Annual Report
Annual Report
ecomaine

View Latest Annual Report
View 2005-2006 Summary

Annual Summary
2006-2007

In the 2006-2007 fiscal year (June 30-July 1), ecomaine remained on budget while initiating many significant improvements. Key to our success is the melding of ecological stewardship and fiscal responsibility.

The following is a summary of 2006-2007 activities and issues. I encourage you to visit our facilities and to call me or your Board representative whenever you have questions or requests for more detailed information.

Kevin Roche, General Manager

Financial   |   Ashfill/Landfill   |   Recycling   |   Waste-to-Energy
Environment   |   Communications   |   Legal Issues

Financial

  • The ecomaine fiscal year is July 1-June 30
  • The annual budget for fiscal year 2006-2007 was $26,609,871, of which $9,846,730 was debt expense (see chart below). Though final figures for the year will not be available for another month, the expectation is for a final resolution of on or under budget.

2006-2007 Debt Schedule

    Restructure fixed rate bonds
No extension of maturities
Total
Bonds
Outstanding

  Without any
Restructuring

Fiscal Year
Debt Service
Savings (cost)
2005/06 $10,139,679 $9,846,096 $293,583 $55,685,000
2006/07 $10,145,531 $9,819,506 $326,025 $48,105,000
2007/08 $10,171,886 $9,846,730 $325,156 $40,190,000
2008/09 $10,194,526 $9,869,514 $325,012 $31,900,000
2009/10 $11,746,544 $11,425,201 $321,343 $21,640,000
2010/11 $11,471,790 $11,146,546 $325,244 $11,190,000
2011/12 $7,076,343 $6,938,743 $137,600 $4,560,000
2012/13 $4,053,857 $4,053,857 - $585,000
2013/14 $309,000 $309,000 - $300,000
2014/15
$300,000
$300,000
-
-
Total Debt
Service
$75,609,156 $75,609,156 $2,053,963
  • The budget for 2007-2008 is $26,705,673 which is less than one percent more than the 2006-2007 budget.
  • The Finance Committee reported a surplus of $2.5 million from FY 2005-2006 and the Board then voted in 2007 to: place $600,000 in the debt stabilization fund, $230,000 in the long-term maintenance fund, and the remaining $1,670,000 in the rate stabilization fund. The debt stabilization fund is intended to lessen the increase needed in solid waste fees for owner-municipalities in peak debt-payment years (FY 2010-2011).

Ashfill / Landfill

  • The $6.8 million state-of-the-art expansion was completed along with a slight enlargement of and new liner for the leachate pond. Though these ecological precautions add to the immediate cost of projects, they lessen the likelihood of leaks and potential costs of future remediation.
  • ecomaine worked in conjunction with the Maine Department of Environmental Protection and the Army Corps of Engineers to offset the loss of wetlands due to expansion; a "compensation wetlands" of approximately five acres was constructed nearby on the ashfill/landfill property.
  • The ecomaine ashfill/landfill operation earned ISO (International Standards Organization) 14001certification - a very rare accomplishment in the United States.
  • ecomaine generated approximately 42,000 tons of ash.
  • On March 5, the ashfill/landfill began fueling its heavy equipment with a biodiesel mix. The equipment includes an excavator, bulldozer, front-end loader, and three dump trucks, which are in use daily.
  • ecomaine's ashfill/landfill employees have operated without a lost-time accident for more than two years (829 days as of 6/18/07).

In this fiscal year:

  • Both the Supervisor and Disposal Technician earned re-certification as managers of ashfill/landfill operations from the Solid Waste Association of North America. Each certification is valid for three years.
  • Visible Emissions Training (Ashfill/Landfill Supervisor)

Recycling

  • In 2006-2007 recycling received 25,017 tons (projection), an increase of 407 tons (2%) over last year and new record high total.
  • This year, 2006-2007, recycling revenues are projected to be $ 2.1 million, with a surplus of more than $500,000. This compares to figures of the previous year of $1.9 million in revenue and a surplus of $ 604,971.
  • On May 18, 2006, the Board voted to bring a $3.7 million single sort recycling system to Maine and on May 3, 2007 the system was fully operational. ecomaine's is the first such system in the state and is only the third in New England. Funding came from reserves and earnings from the sale of recyclables.
  • Throughout the months when old equipment was being removed as new equipment was being installed, the recycling facility managed to process all materials brought to it; nothing was diverted elsewhere or refused.
  • Recycling expanded its list of acceptable plastics from only #1 and #2 to all plastics labeled #3-#7.
  • The City of Saco signed a 20-year contract to become a new Associate Member, in part to benefit from the single sort system. The City will begin delivering its trash to ecomaine July 1, 2007 and will begin delivering its recyclables in January 2008.
  • ecomaine's six existing Associate Members opted for the same 20-year contract that was offered to the City of Saco.
  • Twenty-one eco-Excellence Awards were presented to individuals and organizations, which was followed by a luncheon in their honor and a meeting to explore ways to improve the recycling rate.
  • Recycling employees have operated without a lost-time accident for more than a year (420 days as of 6/18/07).
  • Recycling has continued to supplement its workforce with volunteer inmates from the Cumberland County Jail.
  • In this fiscal year, ecomaine's Recycling Coordinator earned an Associate Degree in Business Administration from the University of Southern Maine, and received training from the Solid Waste Association of North America in recycling management.

