21st largest plant in Maryland · 3227th nationally
Montgomery County Resource Recovery is a biomass power plant in Maryland with a nameplate capacity of 67.8 MW. It generates roughly 283.5k MWh per year — enough to power about 26,995 average U.S. homes.
Its capacity factor of 48% puts it in the middle range — running steadily but not full-time. At 1983 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 (67.8 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 | Montgomery County Resource Recovery |
|---|---|
| Operator | Covanta Montgomery, Inc. |
| City | Dickerson |
| County | Montgomery County |
| State | Maryland |
| ZIP | 20842 |
| Coordinates | 39.20060, -77.45560 |
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 | 67.8 MW | Operating | 1995 |
| Owner | Location | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Northeast Maryland W D Auth | Baltimore, MD | 10000.0% |
Ownership reported to EIA Form 860. Percentages reflect reported generator-level ownership share, averaged when a plant has multiple generators.
| CO₂ | 281.1k metric tons |
|---|---|
| SO₂ | 402 metric tons |
| NOₓ | 429 metric tons |
| CO₂ Rate | 1983 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.