Jon Lender: Problems pile up on state trash agency, from environmental roadblock to paying severance packages for its contractor’s employees
Nightmarish complications piled up on the state’s quasi-public trash agency in recent days as it faced an end-of-the-world scenario — the world, at least, as the often-controversial
Since the 1980s, MIRA has been burning municipal trash around the clock to generate electricity at its massive plant on
And, to make things worse, MIRA’s governing board was told this week by a state environmental official that it may be blocked from pursuing its alternative plan — which is to turn the
Under either option, Isner said, “there is a reasonable to high likelihood of a request for a hearing, adding substantial time to the process.”
That means the application process wouldn’t take months, but maybe years — and MIRA doesn’t have years. It has 13½ months before the trash-to-energy plant shuts down. And it’s contractually obligated to dispose of the customer towns’ garbage until mid-2027.
‘It is going to die’
One MIRA board member,
“The challenge, of course, is that this thing is falling apart, and it is going to die — and the question is what happens when it dies” Shanley said. “So now we’re in extremis, and I feel like from this conversation, we’re pretty much being told to go through the normal process [but] that normal process isn’t going to work for us.”
And that “leads to a discussion that we’ve had before,” Shanley said, “and that is maybe it’s time for MIRA to decide that there’s no space for MIRA as an operation to continue — and allow the private sector to take over and figure out what to do from here. I don’t mean to be defeatist, but that’s kind of what I’m hearing.”
That’s a definite end-of-the-world scenario — only in this case it doesn’t end with fire, but the dousing of it.
So what happens now?
What if MIRA can’t persuade the DEEP to accept its position — which is that the current DEEP-issued permit to operate the South Meadows plant waste facility will enable MIRA to use it as a non-trash-burning transfer station, which can export as much as 680 tons of garbage per day?
MIRA ‘s president,
Kirk wrote a “draft” letter Dyke about a week ago in an effort to begin to resolve the dispute over permit requirements, or at least establish for the record where MIRA stands and what actions it needs to take.
Isner’s appearance and comments at Wednesday’s meeting were an initial response to that draft letter, and now Kirk said he’ll refine the letter and submit a final version to Dykes for an authoritative answer.
In the draft, Kirk wrote: “As MIRA has previously discussed with you and other DEEP personnel, MIRA is developing plans to cease the shredding and combustion of MSW at the Facility for energy recovery, effective on or about
Lamont unenthusiastic
There’s also a political dimension to the decision to shut down the plant, exemplified by Gov. Ned Lamont’s rejection of state funding for a proposed
DEEP also hasn’t backed MIRA’s proposals for a solution that would keep the trash-burning plant operating, Shanley said Wednesday.
Kirk went on in his draft letter to Dykes: “MIRA is anticipating that it will still have a contractual obligation through
Isner, the DEEP official, doubted that the existing permit would give MIRA authority to ship out that garbage without either an application for a modification or an entirely new permit.
“We understand and read the permit a little differently,” Kirk told Government Watch on Thursday. “The plain words of the permit would support a different [interpretation] that says we can transfer 680 tons a day out of the facility, and we think it clearly allows us to operate as a transfer station.”
Although the differences between the MIRA and DEEP positions may not be easily resolved, Kirk asked Dykes for a quick response. In the draft letter, to be submitted in final form in coming days, he wrote: “Given the critically short time period remaining for MIRA to execute this waste transfer plan, MIRA respectfully requests that DEEP respond to this letter confirming the DEEP position as soon as possible, but no later than
“Until MIRA receives a response from DEEP regarding this critical issue, MIRA will continue its planning with the understanding that the currently-permitted authority for the off-site transfer of up to 680 tons of [municipal waste] per day, seven days per week, remains in effect, until and upon the current permit’s expiration or surrender to DEEP.
“MIRA is making this request to the DEEP in order to see if we can collaborate and find a path forward together, which is MIRA’s goal. MIRA, however, reserves all rights and arguments it has under the Permit and/or otherwise available to it in law to exercise and does not waive or relinquish any such rights it has now or in the future relating to the Permit, available legal options, and MIRA’s authority.”
Asked Thursday what will happen if DEEP does not relent, Kirk said, “We’re going to have to find a home for about 450,000 tons” per year of municipal waste that’s now being burned but won’t be after
If MIRA isn’t allowed to use the
As it is, MIRA will be increasing its fee to the towns per ton on
Severance for contractor’s employees
Another complication of the impending trash-to-energy plant’s shutdown will be the loss of jobs for most of the 117 workers who operate not only the plant, but also four seldom-used, auxiliary electric generators on the site that are powered by jet engines. The workers are employed by
On Wednesday, the MIRA board took the unusual step of approving a
Some key NAES people have skills that could easily be marketed elsewhere, and if they left in the months leading up to the scheduled shutdown, Kirk said the plant might have to cease operations early. If that happened, Kirk said, it could easily cost MIRA more to get rid of the trash buildup than to continue paying the personnel.
He admitted the move is “certainly not typical,” but said that under this arrangement, “NAES is essentially a labor broker,” and MIRA reimburses the company dollar-for-dollar for “everything it takes to run the plant — [from] salaries and diesel fuel, to paper clips.”
The severance would be six weeks’ pay, and the retention payments could last 10 weeks, Kirk said. “I think it’s a recognition of the difficulty” of the situation for the workers, as well as “their loyalty to MIRA and its customers” over the years.
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