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Select Board votes to stop burning at transfer station after state complaint
Summary
After repeated neighbor complaints and a state DEC warning, Londonderry’s Select Board voted to stop burning clean wood at the town transfer station and will pursue alternatives including asking neighboring towns to obtain their own ACT 2-3-4 approvals or routing material elsewhere.
The Select Board voted to stop wood burning at the town transfer station after being told by state DEC staff that the facility should only receive wood generated within Londonderry and that future complaints could result in a shutdown. Transfer-station personnel and board members discussed options including requiring neighboring towns to apply for their own ACT 2-3-4 sites, diverting material to a commercial site (at contractor rates), chipping, or letting brush decompose in place.
A board motion to stop burning passed by voice vote. The transfer-station operator reported the town’s recent hazardous-waste and electronics collections (about 17,000 pounds of electronics at the May 17 collection) and said the DEC had made clear that incoming wood from other towns is not permitted. One select board member summarized the choice plainly: "If we were to continue burning in any capacity at the transfer station, I think there'd be a nightmare trying to say, 'well, are you from Londonderry?'" The chair said he would inform staff (Keith) the next day and the board will explore alternative arrangements for road‑crew burning needs and possible sponsored disposal agreements with neighboring operators.
