Full Text
Response to Concerns Casella: Prepared for the City of Lewiston January 2013 OVERVIEW WHO WE ARE CASELLA IN MAINE OUR PROPOSAL OUR RESPONSES AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS WHAT OTHERS SAY ABOUT US APPENDICES ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 2 OVERVIEW: The city of Lewiston is now considering a proposal offered by Casella Resource Solutions that envisions the creation of Casella’s first Zero Sort Recycling Facility in Maine. In response to numerous concerns and questions that were raised during the Lewiston City Council’s December 11, 2012 meeting, we have assembled this packet of information to address concerns that have been raised and to provide important context that has been missing from the conversation. Despite our proposal’s numerous benefits to the city of Lewiston and the state of Maine, there have been various misstatements and distortions about our company’s reputation, our capability and our commitment to the communities we serve. We hope to clarify any outstanding issues in this informational packet. We look forward to working with the city of Lewiston to create a state‐of‐the‐art Zero‐Sort recycling facility that will position the city as a recycling leader and Maine’s recycling hub to help promote increased recycling throughout the entire state of Maine. We commend the city for conducting a comprehensive and rigorous review of our project. We hope that this information will assist you in your review of our proposal, and we look forward to answering any additional questions you may have. WHO WE ARE: Casella was founded in 1975 as a single truck operation in Rutland, Vermont. We are a publicly traded company (CWST) that remains headquartered in Rutland. In late 1999, Casella acquired KTI. That acquisition, which included the KTI Biofuels facility in Lewiston, greatly expanded our expertise and assets in material processing. The concept of sustainability is not new to Casella. For more than 30 years the foundation of our business has been built on managing and conserving environmental resources for our customers and communities in a viable economic model. In 1977, we built and opened the first recycling center in Vermont, an early implementation of an environmentally and socially sustainable component to our overall business model. Today, we are leading the solid waste industry with an innovative business strategy that seeks to create sustainable value beyond the traditional disposal model. We view waste as a resource for producing renewable energy and a raw material for manufacturing new products. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 3 CASELLA IN MAINE: Casella is a company that has demonstrated a long‐term commitment to Maine and the communities it serves. $115 million paid to Maine suppliers $13.4 million annual capital expenditures $3.1 million in state taxes (2010) $2.25 million in annual host community benefits (Biddeford ,Lewiston, Old Town, Hampden, West Bath and Waterville) Casella is the largest recycler in the state of Maine, helping the state to meet its solid waste goals and helping more than 60 Maine communities dramatically increase their municipal recycling rates. In 2011, Casella recycled more than 109,000 tons of MSW recyclables in Maine. In 2011, Casella facilities and programs in Maine recycled, beneficially used or composted a total of 490,400 tons of waste materials. OUR ZERO‐SORT PR0POSAL FOR LEWISTON: Casella is prepared to invest more than $4 million to retrofit and lease the city of Lewiston’s existing transfer station to become a Zero‐Sort recycling facility that would serve as Maine’s recycling hub. The proposed facility would add 25 good‐paying jobs to Lewiston’s economy, creating an annual payroll of $1 million once the facility is functioning at full capacity. The city of Lewiston offers an ideal location for a statewide recycling hub. The proposed site location would result in reducing trucking fuel, which would reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The proposed facility matches the city of Lewiston’s commitment to innovation and sustainability. Other benefits to Lewiston include increased real estate and personal property tax revenues, reduction in operating costs at the transfer station and a 30‐year lease agreement. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 4 CONCERNS & RESPONSES: CONCERN: Does single stream recycling result in an end product that is less valuable as a commodity than presort recycling? OUR RESPONSE: Casella processes and markets over 600,000 tons of recyclable material each year. We operate Zero –Sort (single stream), Dual Stream and “Dump and Bale” Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs). The end product at each of these MRFs meet the specifications of each Paper, Plastic and Metals mills as the material is marketed at maximum value regardless if it’s processed through our Zero‐Sort, Dual Sort or dump and bale facility. Our Casella Zero‐Sort brand consists of the MRF management expertise along with the ability to produce a quality product to meet