PERC and choices

Like every other community that has gone through the process, Hampden this week emerged poorer from its debate over the question of making a greater financial commitment to the Penobscot Energy Recovery Co. incinerator. After some community soul-searching, Hampden did the only thing it could have done under the circumstances, it approved an interim increase in the tipping fees paid to PERC.

By vote of its Council, the people of Hampden now are committed to pay PERC $33 per ton to dispose of their trash for the next three months — up $19 per ton from the $14 fee negotiated with the original owners of the incinerator.

Consistent with the experience in every other community, Hampden was torn by two legitimate points of view.

Councilor Donald Muth opposed the increase and lauded the City of Brewer, which rejected the increase, and which he said may pay in the end, but stood its ground in addressing larger issue of the binding nature of agreements and the uncertainty of future increases needed to keep the fires burning at PERC. “A contract is a contract,” said Muth.

Councilor Muth may be absolutely accurate in his legal opinion on contracts, but communities would be wise not to bet the town garbage truck on the outcome of any legal battle with the PERC partners, who have changed since last summer, when General Electric bought its way out for a reported $4 million in an agreement that at this moment is sealed. The consultant hired by the communities has pointed out that there is nothing in the PERC contract stipulating who is to cover shortfalls (1990’s alone will run at least $3.3 million), at the incinerator.

The best counsel continues to come from such people as Marie Baker, Hampden town manager, who advised the Council to go for the interim increase based on the pragmatic observation that PERC is “the only game in town.” It is.

Recycling in this area is not even in its infancy. A state grant of $151,575 was announced only this week for Bangor to buy its first curb-side collection truck for recyclables.

But the fact that PERC is the only game in town does not mean that communities are helpless. Far from it. In the years since the PERC proposal was unveiled, the state of the art has advanced in trash technology. After accepting, however reluctantly, the higher tipping fees, the towns in the region should exploit their combined leverage to keep future increases as low as possible, and use the time productively to go back to the basics of refuse disposal.

With their original PERC contract so questionable, and the facility’s survival in serious doubt, the communities would be negligent if they did not consider any reasonable alternative to PERC.