Boothbay Region Refuse Disposal District (BRRDD) will no longer be able to sell its demo chips (demolition debris ground into small woodchips) to Canada, due to the stricter regulations from that country’s Environmental Protection Agency, Operations Manager Will Johnson said during a directors'  meeting July 8.  

In a post-meeting interview, Johnson said Canada has become stricter in multiple categories, including the presence of lead paint, arsenic, treated wood, etc. Johnson was told by BRRDD’s broker that most of his other clients are also failing to meet these new standards.  

BRRDD is working on getting certification to have demo chips burned in Livermore Falls’ landfill. Sending chips to Canada had been free, but disposal will now cost BRRDD between $2 and $5 per ton. BRRDD generates 950 tons per year, so the estimated cost is $1,900–$4,750. Johnson is waiting for the final figure.

In other business, Johnson reported that the Giles Rubbish truck involved in a June 16 accident required $27,000 of repair work and should be on the road again by month’s end. The truck hit and snapped a utility pole near the intersection of Route 96 and Dodge Road near Smuggler's Cove Inn in East Boothbay. 

The board approved spending $25,000 to pay down a $125,000 COVID loan. Until now, the district’s prior management had just been paying the interest, according to Johnson.  

Jody Lewis was reelected chair; Curt Crosby, vice chair; JD Warren, secretary; and Julia Latter, treasurer.