Mill specifications. Each of our facility managers has a minimum of 10 years experience in the industry. Their top priority, right behind safety and the environment, is quality. Technology improves yearly, and almost daily as each of our facilities is designed with the cutting edge equipment to provide pure separation of material including 100 percent extraction of glass within the Zero‐Sort stream. In short – if processed properly with the correct design of technology and MRF expertise – the end product of each commodity within the Zero‐Sort stream does NOT produce a less valuable item. CONCERN: Does Casella have the financial capacity that Lewiston needs for future assurance? OUR RESPONSE: Casella Waste Systems, Inc. has the financial strength to meet the on‐going needs of the City of Lewiston. For the fiscal year ended April 30, 2012, we had revenues of $480.8 million, up 3.2% over fiscal year 2011. During this same period we improved our net cash provided by operating activities by $16.7 million and improved our free cash flow by $5.3 million over the previous year. We have maintained stable cash flow generation and operating performance during the economic downturn because of the recession resistant nature of our business, the strength of our assets, and the thoughtful steps we have made to improve all aspects of our operating structure and daily business practices. Over the past year, you will note several non‐recurring charges that were either the result of accounting treatments or pro‐active restructuring efforts to improve performance and cash flows. If you would like further information on these charges, please refer to the 10‐K filed on June 28, 2012 or our most recent 10‐Q filed on December 4, 2012 with the Securities and Exchange Commission or please feel to reach out to us for additional information. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 5 In early November 2012, the company successfully completed the refinancing of its 11 percent, $180 million Second Lien Notes (due in July 2014) on November 8, 2012 with the proceeds from a $46 million common stock offering, a $125 million add‐on to our existing 7.75% Senior Subordinated Notes due February 2019, and borrowings from our Senior Secured Revolving Credit Facility. This set of transactions significantly improved our credit metrics by lowering debt leverage, reducing our cash interest expense by approximately $9 million per year, and moving our next debt maturity out to March 2016. This refinancing provides a stable capital structure to meet our on‐going financial and capital needs. As of our last reported quarter (October 31, 2012), Casella had $133.9 million of availability on its Senior Secured Credit Facility, providing adequate liquidity to meet its on‐going financial obligations. To summarize, we have continued to perform well through the protracted economic downturn as evidenced by our stable cash flows. After successfully refinancing our 11 % Second Lien Notes in November 2012, we do not have any substantial debt maturities until March 2016. CONCERN: What is Casella’s ownership interest in a company that offers surety bonds? OUR RESPONSE: Casella Waste Systems holds a 19.9% ownership interest in Evergreen National Indemnity Company (“Evergreen”), a surety company which provides surety bonds to secure contractual performance for municipal solid waste, collection contracts and landfill closure and post‐closure obligations. Our investment in Evergreen amounted to $10.7 million as of April 30, 2012. Casella’s involvement in Evergreen is only through a passive investment. Evergreen is stand‐alone company. Casella has no active involvement in the management of Evergreen. Evergreen actively writes contract surety bonds, landfill closure and post closure bonds, and collection bonds for a number of solid waste and environmental services companies across 47 states. Evergreen has been given a rating of A‐ (Excellent) by A.M. Best & Company. CONCERN: Workplace safety concerns at the Charleston, Mass. Facility ( Mass. Coalition for Health & Safety) OUR RESPONSE: Casella is proud of its record of compliance with all laws, including those directed to the health and safety of our employees. Each Material Recovery Facility (MRF) manager abides by the simple core values of Safety, Quality and Productivity –in this very important order. Under no circumstances will we compromise safety at any level. Casella’s Charlestown, Mass. Facility has 118 full time employees and is one of the largest MRFs in the U.S., processing 200,000 tons of recycling each year. