Board of Health

Office of the Board of Health City Hall 166 Boulder Drive – Suite 108 Fitchburg, Massachusetts 01420 978-829-1870 An organizational meeting was held on December 19, 2019 at 5:00 pm. Present: Stephen Curry, Director; Sandra Knipe, R.N.B.S.N.; John Bogdasarian, M.D., Chairman; Ian Murray, Board Member; Chris Karras, AKS Recycling; Alton Stone, Engineer. AKS Recycling, 15 Cobbler Dr. – Minor Modification of Site Assignment Discussion: Mr. Curry stated any operation as a disposal site, landfill, dump, refuse transfer station or recycling facility or facility that has a potential to be a nuisance, the Board of Health has the authority to regulate according to MGL 111, 150A and to require a site assignment. The Board can say no to a Landfill or a Transfer Station. AKS is a transfer station. A transfer station is like a Landfill accepting solid waste, but transfer station cannot bury anything in the ground like a landfill. Trucks back into an enclosed building and dump the contents on a cement floor. The operation then picks out what is valuable out of the trash and disposes of items that have no value. Mr. Curry stated the Board of Health site assigned AKS Recycling in 2004 back when it was owned by Walter Fiore. Mr. Karras took over in 2006 and has been running it since then under the 2004 Board of Health conditions. AKS is proposing to install a solid waste baler to reduce waste bulk volume as well as proposing to install a second storage building for overflow bale storage on the parcel. Mr. Curry stated they are also proposing to build a tent structure (100x100) to also use as storing bales. Mr. Karras stated in 2004 there were 16 landfills in Massachusetts. There are only two landfills in Massachusetts one being the Fitchburg/Westminster Landfill and another at the Cape. Mr. Karras stated the reason for the tent is for overflow if the other building is full in cases such as bad weather and the trucks aren’t transporting. Mr. Karras is asking for permission from the Board to install a piece of equipment to bale as well as the shed for overflow to continue normal operations. DEP has already approved. Mr. Curry stated all the abutters have been notified and the hearing and operation detail has been posted in the newspaper in November. Mr. Curry stated because this has the potential to be a nuisance, MGL allows Board of Health’s to vote for or against this and therefore allows the BOH to set conditions to avoid a public nuisance. Mr. Stone stated the land surveying was completed and the parcels have been identified. By law there has to be a site assignment because of the alterations and there will be a minor permit modification per DEP which requires a site assignment. The BOH members, Mr. Stone & Mr. Karras had a brief discussion of the 2004 site assignment conditions. Mr. Murray made a motion to continue the public hearing to January 23, 2019 at 5:00 PM. Motion was 2nd by Ms. Knipe. All were in favor. Motion carries. Mr. Murray made a motion to close the hearing. Motion was 2nd by Ms. Knipe. All were in favor. Motion carries. Mr. Murray made a motion to adjourn. Motion was 2nd by Ms. Knipe. All were in favor, meeting adjourned at 6:15 PM.