Zoning, stormwater … and nuclear weapons

Municipal codes cover a lot of ground — from regulating how tall apartment buildings can be, down to providing instructions on how many minutes tattoo artists must boil the nail file they use to clean their hands. (It’s 15 minutes in Lower Merion.)

Birmingham Township, which is conducting a comprehensive update of its codified ordinances, has an interesting rule: no nuclear weapons. 

According to Chapter 73 of the current code, Birmingham is a Nuclear-Weapons-Free Zone:

The Board of Supervisors of Birmingham Township finds that the presence of activities directly related to nuclear weapons would be in direct conflict with the maintenance of the Township's health, safety and general welfare in that:

A. The presence of nuclear weapons and the means of producing and deploying them would harm the stability of the Township and interfere with its ability to plan for orderly development, wise land use and efficient delivery of services.
B. The use of nuclear weapons has been declared to be illegal by treaty duly ratified by the United States and by the Nuremburg Principles which hold individuals accountable for planning, preparation and perpetration of crimes against peace and crimes against humanity.
C. The psychological health of the people of Birmingham Township would be threatened by the presence of nuclear weapons and the means of making them in the Township, since such weapons can cause death and destruction unparalleled in human history and render the community a target for terrorism and hostile military action.

That means “the development, production, deployment, launching, maintenance, storage or transport of nuclear weapons” is prohibited. Anyone found to be violating the nuclear weapons ban can expect a fine of “not more than $1,000” per violation.

Photo by Dan Meyers on Unsplash