Town Hikes Transfer Station Fee to $100
EASTFORD — If you picked up your Transfer Station stickers this past month, you may have noticed a bigger dent in your wallet as a result.
That’s because during its June 10 meeting, the Board of Selectmen voted unanimously to increase the town’s Transfer Station permit fee from $60 to $100 as of July 3 — a move officials say is necessary to try to maintain the services it provides, which covers disposal of everything from tires, mattresses, brush, appliances, bulky waste, propane tanks, electronics, and oil, as well as recycling.
First Selectman Deborah Richards said the move is a way to continue offsetting the ever-increasing costs of operating the Transfer Station. While the move was met with plenty of complaints, Richards said that when compared to other towns, Eastford’s fee is “reasonable.”
“We’re just trying to balance it all,” Richards said during a conversation with the Communicator on July 10. “We were looking at different towns, and looking at how we could balance everything with what we pay out. We’re just trying to balance out the funds.”
Richards added that over the years, the Transfer Station used to get paid for different materials collected at the Transfer Station. Those revenues which consisted of textiles, electronics, and appliances, have consistently dwindled. Because of this, the town could no longer hold steady at $60 per year.
Even with the increase, Eastford’s Transfer Station fee is “very reasonably priced,” Richards said. “If you look at the towns around us, none of them are as little as us.”
Indeed, a cursory look at surrounding towns reveals a stunning difference in transfer station fees. Neighboring Woodstock, for example, according to a chart provided by the Board of Selectmen, charges $220 a year for a single-family household, which includes only one permit (Eastford issues two). Pomfret closed its Transfer Station years ago, but offers residents permits in Woodstock and Brooklyn, the Woodstock permits only being available to 50 residents at $270 per permit, and with only three planned bulky waste disposal events throughout the year. In Union, trash is disposed of with a pay-per-bag system. Similarly, in Chaplin, waste is disposed of by paying per cubic yard ($10-$35). In Ashford and Union, the transfer stations are operated using tax dollars.
Comparatively, trash pickup services by Casella Waste Systems (which purchased Willimantic Waste Paper Co. in July 2021) in Willimantic can cost more than $100 quarterly, according to several Eastford residents we talked to for this story. This does not include bulky waste, and other services employed by a transfer station.
“Municipal waste is a huge issue,” Richards said. “Our Transfer Station Committee is always looking at ways to make our Transfer Station more efficient.”
While the $100 sticker price tag might sting initially, Richards said she was unsure if it would hold there for a specific amount of time.
“Right now, we are holding,” she said.
New Recycling Guidelines in Effect
New recycling guidelines are now in effect for the town’s Transfer Station. Paper is now included with cans, glass, and plastics, while the cardboard recycling station is now exclusively for cardboard boxes.