Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s administration is considering a proposal that would allow the state to purchase electricity from Connecticut’s largest regional trash authority, a move that could temporarily help the financially struggling entity while giving it time to come up with a long-term plan, The Associated Press reports.
The Connecticut Resources Recovery Authority, which manages garbage and recyclables for 75 of the state’s 169 cities and towns, has been hit hard by depressed wholesale energy prices. Officials warn they will have to close CRRA’s trash-to-energy plant in Hartford at the end of the 2014 fiscal year unless they come up with a viable, alternative plan.
The AP’s Susan Haigh reports the proposed arrangement with the state would buy CRRA time to come up with a sustainable business model, CRRA Chairman Don Stein said during a conference call Monday with town officials who are members.
Malloy’s legal counsel, Luke Bronin, told CRRA officials that the governor is committed to helping the trash-to-energy plant model in Connecticut, which he said is a more environmentally sound way to dispose of garbage than landfills. He said the proposed arrangement could be a win-win for the state and the trash authority.
Under the proposed arrangement, Bronin said, the state would purchase electricity over a two-year period “at a price that’s advantageous to the state.” However, the governor wants certain conditions included in the deal to make sure the state is not “supporting an unsustainable business model.” For example, there must be a thorough audit of CRRA’s finances, a plan to reduce costs and come up with a sustainable business model, or else a plan to sell off some or all of CRRA’s assets.
Bronin said the administration will have to work with state lawmakers to pass legislation this session authorizing such an arrangement.
Local officials are worried about the financial consequences for their taxpayers if the Mid-Connecticut Project closes.
This possible electricity deal is the latest CRRA-related matter being considered by the Malloy administration.
The Democrat’s budget proposal calls for transferring $30 million from CRRA to the state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection to cover the planned transfer and care of five CRRA landfills to the state. Bronin said the state is in a “very good position to care and control” those landfills, “perhaps at lower costs and perhaps with greater comfort.”