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 6 In the last five years, we have been committed to improving our equipment, facilities and processes. Our employees have played an integral part in the designing, installing and operation of our systems, as each employee takes an enormous amount of pride in Safety, Quality and Productivity. These improvements will continue as part of our core values. Our Charlestown employees receive extensive training upon initial hire. They undergo daily pre‐ operational and meetings to cover regulatory requirements, as well as facility specific training. Each employee is trained in a bilingual manner (if needed) thereby ensuring our employees are well‐ versed on all issues affecting them. The Facility also maintains a Safety Committee that is comprised of employees from every department within the operation. Over the past three years the Charlestown Facility has averaged a turnover percentage of less than eight percent. This specific workplace experience has a direct correlation in minimizing workplace hazards. As a company, we also pride ourselves in open and interactive communication with our employees on all issues affecting their day to day work activities. We communicate with our employees on a routine basis as we retain an “in house” Human Resources bilingual Manager to assist in not only health and safety matters, but also any other forms of discriminatory or unacceptable workplace activities (including sexual harassment). Finally, we strive for our facilities to be recognized as an asset to the communities in which we serve. Without our customers we would not be who we are today. Please feel free to reach out to those organizations and communities we serve as these relationships contribute largely to the overall success within our MRFs. We look forward to building this same relationship with the city of Lewiston through our operation of its future MRF. CONCERN: How will the MERC closure affect the Juniper Ridge Landfill? OUR RESPONSE: In July 2012, the Biddeford City Council voted 8‐1 to purchase the Maine Energy Recovery Company’s WTE facility (MERC) from Casella Waste Systems. That purchase was part of a larger transaction which also includes a renewed waste handling agreement for the city of Biddeford and a plan to increase recycling through a residential, zero‐sort, curbside recycling program that will be operated by Casella. 123,000 tons of in‐state MSW from the 14 communities and other commercial customers that use MERC will now be taken to a new transfer station in Westbrook, and from there no more than 93,000 tons of MSW annually will be transported to Juniper Ridge if the Maine DEP approves a license amendment for Juniper Ridge. This reduction in tons to the Juniper Ridge Landfill is due to the execution of an agreement with PERC to supply 30,000 tons of MSW fuel to that facility on an annual basis. This agreement also includes a robust recycling component designed to significantly increase recycling in the PERC communities. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 7 The Maine Department of Environmental Protection is scheduled to hold a public hearing on the proposed permit application sometime during the first quarter of 2013. Prior to the MERC closure, ash and front‐end process residue (FEPR) from that facility was taken to the Juniper Ridge landfill. As the result of MERC’s closure, Casella will push back 170,000 tons of out‐of‐state MSW to its source for other disposal options. No out‐of‐state waste will be transported to Juniper Ridge because Casella’s operating contract with the State limits disposal at JRL to only waste generated in Maine. Prior to MERC’s closure, an estimated 115, 100 tons of waste originating from MERC was taken to Juniper Ridge each year, including ash, FEPR and bypass municipal solid waste from Maine. These tons will no longer be delivered to Juniper Ridge due to the MERC closure. Casella has voluntarily limited its application for a license amendment at Juniper Ridge so that only 93,000 tons of in state waste (previously disposed of at MERC) will be taken to Juniper Ridge, a slight decrease that will extend the estimated life of the Juniper Ridge landfill. CONCERN: Media report regarding Casella’s use of overweight trucks OUR RESPONSE: At the request of the Juniper Ridge Landfill Advisory Committee (composed of representatives from the city of Old Town, the town of Alton, and the Penobscot Nation), Casella provides a summary of the overweight trucks that arrive at the Juniper Ridge Landfill (JRL). Casella is not aware of any other business in Maine that tracks this information at their facilities and makes that information public. It should also be noted that Casella has implemented a unique policy that reinforces our commitment to trucking and facility safety protocols. That policy spells out that any driver who arrives at JRL moderately overweight (up to 105,000 pounds) more than three times within a 30‐day period is excluded from the landfill for a period of one month. Any driver who is very overweight (more than 115,000 pounds) just once is excluded from the landfill for a period of one month. Ultimately, truck weights are determined by the generator and hauler of the material destined for JRL. This includes municipalities, private companies and individuals. It is beyond the control of Casella to be able to enforce public weight limits on these individuals prior to their arrival at the JRL. Although policy has been implemented at JRL, it is important for the general public to understand that Casella does not have the authority