6 Howard Avenue MIRA is shutting

2021/05/21

6 Howard Avenue MIRA is shutting down which means CT should have less ash but Wheelabrator Putnam is likely to get approval to expand to accommodate more ashpermanently impacting local wetlands, waterways and perhaps be a source of future pollution, including PFAS. Lamont said that wastoo much.

I dont think were at a point right now when we know if theres some additional tax subsidy that is going to be needed in order to move a project forward, Dykes said. Permittees must monitor the site and report to the CT Department of Energy and Environmental Protection but concerns about leakage and contamination of soil, ground and surface water sources remain, particularly if flooding occurs. Its life-changing for our kids.- Stephen Brown, Teacher, Lisbon Central School, Special Waste Contact:specialwaste@wtienergy.com. Hb``f``e```lud8 B1:_aWp5)i\; Weve had the opt-out for years, and weve only had a few customers find better alternatives.. wheelabrator locations bridgeport plant The Massachusetts-based company, known for farm-based projects,aspires to have 100 anaerobic digesters by 2026. Good news! 700,000 tons of capacity is going away in two to three years, absent some sort of significant financial infusion," said Kirk. Having 80 percent of towns opt in gives them that assurance, and could keep tipping fees about $15 per ton cheaper than they otherwise would be, Kirk said. All Rights Reserved |, Electronic Waste Recycling & Universal Waste. landfill Therell be a whole lot more diesel exhaust being generated by Connecticuts garbage, but itll be spread out all over instead of concentrated in Hartford, Kirk said. Because like trash, one other thing that never stops flowing is time. For more information on facility performance click here. Sacyr North America General Counsel Brian Kirby called this latest outcome "deeply disappointing" and a "missed opportunity" for the state. MIRA ships the ash to a disposal area in Putnam, CT, another economically distressed community. connecticut waste barnwell 2007 november energy stored dump radioactive container courtesy level low date air loe It seems that JavaScript is not working in your browser. And I do see the system falling apart.. Topics covered: recycling, landfills, collections, organics diversion, waste-to-energy, and much more. 0000041754 00000 n Dykes said Connecticuts waste future boils down to two things: finding new disposal sites for garbage and reducing what we throw away. Subscribe to Waste Dive for top news, trends & analysis, The free newsletter covering the top industry headlines, The Recycling Partnerships Polypropylene Recycling Coalition Celebrates Widely Recycled Upg, Sunnyvale Bay Counties SMaRT Station Materials Recovery Facility Expands Use of EverestLabs' R, Industry Dive to be acquired by Informa PLC, Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) to refurbish an aging refuse-derived fuel (RDF)facility for a capital cost of at least $330 million. Covanta Bristol Resource Recovery Facility At least for now it appears that MIRA is on track to avoid any disruption to trash service for its members in 2022, Kirk still continued to question the wisdom of closing the plant. )g:)~cDp_7FUqhG4#;0d~}S^G$i8iF f'0b`]$J0A'JfTpJ}+Fd5Rl>$u1"g?tF' OLiszDMFWQ(ou*1?z!m=oJrLhg$\n!). Telephone: 860-457-9307, Wheelabrator Bridgeport Resource Recovery Facility "Thats a hard and fast stubborn fact.". UPDATE: Dec.10, 2020:The Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) recently announced plans to close its refuse-derived fuel facility by July 2022 at the latest, as reported in the last week by WNPRand the Hartford Courant. 