The Sierra Club, Connecticut Zero Waste Coalition, and others are holding a Zero Waste Lobby Day on April 11, 2025, to advocate for policies that reduce waste, promote sustainability, and protect our environment. This is a great opportunity to draw attention to waste issues including air and noise pollution from incineration: Event Details:Date: April 11, 2025Time: 11:00 AM – 1:00 PMLocation: Legislative Office Building, Room 1AAddress: 300 Capitol Ave, Hartford, CT 06106 Event organizenirs will be advocating in support of the following two key bills; however, attendees may raise other bills (such as SB 80): H.B. 6229: An Act Concerning […]
Bristol Residents Celebrate Passage of SB 80: A Major Win for Clean Air and Public Health
Today, Bristol Residents for Clean Air applauds the Connecticut General Assembly’s Environment Committee for overwhelmingly passing Senate Bill 80, “An Act Concerning the Burning of Medical Waste.” This crucial legislation ensures that no incinerator in Connecticut can burn medical waste without adhering strictly to U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) standards specifically designed for medical waste incineration. Incineration of biomedical waste releases highly toxic pollutants such as dioxins, furans, heavy metals—including mercury and lead—and PFAS. These substances pose serious health risks, including cancer, reproductive and developmental issues, endocrine disruption, and neurological damage. SB 80 addresses a glaring loophole in federal regulations, […]
BRCA Applauds Governor, Commissioner for Opposing Federal Rollbacks, Urges CT to Close Loopholes that Allow Risky Medical Waste Incineration
Bristol Residents for Clean Air (BRCA) today applauded Governor Ned Lamont and Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP) Commissioner Katie Dykes for their opposition to the Trump administration’s proposed rollbacks of important EPA regulations—protections forged over decades of bipartisan effort to reduce air pollution and safeguard public health. Yet, while our state leaders rightly denounce the weakening of federal air pollution standards, DEEP is simultaneously poised to permit Reworld, Inc. to exploit loopholes in air pollution standards to burn medical waste in Bristol. BRCA believes that facilitating medical waste incineration under regulatory loopholes is inconsistent with the Governor’s pledge […]
Bristol Residents for Clean Air Responds to DEEP Proposed Approval of Biomedical Waste Burning at Reworld Facility
Bristol Residents for Clean Air expresses profound disappointment in the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) Proposed Final Decision to issue permits allowing Reworld, Inc. to open one of the largest medical waste incineration operations in the country. The decision will make Bristol the medical waste incineration capital of New England and will create unacceptable environmental and health risks for residents. Despite hundreds of letters of opposition and extensive scientific and legal information provided during public hearings, DEEP is taking steps to approve Reworld Bristol’s facility to process up to 57 tons of hazardous biomedical waste per day […]
Your help needed THIS FRIDAY!
On Friday, January 31 the General Assembly’s Environment Committee will hold a hearing on Senate Bill 80, An Act Concerning the Burning of Medical Waste. This bill would close a loophole that would allow Reworld to burn medical waste without having to follow EPA federal emissions standards for a medical waste incinerator. EPA holds medical waste incinerators to more stringent standards because medical waste contains a high fraction of materials including plastics that release toxic emissions including when burnt. These emissions include dioxins, PFAS, and heavy metals, which accumulate in the environment and in our bodies and cause a range of serious and fatal illnesses […]
Bills introduced to tackle incinerator pollution!
Four bills have been introduced in Hartford this session. Public support will be key to these advancing and becoming law. BRCA will provide updates and action alerts on these bills. To read the language of these bills (which is subject to change in response to legislative action) and monitor their progress through the session, click the links below: If you would like to receive e-mails or text messages when the status of these bills changes, you can sign up for bill tracking.
Must-read: Trash Plant Controversy Deepens
The Hartford Courant has released excellent report on the ongoing noise pollution and medical waste proposal at the Reworld’s Bristol incinerator: “It appears that the state has abandoned the residents of Bristol and the surrounding area who are impacted on the ground, that it isn’t worth spending the resources to do so,” Keith Ainsworth, who represents the Bristol-Burlington Health District, said in a blistering public statement Friday afternoon. For more, see Trash Plant Controversy Deepens.
Meeting 1/21 on DEEP recommendation and legislative action
On January 21 at 6:30 PM, BRCA will be holding a meeting to discuss DEEP’s recent (1/16) recommendation to approve issuing a new permit to burn biomedical waste and renewing permits at Reworld’s Bristol incinerator with no added air or noise pollution or infection control safeguards. Join us to learn what this means for you and how you can help area legislators stop this dangerous proposal. Sign up for the meeting here! (Zoom signup link)
BRCA Denounces DEEP’s Recommendation to Approve Biomedical Waste Incineration Permits
UPDATE 1/20: BRCA is holding a meeting on this recommendation and legislative solutions on Monday, January 21 at 6:30 PM. Sign up here: https://bristolresidents.org/zoom BRISTOL, CT – Bristol Residents for Clean Air condemns the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection’s (DEEP) recommendation to approve, unmodified, the draft permits for Reworld Inc.’s waste incinerator, which seeks to burn biomedical waste (BMW) at 170 Enterprise Drive, Bristol. DEEP’s post-hearing brief disregards significant public health, safety, and environmental concerns raised by local residents, experts, and environmental advocates during the public comment period. The proposal has faced overwhelming opposition, as evidenced by the […]
Flyers and images to share
Post the flyer below to build awareness about the public hearing on 11/7. A strong turnout will send the message that burning medical waste does not belong in Bristol! In addition, feel free to repost the images below on your social media.