or the ability to enforce the rules of the road. That is the responsibility of local and state law enforcement personnel. In addition, the data Casella provides shows a very low rate, on a percentage basis, of overweight trucks as compared to general truck traffic. This observation has been made numerous times by a member of ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 8 the Advisory Committee who is a commercial forester. He has complimented Casella for its overweight truck control policy and for the very low overweight truck rate that the landfill experiences. CONCERN: Casella’s Hawk Ridge facility in Unity Plantation OUR RESPONSE: Casella Organics owns and operates the Hawk Ridge Compost Facility, the largest, most technically advanced biosolids composting operation in the Northeast. Hawk Ridge is located on a 280‐acre farm in central Maine. The facility is used as an on‐site training component of the Maine Compost School's curriculum, and it processes more than 60,000 tons per year of regulated inputs, producing more than 80,000 cubic‐yards per year of Class A compost and blends for distribution and sale throughout New England. Inputs include biosolids, food waste, short paper fiber, woody waste, and soiled animal bedding obtained from throughout the region. The facility has been in operation for more than 20 years, has a stellar record of compliance, and has won numerous state and national awards for its achievements. Hawk Ridge is licensed by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (Permit #MEDEP/S‐ 20115‐60‐A‐N) and materials from over 35 municipalities have been permitted into the Hawk Ridge facility. Hawk Ridge became the first privately operated compost facility in the nation to receive the National Biosolids Partnership’s Environmental Management Systems (EMS) Certification (similar to ISO 14000) in 2009, which requires an independent, third‐party audit of progress on our goals and objectives under the program. The facility has invested in state‐of‐the‐art air emissions controls to mitigate odors from the facility. These include a computer controlled air recirculation system, an ammonia scrubber and biofilter. Hawk Ridge is an active part of the local community and government. The facility organizes and hosts a Township meeting annually and invites all neighbors and Plantation residents, as well as representatives of Kennebec County to a dinner where they review activities during the previous year and offering to discuss concerns and/or answer questions. As part of our EMS, we maintain many active feedback and customer survey programs and offer tours of our facility to interested parties. Our neighbors are frequent visitors to the facility, and many are repeat customers of the compost product. As required by the Hawk Ridge Compost Facility operating license, the facility maintains a log of complaints that come into the facility by telephone. In addition, odor logs are mailed to neighbors of the facility asking them to record their observations of odor events throughout the month. A stamped, addressed envelope is provided so that they can return their observations for inclusion in the Hawk Ridge Compost Facility quarterly report. The facility has an average of less than 1 odor complaint logged every 2 years, since 2001. ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 9 In addition to the Hawk Ridge Compost Facility, Casella Organics' is a vibrant contributor to Maine's recycling and agricultural economies. We distribute approximately 200,000 tons of Earthlife® products to 250 farms across the state annually, economically improving soil health and crop yields. We also provide comprehensive and sustainable residuals management services to more than 40 industrial and municipal customers including wastewater plants, pulp and paper mills, food processors and the power industry. Concern: Operations of KTI Biofuels in Lewiston OUR RESPONSE: KTI Bio Fuels, Inc. (KTIB) began operations in 1988; sited, permitted, and built by Kuhr Technology, Inc. or KTI (developer of Maine Energy and Penobscot Energy Recovery Company). KTIB is licensed by the Maine Department of Environmental Protection as a processing and recycling facility approved to accept and process construction and demolition debris in order to provide an acceptable alternative wood chip fuel for combustion facilities, such as Re‐Energy, Eco‐Maine and Sappi. The consumers of the wood chip product require that certain standards of quality are met in order to assure that the subject fuels are free of contaminants. The processing equipment and procedures that are in place at KTI are designed to minimize the presence of unacceptable material in the final wood chip end product. All inbound waste streams are offloaded and stored on the 10.4 acre site in preparation to undergo a series of separation, screening, and size reduction steps in order to yield an acceptable fuel product. In 2010, KTIB obtained regulatory permits for substantial improvements to the facility to more effectively handle the increased volume and increase the recycling