By Dana Wormald | Editor
Good morning, New Hampshire, and welcome to Thursday. Today, Molly Rains reports on the trash tensions in Bethlehem as the closure of the town’s landfill approaches. Also, Ethan DeWitt reports on a plan announced by Gov. Kelly Ayotte to help out community college students. And, in the Thursday commentary, the beauty of this season is almost enough to make a Granite Stater forget that it’s also campaign season. Thank you for reading, and enjoy the day. — Dana
On a rainy Tuesday, Oct. 13, Casella-branded trash and recycling bins line Agassiz Street in Bethlehem. Casella Waste Services provides free curbside waste pickup to residents of the town as part of a host-community agreement that will expire in December, when the company's Bethlehem landfill is slated to close. Transfer Station Committee members said the benefit was not worth the cost of hosting the landfill, and added they were optimistic about the town's ability to take on trash handling duties in Casella's wake. (Photo by Molly Rains/New Hampshire Bulletin)
By Molly Rains
With Casella Waste Services’ landfill in Bethlehem slated to close at the end of this year, town officials are preparing for a post-landfill future. But with the closure arriving sooner than anticipated, those preparations have been shaded by persistent trash-related tension. The end of operations at the landfill also marks the end of a settlement agreement between Casella and Bethlehem, under which Casella has provided curbside waste pickup and disposal services to residents. Free service will no longer be available to residents once the landfill closes, a change officials said called for the town to develop alternative, permanent systems for handling waste.
Manchester Community College, where Gov. Kelly Ayotte announced a proposal for a free community college tuition program she wants to request in the budget, Wednesday Oct 14. 2026. (Photo by Ethan DeWitt/New Hampshire Bulletin)
By Ethan DeWitt
Gov. Kelly Ayotte called for a program Wednesday to provide free tuition for New Hampshire community college students with a total family income of up to $100,000, and said she would add such a proposal in her budget if reelected. The announcement, made at an event at Manchester Community College, comes on the heels of a recent decision by the University System of New Hampshire to offer a similar free tuition program to New Hampshire residents starting in the 2027-2028 school year.
COMMENTARY
By Dana Wormald
“It’s mid-October, and New Hampshire has never been more stunning. How stunning? The autumn reds and golds are barely muted by the pall of another election season. Not that this campaign cycle hasn’t tried its soulless best to drape the landscape in gray.”
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