Approximately two years ago while I was serving as a member of the Tiverton Town Council, Ryan DeMello presented a plan to purchase certain parcels within the business park to be used as a construction debris recycling facility. As I recall, he wanted to have a building into which dumpsters would be driven and emptied. The contents of the dumpsters would be sorted and remain within the building until it was taken elsewhere. The dumpsters would be cleaned and stored outside.

It was presented as a local operation that would receive dumpsters from nearby communities and would not be very large. At no time was there any mention of numerous truck deliveries or storage of debris outside in piles. The proposed ordinance under consideration would allow 100 tons per day (29,900 tons per year) for the first five years (our town landfill only collected 6,000 tons per year) after which it can increase to 500 tons per day (149,500 tons per year). The outside piles can be 20 feet high and 50 feet wide. This is a much bigger operation than mere dumpsters.

At the time I was adamantly opposed to this project as there was no viable plan to ensure what ended up in the dumpsters; no plan on how to collect water used for cleaning; and it is very close to Stafford Pond, which is a drinking water reservoir, a housing development named Abigail Estates, and Longplex. The business park sits on a ledge so any surface water typically runs toward Stafford Pond 2,000 feet to the east and Abigail Estates 2,000 feet south.

A facility of this sort is currently not allowed within the business park, so the current Town Council tasked the Planning Board with creating a zoning ordinance to allow it. Is it just me or does this sound like a zoning change to benefit one applicant? The Planning Board was under pressure to create an ordinance that would allow this type of facility within the business park and had a very short window in which to exercise due diligence.

The proposed ordinance, which was presented to the Town Council, is contingent upon the granting of a special-use permit and also includes a list of specific and objective criteria with performance standards to be met, but variances can be granted. I commend the Planning Board for the work they did and in particular the list of specific and objective criteria with performance standards in an attempt to limit the damage this type of facility will bring.

On July 14 the Town Council held a public hearing on the ordinance with the intention of possibly voting to adopt it. There was an unusually large turnout and many people spoke against permitting a construction debris facility in the business park. Objections centered on traffic, dust, odor, noise, water use, water contamination, drainage, hazardous waste, fire hazards, and impact upon other uses within the park.

One objector was a retired East Providence firefighter who related his experiences with a similar, but larger, facility called Trans-Load America/Pond View. Pond View was licensed for 500 tons per day. He described frequent fires, dust pollution of adjacent properties and waterbodies, heavy truck traffic, noise, odor, and vermin. He made mention of the fact that construction debris is likely to contain asbestos, lead, sulfur dioxide, and other hazardous substances. He said the state Department of Environmental Management showed little interest in the numerous complaints received from neighbors of the Pond View recycling facility. The site actually quit operations due to bankruptcy in 2012, not because of any DEM enforcement actions. The site was finally cleaned up in 2013.

While the proposed facility in Tiverton will be smaller, at least for now, it will be performing the same operations, will be receiving the same types of materials, and will bring with it the same hazards. While the proposed ordinance requires records of materials received and has a requirement that 75% must be moved on within six weeks and that it cannot be stored outside in piles beyond three months, how can this be monitored and enforced?

The operator is required to report any receipt of hazardous materials. Unfortunately, this appears to be on the honor system and is likely to be ignored if it interferes with profits. I have little faith that DEM will do any surveillance and I sincerely believe that it will come down on the town if it tries to. I’m sure we have all read about the years of litigation that follows any attempt to enforce environmental and operational regulations in Rhode Island.

The Town Council apparently thinks this facility will bring jobs and broaden the tax base. If the facility and buildings were to be valued at $1,000,000, the taxes would be $11,450. There are numerous homes paying more than that. As for jobs, it might bring six additional jobs to Tiverton. However, Mr. DeMello owns and operates a facility in Middletown, so I expect workers will come from there. As a matter of interest, Abigail Estates has a combined value of $37,353,500, which contributes $425,800 in taxes based on the new tax rate. Longplex is valued at $17,412,200 and contributes $198,499 in taxes.

This facility will most definitely not be of any real benefit to Tiverton and might be detrimental if it adversely affects existing property values. Is that what we really want? What we will get is truck traffic, road wear and tear, noise, odor, dust, vermin, water pollution, waste materials from almost anywhere in Rhode Island and adjacent states, fire hazards, and aggravation. To get an idea of how this might eventually look, take a ride down Eagleville Road past North East Construction and Site Ready. As another objector said at the meeting “like attracts like.” The ordinance does not limit the number of these things in the park. Not a very good return on the minuscule tax revenue we will receive from this facility.

As council member Mike Burk said at the meeting, this will benefit Rhode Island but not Tiverton, and our concern should be Tiverton, our town. I have to wonder why the owner of Longplex and associated projects has been silent on this. It will most certainly have an adverse effect on his current and proposed operations and, after all, he was very opposed to the town’s very small recycling center being located in the business park and near one of his proposed projects.

The Town Council is scheduled to meet again Aug. 14 and the public hearing will be continued. At that time the Town Council may accept the proposed ordinance as written, it may reject it entirely, or it may make modifications which it can than vote for. And, of course, it could do nothing and continue the public hearing to a later date. Don’t count on that. If you are concerned about this, you need to attend the public hearing and make your views known.

Jay P. Edwards is a Tiverton resident and former member of the Tiverton Town Council.