Board of Supervisors Meeting Minutes 3/12/26 – Draft

| Board of Supervisor's Meeting Notices, Agendas & Minutes

Windham Solid Waste Management District (WSWMD)

Brattleboro, Vermont

Board of Supervisors Meeting

Via Zoom and In-person

Draft Minutes of March 12, 2026

 

Members Present: (In-person):

Chair: Michelle Cherrier, Dummerston; Vice Chair(interim): Dan Toomey, Putney; Amanda Ellis-Thurber, Brattleboro; Dave Eastman, Guilford; Stephan Chait, Halifax (alternate); Doris Knechtel, Newfane; Irvin Stowell, Townshend; Liz Spector, Wardsboro; Merrill Mundell, Wilmington

 

Members Absent: Stephen Dotson, Brattleboro (alternate); Stanley Noga, Jr, Brookline; Doug Wellman, Brookline (alternate); Dan Baliotti, Dover; Joseph Mahon Dover (alternate);Lewis Sumner, Halifax; Kate Ullman, Jamaica; Jessica Pollack, Jamaica (alternate); Ellen Dudley, Marlboro; Carla Meskill, Marlboro (alternate); James Damato, Readsboro; Rickey Harrington, Somerset; Kent Young, Stratton; Jim Pinkerton, Vernon; (vacant) Westminster

 

WSWMD Staff Present: Robert Spencer, Executive Director; Vicki Hayes, Finance Manager & HR Administrator; Peter Gaskill, Programs Coordinator; Alex Lacy, Outreach Coordinator; Anita Grant, Office Manager & Operations Liaison/District Clerk

 

Other Guests: Will DeToso, Altus Power; Shannon Choquette, VT DEC Environmental Analyst; Susan Bellville, Brattleboro Resident; Tom Mosakowski, Brattleboro Planning Commission Chair; Ralph Meima, Windham Regional Commission

 

  1. Roll Call of Supervisors: Michelle opened the meeting at 6:03 PM. Once a quorum was present, Anita performed a roll call of supervisors present. (9 towns, 9 supervisors). 
  1. Changes or Additions to the Agenda: Michelle moved Ralph Meima’s presentation on WSWMD’s Energy History to #5 on the agenda.
  1. Introduction to New Solar Array Owner- Altus Power:

Altus Power of Stamford, CT, acquired WSWMD’s solar array from Greenbacker Capital in December of 2025. Will DeToso made a brief presentation and introduced himself to the board, spoke about their nationwide solar efforts, and is looking forward to a good relationship and perhaps other ventures with the District in the future. 

  1. Solid Waste Implementation Plan (SWIP)Overview- Shannon Choquette, VT DEC Solid Waste Program:

Shannon Choquette, an Environmental Analyst with the VT DEC (Department of Energy and Conservation), presented a slideshow representing the District’s responsibilities that had to be included in the SWIP, and how the waste diversion reports were conceived. Topics included Re-Trac reporting to school/business outreach, as well as the new accessible website guidelines. There was quite a bit of detail in the presentation and a few questions and answers from the group. She explained how the annual SWIP grant payments are made by the state once the required reporting is made from the District to the DEC. WSWMD annually receives around $38,000 and funds the Household Hazardous Waste Depot with the money.

 

  1. Ralph Meima- WSWMD Energy History:

Ralph Meima of the Windham Regional Commission spoke to the board regarding the history of the energy innovations that WSWMD has been involved in. He spoke about the landfill being one of the first with a methane gas recovery (methane to electricity) system in the United States; he talked of the solar array and possible future endeavors with the Rich Earth Institute. He is very interested in creating some energy tourism around WSWMD in the future, with a theme based on “waste and energy” in one place. He is working with Bob to develop a proposal for WSWMD to hire him to write a summary of the various energy initiatives. 

  1. Approval of Minutes- January 2026 (No February meeting):

Merrill Mundell made the motion to approve the Board of Supervisors minutes from January 2026, Dan Toomey seconded, and the motion carried unanimously.

 

  1. Approval of Check Registers- January & February 2026:

Dave Eastman made the motion to approve both the January & February 2026 Check Registers, Liz Spector seconded, and the motion passed unanimously. 

 

  1. Approval of Financial Statement- January & February 2026:

Vicki reported that although January finished with a deficit, it turned around in February due to the receipt of the final payout from the 2024 USDA grant, the annual SWIP grant, and the solar recs from Quarter 2. She explained that February is the slowest and shortest month and was grateful the grant money and recs turned the deficit around, as this does not usually happen until March. She also reiterated that it would be beneficial for the District to remain in a surplus state to be able to purchase the new roll-off truck sooner rather than later in FY27.

Merrill Mundell made the motion to approve the Financial Statements of January & February 2026, Dave Eastman seconded, and the motion passed unanimously.