0000001618 00000 n Coca-Cola is switching Sprite bottles from green to clear PET plastic in North America to boost recyclability. Thats like taking 44,000 passenger vehicles off the road for one year. The 9 million cubic yard facility, originally conceived to accommodate and dispose of ash from all of Connecticut's energy-from-waste facilities, receives over 700,000 tons of ash per year from several in-state and out-of-state energy-from-waste plants. 170 Enterprise Drive Connecticut News from your locally owned & operated news source at the state Capitol since 2005. It could be because it is not supported, or that JavaScript is intentionally disabled. To learn more and get involved in this campaign, join our email list or contact ahulick@cleanwater.org. 132 Route 12 / Military Highway By itself, anemic REC prices may not cause economic strain on the industry, but they are causing significant shortfalls when coupled with recent developments in the wholesale electricity market. There must be other waste reduction, recycling or organics measures put in place so the overall footprint of that waste stream is being managed more sustainably and more in line with the states solid waste management plan.. 0000005500 00000 n {"requests":{"event":"https:\/\/ctnewsjunkie.com\/wp-content\/plugins\/newspack-popups\/includes\/..\/api\/campaigns\/index.php"},"triggers":{"trackPageview":{"on":"visible","request":"event","visibilitySpec":{"selector":"#c1fb","visiblePercentageMin":90,"totalTimeMin":500,"continuousTimeMin":200},"extraUrlParams":{"popup_id":"id_222350","cid":"CLIENT_ID(newspack-cid)"}}}}. The state legislature is not currently expected to weigh in during a special summer session. Instead ofexpandingour waste facilities and investing in further pollution, Connecticutshould refocus its efforst on Zero Waste policies which help toprevent waste before it starts and protect our communities, air and water from harm. We care about our communities and operate well below emissions limits. In addition, the facility engages with the town, supporting the local fire department and sponsoring its annual golf tournament and sponsoring the annual Lisbon Fall Festival, a key event for residents and community leaders, as well as supporting the Science Screen Report STEM education package for the local school system. Lets face it, managing our waste is a huge problem! There will be an increase to tipping fees either way with Kirk giving a ballpark estimate where fees increase from the current $105 per ton to more than $110 a ton, even if more than 80 percent of towns opt in. Because local landfills are no longer an option, the only choice remaining is waste-to-energy plants or shipping waste out of state. Former partner Entsorgasees a path forward for its shuttered showcase plant. In addition to keeping waste out of landfills, were committed to ensuring safe operations and minimizing environmental impacts. 0000006152 00000 n Contact:Tonya King or Kenneth Huebner Hartford Business Journal's CT Green Guide, Regulatory, Energy & Telecommunications Department, Hartford Business Journal's CT Green Guide: Spring 2016, Regulatory, Energy and Telecommunications. HW]s|G % =E+E*e$bK7ozf HwU:\>[3e6/ae>Dq!(go>I]n5{Za;?\i.so0U;?3OcLz> 0ByZ)19*Z(hNa2; _ggt8J,xw 0000064868 00000 n This new investment comes as renewable natural gas projects are increasingly popular. There are only a few companies that have the capacity to ship waste out of state by rail. The legislature is considering setting up a task force on the issue. But no viable alternative will help divert the nearly 1 million tons of trash that used to arrive at the facility just a few years ago. That will not change until there is either a regulatory statutory restriction against dealing with your garbage that way, or the economics change.. For years, the state has relied on waste-to-energy plants to dispose of municipal waste, allowing it to shutter many of its landfills.

