SAUGUS — Saugus officials want Gov. Deval Patrick to know they oppose any expansion of waste incineration in the state as talk of lifting a nearly 25-year-old moratorium heats up.
Selectman Debra Panetta wrote a letter to Patrick and officials at the Department of Environmental Protection, stating the board’s unanimous opposition to a proposal by the DEP to lift a moratorium on new or expanded waste incinerators.
“As a host community of Wheelabrator/RESCO waste incinerator and adjoining ash landfill in Saugus, we are strongly opposed to any changes that are proposed to the existing moratorium,” said Panetta. “The Saugus Board of Selectmen is extremely concerned about the potential impact of contaminated ash on public health and important environmental resources within the Saugus River and Rumney Marsh.”
According to the state’s updated solid waste master plan, the DEP is looking to modify the moratorium to encourage development of new technologies for converting municipal solid waste to energy. This includes gasification and pyrolysis.
These processes use extremely high temperatures to break down solid waste without combustion.
Since 1990, Massachusetts has had a moratorium to limit certain forms of disposal capacity. This was intended for the technologies in existence at the time, but according to the plan, a variety of alternative technologies have advanced since then.
However, Panetta called the processes unproven and said they will create more ash emissions in Saugus.”
“Saugus has had nearly 40 years of experience and disappointments with mass-burn incineration,” said Panetta. “Communities experiencing existing burdens should not be subject to additional burdens such as would be allowed in the proposal now being considered. As a community already struggling with ongoing problems associated with environmental compliance at Wheelabrator Saugus, we will not support any new or expanded capacity at the facility.”
Panetta also said changing the moratorium will create a “disincentive for people to recycle.”
Joan LeBlanc, executive director of the Saugus River Watershed Council, said her group is also sending a letter to the state in opposition.
LeBlanc said she opposes any expansion of capacity for the incinerator because it’s a “source of pollution to the Saugus River watershed.”
“We’re very committed to not increasing that pollution,” she said. “Waste incineration does create pollution and that facility is located in an area of critical environmental concern.”
And after Wheelabrator was fined $7.5 million in 2011 for alleged environmental violations, LeBlanc said the council is “even more opposed” to altering the moratorium.
“The fact that we’re now proposing expanding that technology at those facilities as a solution to solid waste is really quite surprising,” she said. “The town of Saugus is still dealing with compliance and oversight, as far as what’s going on there now. So I don’t see any reason why anyone would want to expand on something that’s still having operational problems as is.”
The state is accepting public comments on the issue until Feb. 15 and LeBlanc said she is encouraging any resident with concerns to contact the DEP.
Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].
