BRISTOL, Conn. — There is growing public outcry in opposition to a proposed plant in Bristol that would burn biomedical waste.
Residents said they are concerned about the public health and environmental impacts of such a facility. It originally became an issue in 2021, but enough people voiced concern then that the proposal laid dormant until now.
Bristol is home to America’s oldest amusement park, and soon it may also be home to America’s largest biomedical waste incinerator.
“I have yet to meet anyone in town who is for this,” remarked Bristol resident Jodie Bechard-Maro.
From the top of the Lake Compounce roller coasters, a smokestack of the Convanta trash-to-energy plant on Enterprise Drive can be seen.
“They won’t know what’s coming out day to day. And there’s no way to hold them accountable,” said Mike Ewall of the Energy Justice Network.
Covanta, which has now rebranded themselves Reworld Inc., wants to begin incinerating infectious bio matter at the site. Material would range from chemotherapy and dialysis waste to blood, other bodily fluids and surgical tools.
“Biosecurity hazard level 4 which could be Ebola. These trucks could crash in the state. Are our public safety personnel equipped to handle this?” asked Southington resident Francis Pickering.
Environmental watchdogs said everything from hydrochloric acid to toxic metals like mercury, lead and arsenic could be released.
“This is not just an issue that affects Bristol but New England and Connecticut as a whole,” said Bechard-Maro.
The state Department of Energy and Environmental Protection granted Reworld the draft permits needed to move forward.
“They are more afraid of being sued by the polluting companies that they give permits to, than the communities that are affected by it,” remarked Ewall.
The permits authorize the plant to burn up to 114 tons of waste daily with the waste itself getting trucked in from all over New England.
DEEP said a statement, “…we are unable to comment at this time. A public hearing has been requested and a status conference has been scheduled for Aug. 7 to outline the procedures.”
Bristol Mayor Jeff Caggiano said, “We have a waste crisis in the state of Connecticut.”
The mayor claimed Reworld has been a responsible partner for the city over the last 30 years.
“They do not burn, and this is one thing that people need to know, human body parts, radioactive waste. It’s highly regulated. They have a continuous emissions monitoring system that they use within the facility. So, if anything is coming out into the atmosphere that is dangerous they have to shut their plant down,” explained Caggiano.
Residents said they want city councilors and state lawmakers to ban these types of facilities in Connecticut. Rhode Island banned medical waste incinerators in 2021.
Concerned stakeholders claim Reworld only continuously monitors a few chemicals and that testing levels of the most dangerous ones only happen once a year.
A statement from Reworld Inc. was not made immediately available upon request.
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Matt Caron is a reporter at FOX61 News. He can be reached at mcaron@fox61.com. Follow him on Facebook, X and Instagram.
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