Oregon DEQ cites Reworld Marion incinerator for multiple air quality violations

The Oregon Department of Environmental Quality has fined Reworld Marion $22,800 for multiple violations of its air pollution permit.

The 38-year-old garbage incinerator in Brooks, formerly called Covanta Marion, burns much of Marion County’s residential and commercial waste, generating electricity it sells to Portland General Electric.

Between 2022 and 2024 the company exceeded permitted limits for carbon monoxide, opacity and sulfur dioxide emissions, DEQ officials said.

All three pollutants can contribute to adverse health effects in people, DEQ said in its penalty order.

DEQ also cited, but didn’t fine, the company for violations related to its baghouse and carbon injection system operations.

It’s the second time in two years the state has fined the company for air quality violations.

In February 2022, DEQ imposed a $15,722 fine on the company for multiple violations, including elevated carbon monoxide emissions and for failing to report those excess emissions, as required by the company’s permit.

In its newest penalty, DEQ ordered Reworld to submit a plan detailing how it will prevent future opacity violations. Opacity is an indicator of particulate matter emissions.

“Reworld Marion acknowledges the penalties identified in the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s Civil Penalty Assessment and Order,” company spokesperson Rayne Pacek said in a written statement.

“We have made key investments in the operation of the facility in order to prevent these types of events, and there have been no further emissions limit exceedances since March 10, 2024,” Pacek said.

Reworld Marion is Oregon’s only municipal waste incinerator.

Its parent company, New Jersey-based Reworld, operates more than 40 incinerators in North America, Europe and the United Kingdom. In 2021, Reworld, then called Covanta Holding Corp., was purchased by Sweden-based investment conglomerate EQT Infrastructure.

Reworld Marion’s air emissions have been under scrutiny for years.

The facility was among the first to be called into former Gov. Kate Brown’s Cleaner Air Oregon initiative, which closed a loophole in state law that allowed polluters to emit dangerous levels of toxic chemicals while operating legally.

That review, which began in 2020, is ongoing.

And in 2023, the Oregon Legislature passed the nation’s strictest municipal waste incinerator monitoring rules.

Senate Bill 488 will require Reworld Marion to continuously monitor carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, opacity, PCBs, dioxins/furans, cadmium, lead, mercury, arsenic, total chromium, manganese, nickel, selenium and zinc.

Tracy Loew covers the environment at the Statesman Journal. Send comments, questions and tips:tloew@statesmanjournal.com or 503-399-6779. Follow her on X at@Tracy_Loew