The closure of the Stanislaus County garbage burner will force changes in waste disposal for the county and its cities.
County and Modesto officials are in negotiations with Covanta (now Reworld) to cease operations in December at the waste-to-energy plant near Crows Landing, which has capacity to burn 800 tons per day to generate electricity.
A recent report said the Covanta incinerator has burned about half the waste collected from cities and the county’s unincorporated area, meaning the amount of trash received in the adjacent Fink Road Landfill could double after the incinerator closes.
Some are questioning whether garbage rates for Stanislaus County residents will increase. Other questions are: Who will pay for demolition of the incineration plant, which opened in 1987, and can the county’s conservative leadership get on board with the ongoing transition in waste disposal in California after 37 years of garbage burning.
County elected officials said they have few other options than returning to reliance on the 203-acre landfill for waste disposal, combined with recycling efforts that reduce the waste stream. In the past few years, residents in Modesto and the county unincorporated area were jolted by sharp increases in garbage rates to pay for a state-mandated conversion to a three-container system, which diverts plastics, cardboard, yard clippings and other materials to recycling or composting facilities.