[{"_1":2,"_112":-5,"_113":-5},"loaderData",{"_3":4,"_26":27},"root",{"_5":6,"_17":10,"_18":19,"_20":21,"_22":10,"_23":-5,"_24":-5,"_25":10},"user",{"_7":8,"_9":10,"_11":10,"_12":-5,"_13":-5,"_14":15,"_16":-5},"roles",[],"isAuthenticated",false,"isPremium","planName","subscriptionStatus","featureFlags",{},"insightsBudget","isDevelopmentHost","userPreferences",{},"recaptchaSiteKey","6LcvOJcUAAAAAHsB-gPGfGktcRlKpH7OTIU_dMTD","isImpersonating","impersonation","affiliateStatus","isFreedomPortal","routes/v2/article/layout",{"_28":29,"_30":31},"notFound",true,"relatedArticles",[32,76,88,100],{"_33":34,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":40,"_41":42,"_43":44,"_45":46,"_47":48,"_49":50,"_51":52,"_53":54,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":60,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":66,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},"mediaId",6376314,"mediaKeyId","2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f","parentId",2140445,"title","Connecticut DEEP frames statewide solid-waste strategy, highlights pilot grants and planned waste study","audioSeconds",609,"startMs",681000,"endMs",1290000,"viewUrl","/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f&start=681&end=1290","thumbnailUrl","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f/thumbnail_681000.jpg","articleUrl","/articles/6376314/Connecticut/Connecticut-DEEP-frames-statewide-solid-waste-strategy-highlights-pilot-grants-and-planned-waste-study","mediaUrl","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376314-a0f50b5d6610d42beb378b74aebb7bce/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923329&Signature=A~H5pVVD8L9-AR7G1xigD8-X~GABKmvorL1CRVLNWwxkh~U5szqgXWvWGUZvWNpr-3Cyar5lHxNnvkJMhu7vedABb-DAipGBzPyeh3uMLHs23EqD1MLZ4~ii6Ri3nou0llHP3ZTKwNkyww~F0aOtWbCST6VZdZU-mauWTY71f~FKa4IigSyLhnkYW8hHLlgkYLeXswLC7GLaH~ZdsR0jj1AAeirqspUIDzufNsVd8gEBZgVy2d6LFvDWPdD0cwE1MfEu69bc1nUonWYCMx42HTFVp7V5k3dJXiO6~cnV8PPPaoFYrht9yPEcb-2A7VPG7n9QsCTCwDCFgkDzel6PWg__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","author","CGA - Environment Committee","date","2025-01-22T00:00:00Z","article","Commissioner Katie Dykes, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, told a joint forum of the Legislature’s Environment Committee and Energy & Technology Committee that the state must rebuild its in‑state approach to municipal solid waste management.

“Connecticut has had a long standing commitment to maintaining self sufficiency in our ability to manage municipal solid waste as a policy priority within the state,” Commissioner Dykes said, summarizing DEEP’s updated Comprehensive Materials Management Strategy (CMMS) and the agency’s statutory charge to amend the statewide solid‑waste plan.

The agency briefed legislators on three near‑term items: results from Sustainable Materials Management (SMM) pilot grants, a second round of SMM funding authorized by the legislature, and a planned waste characterization study. The CMMS and the SMM program are central to DEEP’s stated aim of increasing diversion — recycling and composting — ahead of disposal.

DEEP described the state’s recent shift after the 2022 closure of the MIRA waste‑to‑energy facility, saying the loss removed roughly one‑third of in‑state disposal capacity and has driven more tonnage out of state. DEEP told the committees Connecticut generates about 2,300,000 tons of municipal solid waste (MSW) annually and that roughly 860,000 tons — about 40% of the state’s MSW since MIRA closed — are now going to out‑of‑state landfills, pushing up tip fees for towns and businesses.

The SMM pilot program, funded originally with $10 million authorized by the legislature, awarded about $4.2 million across 15 municipalities, two councils of governments and one regional waste authority. DEEP said participating pilots diverted nearly 1,270 tons of food scraps, produced an average 12% decrease in waste tonnage among participants and an average 27% increase in diversion rates. DEEP characterized the pilots as “promising,” saying the results came from short‑term, voluntary pilots and that permanent, uniform programs would likely increase capture and diversion further.

DEEP said it will ask the legislature’s additional funding to support a second round of SMM grants and reported it plans to allocate about $1,000,000 from that funding to a statewide waste characterization study. Commissioner Dykes said the study’s scope will be posted shortly and that DEEP is soliciting feedback from municipalities and stakeholders on study design.

