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The delay, spearheaded by Council President Natali Fani-Gonzalez, could be for a few months—or longer—if Ms. Gonzalez requires the Council ‘s Office of Legislative Oversight (OLO) to conduct further analyses on the pros and cons of trash incineration versus landfilling. The plan to stop burning and transition to landfilling was presented to the Council in March by County Executive Marc Elrich. The plan was informed by two years of detailed study by the County’s Department of Environmental Protection. Truck hauling of trash to the nation’s roughly 3,000 landfills is by far the most common waste management system in the U.S. It accounts for the disposal of 65% of trash after recyclable and compostable material is diverted from the “waste stream.” The technology has become much safer and more environmentally friendly over the past decade. In contrast, the Dickerson incinerator is past its prime at 30 years old, and has been for decades the single largest source of pollution—including climate-altering greenhouse gases—in the county.
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