Boards meet to discuss lawsuit

By Jonathan Cook
Turley Publications Reporter

STURBRIDGE- After Board of Health Chairman Linda Cocalis made known that she would like to appeal the provisional permit for the Southbridge Landfill, the board got a visit from landfill operator Cassella Waste Management Tuesday night.
Representing Cassella was employee Cheryl Blake.
The provisional permit recently granted Cassella by the Department of Environmental Protection allows the company to accept a daily average of 580 tons of municipal solid waste (household trash). Cocalis has said the agency needs to be challenged on this decision.
As the health board began to go into executive session to discuss potential legal action with the Board of Selectmen, Blake asked a few questions.
“I was curious as to what the discussions were going to be in executive session and what was the need for executive session versus public session,” Blake asked.
Board of Health member John Degnan said, “it deals with legal issues before the town, before the Board of Health.”
Blake also wanted to know if the town would have a lawyer present in executive session. Cocalis said there would not be a lawyer, yet.
Blake pressed on, saying, “I think the public has a right to understand what issues the board or the town has with regard to the permit, because it’s going to cost public resources. And how much public resources is it the board wants the public to spend on whatever issues the board has with the permit?”
But Degnan said it’s too early to tell if the town even wants to go forward with any action, let alone challenging the permit.
Cocalis said the town has a legal expense budget of $80,000.
Blake said, “I just didn’t know if anybody had quantified what the expense would be for this legal action.”
Cocalis answered, “it’s basically an appeals process. So I don’t think it generally would be as long as something drawn out. I think it is to make the points to DEP and have DEP address them.”
Degnan added, “I don’t think we’re even at that point yet.”
With that, the board went into executive session.
The Southbridge Landfill on barefoot Road is less than mile from residential neighborhoods in Sturbridge.
A legal action by the health board would be the second attempt to stop Cassella’s attempt to increase the size of the landfill and the amount of trash it accepts.
A citizen’s group has challenged the Southbridge Board of Health’s site assignment of the landfill expansion. That process is in the hands of the appeals court.