MORRISTOWN, N.J., Aug. 17, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — Covanta Holding Corporation (NYSE: CVA), announced today that its subsidiary, Covanta Durham York Renewable Energy Limited Partnership has received the Notice to Proceed (NTP) from the Regional Municipalities of Durham and York, Ontario for the construction of a 140,000 tonne-per-year Energy-from-Waste facility in the Municipality of Clarington, Ontario. Covanta will design, build and operate the approximately $250 million project to be funded and owned by the regions of Durham and York. Design work has commenced and construction will get underway during the fall of 2011, with operations beginning in 2014.

The Durham York Energy-from-Waste facility will serve as an integral component of the comprehensive solid waste management program of the Regions of Durham and York. The facility will only process municipally collected household waste left over after the Regions’ aggressive diversion efforts, such as recycling and composting. When operating at design capacity, the facility will be capable of producing 17.5 megawatts of clean renewable energy, enough to power approximately 10,000 homes. In the future, steam generated at the facility could be utilized for district heating in an industrial park adjacent to the facility, heating the equivalent of 2,200 homes. The facility will also recover ferrous and non-ferrous metals for recycling.

“We are delighted to receive the go-ahead on the construction of the Durham York Energy Centre, the first large scale, commercial energy-from-waste project in North America in over 15 years. The state-of-the-art facility will provide a long-term solution for sustainably managing the Regions’ waste and set an industry standard for operations,” said Anthony J. Orlando, president and chief executive officer of Covanta Energy. “The partnership of Durham and York and their decision to build this facility reinforces the important role that energy-from-waste plays in sustainable waste management efforts and in creating new reliable, renewable energy sources.”

In April 2009 following an extensive competitive procurement process and evaluation review, the Durham Regional Council selected Covanta from a number of competing bids as the preferred vendor to build, operate and maintain an energy-from-waste facility. The facility is intended to complement the high waste diversion targets set by the Region and adhere to stringent environmental mitigation and monitoring plans. The project received a certificate of approval from the Ontario Ministry of the Environment on June 28, 2011 that covers all operational requirements and conditions. The emissions control technology at the Durham York facility will establish it as one of the cleanest energy-from-waste facilities in the world. It is estimated that facility construction will create approximately 400 jobs over a three year period and once operational, is expected to employ approximately 40 skilled workers on a full-time basis.