Killingworth Wood-Burning Ordinance Gets Tabled

Tempers flared at a town meeting last week as Killingworth residents debated the proposal of an Outdoor Wood-Burning Furnace ordinance. The ordinance was recommended by the Planning & Zoning Commission and approved at the Board of Selectmen Meeting on Aug. 8.

According to First Selectman Catherine Iino, the ordinance would allow the town of Killingworth to enforce a law passed by the state of Conencticut in 2005 regarding outdoor wood-burning (OWB) furnaces. 

The law, which applices to furnaces built after July 8, 2005, requires that OWBs be built at least 200 feet from the nearest neighboring home,  have a chimney shorter than 55 feet tall but at least as tall as the roof peaks of neighboring homes within 500 feet of the OWB, burn only wood that has not been chemically treated, and they must be installed and operated according to the manufacturer's written instructions, provided the instructions comply with the law.

The deabte started with a comment from John Wargo, Killingworth resident and Professor of Risk Analysis and Environmental Policy at Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies.

"Wood burning boilers constitute significant dangers to our health," said Wargo, whose expertise is in children and women exposed to toxins. "Measures of air quality in homes up to 850 ft. from outdoor wood burning stoves has four times as much toxins than the Clean Air Act standards.

"Furnaces that are not in compliance with the Clean Air Act standards can cause and contribute to respiratory problems. These very small particles have no problem getting through cracks. 

"They also have an adverse affect on property value. People in close proximity to houses with wood burning stoves could not sell their homes. This [ordinance] is an important step; we're facing a serious problem here."

Resident Mark Hale asked the board how many OWBs were not currently in compliance with the 2005 ordinance. When the board could not supply a number, he responded, "You should know if we're going to implement this ordinance. If they [OWBs] were legal when they were installed, are we going to have to pay to make this ordinance, to make these stoves illegal now, when they were legal upon installation?"

Another Killingworth resident stood and spoke in response to Mr. Hale's comment saying, "If you put something in your house and it's legal and later find out you're hurting your neighbors, you don't say 'I have a right to do this,' you say 'I was wrong' and you fix it."

Middlesex County Farm Bureau Representative Walter Adametz, in what he says is an effort to find a "middle ground" and make sure the furnaces are not banned outright, suggested an amendment. The amendment would allow the use of OWBs from Sept. 1 until May 31 for agriculture purposes. 

Adametz argued that wood burning is efficient, green and cost effective, especially for farmers who need a source of heat for their crops during the colder months of the year. 

Hale disapproved of what he interpreted to be favorable treatment for farmers and suggested that the amendment include the dates, but not the agriculture element. The dates for operation of OWBs would include all residents. 

Eventually a vote was taken on whether to table the vote on the ordinance until a later meeting, which passed 37-31.

Road Paving Budget

The town voted to transfer $70,891 from the 2010-2011 road paving budget, which the town did not use before the end of the fiscal year in July, to the road paving budget for 2011-2012 FY.

Appointments

Voters confirmed the selectmen’s reappointment of Richard W. Albrecht as Killingworth representative to the South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority for a term of July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2014.

Pension Balance

The town voted and approve of the transfer of the balance of $23,213 from the Pension Exclusion Potential line item in the Reserve Fund for Capital and Nonrecurring Expenditures to the Municipal Employee Pension Plan.

Conn. Resource Recovery Authority

Residents voted and authorized the Board of Selectmen to enter into a Municipal Solid Waste Management Service Agreement with Connecticut Resource Recovery Authority (CRRA) for solid waste disposal services commencing November 16, 2012 and continuing until June 30, 2027.

A CRRA representative assured the town that the cost of removal and disposal of each ton of solid waste would be lowered from $69 to $59.50. 

Conn. River Valley Council

Rsidents also voted to ratify the action of the Connecticut River Valley Council of Elected Officials to become a council of governments known as the Lower Connecticut River Valley Council of Governments.