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Dalton Select Board orders removal of town bags from local store and tasks staff to study recycling options
Summary
After lengthy debate about recycling costs, compactor feasibility and how to prevent nonresidents using the transfer station, the Dalton Select Board rescinded a sticker proposal and voted to remove town trash bags from a private store while staff inventory stock and research compactors, grants and collection options.
The Dalton Select Board voted to stop sales of Dalton-branded trash bags at a private store and asked town staff to inventory remaining stock and return with options for compactors, wiring and recycling markets.
The action followed a lengthy discussion about the transfer station’s handling of recyclables, hauling costs and ways to prevent nonresidents from using town disposal services. Kyle, who operates at the transfer station, told the board that "the cardboard, the mixed paper, and the plastics are going in with the blue bags" because routing separated recyclables to a processor currently costs about $175 a ton, compared with $55 a ton for blue-bag disposal. That higher fee, members said, had driven short-term changes to routing and processing.
Board members debated two control strategies: (1) require resident stickers (one member proposed $5 stickers valid two years) to limit nonresident use, and (2) concentrate bag sales at town-controlled points (town office or the transfer station) so town staff can verify a buyer’s address. "If we control the bags and don't sell them at the country store, then we don't need the sticker," the Chair said during the discussion, summarizing the options members weighed.
Concerns included administrative burden, enforcement at peak hours, and equity for residents who might have difficulty obtaining stickers or who no longer use checks to pay. One member cited Lancaster's experience, saying compacting and selling cardboard had produced modest revenue ("I get $2,400 for a trailer load to cardboard") and that plastics typically yield more value if properly sorted and bailed.
Rather than immediately adopt a sticker program, the member who proposed stickers rescinded the motion after discussion. The board then approved a separate motion directing Kyle to pull Dalton bags from the Top of the Hill store and limit sales to town-controlled locations while staff study longer-term options. The Chair recorded a dissenting vote on the motion to pull bags, saying she preferred a more comprehensive analysis prior to implementation.
Members asked Kyle and town administrative staff to gather specific data: costs to compact and bale recyclables, compactor purchase and installation costs (including potential three-phase power or phase-conversion equipment), storage needs for bales, and grant opportunities reported by a member (NH Beautiful grants, USDA solid-waste grants, and NH Department of Environmental Services programs). Amanda Devineau suggested those grant programs as places to start.
Next steps: staff will inventory the store's remaining bag supply, provide estimates for compactor purchase and electrical upgrades, and report back at a future meeting with cost comparisons and grant options. The board set the removal and concentrated-sale approach as an interim control while it collects data for a long-term policy decision.