rate by adding equipment to recover additional types of material and products. These changes were initiated in mid 2011 following successful renegotiation of the facility lease with the City of Lewiston. After completing these enhancements to the facility and to the equipment, KTIB added an additional 18 jobs November 1, 2011 for recovering recyclables and reducing the volume going to JRL as waste. Additional material recovered includes more wood, metal, rigid plastics, cardboard, aggregate, brick and concrete. KTIB receives approximately 220k tons of C&D per year to process and recycle into usable products or fuel. 85% of the material received comes from out of state and that material is required in order to recover the volume of wood for the Maine facilities burning CDD fuel. KTI produces approximately 135k tons of alternative daily cover for Juniper Ridge Landfill to avoid the excavation and use of virgin materials required to cover the waste that the landfill receives on a daily basis. In 2012, KTIB continued to improve the facility by improving the storm water controls to meet the state standards as well as roadway infrastructure and litter fencing. Most importantly, KTIB replaced the ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 10 processing line with a larger screening plant and longer picking lines to recover and recycle more material. KTIB once again added an additional 12 jobs to the new processing line in October 2012. KTIB has made substantial investments to improve the facility and upgrade processing equipment recycle to the maximum extent practicable. In fact, in 2010 KTIB recycled 53% of the volume being delivered to the facility and improved on that rate year after year. In 2011 with all the improvements complete, KTIB increased the recycling rate to 63% for the calendar year. The projected recycling rate for 2012 is 78 percent. KTIB is constantly reviewing opportunities to recycle and recover and will be implementing and deploying additional equipment to recover more materials from entering the waste stream. In the last three years, KTIB has invested over $2M in facility improvements, more than 75% of that investment was spent locally. In late October 2012, KTIB received a surprise audit by OSHA and received a 100% compliance rating. KTIB leases the property from the city of Lewiston for $35,000 per year, pays $65,000 annually in taxes and provides $120,000 per year for FREE disposal of wood debris and bulky waste, totaling an economic benefit of $220,000 annually, not including wages and local purchases. In 2009, KTIB employed 12 KTIB employees and 5 contracted employees through a staffing agency. Today, KTIB employees 25 KTIB employees and 28 contracted employees through a staffing agency, year round. KTI's truck traffic is approx. 32 trucks inbound and approx. 32 trucks outbound per day. The proposed Zero‐Sort facility will in the first couple years will be approximately seven trucks per day inbound and 4 trucks per day outbound. This assuming the first couple of years is 20K tons/yr. This is totaling 11 trucks/day, 56 trucks/wk and 2,950 trucks/yr. At full capacity, delivering 40K tons per year, the Zero‐Sort facility will have approximately 11 trucks per day inbound and 8 loads per day outbound. This is totaling 20 trucks per day, 99 trucks per week and 5,172 trucks per year. These tonnages are based on a mix of route trucks currently being delivered to Lewiston and additional volume being delivered by trailers from around the state. KTI produces approximately 135,000 tons of alternative daily cover for Juniper Landfill to avoid the excavation and placement of virgin materials required to cover the waste that the landfill receives on a daily basis. *Fines used as alternative daily cover is recycling (38 MRSA §1310‐N, sub §5‐A, ¶B2) For the purposes of this subsection, “recycle” includes but is not limited to, the reuse of waste as shaping, grading, or alternative daily cover materials at landfills; aggregate material in construction; and boiler fuel substitutions.” ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 11 AWARDS & RECOGNITIONS: 2012 Climate Leadership Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), the Association of Climate Change Officers (ACCO), the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions (C2ES), and The Climate Registry (TCR). The Award for Excellence in Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Management recognizes organizations for aggressively managing and reducing their GHG emissions. 2012 Vermont Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence. The award recognized Casella’s partnership with a Glens Falls paper mill to provide closed‐loop recycling of paper and cardboard collected from Vermont businesses, schools, and institutions and returning them as paper products – reducing the environmental footprint of recycling by supporting local markets. 2011 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency Breathe Easy Award. The Northeast Diesel Collaborative – a partnership between the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, state agencies, and private and nonprofit groups – recognized organizations for their outstanding leadership and efforts in reducing diesel emissions. 