WESTBROOK – Casella Waste Systems will move forward with its plan to build a $15 million facility in Westbrook for processing the trash that currently goes to Maine Energy Recovery Co., despite losing the support of Biddeford Mayor Joanne Twomey.

The construction of a trash-processing plant in Westbrook was part of a package of initiatives developed to mitigate the negative effects of MERC, Biddeford’s controversial trash incinerator.

Those initiatives were announced in October by a task force, which included officials from Casella, the state and the cities of Saco and Biddeford, including Twomey.

However, last week, Twomey said she would no longer be participating in the task force, which formed last spring originally for the purpose of finding a way to shut down MERC. Because Twomey created the task force, it is within her powers as mayor to disband it, she said.

But according to Jim Bohlig, Casella’s chief development officer, her decision won’t hinder the task force from moving forward with the initiatives.

“The program is very much alive,” Bohlig said.

Westbrook’s part in the plan would be to host a trash-processing plant, at which the 280,000 tons of waste that now goes to the Biddeford incinerator would be condensed into pellets. Casella is proposing to build that plant on County Road, but still needs approvals from both state and city officials.

For Biddeford, the benefit of the Westbrook plant would be to alleviate truck traffic in its downtown. Because the waste would be condensed, fewer trucks would be needed to transport it to the incinerator, where it would continue to be burned.

Westbrook’s payback from Casella would be an offer to participate in the other initiatives developed by the task force.

The task force said it would implement programs to provide residents and businesses from its host communities – including Biddeford, Saco and Westbrook – with ways to make their homes and offices more efficient and less costly to operate.

The programs would provide residents and businesses with power at a rate lower than the standard offer and would help connect people with low-interest loans to pay for energy efficiency improvements.

Last week, Twomey, who once supported the plan and programs, characterized the initiatives as a “green wave” that had the appearance of environmental friendliness, but, she said, no hard proof of its positive effect.

“They talked the green talk,” she said. “It was romantic.”

In addition, Twomey said, the construction of a separate trash-processing facility in Westbrook would worsen the incinerator’s carbon footprint, because trucks would have to travel from the Westbrook plant to the Biddeford incinerator.

“This is lipstick on a pig,” she said.

Regardless of Twomey’s feelings toward the proposal, Bohlig said, the programs can still be implemented.

According to Bohlig, there had always been a plan to shift gears from the task force, which developed the initiatives, to an implementation group called the Maine Green Energy Alliance. The greatest effect of Twomey’s decision to leave the task force, Bohlig said, is that the transition will happen sooner.

The question remains whether Biddeford, Saco or Westbrook will take part in the alliance or leave Casella alone at the table. But according to Bohlig, in terms of moving forward with the energy- and cost-saving programs, it doesn’t matter.

“It’s always been larger than one person. We have power for 16,000 homes,” Bohlig said. “Our duty is to them.”

Bohlig said Casella is moving forward with its plan to offer lower-cost power, which is generated by the incinerator, to the residents and businesses in its host communities. In order to do so, he said, the company needs approvals from New England Power Pool and the Public Utilities Commission. Bohlig said that program could be online in a couple of months.

By the middle of February, he said, a Web site, which will inform people of the program and eventually be the place to sign up for the lower-cost power, will be up and running.

Westbrook Mayor Colleen Hilton and City Administrator Jerre Bryant said they didn’t know how Twomey’s decision to leave the task force would affect Casella’s plans in Westbrook.

“I’ve had only one meeting with the owner of Casella to talk about

his vision for the Westbrook property,” Hilton said. “It’s really too early for me to know of the effect this will have.”

Reporter Dan Bustard contributed to this story.