Every year the New England Water Environment Association (NEWEA) recognizes either an engineering firm, a specific project, a municipality, or a specific municipal or industrial facility for their outstanding accomplishments in the field of biosolids management. This year, RMI President Shelagh Connelly was nominated for this Biosolids Management Award. Shelagh along with her partners Charley Hanson and Marty Riehs have been successfully operating RMI throughout the northeast since 1994. Shelagh is very active on the Government Affairs Committee for NEWEA and for NHWPCA, and assists with regulatory overview and legislative initiatives throughout the northeast on biosolids, wood ash and paper fiber initiatives. Shelagh lives and breathes biosolids management and will do anything that needs to be done in order to ensure continued legislative and community support for biosolids land application. From wastewater treatment plant tours for local high schools, presentations at colleges, public outreach at town hall meetings, to testifying before the legislature in NH and DC there is nothing Shelagh won’t do to promote and protect the land, the environment and the people she and her RMI Team serve.

Shelagh and the whole team at RMI is beyond honored to have been awarded this achievement and we can’t wait to see what 2018 has in store for us!

Thank you all for your continued support and for helping RMI build healthy soils!

Building Organic Matter and Improving Soil

Soil in New England is often acidic and not optimal for crop production. Paper Fiber, a soil amendment derived from paper production, can assist in improving the fertility of topsoil. The use of Paper Fiber will increase the pH of soil. Paper Fiber is spread on farm fields with the use of conventional agricultural equipment, and a typical application rate of ten tons per acre provides two tons of lime value. In addition to increasing soil pH, Paper Fiber adds organic matter to soil. Organic matter in topsoil serves several important functions — it influences the release of nutrients over time, enhances the water-holding capacity of the topsoil, and improves erosion resistance. As organic matter breaks down, it slowly makes nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus available to the crop. Increasing the water holding capacity of topsoil improves drought resistance and helps prevent the loss of nutrients through leaching. Erosion resistance is enhanced by the cellulose in Paper Fiber, which assists with slope stabilization and minimizes run-off in storm events. The use of Paper Fiber has also been documented to increase the percent crude protein in corn silage. Evaluating the overall fertility of the soil is the first step toward enhancing both the soil health and crop yields. Let our qualified Field Services Team come out to your farm and take soil samples so we can help determine what is needed for your cropping plan!

RMI Partners with Northfield Mount Hermon School

This fall RMI partnered with the Northfield Mount Hermon (NMH) School located in Gill, MA to clean out their sewage lagoons. Because this project to empty the lagoons only happens every 15 years, some of the faculty on campus decided to use the opportunity as a “teachable moment”.  Several classes toured the lagoon and learned how the system works and the importance of investing in infrastructure to clean our wastewater and protect the Connecticut River watershed.  Many of the students did not realize that their daily showers and flushes are piped down the hill from campus and are treated through a biological lagoon system to convert their waste into microbes and a final fertilizer product called biosolids. Recycling the biosolids is part of a long-term commitment to sustainable practices at NMH.

This project was particularly fun for RMI President Shelagh Connelly as she graduated from NMH in 1982 and currently has a daughter who is graduating next spring.  “It was nice to be able to work for the school that was pivotal in getting me on the environmental track so long ago.”

NEBRA – Managing Residuals in a Complex World Conference

At the recent North East Biosolids and Residuals Association (NEBRA) Conference in Burlington, Vermont Mike Potash, RMI Certified Crop Advisor and Andrew Carpenter, RMI Consultant and owner of Northern Tilth, presented their research regarding hydrosolids, or water treatment residuals. Their research focuses on reducing plant-available phosphorous in agricultural soils by land applying hydrosolids. Four corn silage fields were selected for trials from farms in both NH and VT. All of these fields have a long history of using manure and/or biosolids as primary sources of soil fertility. After two years of applying hydrosolids and testing the soil regularly it was clear that the hydrosolids did play an important role in reducing plant-available phosphorous, which in turn will help protect water quality surrounding agricultural areas.

To learn more about their research please head to https://tinyurl.com/ybx4sqke to read their presentation.

Legislative Hurdles in 2017

In 2017 there were several bills introduced in NH and VT that could have had potentially profound impacts to three recycling programs which have been successfully operating for decades (wood ash, biosolids, and paper fiber recycling). In NH SB 129 was critical to the survival of six independent wood-fired power plants operating in New Hampshire. Without these power plants, New Hampshire would have lost most of its low-grade timber markets, and without these markets, forestry and timber management would no longer be affordable. Also in NH, biosolids land application along designated rivers was finally approved on a permanent basis eliminating the need to go back to the legislature every five years for renewed approval. In Vermont H.211 was a single bill with five different parts jumbled together but had the phrase “to develop a plan to reduce or phase out land application of sludge and septage” which legislators did not really seem to understand the impact to farmers, municipal wastewater treatment facilities, and paper mills. Once they heard from their constituents they tabled the bill for further study.

It was a busy legislative season and there are lessons to be shared about the importance of staying engaged with our elected representatives at the local, state and federal level. Hosting the annual Water’s Worth It legislative breakfasts, going to the National Fly-In with New England Water Environment Association, and collaborating with NEBRA are all critical for success in the legislative process.

RMI Hosts Spreader Demo

On September 22, 2017 Brandy Thomas, RMI Sales Representative, and Mike Potash, RMI Certified Crop Advisor, hosted a Wood Ash Spreading Demonstration at Middle Intervale Farm in Bethel, Maine. Brandy and Mike focused on the benefits of wood ash being able to renew soil fertility and pH balance. Wood ash is the best source of organic potassium for farms, it is fast-acting and quickly raises soil pH making nutrients in the soil more available to plants.

Meet Todd Gammell!

