health, and in many it must be carted away before it becomes offensive. Some of the various regulations follow: Aberdeen, Washington, every 30 days from April 1 to November 1, and oftener if the Health Officer directs; Bayonne, New Jersey, once a week in all cases where the Board of Health by written notice shall require; Chattanooga, Tennessee, once a week; Cincinnati, Ohio, once a day and disposed of to the satisfaction of the Health Department; Des Moines, Iowa, twice weekly from March 15 to December 1 and once a week thereafter; Erie, Pennsylvania, accumulation of only one wagon load from May 1 to October 1 in any private stable, and two loads in any private or livery stable without permission of Board of Health; Greenfield, Mass., where more than four horses are kept it must be removed at least once a month and no more than five cords are allowed on premises at any one time; Los Angeles, California, every ten days when kept in bins and every day otherwise; Mankato, Minnesota, as often as necessary and when ordered by the Board of Health.
Every city and town should regulate at least the care of manure and in congested communities it is imperative that the city either provide a municipal collection or make provisions whereby the refuse can be removed under contract. Any community which fails to do this continues a nuisance and fails to check the breeding of flies and the possible spreading of disease.
MUNICIPAL CLEAN-UP CAMPAIGNS
INTENSIVE COMMUNITY EFFORTS TO TEACH URBAN RESIDENTS THE NEED OF CLEANLINESS AND FIRE PREVENTION
Cooperative effort to give the municipality a thorough cleaning at least once a year, and, by so doing, to teach the citizen the importance of continuous cleanliness in and about his home, has been undertaken within the last ten years by most American cities. These intensive community efforts are popularly known as clean-up campaigns.
At first the clean-up campaign, lasting a day or two, was devoted to ridding homes and yards of rubbish and waste that had accumulated during the winter months. Later the campaigns were spread over a week or a longer period, and now not only is an effort made to collect and cart away the winter’s accumulation of waste, but the city also undertakes to educate its citizens in fire prevention work, fly and mosquito extermination, the beautifying of homes and yards, and the elimination of every unsanitary condition. Cellars, garrets, back-yards, vacant lots, alleys, public streets—in fact, every spot in the city, whether on public or private property, does not escape the scrutiny of the public officials and citizens’ committees.