§ 12-21. Hazardous waste; violations; defenses; penalties; remedies.

(1)

In addition to any other liability under the Florida Resource Recovery and Management Act, and subject only to the defenses set forth in subsections (2), (3) and (4):

(a)

The owner and operator of a hazardous waste facility;

(b)

Any person who at the time of disposal of any hazardous substance owned or operated any facility at which such hazardous substance was disposed of;

(c)

Any person who, by contract, agreement or otherwise, arranged for disposal or treatment, or arranged with a transporter for transport for disposal or treatment, of hazardous substances owned or possessed by such person or by any other party or entity at any facility owned or operated by another party or entity and containing such hazardous substances; and

(d)

Any person who accepts or has accepted any hazardous substances for transport to disposal or treatment facilities or sites selected by such person, is liable for all costs of removal or remedial action incurred by the city under this section and damages for injury to, destruction of, or loss of natural resources, including the reasonable costs of assessing such injury, destruction or loss resulting from the release or threatened release of a hazardous substance, as defined in the Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Act of 1980, Pub. L. No. 96-510.

(2)

The following defenses are available to a person alleged to be in violation of this act, who shall plead and prove that the alleged violation was solely the result of any of the following or combination of the following:

(a)

An act of war.

(b)

An act of government, either state, federal, or local, unless the person claiming the defense is a governmental body, in which case this defense is available only by acts of other governmental bodies.

(c)

An act of God, which means only an unforeseeable act exclusively occasioned by the violence of nature without the interference of any human agency.

(d)

An act or omission of a third party other than an employee or agent of the defendant or other than one whose act or omission occurs in connection with a contractual relationship existing, directly or indirectly, with the defendant, except when the sole contractual arrangement arises from a published tariff and acceptance for carriage by a common carrier by rail, if the defendant establishes by a preponderance of the evidence that:

1.

The defendant exercised due care with respect to the hazardous waste concerned, taking into consideration the characteristics of such hazardous waste, in light of all relevant facts and circumstances; and

2.

The defendant took precautions against foreseeable acts or omissions of any such third party and against the consequences that could foreseeably result from such acts or omissions.

(3)

A generator or transporter of hazardous wastes who has complied with the Florida Resource Recovery and Management Act and with the applicable rules promulgated under such Act and who has contracted for the disposal of hazardous wastes with a licensed hazardous waste disposal or processing facility is relieved from liability for those wastes upon receipt of a certificate of disposal from the disposal or processing facility.

(4)

A generator of hazardous waste who has complied with the Florida Resource Recovery and Management Act and with the applicable rules under such Act and who has contracted for the transportation of hazardous waste to a licensed hazardous waste facility is relieved of liability to the extent that such liability is covered by the insurance or bond of the transporter obtained pursuant to the Florida Resource Recovery and Management Act.

(Ord. No. 87-3, § 1, 2-16-87; Ord. No. 99-10, § 1, 5-4-99)