Sullivan County Explores Waste-to-Energy Plant as Official RFP Opens for Private Partners

SULLIVAN COUNTY, N.Y. — Sullivan County has issued a new request for proposals (RFP) to explore building a waste-to-energy facility, sometimes called an incinerator, as part of its long-term waste management strategy.

What the RFP Covers

Liam Mayo of The River Reporter explained:
“This RFP is out for some kind of public-private partnership that would build a waste-to-energy facility or incinerator in Sullivan County. And the details of like what that technology would be and what the provider would be, that’s all the kinds of things that would be determined depending on who responds to the RFP and what kind of project they want to bring to the table.”

In broad terms, Mayo said:
“The county is looking at something like this, something that would take trash, burn it, liquefy it, do something to turn it into energy, leaving very minimal byproducts as an alternate to what the county is currently doing, which is paying for its trash to go out of the area to a landfill out of the area.”

How This RFP Differs from Last Year’s Draft RFP

Mayo noted:
“That RFP wasn’t really looking for actionable things for the legislature to vote on or decide to move forward with. That was more to get feedback and to shape the eventual form that the full official request for proposals will take. Now, the county has now put that official RFP out. It is looking for sort of an official proposal and an official partnership that could potentially, depending on the responses they get, go before the legislature as something the county would move forward with.”

Timeline and Next Steps

Proposals are due by June 5, 2026.

County legislature evaluates proposals for financial, environmental, and operational feasibility.

If approved, the project would require a DEC permit.

Construction and permitting could take up to a decade from the current stage, according to County Manager Josh Potosek.

Community and Environmental Concerns

Health risks and pollution from an incinerator.

Long-term costs and potential tax burden for the county.

Waste reduction concerns: Advocates say an incinerator could discourage recycling, reuse, and composting.

Potosek told The River Reporter that the county recognizes these concerns but sees broader limits:
“Can we do more on recycling? Yes. Can we compost? Yes. But that’s not going to be in waste goes to zero until packaging laws change, federal state, municipalities, or anyone trying to get to zero waste, your hands are tied. It’s almost impossible,” he said.

Image: The Covanta Hempstead waste-to-energy plant and the Meadowbrook State Parkway in Uniondale, New York in 2021. (CC BY-SA 4.0)