JOINT RESOLUTION CREATING A SPECIAL JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY SLUDGE MANAGEMENT IN RHODE ISLAND

S3225

2026 -- S 3225
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LC006351
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STATE OF RHODE ISLAND
IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY
JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2026
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J O I N T R E S O L U T I O N
CREATING A SPECIAL JOINT LEGISLATIVE COMMISSION TO STUDY SLUDGE
MANAGEMENT IN RHODE ISLAND

Introduced By:
Senators DiMario, Valverde, and Euer

Date Introduced:
April 20, 2026

Referred To:
Senate Environment & Agriculture
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WHEREAS, "Sludge" is defined as any solid, semisolid or liquid waste generated from a
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municipal, commercial, or industrial wastewater treatment plant, water supply treatment plant, or
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air pollution control facility or any other such waste having similar characteristics and effects;
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and
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WHEREAS, Effective sludge management is essential to reduce the massive volumes of
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waste generated by wastewater treatment, mitigate severe environmental contamination
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(groundwater and soil), and eliminate pathogens in order to protect public health; now, therefore
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be it
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RESOLVED, That a special joint legislative commission be and the same is hereby
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created consisting of nineteen (19) members: three (3) of whom shall be members of the House of
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Representatives, not more than two (2) from the same political party, to be appointed by the
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Speaker of the House; three (3) of whom shall be members of the Senate, not more than two (2)
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from the same political party, to be appointed by the President of the Senate; one of whom shall
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be a member of the Rhode Island Clean Water Association (RICWA), to be appointed by the
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Chair of the Board of Directors for the RICWA; one of whom shall be the Executive Director of
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the Narragansett Bay Commission (NBC), or designee; one of whom shall be the Executive
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Director of the Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management, or designee; one of
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whom shall be the Executive Director of the Rhode Island Resource Recovery Corporation, or
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designee; one of whom shall be the Director of the Rhode Island Department of Administration

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Division of Planning, or designee; one of whom shall be a representative of a treatment facility, to
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be appointed by the Speaker of the House; two (2) of whom shall be representatives of Rhode
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Island communities that have incinerators, one of whom to be appointed by the Speaker of the
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House, and one of whom to be appointed by the President of the Senate; one of whom shall be the
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Executive Director of the Rhode Island League of Cities and Towns, or designee; one of whom
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shall be the Executive Director of the North East Biosolids & Residuals Association (NEBRA),
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or designee; one of whom shall be a professor from the University of Rhode Island conversant in
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sludge processing, to be appointed by the President of the Senate; one of whom shall be the
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Executive Director of the Coastal Resource Management Council, or designee; and one of whom
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shall be a representative of a private company involved in biosolids management, to be appointed
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by the Speaker of the House.
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In lieu of any appointment of a member of the legislature to a permanent advisory
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commission, a legislative study commission, or any commission created by a General Assembly
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resolution, the appointing authority may appoint a member of the general public to serve in lieu
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of a legislator.
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The purpose of said commission shall be to make a comprehensive study and review of
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the current state of sludge management in Rhode Island, with an emphasis on the current status of
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the sludge incinerator at the Woonsocket thermal conversion facility. The commission will study
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the cost to ratepayers and environmental and climate impacts, and to also identify potential state-
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wide solutions and future opportunities, such as the use of pyrolysis and other technologies and
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processes for biosolid disposal, to make sludge management more sustainable in Rhode Island.
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Forthwith upon passage of this resolution, the members of the commission shall meet at
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the call of the Speaker of the House and President of the Senate and organize and shall select a
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Chairperson and Vice Chairperson, one of whom shall be a member of the House and one of
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whom shall be a member of the Senate.
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Vacancies in said commission shall be filled in like manner as the original appointment.
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The membership of said commission shall receive no compensation for their services.
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All departments and agencies of the state shall furnish such advice and information,
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documentary and otherwise, to said commission and its agents as is deemed necessary or
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desirable by the commission to facilitate the purposes of this resolution.
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The Joint Committee on Legislative Services is hereby authorized and directed to provide
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suitable quarters for said commission; and be it further

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RESOLVED, That the commission shall report its findings and recommendations to the
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General Assembly no later than January 5, 2027, and said commission shall expire on March 5,
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2027.
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LC006351
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