110th largest plant in Pennsylvania · 4035th nationally
Lancaster County Resource Recovery is a biomass power plant in Pennsylvania with a nameplate capacity of 35.7 MW. It generates roughly 186.8k MWh per year — enough to power about 17,790 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 60% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time. At 2409 lb CO₂/MWh, its emission rate sits above the national grid average of roughly 800 lb/MWh.
Ghost bars are each month's theoretical maximum (35.7 MW nameplate × hours in the month). Filled bars are actual net generation reported to EIA Form 923. The gap between them is capacity factor made visible.
| Plant Name | Lancaster County Resource Recovery |
|---|---|
| Operator | Covanta Lancaster Inc |
| City | Brainbridge |
| County | Lancaster County |
| State | Pennsylvania |
| ZIP | 17502 |
| Coordinates | 40.07110, -76.64360 |
This plant highlighted in navy-ringed pin; other generators within 25 miles shown as fuel-colored dots.
| ID | Technology | Fuel | Capacity | Status | Online |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| GEN1 | Municipal Solid Waste | Municipal Waste | 35.7 MW | Operating | 1990 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Lancaster County Solid Wr Auth | Lancaster, PA | 10000.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 225.0k metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 318 metric tons |
| NOₓ | 524 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 2409 lb/MWh |
Annual totals and CO₂ rate reported by EPA eGRID for 2023. Reference averages are approximate U.S.-wide figures from the same dataset.
| NERC Region | RFC |
|---|---|
| Balancing Authority | Pjm Interconnection, Llc |
Biomass plants burn wood, agricultural waste, or methane from landfills to generate steam and electricity. They are considered carbon-neutral over long timescales when fuel is sustainably sourced, but they produce particulate emissions similar to coal.