Environmental firm wraps up multi-year trash-to-energy research study

WESTOVER — Environmental consulting firm Downstream Strategies, in conjunction with the Monongalia County Solid Waste Authority (MCSWA), plan to take their findings from a multi-year study of local solid waste management practices and emerging trash-to-energy technologies on the road.
Evan Hansen and Evan Fedorko, representing Downstream Strategies, attended Monday April 30’s regular MCSWA meeting, held at the WVU Extension Office in Westover.
The environmental firm and the MCSWA drilled down on what the future may hold for solid waste. In particular, the study centered on rising waste-to-energy technologies like gasification, as well as more commonly used methods like incineration.
The MCSWA authorized the expenditure of $500 to produce copies of the resulting study, entitled “Future scenarios for Monongalia County’s solid waste management system” for presentation to local stakeholders, including the municipalities, WVU, trash and recycling haulers and other relevant businesses or entities.
Hansen and Fedorko made an initial presentation before the Monongalia County Commission in March. Hansen said they also met with Morgantown City Manager Paul Brake “to fill him in on the report and the fact that we’re trying to get a process together with local governments and other stakeholders to talk strategically about the future of solid waste and recycling in the county.”
The report notes that only about 5 percent of the solid waste in Monongalia County gets recycled. Inside Morgantown, that number jumps to about 10 percent, while Star City is estimated at 7 percent and Westover at 4 percent.
By comparison, an estimated 26 percent of municipal solid waste is recycled nationally according to the study.
MCSWA Chairman Hayward Helmick said there was a lot of time and effort put into producing the report, and now it deserves to be seen.
“I just don’t want to see months worth of work put on a shelf to collect dust,” Helmick said. “We’ve invested a lot of time in this thing, and you guys have, too. Let’s get it out there.”
Helmick said the MCSWA is also interested in looking at the environmental impact of the various existing trash and recycling programs across the county.