Committee adopts interim amendment and advances comprehensive solid waste plan amid incinerator transition and budget concerns

The Montgomery County Council Transportation and Environment Committee reviewed a draft 10-year Comprehensive Solid Waste Management Plan March 24 and unanimously adopted a committee amendment that requires the county, as it studies alternatives, to “concurrently explore feasible waste diversion and disposal alternatives while advancing efforts toward the closure of the resource recovery facility.”

The plan — required by Maryland law to be submitted to the Maryland Department of the Environment — lays out data, facilities descriptions and a chapter of programmatic actions aimed at an "aiming for 0 waste" goal. Committee members and Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) staff discussed sequencing, budget consequences and pilot programs while stressing the plan is an interim document that will be amended to reflect any material policy decisions made later.

DEP staff explained the plan’s structure: technical data chapters already received a technical approval from the Maryland Department of the Environment; chapter 4 lists county facilities; chapter 5 proposes actions including expanded recycling, commercial and residential food-scrap programs, a "save-as-you-throw" pilot, edible food recovery, material recovery facility upgrades and an organics processing facility. DEP said the county…