2002 Maine Governor’s Environmental Excellence Award for the Landfill Oversight Committee in Hampden, of which Casella was a member. Award nomination was submitted by Susan Lessard, Hampden Town Manager. Awards and certifications received by the Casella Organics Hawk Ridge Compost Facility in Unity Plantation: 2010 The National Biosolids Partnership’s EMS, Platinum Certification 2004 The United States Composting Council Composter of the Year Award 2000 The Maine Governor’s “Environmental Excellence Award” in the Sustainable Development Category 2001 The National Sludge Exemplary Management Award 1991 The Environmental Protection Agency’s Beneficial Use of Sludge Award ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 12 WHAT OTHERS HAVE TO SAY ABOUT CASELLA: “I commend Casella on its exemplary leadership in cutting carbon pollution that harms our climate and threatens our health. Casella and all of our Climate Leadership Award winners demonstrate that organizations who are taking action to mitigate climate change are also operating more efficiently, more innovatively and more competitively.” Gina McCarthy, Assistant Administrator, United States Environmental Protection Agency; Office of Air & Radiation . . . . 2012 . . I have confidence in Casella’s ability to meet our city’s municipal solid waste needs. I would consider their company as a good corporate neighbor. . . they have worked hard to ensure that the lines of communication between their highest levels of management and my office remain open for constructive dialogue . . Mayor Mark Johnston City of Saco . . I was impressed by Casella’s willingness to work with us in good faith. I was impressed by their commitment to work through a process that would benefit Biddeford, Casella and many other stakeholders throughout the state of Maine.” Mayor Alan Casavant City of Biddeford “I have been impressed with Casella’s local management team. They are consistently eager and willing to be good corporate neighbors in our community. They have worked hard over the last several years to build trust and restore confidence with our local leaders.” Craig Pendleton, Executive Director Biddeford‐Saco Chamber of Commerce & Industry ---PAGE BREAK--- Lewiston: Response To Concerns, Jan. 2013 13 APPENDICES: New trash deal means savings for Sanford, others; Journal Tribune, Dec. 19, 2012 Casella contract for 13 towns is a ‘good deal’; Journal Tribune, Dec. 22, 2012 Letter from Saco Mayor Mark Johnston Letter from Biddeford Mayor Alan Casavant Letter from Craig Pendleton, Biddeford‐Saco Chamber of Commerce ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- City of $aco Mark D. John$ton, Mayor Saco Cify Hall 300 Main Street Saco, Maine A4A72 Telephone: (207) 282-41 9 I Fax: (207) 282-8209 Email: Uqayor@s-acolrlaine,org January 2, 20L3 Mayor Robert Macdonald City of Lewiston 27 Pine Street Lewistoft, Maine 04240 Re: Casella Waste Sys-tqms lnqqirv Dear Mayor Macdonald: Following an inquiry by a member of the Lewiston City Council, I am writing you today to offer you and all members of your city council my perspective about Casella Waste Systems and their proposal to establish Maine's first Zero Sort recycling facility in your city. As you are well aware, the city of Saco served as a co-host community for the controversial Maine Energy Recovery Company (Mf nC1 waste-to*energy incinerator built just across our municipal border in the city of Biddeford. It is well-known and well documented that I and members of my city council have not always had a warm and fuzzy relationship with Casella, but is also important to note that Casella did not enter the picture until 1999, more than a decade after the MERC plant was sited and built in what everyone now concedes was a horrible location. Based on our city's significant concerns with MERC's location and its troubled operating history, we were naturally reluctant to embrace Casella when they acquired the facility. Our relationship got offto a rocky start, but over the last 14 years my opinion about the company has changed significantly. During the last decade, Casella has undergone significant changes as it responds to a rapidly shifting marketplace. New management entered the picture, and the company realigned their focus to pursue a phllosophy that encourages rerycling and sustainability in solid waste management. Yes, it has been a rocky road at times, but I must add that I have been genuinely impressed with Casella's good- faith efforts to address our concerns and resolve our issues. I have come to respect their organization as one driven by integrity and a commitment to work cooperatively with their member communities. A few weeks ago, one of Casella's representatives called me to inform me that their company had just purchased Blow Brothers lnc, (BBl), a local waste disposal company that handles municipalwaste collection and recycling for the city of Saco. G:\0001-Legislaive-City