Marion County is known for being an agricultural powerhouse in the Pacific Northwest, as well as one of the most beautiful forested recreational areas of the state. Marion County has always been dedicated to protecting and preserving our incredible surroundings and reducing waste through innovative and sustainable solutions that can also serve our community in positive ways. In recent years, we have made great strides in waste reclamation (reduction) and energy conversion, and we are proud of that work.

Marion County has a comprehensive, integrated solid waste management system in place, designed to reduce, reuse, and recycle as much waste as we are able. Our efforts include educational programs for the citizens of Marion County like the new Marion Resourcers Movement (formally the Marion County Master Recyclers) and innovative private partnerships like the Marion Resource Recovery Facility (MRRF), Covanta’s waste-to-energy facility. These programs have helped us achieve a waste recovery rate of 48.5% (for the year 2020), making Marion County one of the top recycling communities compared to the state average recovery rate of 42.1%.

Working with a waste-to-energy facility like Covanta is one area that differentiates Marion County from others in Oregon. As one of our key partners in our solid waste management system, their waste-to-energy plant converts trash that cannot be reclaimed into electricity and usable energy. All emissions from the facility are closely monitored and optimized, which is nearly impossible to do with a landfill. The plant reduces greenhouse gas emissions of CO2 by 130,000 tons each year (as much CO2 emitted on average by 26,000 passenger cars) while simultaneously providing enough electricity to power roughly 6,000 homes in our community. Marion County's contract with Covanta helps to reduce the amount of residential waste that goes to a landfill, while also providing a clean, renewable source of energy for our community.

In addition to environmental benefits, the MRRF and Covanta facilities have also provided significant economic opportunities, providing high- and living-wage jobs to support the local economy. These facilities also generate millions of dollars in revenue each year, which is invested back into the community.

The success of our integrated solid waste management system would not be possible without the support of our community. With Marion County Environmental Services spending years providing educational opportunities to make it practical to reduce, reuse, and recycle, residents have embraced these resources and have been instrumental in helping us reach our waste reduction and recycling goals. We are grateful for your support in this, and we know there is still much we can do.

We are proud as a county to be leading the way at the forefront of waste recovery and energy conversion, and we will continue optimizing to keep our community and our environment clean, healthy, and a beautiful place to live and call home. Our integrated solid waste management system is a testament to our commitment to this invaluable work.

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