According to the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP), the average Suffield resident produces 765 pounds of household waste annually, compared with the state average of 749 pounds.
Moreover, towns like Mansfield and Stonington have reduced their annual residential waste to 500 and 390 pounds per person, respectively. More on them later.
Connecticut is in a solid waste crisis. The state operates four polluting trash-to-energy plants that can’t handle all our waste. The DEEP says we truck about 40 percent of it to landfills in other states. That’s expensive and polluting, not a long-term solution.
Suffield can do more to help alleviate the crisis.
Take food scraps. The DEEP says it’s the largest single component of Connecticut’s waste stream, comprising about 22 percent. Suffield has two dumpsters for voluntary food waste disposal. One is behind town hall, and the other is at the Ebbs Corner fire station. Currently, we collect about 2,100 lbs. monthly from both combined.
But scientists estimate that a town of 5,300 households like Suffield generates at least 67,000 pounds of food scraps monthly.
If you’re not composting at home, the town provides free biodegradable food scrap collection bags at the library circulation desk and outside the First Selectman’s office. Countertop food scrap collection bins cost $5 through Ellie Binns in the Planning and Zoning Department at town hall.
Our food scraps go to anaerobic digesters on New England farms, where they’re combined with cow manure to produce methane, which is captured to generate electricity. Conversely, food scraps trucked to landfills decompose and spew methane, a potent greenhouse gas, into the atmosphere.
Using a garbage disposal connected to a sewer is not eco-friendly. Your food waste travels to Suffield’s wastewater plant, where the solids are processed with other solids into sludge. Once dried, it’s trucked to Hartford for incineration. The remaining toxic ash is dumped into regulated, lined landfills to protect against leaching.
Diligent recycling also helps reduce waste. If you’re uncertain what is recyclable, Sustainable Suffield offers a free recycling guide. See Ellie Binns in the Planning and Zoning Department for a copy or check the USA Waste & Recycling “Can I Recycle It” page at usarecycle.com/learning-center.
Finally, towns like Mansfield and Stonington have cut their waste by implementing Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) programs. Residents don’t pay a flat annual rate for trash disposal as we do through our property taxes. They pay based on the amount of waste they generate, just as you and I pay for the electricity we use. Communities like Suffield that have curbside trash pickup replace the 95-gallon carts we now use with smaller ones, such as 35-gallon carts. Residents who need larger carts pay an annual premium. Their incentive is to increase recycling and food-scrap collection to lower their trash costs or they compost.
Many variables would need to be considered if Suffield were to convert to PAYT.
Meanwhile, please boost your recycling and consider more eco-friendly food scrap disposal if you’re not composting.