The commissioner also described technical assistance to councils of governments and towns considering regional waste authorities, and a new competitive round of solid waste infrastructure grants designed to upgrade transfer stations and other local facilities. DEEP emphasized its dual role in both diversion programs and permitting for developers exploring new disposal options.

Why it matters: DEEP framed the work as an effort to reduce Connecticut’s dependence on out‑of‑state disposal and to stretch existing in‑state capacity by improving recycling and organics diversion, while also preparing for the need to site or permit new handling capacity. The agency’s announced waste characterization study and the second round of SMM grants set a near‑term agenda for legislators and municipal officials.

DEEP asked legislators and municipal leaders to help spread pilot results and to engage in the coming design work. The agency also reiterated that any shift in state policy will need to pair incentives, technical support and funding, rather than rely solely on mandates.

The committees heard the DEEP briefing at the start of a longer conversation that included municipal leaders and private and nonprofit operators; subsequent presentations addressed pilot programs, unit‑based pricing, food‑scrap collection, private‑sector proposals for new processing capacity and municipal infrastructure needs.","mediaType","Video","parentTitle","Joint Informational Hearing with E&T on Municipal Solid Waste 2025-01-22","oneSentenceSummary","Commissioner Katie Dykes, commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, told a joint forum of the Legislature’s Environment Committee and Energy & Technology Committee that the state must rebuild its in‑state approach to municipal solid waste management.","taxTitle","2025 Legislature CT, Connecticut","taxId",77677,"location","Connecticut","headline","","shortSummary",{"_33":77,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":78,"_41":79,"_43":80,"_45":81,"_47":82,"_49":83,"_51":84,"_53":85,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":86,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":87,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6376304,"Regional authority urges more funding for transfer stations, recycling coordinators, HHW access and local organics infrastructure",830,5200000,6030000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f&start=5200&end=6030","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f/thumbnail_5200000.jpg","/articles/6376304/Connecticut/Regional-authority-urges-more-funding-for-transfer-stations-recycling-coordinators-HHW-access-and-local-organics-infrastructure","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376304-5231ceb416f66db12bc504238a3ea40d/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923329&Signature=BqSuaqW8uwKU0o5Q9Ud2kzDDmU7HBOjRRuZ2rYFaYNRl7MOEYUtnbWFWecNgL6EVkKg3Ne6b84D~8GeMmwTG-6g9Cia8Vl6GCCteM8yp-KnlkNX0N4GMl1dkjRfoNI8qvnv8u75mG4hNKCUoz543b7d3ZnHmoixhI0r0cFPdnvda1KXpw6KNA8YBy0~JVKxAD9WvWzUkZYFxp1q-PLFvrNxe1u5vhtPU-FH1PQfT9lWLFNvdtUt0SBRgOjJJaGQJ5TqwgJLP7hOzEnSa5ccjo14W5~8SvvLw4dSp61kivwQSDSSg~a~Cx6~7lb3vqeCBN1EBdMuenDfa3ky2BL5NKA__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Jen Heaton Jones, executive director of the Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority, told the forum that local infrastructure and municipal staffing are critical to any statewide solution and that some local facilities are already straining.

Heaton Jones said local transfer stations are often outdated, unsafe and open limited hours, and that many municipalities lack dedicated, trained recycling coordinators. “Recycling coordinators…are no longer a hired position. They're just someone's other job,” she said, asking the state to consider funding permanent coordinator positions and certification to professionalize the role.

The Housatonic authority described a mix of local approaches to organics: municipal drop‑off sites, aerated static‑pile compost systems and satellite containers for 24/7 access. Heaton Jones said regional authorities can build capacity but need grants and buyer commitments for compost and anaerobic digester feedstock; she urged state help to “guarantee feedstock” so private digester investors can proceed.

She identified other local gaps: limited hazardous household waste (HHW) collection (often one event per year), uneven options for motor‑oil recycling, and transfer stations that need space and traffic‑flow upgrades. Heaton Jones asked the committees to fund public education via RecycleCT and to provide infrastructure grants that make regional collection and municipal transfer‑station upgrades feasible.

Why it matters: Even with state grant programs, Heaton Jones said, towns cannot scale diversion or host new processing without municipal investments and sustained education. The authority presented Kent and other towns as examples where local policies — pay‑as‑you‑throw and transfer‑station organics drop‑off — successfully reduced trash tonnage.