Todd has been driving for RMI for a little under a year. He services almost all of out generators throughout New England and has racked up 50,000 miles, 1600 hours and delivered 355 loads of Heart & Soil Ag. Products to our loyal customers. Todd is a great addition to RMI and we love having him on our team!

Thanks for keeping us rolling!

 

Come see a spreader in action and learn about RMI’s wood ash and spreader rental program. RMI Sales Representative, Brandy Thomas, and Certified Crop Advisor, Mike Potash, will be there to answer all of your soil amendment questions!

All are welcome and workshop is free!

For more information or to RSVP, contact:
RMI@rmirecycles.com
603-536-8900
www.RMIrecycles.com

Thanks to all you who called, emailed and supported SB 129!

Because of everyone’s hard work NH will continue to support low-emission, locally generated, renewable energy and the future of our biomass plants!

As some of you have heard, on Tuesday July 11th at 12:01 AM Senate Bill 129 went into law.

SB 129 is critical to the survival of New Hampshire’s six independent biomass plants. Timberland owners and the forest products businesses rely on the low-grade timber markets that these biomass power plants provide.

Without these power plants, New Hampshire would lose most of its low-grade timber markets, and without these markets, forestry, logging, and sawmilling would look very different.

Foresters and landowners would have lost an important tool for sustainable forestry. Loggers would have lost an important market for their timber. Sawmills would have lost an important market for mill waste and farmers would have lost wood ash.

RMI wants to personally thank all of you for taking the time to send letters, make calls, attend hearings, and testify on this important piece of legislation. Without your help SB 129 might have not become law!

YOUR HELP IS NEEDED TODAY!

WOOD ASH FROM BIOMASS PLANTS WILL NO LONGER BE AVAILABLE FOR YOUR FARM FIELDS IF THE GOVERNOR VETOS THIS BILL

Please call or fax the Governor’s office right away. Leave him a message that you support Senate Bill 129 and ask the Governor to not veto this bill. Leave your Name and Town and ask him to support biomass because you need the wood ash from the biomass plants for your farm operations.

Please contact the governor’s office TODAY to voice your support for SB129 or wood ash could disappear.

Contact Governor Sununu:
(603) 271-2121 phone. Or fax (603) 271-7680
Or email him through his website https://business.nh.gov/nhgovernor/comments.asp

The opposition is also contacting the Governor’s office, and we need to counter that and show that SB 129 is critical to the survival of N.H.’s six independent biomass plants and to New Hampshire’s timberland owners and the forest products businesses that rely on the low-grade timber markets these plants provide. Without those plants, New Hampshire will lose most of its low-grade timber markets. Without these markets, forestry, logging, and sawmilling will look very different a few months from now. Foresters and landowners will lose an important tool for sustainable forestry, loggers will lose an important market for their timber, and sawmills will lose an important market for mill waste. And farmers will lose wood ash.

In short, if the Governor only hears from the opposition and as a result does not act to allow SB 129 to become law, it would be a bone-breaking blow to our industry, meaning the loss of over 900 jobs and $250 million in annual economic activity, according to an economic analysis conducted by Plymouth State University in March.

PLEASE CALL GOVERNOR SUNUNU’S OFFICE TODAY!

In your message, clearly state that you support Senate Bill 129 and the importance of the continued biomass power operations to your timberland, business, farm operation, and jobs.

If you have any questions please contact Shelagh Connelly shelagh.connelly@rmirecycles.com or Charley Hanson charley.hanson@rmirecycles.com
or call RMI at 603-536-8900

Pleasant Valley Farm is a labor of love for Robert Elwell. A subsistence farmer, Robert sells eggs from his free-range chickens but primarily farms for his family and community. He grows hay which one neighbor cuts to feed his seven beef cattle every winter. Robert also invites community members to pick blueberries and vegetables; he doesn’t charge them for his produce but gladly accepts contributions. When asked why his garden plots are spread out around the farm house, Robert smiles wryly and explains “God didn’t put all the good soil in one spot.”

Robert grew up farming. He spent his childhood on his grandfather’s farm in Westbury, Massachusetts where his family raised Holstein dairy cows. “Growing up on a dirt-poor farm you couldn’t throw anything away. You found a way to make it work” Robert explained. Evidence of this Yankee ingenuity could be found on Robert’s own farm throughout our tour. When we pulled into the driveway, Robert was busily tying a tarp over a sawmill he fashioned from a Honda motorcycle engine and a rail car. We also discovered a water treatment tank recycled as a cistern to feed water to Robert’s gardens and a military version of a 1954 Dodge Power Wagon with a 20-ton winch has been maintained to free a number of neighbors’ trapped cars in the winter and spring. Character-filled treasures all.

Robert met the love of his life while he was stationed in Jacksonville, Florida serving in the Navy. Robert’s ship sailed into Lauterdale where, by chance, Mary Patricia (Pat for short) was part of the committee organizing a dance for the sailors. Robert was standing by the door of the dance hall when Pat walked in. “I took one look at her and knew it was over” Robert said. Robert and Pat danced together that evening; when he returned to his ship, Robert bet his best friend $10 that he was going to marry Pat. Robert collected that $10 two years later. Robert and Pat celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary November 2014.

Robert and Pat have put down their roots in Lancaster, literally. They brought three bushels of peony roots with them from Cherry Hill Nursery in Massachusetts to plant at their farm. Pat also began raising Gladiolas which won many a blue ribbon at the Lancaster Fair. Garlic the Elwells grow came from seed stock they received from Steve Touraj of the UNH Cooperative Extension. “This is the last stop for me”, Robert said viewing his fields. “They’re going to drag me out in a box.”

A man of many talents, Robert is also a writer. He ended our tour with a poem he’d written about the farm and armfuls of fresh-picked vegetables for dinner.