Montgomery County at a crossroads over future of its trash disposal

MONTGOMERY COUNTY, Md. (7News) — Montgomery County, Maryland, is entering a pivotal debate over how to manage the more than 600,000 tons of trash it produces each year — a decision that could shape the region’s environmental and financial future for decades.

At the center of the discussion is the Dickerson Waste-to-Energy Incinerator, officially known as the Resource Recovery Facility. County leaders are weighing whether to continue burning trash there or begin shipping it to out-of-state landfills.

County Executive Marc Elrich has publicly called the incinerator outdated and supports transitioning to long-haul trucking and landfill disposal. This month, the county received several proposals from companies offering to transport trash to large landfill sites across state lines.

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But environmental experts warn that switching to landfills comes with its own consequences. While the incinerator does produce emissions, landfills release methane — a greenhouse gas significantly more potent than carbon dioxide. That means burying trash could actually create more long-term climate pollution than burning it, according to specialists.

Supporters of the Dickerson facility note it meets federal emissions limits, generates electricity, and brings in revenue — about $24 million last year. The plant also recovers metals during the combustion process, keeping them out of landfills. Still, the plant faces serious challenges. The ash produced — containing heavy metals — is shipped to a landfill in Richmond, Virginia, raising environmental justice concerns for the community there.

And the incinerator itself is aging, with tens of millions of dollars in repairs needed to keep it running.

Acting Department of Environmental Protection Director Jeff Seltzer confirmed to 7News that the county received multiple long-haul proposals just this week. He says neither option is perfect.

“To be frank, neither option is great — they both create greenhouse gas,” Seltzer said, citing a consultant analysis using the EPA’s WARM model,” Seltzer said.

Seltzer added, “Their analysis did show that long-haul is a little bit better We are at a point where we have to make a decision as a county of how we want to handle our waste in the long term.”

Financially, the county said the long-term costs favor keeping the incinerator, while shifting to landfills could be cheaper in the short term — but only temporarily.

County officials said final recommendations and options are expected early next year.