Although several states have better recycling or composting rates, Connecticut garners the top spot by having the highest waste-to-energy conversion rate. Otherwise, towns will just chase the cheapest option for getting rid of their trash. Connecticuts incinerator the Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority (MIRA) Incinerator - will be shutting down in 2022, after over 40 years of burning trash from almost 60 Connecticut towns. Plainfield Renewable Energy - Greenleaf Power (Biomass Gasification Facility) Over the past five or six years we struggled to keep the plant viable, Kirk said. Bristol, CT 06010 Lisbon, CT 06351 Ultimately, we want to ensure that Connecticut can maintain self-sufficiency in the way that we manage our disposal, said Katie Dykes, commissioner of the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection. The company formerly known asBioHiTech Global has seen its stock price plummetfollowingfinancial, operational and legalissues. For Wheelabrator to give us the resources to take on environmental problems in our community, its so unique. We dont want to just be relying on other communities in faraway states to handle our garbage.. If everything holds while contracts are finalized in the coming months, the 48 municipalities that have their trash managed by the quasi-public Materials Innovation and Recycling Authority, or MIRA, will see an increase in the cost of that service but there shouldnt be any of the disruptions to service that were feared a year ago, MIRA President Tom Kirk told CT Examiner on Monday. Recent shifts in the energy markets have conspired to make the economics of waste-to-energy more difficult. 0000100619 00000 n And that, today, is putting it on a truck or train and sending it west, Kirk said. The move follows years of debate around the plant's future, but was largely expected after Connecticut's Department of Energy and Environmental Protection rejected refurbishment plans earlier this year,among other events. 0000005925 00000 n The real deal is that we need state leadership to refresh the solid waste system in the state.. But as MIRA goes away, lawmakers worry it and the state arent doing enough to articulate what policies Connecticut needs to manage its garbage within state borders. In a recent interview with Connecticut Public Radio, Dykes said she stands by that decision. Nine public media stations bringing you stories of our rapidly changing region. Located in Preston, Connecticut, the Southeastern Connecticut Resource Recovery Facility is an award-winning Waste-to-Energy Facility that serves the community with reliable and sustainable waste management. For member communities that have contracts with MIRA past that date, the facility will be converted into a transfer station. While there might always be some waste, the goal is to recover, repurpose and reuse every material that is discarded. The Wheelabrator Lisbon waste-to-energy facility provides dependable, environmentally safe disposal of up to 500 tons daily of everyday household and business waste, using it as a fuel to generate as much as 15 MW of clean, renewable electricity for sale to the local utility. The trash that goes through the Torrington and Watertown transfer stations will be handled by Bridgeport-based Enviro Express, and will be trucked to a landfill in eastern Pennsylvania, Kirk said. 1444 I Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20005P (202) 895-0420F (202) 895-0438, 1444 I Street NW, Suite 400, Washington, DC 20005. Sacyr noted an interest in staying involved with Connecticut's waste sector, but its own next steps are unclear. As disposal capacity continues to shrink in the Northeast, the cost to ship waste elsewhere is expected to rise over time. Because of action that were not taking, were going to get into more uncertainty. All the trash that goes through the Essex Transfer Station about 10 percent of the more than 500,000 tons of trash MIRA processes each year will now be trucked to the Covanta trash burning energy plant in Preston. A Vermont-based startup has the technology , Episode 252: The Final Episode: How Boston Poet Laureate Porsha Olayiwola Reimagines History; Protesters Reflect On The Year That Changed Us, Episode 251: Reflecting On Surviving The White Gaze; Why Green Burials Are Surging In Popularity, Episode 250: Its Like Climbing Up A Mudslide: Pandemic Pushes Women Out Of The Workforce, Episode 249: Alison Bechdel On The Secret To Superhuman Strength; Advocates Push Colleges To Hire More Black-Owned Firms To Oversee Investments, Episode 248: The Happiness Lab Professor On Ways We Can Be Happier; How Jonny Sun Is Learning To Balance Work And Rest. What happens when those states decide to stop accepting Connecticuts trash? The site is owned by the town and Wheelabrator and managed by Wheelabrator Putnam, a regional commercial facility that has been operating since 1999. MIRA charges a tipping fee based on the tonnage disposed, and augments that fee with revenues from the production of electricity. Ash is processed to recover metal for recycling while all gases are collected, filtered and cleaned before being released safely into the atmosphere. Contact:Mark Boucher,Greg Zis orDawn Cannon This article was originally published in the Hartford Business Journal's CT Green Guide: Spring 2016. For years, MIRA has functioned as the states public option for trash by allowing towns to pool their resources and drive down disposal costs. The remainder what is now trucked directly to the South Meadows trash-burning plant will now be trucked into the nearby Murphy Road Recycling Center, then shipped by truck or rail to the Tunnel Hill Landfill in Ohio.