Be Prepared for January 2026: 

Montgomery County Council is expected to hear from the County and the Department of Environmental Protection about the long-term plans for Solid Waste Management - to close the waste incinerator in Dickerson and using a landfill or to continue trash incineration.

In Spring 2025, the County Executive planned to continue trash incineration in Dickerson and invest $28.5 million to maintain/repair the facility in FY26 in addition to the regular operational cost of $33 million. In July 2025, the  DEP announced that they are now working on the Request for Proposals from contractors to transition from trash incineration to using a landfill within a year.

We support the DEP’s Zero Waste initiatives, and we strongly disagree with continuing to incinerate and putting another tens of millions into the trash incinerator for the next five years. Please tell your County council members that you support DEP’s Zero Waste initiatives and closing of the trash incinerator.