Transfer station manager urges stricter rules as board weighs charges for demolition debris

Mark Thurston, the town’s transfer station manager, told the Select Board on April 14 that contractors and homeowners are bringing full truckloads and loaded trailers of demolition debris and household cleanouts that are straining the facility’s budget. “We are subsidizing their clean ups,” Thurston said, and added that he previously enforced a policy and “almost got lynched” for doing so.

The board discussed several possible responses: require dumpsters for full residential guttings, adopt a per‑truck or per‑trailer charge, or install a scale like neighboring Bethel to define a billing threshold. Chair Brian Mills said the board must make a place for acceptable material to go but that it does not have to be free. Treasurer Amber Cooper provided hauling estimates cited by staff: “$150 a truck load to Steve’s,” and hauling costs to an outside firm of “$350 to $400 to have Archies haul it away,” figures Thurston said are not currently covered in his budget.

Thurston and Select Board members agreed to place the town’s cleanup policy on the town website so residents know requirements and to discuss clearer enforcement standards at an Informational Meeting on April 28. The board also discussed pursuing a local contractor to grind brush (the town has discussed working with Swasey) and raised potential compliance risks if the brush pile grows before the next audit. The transfer station manager noted a state inspector’s guidance that the town is not required to accept materials it does not want.

The board did not adopt a new fee at the April 14 meeting but directed staff to prepare background, post the existing policy and present options — including scale use, per‑truck fees, and dumpster requirements — for the April 28 meeting.