Report by town consultant shows WIN Waste facility complied with federal and state air quality standards

WIN Waste Innovations has received another favorable review from Tech Environmental, Inc. (Tech), the consultant hired by the Saugus Board of Health to monitor the operations of the company’s trash-to-energy plant and its adjacent landfill on Route 107. “In the course of the monitoring program for calendar year 2025, all evidence suggests that the facility was in compliance with its permitted conditions,” Tech concluded in its annual air monitoring report on WIN Waste, which it recently presented to the Board of Health.

“That is not to say there were not specific deviations or operational challenges over the course of the operating year. 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,” Tech noted. “In addition, WIN Waste hired a well-respected, professional stack testing firm to conduct the required emissions testing. WIN Waste has been diligent in reporting any concerns to the MassDEP, the Saugus BOH, and Tech, so that concerned parties can obtain information in a timely manner.”

In a separate analysis performed by Tech, the consultant determined the WIN Waste plant complied with the Massachusetts and National Ambient Air Quality Standards (MAAQS/NAAQS). “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 concluded.

The Tech report was well received by WIN Waste officials. The company issued a press release that cited the report’s highlights.

“We are very pleased that Tech Environmental’s thorough review of our facility has again confirmed our compliance and the quality of our operation,” WIN Waste-Saugus Plant Manager Elliott Casey said. “These results affirm our commitment to provide a critical service and power generation in a way that is protective of public health and the environment.”

As part of a program for the Saugus Board of Health, Tech monitors and reports on various aspects of WIN Waste’s operations. The report presents a review of environmental reporting that WIN Waste is routinely and periodically required to submit to the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP) and the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). This includes a description and review of the Continuous Emissions Monitoring Systems (CEMS), landfill operations and inspections, stack emissions testing, air quality dispersion modeling analysis and a general facility review.

Over the past 14 years, Tech has visited WIN Waste extensively, conducted file reviews at MassDEP and reviewed reports in order to investigate and report on facility compliance. Tech’s review is particularly related to air quality concerns, the landfill ash and cover material and the impact of facility emissions upon public health, since these are areas of great concern for the town.