Bucksport rejects proposal to dump mercury-contaminated waste in landfill

BANGOR DAILY NEWS • September 2, 2025

The owners of a troubled Bucksport landfill that once served the local paper mill want to reopen it to accept mercury-contaminated material dredged up as part of cleanup efforts on the Penobscot River. But town officials declined on Thursday to even hear the proposal, citing what they see as serious historical harm to the town from American Iron and Metal, the scrap metal company that bought the former Verso Paper mill site in 2015 and acquired the landfill with it. “It just seems like AIM is just hellbent on making sure this town doesn’t have water to drink,” Mayor Paul Bissonette said.