JAY — Select Board members voted June 8 to send the town’s single-sort recycling to Municipal Waste Solutions at $95 per ton beginning July 1.
Town Manager Shiloh LaFreniere confirmed the vote approved the arrangement and said the $95-per-ton rate and location will begin July 1, giving Jay a new outlet for recyclables as its hauling arrangements change.
LaFreniere told the board the town needed to find a home for single-sort recycling beginning July 1. Municipal Waste Solutions offered to take the material at its Hampden facility for $95 per ton and honor that rate through the remaining two years of Jay’s current disposal contract period.
The board compared the $95-per-ton rate with other options, including one facility at $110 per ton and another at $135 per ton. The higher-priced option would also add tolls and additional travel distance.
A 10-ton load would cost $950 at Municipal Waste Solutions, compared with $1,370.30 at the higher-priced option. The savings would increase if the town hauls larger loads.
The discussion also focused on whether the material would actually be recycled after it leaves Jay. Board members said they did not want residents to separate recyclables only to have the material buried or burned.
Municipal Waste Solutions and one other facility were identified as the two options that would recycle the material. The town’s new collection system will continue weekly trash pickup and collect single-sort recycling every other week.
The arrangement gives Jay a confirmed recycling outlet before the July 1 hauling change while keeping the town positioned to revisit longer-term waste and recycling options over the next two years.
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Rebecca Richard is a reporter for the Franklin Journal. She graduated from the University of Maine after studying literature and writing. She is a small business owner, wife of 33 years and mom of eight…
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