-SWDC MEETING MINUTES
SWDC Meeting Minutes-09/20/2021
1) Meeting called to order at 5:40 pm.
2) Attendance of Members; Dave Swanay, Andy Sanborn, Jen Holt, Jeff Burns.
Guests; Nate Douglass(Transfer Station manager),Tara Albert.
3) SWDC Updates- Jen notified Jeff he would be unable to vote during meetings until he is sworn in for his next term by either the TC/TC or the BOS. Jeff stated he would complete the swearing in process by the TC/TC.
4)Transfer Station grants- Nate is inquiring about the availability of grants for the Transfer Station to complete various projects. Tara Albert joined the meeting via phone to discuss options available to Nate at this time.
Nate stated he is looking for possible grants; to build a swap shop building complete with electricity,funds to repair the S.S. compactor, and MSW compactor which currently needs $20,000.00 in repairs,along with a scale for C&D.
Nate stated residents often argue with staff about their disposal fees associated with C&D waste .
He believes that having a scale would take the guesswork out of fees for C&D.
Nate was informed that SWDC agreed with his rationale for wanting to implement a scale for C&D. 2-3 years ago, Andy had researched and designed a scale for C&D at the Transfer Station. SWDC presented the C&D scale recommendation to the BOS at that time.No action was taken on the part of the BOS to pursue a scale for the T.S.
After further discussion Tara was able to make the following recommendations to Nate to assist with his exploration of grants for the Transfer Station.
1)Apply for a USDA grant for Solid Waste facilities in rural communities.
2)Consider implementing a Community Composting program at the Transfer Station. In 2020- Food waste from MSW accounts for 24% of the waste in landfills by weight. 150 tons of food waste yields 50 tons of compost.
3)Contact Page Wilson, from the Lakes Region Planning commission. Page teaches the Full cost accounting class and is looking for a town to collaborate with.
4)Apply for a grant from NH the Beautiful for a Swap Shop building.
Following her recommendations ,Tara ended the call.
SWDC continued to discuss and troubleshoot with Nate ways to mitigate some of the current issues at the Transfer Station. Not limited to; return to source separation and baling, creating a dedicated space for the Swap Shop, hiring of additional staff, a Warrant Article for this upcoming Town Meeting in the amount of $35,000.00 to purchase a scale for C&D,additional ways to mitigate the lost revenue and staff hours needed to address the issues that C&D creates. Currently, C&D is costing taxpayers over $6,000.00 a year. An idea was proposed for Nate to refuse to accept Construction waste and send residents directly to Casella to dispose of their waste. Large,household items would continue to be accepted at the Transfer Station.
-*A motion was made by Andy Sanborn for “SWDC to recommend to the BOS that the Transfer Station no longer accept Construction waste due to the high cost for taxpayers and the staffing demands required.”
Second made by Dave Swanay.
Discussion- Dave will conduct a fiscal examination of the impact that collecting construction waste has had on the Transfer Station budget. Dave will present his findings at the next SWDC meeting.Upon review of the data, SWDC will formalize their presentation of the above motion and schedule a presentation of the recommendation to BOS.
Vote- Yes-3, No-0, Abstain-1.
Above Motion carries.SWDC will present a recommendation to BOS once fiscal data has been reviewed.
5)Vote to Amend/Accept the Draft meeting minutes of 01/18/21
A Motion was made by Andy to accept the draft meeting minutes of 01/18/2021 as written.
A Second was made by Dave. Discussion-none.
Vote- Yes-3, No- 0, Abstain- 1
Results- Draft SWDC Meeting minutes of 01/18/2021 passed as written.
6)Other business- None
7)Public comment-None
8)Next regular meeting 10/18/2021 @ 5:30pm in the Town office conference room, Masks required.
9) Meeting adjourned at 7:30 pm.
Respectfully submitted,
Jen Holt- SWDC Chair & Recorder
09/25/2021