Windham Solid Waste Management District (WSWMD)
Brattleboro, Vermont
Board of Supervisors Meeting
Via ZOOM And In-person
Approved Minutes of May 13, 2021
Members Present: In-person Michelle Cherrier, Chair, Dummerston; Dan Toomey, Putney; Lewis Sumner, Halifax; Jim Damato, Readsboro;
Via Zoom– Merrill Mundell, Wilmington; Doris Knechtel, Newfane; Kevin Stine, Dover; Irvin Stowell, Townshend; Sandra Rulewich, Vernon; Greg Meulemans, Jamaica.
Members Absent: Patrick Moreland, Vice Chair, Brattleboro; Rickey Harrington, Somerset; Kent Young, Stratton Nancy Meinhard, Wardsboro; David Jones, Brookline; Russell Hodgkins, Westminster;Michael Becker, Guilford; Stillman Vonderhorst, Marlboro.
WSWMD Staff Present: Robert Spencer, Executive Director; Vicki Hayes, Office Manager/Bookkeeper/District Clerk; John Fay, Programs Manager.
Others Present: None
As a quorum was present Michelle called the meeting to order at 7:04 P.M.
- Changes and/or Additions to the Agenda: None
- Annual Reorganization: Appoint a Member at Large to the Executive Board.
As there was no volunteer for the position of Member at Large, the board chose to table this position until interest is expressed.
- Approval of Minutes of April 8, 2021: Two typographical errors were pointed out. Vicki agreed to amend the minutes.
Motion was made to accept the minutes as amended by Doris, Dan seconded. The motion was carried with two abstentions – Jim and Lewis.
- Approval of Check Register- May 2021: Merrill noted a couple of checks that were discussed at the Finance Committee. Ck# 28458 to Simplicity for trommel repair and #28474 to Dompier for freon extraction.
Motion was made by Jim to accept the check register of April 2021, Dan seconded and the motion carried.
- Approval of Financial Statement – April 2021: Vicki discussed the highlights of April
results. She mentioned the Renewable Energy Credits for almost $30,000, and that we can expect another $14,500 in June. Various other line items were discussed. It was noted we expect to finish the year with a surplus.
Jim moved to accept the Financial Statement for April 2021, Merrill seconded and the motion was carried.
- Discuss Materials Management Infrastructure Grant: Bob gave history on the prior grant that used to purchase the new loader. This second grant is similar. Created from the excess surcharge funds from the state. We received $78,000.00 to be used to cover 40% of the purchase of a new backhoe, a 30 cy roll off, and a new dumpster for food waste, and 60% of the cost to wall in the HHW Depot area. The remining costs will be covered by our budget and the Capital Plan. We have 12 to 24 months to complete this grant.
- Update on HHW Depot: John reported that we have accepted HHW for three days by invitation. It has been well received. We are charging $5.00 per drop off, with a 10 gallon maximum. We have been handling roughly 8 customers per hour. We expect to have our first pick up of materials by Heritage on June 1st. Bob notified the Fire Dept. and they had a squad come to see the facility, and expressed their appreciation of having it in the community. John, Bob, Anita and Dick have all received the training on accepting hazardous materials. Kevin asked where the grant monies are coming from. Bob explained the annual SWIP grant as well as the HHW Grant funds to cover the set up.
Programs Manager Report: John gave an update on the glass disposal options. Due to the safety, storage and intensive employee time required to manage glass separately it is recommended to continue to throw it in with the single stream recycling. Jim asked about transferring to Londonderry, NH and Bob explained that it didn’t make sense as we don’t have room to store the volume needed to make that work. It also incurred safety concerns and tire ruptures.
John also reported on freon extraction. NRRA was contracted to come in and catch up on our backlog. They were able to do 300 units at the cost of $9.00 per unit. Our tip fee is $15.00 per unit so the cost was covered. Staff will continue servicing units going forward, and a new pump unit with higher capacity will be purchased.
John updated the Board on the USDA Technical Assistance Grant. He again asked for member towns with interest to contact him. He, Bob, and Sandra talked about the work they are doing to evaluate the Vernon PAYT program, including a meeting with the Selectboard on Tuesday May 18. They also worked on an RFP for Marlboro’s recycling collection. Also mentioned was the Compost Demo scheduled for May 15th, with Athena Lee Bradley hosting and assisted by Anita Grant. John is going to Newfane for a backyard compost demo and electronics collection this Saturday.
- Executive Director Report: Bob reported that signed MOUs for giving the rolloffs to member towns have been coming in slowly. He still needs them from Townshend, Jamaica and Brookline.
He informed the Board that we are now charging commercial ventures to recycle their paper, as it costs us $200.00 a ton to recycle. There has been some pushback from the Commons who want us to take excess newspapers at no charge. Bob issued a written policy to give to commercial generators explaining the $0.10/lb. charge for recyclable materials. Bob mentioned that we are currently receiving $113.00 per ton for our cardboard.
Bob discussed the closure of Vermont Bread, a $20,000 per year account. He mentioned that several companies are expressing interest in buying the company, and BDCC is assisting in helping with a deal. If we get the volume back it will again, impact our permit capacity issue. If we don’t we will be hit with losing tip fee revenue, cardboard revenue, and lost compost sales revenue from reduced volumes.
Bob, Michelle, Patrick and Representative Sarah Coffey are looking into the possibility of federal “earmark” grant money to fund a larger capacity compost facility, with a potential cost of $500,000.
Michelle asked about the status of the Swap Shop as she has been asked about it by several interested town members. Bob told her that he is meeting with the volunteers on Thursday the 20th to develop a plan for reopening.
Dan mentioned it was time for Bob’s annual review. He suggested that he draft it and then the Executive Board could review it soon.
- Executive Session: None
- Next Meeting: June 10, 2021 @ 7:00 P.M. via Zoom and limited in person.
- Other Business: None
- Adjournment: Meeting was adjourned at 8:10 P.M.
Minutes submitted by,
Vicki Hayes
District Clerk