CouncilMayodsMayor Johnston correspondence\Lt to Mayor of l,ewiston re Caselladoc Page I ---PAGE BREAK--- My reaction? I told the representative that I was pleased that Casella and BBI were able to reach a mutually beneficial agreement, and that I have confidence in Casella's ability to meet our city's municipal solid waste needs. Certainly, we have come a long way in building a solid relationship with Casella, and I would consider their company as a good corporate neighbor. They take an active role in our community as an active member of our local Chamber of Commerce; they have donated to local charities and non-profits in our community; and they have worked hard to ensure that the lines of communication between their highest levels of management and my office remain open for constructive dialogue. As a dedicated public servant, I applaud you and your city council for your diligent and comprehensive review of Casella's proposal. Our constituents should expect nothing less than our commitment to evaluate with rigor every proposal that comes before their elected officials. Based on recent media reports, it would appear that you have heard some folks question Casella's reputation and their commitment and capacity. I hope that you find my perspective on these matters helpful as you continue your review. Finally, like Lewiston, the ciry of Saco is dedicated to the prospect of sustainability and protecting the resources, health and safety of the citizens we serve. The idea of a Maine-based Zero-Sort recycling facility is one that should be embraced. We simply must continue doing everything in our power to divert waste and consider the vital importance of natural resource protection. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you would like any further information or if you have any questions. Sincerely, hn s-tvk) Cc: Lewiston City Council members Mark Johnston, City of Saco G:\0001-trgislative4iryCouncilMayo/sMayorJohnstonconespondence\LttoMayoroftrwistonre Casella.doc Page2 ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- ---PAGE BREAK--- The Biddeford-Saco Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. is organized to advance and promote commercial and industrial growth, as well as the civic, cultural and educational interests of the communities it serves. 138 Main Street, Suite 101 * Saco, Maine 04072 * Tel: (207) 282-1567 January 3, 2013 Mayor Robert Macdonald Members of the Lewiston City Council Lewiston City Hall 27 Pine Street Lewiston, Maine 04240 Dear Mayor Macdonald and members of the Lewiston City Council: It is my understanding that your city is currently reviewing a proposal by Casella Waste to build and operate a Zero Sort recycling facility in your community. Normally, our local chamber would not speak on issues that extend well beyond our membership area, but I felt it was important to respond based on inquiries our office has received about Casella and its operations and reputation here in the Biddeford‐Saco area. Casella has been an active and supportive member of our chamber since 1999, when they took over ownership and operations of the Maine Energy waste incinerator, commonly known as MERC. MERC has been a source of concern in our community since the day it was built. But it should be noted that it was not built, designed or located by Casella. Recently, the Biddeford City Council voted 8‐1 to purchase and close the MERC facility. That action was an important step for our future economic development. The city council also voted 8‐1 to renew a municipal waste disposal contract with Casella; and the Council voted 8‐1 to enter into a new curbside recycling contract with Casella. We feel these are very important statements; MERC had issues but Casella provides very good services to our communities. I have been impressed with Casella’s local management team. They are consistently eager and willing to be good corporate neighbors in our community. They have worked hard over the last several years to build trust and restore confidence with our local leaders. ---PAGE BREAK--- The Biddeford-Saco Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Inc. is organized to advance and promote commercial and industrial growth, as well as the civic, cultural and educational interests of the communities it serves. During the recent MERC‐City of Biddeford negotiations, Casella and Mayor Casavant reached out to the chamber asking us to operate a website where they could post factual information and documentation to help slow down the rumor mill. We gladly accepted. It’s not surprising that the subject of solid waste, especially its disposal, often generates strong emotional responses. I think it’s important that we make decisions based on factual information that is geared toward reducing waste and increasing recycling. Casella has demonstrated leadership on these issues in our communities and hopefully they will in yours too. Thank you for your time, and I hope you find this information helpful as you continue your deliberations. Sincerely, Craig A. Pendleton Craig A. Pendleton Executive Director