Connecticut’s solid waste crisis is impacting southeastern Connecticut municipalities, residents, and businesses. SECOG regularly coordinates with stakeholders around the region to better understand how we can promote municipal solid waste (MSW) practices throughout the region and otherwise assist around this critical municipal service.

In May 2023, the SECOG Executive Board recommended the creation of a temporary subcommittee that would seek to gain a better understanding of municipal solid waste operations, capacity, and innovations in the region. The subcommittee first convened in July 2023 and met biweekly throughout winter of 2024. The goal of the subcommittee was to produce a list of recommendations that SECOG’s Legislative Committee could pursue for the 2024 Regular Session of the Connecticut General Assembly, and to prepare a white paper to share with member municipalities. At the direction of its Solid Waste Subcommittee, SECOG staff analyzed municipal solid waste data in the region, including disposal tonnage and municipal cost data, for the five-year period from 2018-2022. SECOG staff also conducted a local survey directed at municipal staff and agents who have the most direct role in managing solid waste and solid waste contracts. The subcommittee also aimed to gain a better understanding of municipal solid waste operations, capacity, and innovations in the region. Chief elected officials from SECOG municipalities shared their experiences and concerns and guests from the waste industry were invited to subcommittee meetings to share their expertise. Early subcommittee meeting discussions focused on general information about the solid waste crisis, such as the closure of MIRA and the most recent CMMS amendment. Subsequent meetings included discussions on single stream recycling, WTE ash, glass recycling, new technology, transportation considerations, and the bottle bill. For this information and more, please refer to Municipal Solid Waste in Southeastern Connecticut: Initial Findings and Next Steps.

SECOG’s Solid Waste Subcommittee presents the following legislative action item recommendations that match local needs and priorities in our region:

• Enact mandatory food scrap & organics recycling
• Streamline disposal facility infrastructure permitting
• Allow increased waste-to-energy capacity
• Address local lack of redemption centers
• Use more recycled glass (glass cullet/crushed glass)
• Add to the extended producer responsibility (EPR) program
• Incentivize unit-based pricing

Municipal Solid Waste in Southeastern Connecticut: Initial Findings and Next Steps

• Southeastern Connecticut Regional Resources Recovery Authority (SCRRRA)
• SECOG Solid Waste Report
• CT DEEP Solid Waste Homepage