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Residents urge vigilance over proposed Sanford sludge burner and Juniper Ridge expansion after court ruling
Summary
Two residents told the Old Town council the proposed Aries sludge burner in Sanford and Casella-listed hauling raise risks of bypassed sludge and increased out-of-state waste at Juniper Ridge; a court rejected the state’s public-benefit finding and the state has 75 days to respond.
Two residents urged the City of Old Town council to closely monitor a proposed wastewater sludge burner in Sanford and the related Juniper Ridge landfill expansion, saying failures at the proposed plant could send processed or bypassed sludge to Juniper Ridge.
"There is a proposal for a wastewater treatment plant sludge burner to be built in Sanford, Maine," said Chuck Lighheiser of South Fourth Street, who told the council the company named in the hauling records is "Cassella Way Systems" and that the Aries-built plant in "Lynon, New Jersey" has not operated to scale since 2020. Lighheiser warned that when facilities bypass contracted processing the sludge has sometimes been diverted to Juniper Ridge and that a Sanford facility that fails or is taken offline could increase truck traffic and out-of-state waste arriving at the local landfill.
Daisy Goodman of French Island said the concern is heightened by a recent court decision. "On January 7th Judge Bruce Maloney of Ponobskot County Superior Court rejected the main department of environmental protections public benefit determination for two reasons," she said, pointing to alleged shortcomings on environmental-justice protections for the Penobscot Nation and the solid-waste hierarchy that prioritizes drying sludge before transporting it. Goodman said the state has 75 days from that determination (mid-March) to demonstrate it has adequately addressed the issues.
Goodman urged the council and residents to remain "vigilant" and noted the Army Corps is seeking comments on wetlands related to Juniper Ridge; she said she believed comments were due by the 20th of the month.
Council members asked follow-up questions seeking more detail about why the New Jersey facility has not operated and whether the same company would build in Sanford; Lighheiser responded the firm is identified as Aries and that New Jersey construction has been a multi-year problem, with trucks reportedly delivering sludge to the local area while the plant remained nonoperational.
No representatives of the hauling companies or Aries appeared to respond during the meeting. Speakers recommended tracking permitting, the state response to the court order and any public-hearing schedules tied to Cassella's permit application and Juniper Ridge expansion.