Waste-To-Energy

  • ecomaine projects a total of 169,184 tons of processed trash by June 30, 2007, the close of fiscal year 2006-2007. In 2005-2006, the number of tons was 168,435. (As ecomaine continues to focus on increasing recycling rates, solid waste may be reduced.
  • ecomaine operations produce, on average, 100,000-110,000 megawatts of electricity every year (enough power for 15,000 homes). To be efficient, the waste-to-energy plant must operate 24 hours per day; for this reason, ecomaine uses the spot market to fill any fuel (trash) shortfalls and to keep the plant running at 90% (or greater) efficiency.
  • The sale of electricity for this fiscal year resulted in over $5.365 million in revenue, which is 108% of goal.
  • The plant schedules an annual shut-down lasting two - three weeks for repair and maintenance. This year, among many other tasks, a total of 435 super-heater tubes were replaced.
  • An electrical interconnection was constructed from the waste-to-energy plant's generator to the recycling facility; the recycling facility now receives its electric power directly from our own generation facility and is expected to save $190,000 over the next five years, or $38,000 per year.
  • ecomaine was the second organization in the state to earn the Maine Department of Labor SHAPE Award (Safety and Health Award for Public Employees).
  • ecomaine purchased two used trucks and hired four drivers to transport ash from the waste-to-energy plant to the ashfill without the services of an outside contractor. This change is projected to save approximately $170,000 per year.
  • Waste-to-energy employees have operated without a lost-time accident for 337 days (as of 6/18/07).

Environment

  • ecomaine is proud to have renewed its waste-to-energy and recycling plants' ISO (International Standards Organization) 14001 Certification, thereby continuing to demonstrate our commitment to excellence in environmental management. These two facilities were first certified in 2002 and, since that time, have undergone rigorous inspection and review by ISO every six months to retain the designation. This year the ecomaine ashfill/landfill applied for and received the ISO 14001 certification, too - a rare achievement in the U.S.
  • Controlling and reducing mercury emissions is a high priority for both the Maine Department of Environmental Protection (MDEP) and for ecomaine. In 2000 the mercury emissions limit for waste-to-energy (WTE) facilities was 100 lbs/year; in 2004 that limit declined 50% to 50 lbs/year, and, as of January 1, 2007, the limit dropped to 35 lbs/year - a reduction of 65% in just seven years. On January 1, 2010, the law will reduce this limit further, to 25 pounds.
  • ecomaine controls mercury emissions by injecting activated carbon into gases released from the WTE process (at an added cost of approximately $150,000- $175,000 per year).
  • ecomaine continues to meet and exceed the minimum mercury emissions reduction limit of 85%, as measured between inlet and outlet gasses. Based on annual stack tests in 2006 (most recent testing), ecomaine had removed 96.7% of mercury from Boiler A emissions and 89.8% from Boiler B. In 2005 the reduction rate for Boiler A was 96% and 93% for Boiler B; in 2004, reduction was 90.9% from Boiler A and 90.3% from Boiler B.
  • Our next stack test is scheduled for the Fall of 2007. ecomaine continues, however, to search for additional means of removing mercury from the waste stream, such as consumer education to increase awareness about its legal and safe disposal.
    In this fiscal year, ecomaine environmental staff members received training and certifications in the following:
  • Visible Emissions Training (Environmental Manager, Environmental Specialist, Ashfill/Landfill Supervisor)
  • Hazardous Waste Management (Environmental Specialist)
  • Hazardous Materials Transportation Training (Environmental Specialist)
  • MDEP Storm Water Rule Changes and Multi-Sector General Permit Storm Water Training (Environmental Specialist)
  • MDEP I-Steps Air Emissions Inventory Training (Environmental Specialist)

Communications

An emphasis on education has been made by:
encouraging the public to tour our facilities, visiting municipalities to listen and answer questions, publishing newsletters, contact with the news media, re-designing the ecomaine web site, and making presentations to schools that promote recycling.

Educational outreach for single-sort recycling included:

  • Design and distribution of 62,000 brochures
  • An advance meeting for municipal employees, state and municipal officials, and community, committees
  • Script for segment on community TV
  • Individualized web page (on CD)
  • Question & Answer informational sheet
  • Diagram of single sort recycling system
  • Signage for "silver bullets"
  • 3 weeks of paid radio spots
  • A news conference for the inaugural run of equipment
  • ecomaine staff members have been pro-active in opening dialogs and sharing ideas with state regulators
  • Board and committee meeting dates have been successfully publicized via news releases and the media have been warmly welcomed into both our facilities and board meetings
  • Two internal publications are written monthly: "Briefings" and "The ecomaine Employee Report." "Briefings" is a summary of board and committee meetings and the "Employee Report" provides information about departments within ecomaine regarding accomplishments and future plans
  • The ecomaine web site has been used to post job openings as well as news, advice, board member and staff contacts, and wide variety of other information

Legal Issues

  • ecomaine recognized and successfully acted on a need to change State statutes to allow for the appointment of one-time substitute board members at meetings (LD 301). This legislative action ensures the right of each community to have a voice at every meeting.
  • Bills of potential interest were identified and tracked; committee meetings were attended by staff and testimony provided as needed. ecomaine's visibility and credibility among lawmakers has grown considerably in just two years.
  • The issue of "flow control" (the ability to mandate where waste is taken for disposal) was monitored by staff as it made its way to the U.S. Supreme Court. ecomaine filed an amicus curiae to establish itself as an interested party, "a friend of the court." The Court ruled in favor of flow control, which was a reversal of a previous New York State court decision. It is possible that this historic decision may have impact on our member communities.