New technologies will also improve recycling and waste processing and allow the County to close the Resource Recovery Facility, which converts waste to energy. Simultaneously, the County is evaluating and implementing advanced recycling and waste processing technologies aimed at increasing efficiency and minimizing the volume of waste ultimately processed for disposal. The County is upgrading the County’s Recycling Facility to add technologies aided by artificial intelligence, such as advanced optical sorters, which will significantly increase efficiency, better separate materials, reduce contamination and increase material quality and marketing value.
The County is also evaluating and implementing alternative waste processing technologies and systems that will reduce the remaining total volume of waste for disposal. Once an alternative waste processing system is implemented, the County plans to close its Resource Recovery Facility. However, because this transition cannot be fully implemented before the current solid waste processing contract expires in April 2026, Montgomery County will continue to rely on the County’s Resource Recovery Facility and Transfer Station to manage waste until those systems are operational.
For updates and link to press release, see here: http://www2.montgomerycountymd.gov/mcgportalapps/Press_Detail.aspx?Item_ID=46213