Westport Island selectmen heard plans Monday for the state’s first MOFGA-certified organic craft brewery.

Local residents Jeff Tarbox and Kyle DePietro shared their plan for Sasanoa Brewery, which will extend the use of the Tarbox farm and is expected to begin selling the Belgian farmhouse-style beer this fall. The brewery is named for the river that borders the Tarbox property.

DePietro and wife Angela Trombley have operated an eight to 10-acre organic farm on the property for the past eight years. They provide their mixed produce at a variety of locations including the Bath and Boothbay farmers markets and at Wanser’s and Rising Tide stores.

DePietro, a master brewer with many years of experience, explained to the Wiscasset Newspaper that he and Tarbox have been talking about opening an organic craft brewery for the past 18 months.

Their plan is to start small and eventually produce about 20 barrels each month, featuring ingredients grown on the farm. The goal is to be green; grains used in making the beer will feed the farm’s pigs.

Selectman Jerry Bodmer, who is also the town’s plumbing inspector, had a number of questions for Tarbox and DePietro. “Most brewing discharges 70 percent of the water,” he said. “What is proposed for the sewage disposal system?”   

DePietro said gray water from the beer-making process will be used for irrigation and that Kenneth Cotton has been contacted to provide a site evaluation.

Responding to questions about adequate water supply, DiPietro disclosed that the well serving the property provides four gallons per minute and that there is “a pretty strong aquifer in the area.”

The process of updating a 12-foot-by-12-foot section of the barn, creating a septic system and securing appropriate licenses from the state and federal governments is expected to take up to eight months.

Also at the Jan. 30 selectmen’s meeting, Fire Chief Bob Mooney and Town Clerk Gaye Wagner reported on the generator project. Due to the generous contributions of people and local businesses, the project was completed under budget. The town thanks G & D Cromwell, Roger Higgins and Abbott, Inc. as well as Mooney, for more than $2,000 in in-kind donations.

The selectmen also began to discuss how the island will respond to the legalization of marijuana in Maine. They expect the local discussion to continue throughout the state’s rule-making process.