 

  1. Finance Committee Concerns Relative to the War in Iran: 
 Merrill Mundell, as chair of the Finance Committee, expressed concerns about focusing on efficiencies given the unknown impact of the Iran War on operations and budgets. After some discussion, the Finance Committee will hold an FY 27 fee workshop and discuss future financial agendas before the April Finance & BOS meetings. A workshop is set for 3/31/26 at 12 PM at the District office.  The full Finance Committee meeting will be held at 5 PM on April 9, 2026.
  1. Compost Collection Program:

Peter reported that the Compost Collection Program is going well, and the new cart tipper was used this past week to pick up the route. He also mentioned that after the first use, a minor adjustment would be needed to the tipper. The current 80-mile trip with ten-minute stops at each transfer station is netting around 1,300 lbs. of food scraps for the compost facility. He also said that there would be plenty of room in the trailer to add stops along the way as the route grows, focusing on schools and municipalities. There was also talk of taking on hospitals, but not other private businesses. 

  1. Solar on MRF Roof:

Bob indicated that he was interested in sending out a request for proposals this summer for potentially constructing solar panels on the MRF roof. WSWMD & possibly Allard Lumber could be off-takers, but no immediate plans have been made. The integrity of the roof to support the panels had been discussed and would have to be taken into consideration in the project scope.

  1. VT Legislature Solid Waste Bills:

Bob let the board know that there were several  Solid Waste bills in the VT Legislature, including another bottle bill. He said he would provide an update when there was more to report.

  1. Invitation to Attend VT Organics Recycling Summit (VORS):

Bob indicated that the incorrect date was given for the VORS in Montpelier, VT. It is on March 25, 2026, and not April 9, as originally reported, and he and Alex will be attending. He also extended the invitation to anyone interested. WSWMD will host a tour of the compost facility on March 26, 2026, at 11 am, followed by a tour of the Rich Earth Institute at 1 PM.

 

  1. Program Coordinator’s Report:
  • Peter is developing a transfer station user survey to find out how the users feel about current operations and investigate future initiatives for WSWMD. The survey will be used in person as well as online, where appropriate.
  • Mixed paper recycling rate has been on the rise, which is good news as the District has been successfully separating paper from single-stream recycling since December.
  • He recently attended a DEC webinar describing all the ADA (Americans with Disabilities Act) requirements that were coming up for the District’s website. The WSWMD website will need some revamping to fulfill the new SWIP requirement.

 

  1. Outreach Coordinator’s Report:
  • Alex provided updates on several outreach activities, including school visits.
  • She is involved in a proposed art collaboration with a local artist, Amber Paris, who would encompass some kind of visual art that would be made from recyclables and displayed at the transfer station. Amber is applying for a grant to fund the project.
  • She was also contacted by Resource Recycling Systems (RRS), a consulting firm for the NH DES (Department of Environmental Services), about WSWMD’s food waste capacity at the compost facility. NH has banned food scraps for large facilities and expressed interest in bringing material to WSWMD.
  • She also met with the Cannabis Control Board regarding compost operations and attended a Brattleboro Economic Development Gathering.
  • Alex attended the RI Compost Conference, learned about soil health, and made many networking connections.
  • Alex and Bob are drafting marketing materials for Brattlegrow compost. She shared a picture of the new label she designed that will be used on compost bags going forward, and discussed selling pallets of WSWMD compost bags at local retail locations.
  • There will be two home composting workshops in April at the WSWMD demo site. Dates are to be announced via the WSWMD website, Front Porch Forum, and Facebook.

  

  1. Executive Director’s Report:
  • Bob reported that Anita was currently working on training the employees on the new scale software and hoped to have it completed relatively soon. A lot of customization was completed to ensure an easier transition.
  • He discussed the fact that the mini-split heating system was still in limbo, but that the propane heaters had been started back up. WSWMD incurred some steep electric bills due to the space heater usage.
  • To enhance compost marketing, Bob had drafted letters to be sent out to area landscapers, road commissioners, and highway departments for bulk compost sales. The letters include the most current compost analysis from January’s testing.
  • He reported to the board that the CWSD had unfortunately been the target of a phishing scam that resulted in a three-million-dollar loss. He reiterated the strength of security at WSWMD as far as finances were concerned.
  • Bob has still been meeting with the Brattleboro DPW about the curbside compost collection in hopes of signing a contract with the Brattleboro DPW, but there is still no firm vote on the town’s handling of it. The Town meeting on 4/11/26 includes the budget for the Town to purchase two new trucks and hire employees to operate its own compost collection program.

 

  1. Executive Session (if needed): N/A

 

  1. Other Business:
  • Amanda Ellis-Thurber introduced Susan Bellville to the board as the next Brattleboro representative for WSWMD.
  • Michelle reminded the board that the April BOS meeting is the reorganization meeting and that reps should think about joining committees, as some committee members are no longer on the board.
  • Irv Stowell reported that Richard Jackson, a former WSWMD representative from Townshend, passed away recently.
  • Bob reported that John Caldwell, a former WSWMD board chair, had also passed away.
  • Tom Mosakowski, chair of the Brattleboro Planning Commission, asked some questions about clarifying the recycling information that differed between WSWMD, Casella, and the town. Alex has already been working on this with the town and advised him of their progress
  1. Next BOS Meeting: Thursday, April 9, 2026, @ 6 PM

19a:  Finance Committee Fee Workshop: Tuesday, March 31, 2026, @ 12 PM

             Next Finance Committee Meeting: Thursday, April 9, 2026, @ 5 PM

  1. Adjournment: Dave Eastman made the motion to adjourn at 8:57 PM.

 

 Minutes prepared by,

 

 Anita Grant, Office Manager & Operations Liaison/District Clerk