Maine has a surplus of human waste. It's being shipped to New Brunswick
CBC
A Maine company with a surplus of human waste is increasing its shipments to New Brunswick.
Casella Waste Systems confirmed that it's shipping more sludge from its large landfill north of Bangor across the border and into this province.
"We have recently entered into a new contract with a disposal outlet in New Brunswick," Jeff Weld, the director of communications for Casella, told Radio-Canada in an email.
The New Brunswick government appeared unaware of the increased shipments when contacted for comment.
Environment Department spokesperson Anne Mooers said Fredericton-based Envirem Organics is the only company in the province licensed to import biosolids and has been doing so "for a number of years."
She said the company imported 13,400 tonnes from Maine and Nova Scotia in 2022. "This isn't new," Mooers said in an initial response.
But Casella is moving far more than that amount, according to a company letter.
It's shipping 3,600 tonnes of Maine sludge — about 130 truckloads, according to one Maine media report — to New Brunswick each month.
In a second response, Mooers said Envirem has a "cap" of 100,000 tonnes annually so it "can handle" the additional shipments from Maine.
"The government of New Brunswick takes its role to protect the environment extremely seriously," she said.
"We have had strict regulatory requirements for importing biosolids for many years. New Brunswick legislation requires all importation of waste products to be approved by the province."
Envirem CEO Bob Kiely said in a text message that the company has had contracts with Casella for years and "the increase in volume … is expected to be short term."
He said the company has developed more stringent standards for what it accepts "than any other regulatory jurisdiction."
Casella is facing a serious capacity crunch as a result of two new state laws.
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