HARTFORD — Selectmen agreed Thursday night to investigate the cost and benefits of moving the town’s waste transfer station from Marble Road to the sand and salt shed site on Gurney Hill Road.

Board Chairwoman Lee Holman and Selectman Jack Plumley agreed there were problems with the location and layout of the station. The change would not affect the present curbside pickup of garbage. The Maine Department of Environmental Protection endorses the plan.

Selectmen said the Androscoggin Valley Council of Governments will be asked to investigate the required permits for the relocation. A new station will increase the amount of recycling and be more convenient for residents, they said.

Holman also commented on the possibility of adding a swap shop like the one at the Buckfield-Sumner Transfer Station. She said the shop would keep many tons of material out of the waste stream and provide free, usable items to residents.

Selectmen emphasized that they were merely collecting information and were not ready to bring the question to a town meeting.

In other business, selectmen learned that logging operators had been using the old railroad bed for access. Plumley said it is a recreation trail and not intended for commercial traffic. However, he said, he thought it was reasonable for residents to use it for harvesting timber as long as they did not run heavy trucks over the bridge.

The board passed his proposal to limit the load on the bridge to 10,000 pounds. Code Enforcement Officer Bill Kennedy was instructed to inform the loggers that they were expected to repair any damage to town land and to seed disturbed areas.

Plumley indicated that the Maine Audubon Society had expressed an interest in buying the railroad bed from the town. The selectmen have rejected selling the land because it would restrict residents from many recreational uses.

Concern was expressed that large rocks removed during a recent road project had been dumped near the sand/salt shed. Plumley said he would discuss moving the rocks with Road Commissioner Jeremy Johnson. Holman suggested that the rocks, which are from old rock walls, be offered free to those who want them.

In other news:

 – Trish McAllister was selected as the town attorney.

 – There will be an H1N1 vaccine clinic at the Buckfield Junior-Senior High School on Nov. 21. Details on who is eligible to get the vaccine will be publicized later.