Next steps: The authority requested sustained funding for public education, deeper technical assistance on transfer‑station upgrades and incentives to attract private investors for organics processing and small composting businesses.","The Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority told legislators that Connecticut needs to invest in municipal transfer stations, make recycling‑coordinator positions permanent and expand hazardous household waste access and local organics capacity to avoid future disposal disruption.",{"_33":89,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":90,"_41":91,"_43":92,"_45":93,"_47":94,"_49":95,"_51":96,"_53":97,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":98,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":99,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6376308,"Industry pitches new in‑state processing and upgrades as Connecticut confronts shrinking disposal capacity",350,3270000,3620000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f&start=3270&end=3620","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f/thumbnail_3270000.jpg","/articles/6376308/Connecticut/Industry-pitches-new-instate-processing-and-upgrades-as-Connecticut-confronts-shrinking-disposal-capacity","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376308-9b61959e733e1a21ceb692388911abd4/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923329&Signature=GwDZSKpcCAm~EITSHCjvX0yy-UuVokyDaK358DK0I74d5dMQNlwbrMqyyKvAyAxKP5-oSuZyfCy6lJGOQ-hIVuf5oaaz8LXZH7mCM7dFeUnz5omQkAjKd9RDPxYX5cdqdo3yIXSp1KbDzjTL-w6rS7P7ksWIhAnaTwNlIrtYSL7aTcRXzKEfnNgAHsCVbUMXZGXs3eCFuI3GxRxUI2KAi52C~5bIer26ZzaDicfKmF64Ke0Cb8Z38JUZB8niEVwirfzWoteR81X-CXL72u8DV7jNANszPLpstZtb01lobOwiQwHFWbjPrtHXkvvHvZ0LuAOclArSeM8g6MTTX2Oujw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Bill Corvo, manager of Smart Technology Systems, presented a proposal to process Connecticut municipal solid waste with advanced sorting, anaerobic digestion and Valmet gasification technology on a single campus. Corvo said the plan “is designed to process 468,000 tons of MSW a year” and would include advanced AI‑enabled sorting, refuse‑derived fuel (RDF) gasification, anaerobic digestion and a carbon‑capture step for CO2 co‑products.

Corvo estimated a multi‑hundred‑million‑dollar capital cost for a full campus and said a project could be operational by about 2028, depending on permitting. He described the proposal as a way to “replace the lost MSW processing capacity of MIRA, all within state boundaries and with a substantially lower impact to the environment.”

Representatives from ReWorld and existing energy‑from‑waste operators outlined alternatives. ReWorld executives said they operate several EFW facilities across the East Coast and that energy‑from‑waste remains a vital part of a multi‑tool solution that also includes recycling, organics diversion and regional transfer. ReWorld and other operators described ongoing capital investment at existing plants and said upgrades can extend operational life while meeting emissions standards.

Fraser, speaking for a major EFW operator, told the committees her company’s Connecticut plants meet stringent controls and that its operations “operate up to 97% below the federal emission limits and we are 99.91% compliant with our same standards.” Private‑sector participants also emphasized that siting new large facilities is politically and logistically difficult and that public‑private partnerships and municipal commitments are necessary to secure feedstock for large capital projects.

Industry speakers and private haulers noted regional landfill closures, an aging fleet of U.S. waste‑to‑energy plants and rising landfill tip fees. Several private presenters said long‑distance rail and truck exports are a sizable ongoing flow for Connecticut MSW but warned that regional landfill capacity is declining and that continued exports would raise disposal costs for municipalities.

Why it matters: Connecticut’s remaining in‑state processing assets face aging infrastructure and competitive regional disposal markets. Industry proposals at the forum ranged from continued incremental upgrades at existing EFW plants to large new campuses combining advanced sorting, digestion and gasification. Legislators will weigh permitting, public acceptance, capital sources and long‑term contracting needs as they consider policy responses.

What legislators asked: Committees asked about retrofit feasibility at existing plants, capital cost estimates (broadly described in testimony as hundreds of millions of dollars) and potential state roles in financing, procurement or a state‑level waste authority to coordinate long‑term contracting.

