A Win for WIN Waste

Company receives high praise for compliance in annual air monitoring report compiled by town consultant

By Mark E. Vogler

WIN Waste Innovations complied fully with federal and state air quality standards related to the operation of its trash-to-energy plant and the adjacent ash landfill on Route 107 last year, according to an environmental consultant hired by the Saugus Board of Health.

“In the course of the monitoring program for calendar year 2024, all evidence suggests the facility was in compliance with daily operating permit requirements, recordkeeping/reporting procedures, routine monitoring, calibration checks, new permit acquisition, reporting excess emissions-related equipment malfunctions and return to compliance measures,” Tech Environmental concluded in its annual air monitoring report for WIN Waste.

The 26-page report, which was submitted to the Board of Health last month, noted that “the maximum predicted air toxics concentrations were predicted to comply with the air quality guidelines.”

“In a separate analysis performed by Tech, the facility was also found to comply with the Massachusetts and National Ambient Air Quality Standards (MAAQS / NAAQS),” Tech said. “The results of both modeling analyses demonstrate that even under the worst-case meteorological conditions, the emissions from the WIN Waste facility will not cause adverse effects on air quality.”

Tech praised WIN Waste for hiring “a well-respected, professional stack testing firm to conduct the required emissions testing” and called the company “diligent in reporting any concerns” to the state Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP), the Saugus Board of Health and Tech “so that concerned parties can obtain information in a timely manner.”

“That is not to say there were not specific deviations or operational challenges over the course of the operating year,” Tech stated in its report. “However, the WIN Waste Innovations team has consistently reported all deviations to the MassDEP, the Town Board of Health and Tech, filed the required reporting documentation, taken targeted mitigation measures to address operational deficiencies and addressed staffing roles through incident reviews in order to improve future performance results.”

The Tech report was well-received by WIN Waste officials. The company issued a press release titled WIN “Waste achieves favorable review from year-long, third-party environmental assessment,” which cited the report’s highlights.

“We are very pleased that Tech Environmental’s thorough and stringent review of our site has again confirmed the excellence of our operations,” WIN Waste-Saugus Plant Manager Elliott Casey said.

“These results affirm our ongoing commitment to provide a critical service in a manner that is protective of the environment and public health,” he said.

WIN Waste Sr. Director of Communications & Community Mary Urban noted, “These findings underscore our commitment to safety and good environmental stewardship.”

“Our industry is one of the most technical and therefore highly regulated in the world, and we’re pleased that one layer of third-party expert reviews confirms our achievement in operational excellence,” she said.

Here are several highlights of the Tech report cited by WIN:

• The review of the Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS) reports demonstrates that the facility was in compliance with emissions limits for NOx, SO2, CO and opacity in 2024. The monitored operating parameters were also in compliance.
• Tech staff attended six 2024 bimonthly monofill operations inspections that included staff interviews, records reviews and a complete tour of the operations. These dates were February 14, April 25, June 12, August 14, October 22 and December 18. The inspections and subsequent report reviews indicated that the monofill was being properly operated and maintained. The ash being disposed of in the monofill had an operational cover.
• Recent inspections of the ash handling capability at WIN Waste by MassDEP and Tech have found that the area is well-maintained and well-sealed and that ash is not being released into the atmosphere. WIN Waste has continued with a series of improvement projects designed to reduce the environmental impact of the facility and to assuage any fears of community members.

In its report Tech also included information about the estimated life of the ash landfill after reviewing the 2024 Annual Progress Report for the landfill. “As of October 11, 2024, there were approximately 95,000 cubic yards of permitted disposal capacity remaining,” Tech noted.

“This translates to approximately 1.02 to 3.80 years of permitted site life remaining at the landfill, based on the October 11, 2024 topographic survey and the projected range of future usage/disposal, which is determined from the past three (3) years of disposal, and which changes from year-to-year,” the report continued. “Please note that the permitted site life remaining is an estimate based on current filling rates and may change. The range in the prediction of the landfill life remaining is due to using different methods to calculate the estimate. Several factors may affect the significance of site volume and life calculations that include Monofill settlement, varying densities of in-place materials, the amount of ash shipped transported off-site, and the accuracy of aerial survey and topographic mapping.”

WIN Waste began construction of the Valley Fill Project in December 2020. The Valley Fill Project allows for the existing cap in Valleys 1 and 2 to be removed in stages to allow for the placement of ash to achieve new interior slopes and grades. Tech witnessed the progression of the project during bimonthly landfill operations inspections since 2020, and the project had biweekly oversight by Brown and Caldwell with no concerns reported to MassDEP.