FARMINGTON – Selectmen indicated support for having the town gain ownership of the Sandy River Recycling Association’s composting facility and associated state license at Tuesday’s meeting, after reviewing a proposal which suggested bringing together a coalition of volunteers to reopen the site in the next two years.
While in operation, the SRRA’s composting site accepted nearly 30 tons of food scraps, primarily from the University of Maine at Farmington. The pile was maintained on the association’s property near the transfer station. At the site, which included a concrete pad poured in 2005, compost was run through a screen and regularly tested, then sold. The sale of compost never fully covered the cost of running the site, and the SRRA board voted in November 2013 to cease operations as of Dec. 31, 2013.
SRRA will formally dissolve on June 30; one of the last acts of the 23-year-old association will be to sell the recycling facility and property, with the funds going to the organization’s member towns.
A few months ago, Thomas Eastler, a professor at UMF and member of the town’s planning board, approached the SRRA executive board and the Farmington selectmen with the idea of having the town acquire the compost component of SRRA’s operation. Tuesday evening, he presented selectmen with a proposal to form a “volunteer coalition,” consisting of people associated with the town, college and local school system to help develop the transportation, maintenance and processing infrastructure to reopen the site sometime in the next two years.
“We’ll be looking for people to donate their time,” Eastler said. “That’s all we need right now.”
The only cost associated with the proposal would be a $288 fee to transfer ownership of the composting license to the town and possibly a $300 fee to operate the facility, although it was unclear if that fee would be collected while the site was closed. Eastler said he would pay that cost if necessary, an offer he has made in the past.
The proposal does not include the majority of the SRRA’s property, or the large structure which houses the association’s recycling operation.
Eastler said that he saw the coalition and compost operation as an educational and financial opportunity for the area. Removing additional material from the waste stream represented an “avoided cost,” for the town, he said. Eastler also said that he had already been approached by a Farmington resident with heavy equipment who had indicated a willingness to help maintain a compost pile, and he also suggested that the coalition would consider writing grants.
Selectmen supported the request to have the town assume ownership, leaving the ball in the SRRA’s court. Eastler said that the executive committee would be meeting Wednesday evening and would also vote on the proposal.
Excellent proposal Tom! And kudos to the Farmington Select Board for taking action to promote sustainability and educational opportunities. To me, this is just how government should work: involved citizens and elected officials working together for the betterment of all. Way to go Farmington!
It sounds like a win win situation – an important and needed service and a way for volunteers to help.
It seems like the Town of Farmington supports a lot of educational opportunities – and it involves taxes to support it. While this particular proposal isn’t going to cost the tax payers….YET…it will. Mark my words.