Town Meeting 2024

Planning the closure of the ash landfill at WIN Waste’s trash-to-energy plant will be considered by Town Meeting; plant performance standards also set for review

By Mark E. Vogler

At a time when WIN Waste Innovations seeks to extend the life of the ash landfill near its trash-to-energy plant on Route 107, town officials may soon be working on a plan to close the landfill for good. Among the articles accepted by the Board of Selectmen on Tuesday (April 16) before members closed the warrant for the May 6 Annual Town Meeting was a proposal to form a five-member Ash Landfill Closure Committee.

“The purpose of the committee is to identify timeframes for final closure, post closure, maintenance and monitoring, post closure economic re-use possibilities and other related issues that may be identified,” said a draft of the article submitted to selectmen.

Two selectmen appointed by the chair of the Board of Selectmen, two Town Meeting members from Precinct 10 (where the WIN plant is located) appointed by the town moderator and the town manager or his designee would make up the special committee. “All appointments to be made within two weeks of the adjournment of the 2024 Annual Town Meeting,” noted a draft of the article.

“A representative of WIN Waste will be invited by the Moderator to participate as non-voting member of the committee,” the document continued.

Earlier this month, WIN Waste began trucking ash to a company disposal site in Shrewsbury in an effort to prolong the life of the ash landfill. The company announced that six trucks a day were leaving the plant, traveling from Route 107 South to Route 60 East to Route 1A South to Route 90 West. WIN Waste officials told the Board of Health that the trucks would transport about 4,500 tons of ash offsite per month, adding life to a landfill that one company official said last year was expected to reach its capacity by the end of 2025.

Company renews Host Community Agreement talk

Don Musial, Director of Ash Landfills for WIN Waste, noted that special care is being taken by the company in its handling of the ash. “Throughout the region, ash generated by waste-to-energy plants is transported in customary tractor trailers like those used for sand and gravel,” Musial said.

“Ash from the Saugus waste-to-energy plant is being hauled using the same type of tractor trailers. Per Mass. Department of Transportation and DEP requirements, all trailers are covered by a tarp and tailgates have watertight seals,” he said.

Meanwhile, WIN Waste revived talks on its hopes that the town would sign a Host Community Agreement (HCA), which selectmen supported a year ago on a 3-2 vote, which has no legal basis. The agreement would have to be negotiated by the town manager and wouldn’t take effect unless the state allows the company to expand its ash landfill. If the state loosened the regulations at the ash landfill and the town manager negotiated an agreement with WIN Waste, Saugus would receive $20 million over the next 20 years while WIN Waste could continue use of the ash landfill, according to the HCA supported by a majority of the selectmen.

Soon after WIN announced that it was trucking ash to one of its facilities in Shrewsbury, Precinct 10 Town Meeting Member Peter Manoogian – a longtime critic of WIN Waste – vowed he would file an article for this spring’s Annual Town Meeting to form an Ash Landfill Closure Committee similar to the committee that was created for the Aggregate Industries Quarry. “The curtain is being drawn on this ongoing saga,” Manoogian said this week in explaining his reasons for filing the article.

“And WIN really has no path forward, at this point. It’s my hope that they will work with the town via this committee, just as the Aggregate Quarry did, to examine potential uses that will be in harmony with the ACEC [Area of Critical Environmental Concern] and would not have any further adverse effects on public health or the environment,” Manoogian told The Saugus Advocate.

“Let’s face it, the Host Community Agreement is going nowhere. The selectmen had no authority to have such a discussion and take such a vote,” Manoogian said.

“Furthermore, the site is not suitable for expansion of the ash landfill under current state regulations. And the last two state Department of Environmental Protection Commissioners have said it’s not suitable and that no expansion of the ash landfill would be allowed under the current state environmental regulations,” he said.

Setting “performance standards” for WIN Waste plant

In addition to Manoogian’s article to form an Ash Landfill Closure Committee, this year’s Town Meeting will consider another article that would affect WIN Waste operations in Saugus. The Board of Health has submitted an article to amend the town bylaws by adding a section titled “Solid Waste Facility Environmental Performance Standards.” “The purpose of this section is to protect the rights of people of Saugus to clean air and water guaranteed by Article 97 of the Articles of Amendment to the Massachusetts Constitution,” the draft article said.

“Solid waste facilities shall not be operated in a manner to cause any dangerous, noxious, injurious or otherwise objectionable hazard; noise or vibration, smoke, dust, odor or other objectionable pollution; glare, conditions conducive to breeding of insects, rodents or other vermin, substances, conditions, or elements to an extent so as to adversely affect nearby neighborhoods,” the document said.

The standards apply to emission of smoke, emission of ash and sound pressure level.

Standards applying to various noise levels come in response to numerous noise complaints received by the Board of Health and public safety officials during mechanical maintenance and plant malfunctions. For instance, a valve malfunction at the WIN Waste plant last fall disrupted the night for hundreds of frightened Saugus and Revere residents. The noise was so loud that the Saugus Police Department wound up fielding more than 400 calls on its emergency 911 and business lines during a period of about 30 minutes, according to Police Chief Michael Ricciardelli. The company has spent millions of dollars in recent years to install a silencer and to improve defective parts on that silencer after several incidents at the plant that drew numerous noise complaints.

  In a statement released by Mary Urban, Senior Director of Communications & Community for WIN Waste at press time, stated: “The Host Community Agreement (HCA) approved by the Board of Selectmen does stipulate a date for the closing of the landfill. One significant difference is that the HCA includes $20 million in economic benefits to the Town. The HCA also includes significant environmental benefits, including formalizing lower emission limits, continuing to support and manage the Bear Creek Wildlife Sanctuary, and installing a stand-alone air monitor.

Renewable energy generated from the waste-to-energy process at the WIN Waste facility in Saugus eliminates the need for fossil fuels to power more than 16,800 homes. Waste-to-energy is regulated by a myriad of local, state and federal requirements.  It is endorsed by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) as the preferred method of waste disposal mainly because it diverts waste from landfills and the tractor trailer trips to long-haul that waste.

An environmental consultant contracted by the Saugus Board of Health recently released its 2023 Air Monitoring Report, which confirms that WIN Waste continues to be in compliance with all our permits based on more than 70 regulatory submittals and test reports.

By far, the most environmentally friendly option moving forward is to allow WIN Waste to continue to operate the monofill in its current footprint using the same strict environmental controls. The alternative is to ship ash off site, unfortunately adding to the greenhouse gas emissions that come from the transportation sector.”