ASHFIELD — The transfer station is set for a renovation soon.
Residents unanimously voted Dec. 17 to allocate an additional $50,000 to the project. The town has allocated a total of $150,000 over several years for the renovation, Selectboard member Steve Gougeon said this week. That figure is expected to increase as the project progresses.
“It’s just one of those pretty straight-forward things that we kind of have to deal with — just given the age of the infrastructure,” Gougeon said.
The transfer station is a site Ashfield residents use to dispose of trash and recyclables, before it is taken to a larger facility. Ashfield residents pay an annual fee of $40 to use the transfer station, plus a fee per bag or item.
The renovation targets both the transfer station and the landfill, which are located in the same place at 776 Ashfield Mountain Road. The landfill was closed in the 1980s.
The renovation was requested by the state Department of Environmental Protection after it assessed the transfer station in 2013 and identified several deficiencies. The department reported that the landfill was not properly capped in compliance with 1971 Mass. Solid Waste Regulations when it was closed in the 1980s; trees and brush cover much of the landfill; parts of the landfill are too steep; and old scrap metal, tires and other debris, are exposed on the site.
The renovation will correct these issues according to current department regulations.
Highway Superintendent Tom Poissant said the transfer station is antiquated and due for an update in an interview Tuesday.
“It’s going to be basically reconstructured, rebuilt, for a more modern facility, with updated grading, drainage, stormwater control, things like that,” Poissant said.
The design is in its final stages, Gougeon said. The renovation is expected to take three to five years to complete.