Outcome: No formal commitments were made at the forum. Industry and agency presenters agreed to continue follow‑up meetings to share technical details and permitting plans.","Private operators and developers told legislators that Connecticut faces long‑term regional capacity pressure and urged investments in upgraded energy‑from‑waste, gasification and advanced sorting to limit out‑of‑state exports. Proposals included a 468,000‑ton gasification + advanced sorting campus and near‑term upgrades at existing plants.",{"_33":101,"_35":36,"_37":38,"_39":102,"_41":103,"_43":104,"_45":105,"_47":106,"_49":107,"_51":108,"_53":109,"_55":56,"_57":58,"_59":110,"_61":62,"_63":64,"_65":111,"_67":68,"_69":70,"_71":72,"_73":74,"_75":74},6376312,"Middletown, other Connecticut towns report higher diversion after food‑scrap collection and pay‑as‑you‑throw pilots",621,3729000,4350000,"/Search/View?dp=1&key=2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f&start=3729&end=4350","https://assets.pipeline.soar.com/2140445-e238ff8c5e3f17a66e7cfe4b79ad887f/thumbnail_3729000.jpg","/articles/6376312/Connecticut/Middletown-other-Connecticut-towns-report-higher-diversion-after-foodscrap-collection-and-payasyouthrow-pilots","https://secure.pipeline.soar.com/6376312-94789f236ba8fa5155170a743e739fe0/orig.mp4?Expires=1770923329&Signature=Ii8NUgjcXGdEonM9W1Yc5mcGUc~Svo4ZX4w24EUZEq1uM~7veTxDgdAZaTM3yyD6sDd4wPipzE66wGpw0uVzImgNZMzLOus26~3y1CRviZEAXqYD7Z8f-lUT7oC~cuSUzR6ipbbIcOceLvKhF28qbaXwPqWrDWe1FWjuMKlAK2gM64y~XRN5XI0~cUms4WJ-0M5UeDHbL1aUoHVS7x5aoIbTKJ9G4aYLy0DOYscw5TgHQREkHReDtmI~fLQLlGny-2PEFUT2HJzhiTx0OCvY6K6awFZqcN8HSVDFftpzFeGwM83EBfNOLLnVnkMj9NT6ZZMFSCY3ptYLxOfDMU1IXw__&Key-Pair-Id=KUT5TJCACFTXG","Mayor Benjamin Florsheim, mayor of Middletown, described his city’s curbside pilot combining co‑collection of food scraps with unit‑based pricing in the city’s sanitation district and said early results have been encouraging.

“We are the first in the nation to roll out simultaneous, curbside collection of food scraps, as well as the unit based pricing structure,” Mayor Florsheim said, describing the Middletown program that covers approximately 28,100 residential addresses inside the sanitation district and targets areas where residents are often renters.

Middletown told the forum the sanitation district has achieved a 62% diversion rate for food scraps in the pilot area; the mayor said the program had diverted about 47 tons at an earlier report and that the total has since grown to roughly 70–80 tons. Middletown officials also reported a roughly 32% reduction in trash tonnage in the sanitation district since program launch and described changes to billing that combine a reduced flat fee and per‑bag charges for disposal.

Industry vendors and municipal presenters at the forum described two complementary tools for towns: food‑scrap collection and unit‑based pricing (UBP), commonly called “pay‑as‑you‑throw.” Mark Dancy, president of WasteZero, who has worked on SMM pilots, said, “food scrap collection is very popular, it's expensive to collect at the curb,” and described a range of collection options including co‑collection, transfer‑station drop‑off and curbside service. Dancy also cited examples where pairing UBP with organics collection raised capture rates: Woodbury’s pilot increased food‑scrap capture from 15–20% during a pilot to 50–60% after the full program and addition of UBP.

The forum included other municipal examples from the first round of DEEP’s SMM grants. DEEP listed six municipalities that moved from pilot to permanent programs: Bethel, Guilford, Madison, Kent, Middletown and Woodbury. Kent’s small program reported a 12% reduction during the pilot year and more than 30% reduction after permanent adoption, the Housatonic Resources Recovery Authority reported.

Municipal leaders and vendors emphasized the role of education and tailored implementation. Mayor Florsheim said the transition required significant outreach and that results vary with housing type; the sanitation district’s high share of renters complicates passing savings directly to residents because many sanitation bills are paid by landlords.

Why it matters: Food scraps compose a large share of MSW by weight and generate methane in landfills. Pilots presented to the committee showed measurable diversion and early municipal savings in participating service areas. Forum participants urged state technical and financial support to scale programs, noting that transfer stations can often accept food scraps at lower per‑ton cost than separate curbside routes.

Next steps: Municipal leaders asked DEEP for continued grant funding and technical assistance to expand organics collection and to support the education needed to boost capture rates and equitable implementation across rental and multifamily housing.","Municipal pilots combining curbside food‑scrap collection and unit‑based pricing show significant waste reductions and higher recycling in pilot areas, municipal leaders told a joint legislative forum. Middletown reported a 62% capture rate for food scraps in its sanitation district and an overall waste reduction in the district.","actionData","errors"]

Article not found

Connecticut DEEP frames statewide solid-waste strategy, highlights pilot grants and planned waste study

Regional authority urges more funding for transfer stations, recycling coordinators, HHW access and local organics infrastructure

Industry pitches new in‑state processing and upgrades as Connecticut confronts shrinking disposal capacity

Middletown, other Connecticut towns report higher diversion after food‑scrap collection and pay‑as‑you‑throw pilots