Philadelphia sends its trash to be burned. Neighbors say they’ve had enough – NBC 10, Nov 9th
As Philly weighs new waste contracts, residents and city leaders in Chester are questioning why their community should continue bearing the burden.
By David Charns and Ali IngersollPublished November 9, 2026 • Updated on November 9, 2026 at 6:31 pm
Philadelphia sends hundreds of thousands of tons of trash to Chester each year to be burned. Now, as city councilmembers weigh new waste contracts, residents in the small Delaware County city and its leaders are urging Philly to stop sending its trash there and calling for the incinerator to close.
The debate pits the cost and logistical challenge of disposing of hundreds of thousands of tons of Philadelphia waste against concerns about air pollution and environmental justice in a city that already hosts a concentration of industrial facilities.
The Reworld Delaware Valley waste facility sits along the Delaware River in Chester and is one of the largest waste-to-energy incinerators in the country.
Philadelphia paid $13.2 million to Reworld in fiscal year 2026, according to the Philadelphia Managing Director’s Office.
At a 2025 Philadelphia City Council committee hearing prompted by Democratic Councilmember Jamie Gauthier, who introduced legislation to stop the city from burning its trash, city officials testified that approximately 180,000 tons, or 30% of Philadelphia’s municipal waste, was sent to Reworld’s Chester facility, while about 430,000 tons went to landfills.
For Zulene Mayfield, the debate is not new.
Mayfield chairs Chester Residents Concerned for Quality Living, a group that has fought the incinerator since before the facility opened in 1992. She once lived across the street from the facility and says she eventually moved because of it.
“Why should this community of 35,000 people have to carry the burden of at least two million people’s trash?” Mayfield told the NBC10 Investigators.
What happens when Philadelphia’s trash is burned?
Trash arrives at the Chester incinerator not only from Philadelphia and surrounding communities, but also from other cities, including New York.
The trash does not simply disappear when it is burned.
Jennifer Saxe, an environmental engineering professor at the University of Delaware, told the NBC10 Investigators that incineration dramatically reduces the volume of garbage but generates pollutants in the process.
“The waste comes into the facility, the volume of waste is reduced, but in that process, you are also generating pollutants, which mostly end up in the air,” Saxe said.
Those pollutants include particulate matter and nitrogen oxides, or NOx. Particulate matter is also found in pollution such as wildfire smoke, while nitrogen oxides can irritate airways and contribute to respiratory problems, according to Saxe and data filed with the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection.
Reworld’s facility performance report says recent average annual emissions were below federal standards for pollutants including particulate matter and nitrogen oxides. But the company’s data also estimates the Chester facility accounts for 16% of Delaware County’s nitrogen oxide emissions.
Reworld has said the facility is heavily regulated and that emissions are continuously monitored. The company also says it has invested in technology to reduce emissions. Representatives for the facility declined to allow the NBC10 Investigators inside or answer questions on camera.
Philadelphia weighs whether to keep sending trash to Chester
The environmental concerns come as Philadelphia City Council considers new waste contracts that would determine where much of the city’s trash goes in the years ahead.
The NBC10 Investigators obtained an internal city analysis comparing waste-to-energy incineration with sending garbage to landfills.
The analysis concluded that neither disposal method was environmentally “superior.” It also warned that “waste-to-energy incineration generates hazardous air pollutants” and noted concerns about incinerators operating in “historically overburdened communities.”
Chester Mayor Stefan Roots, a Democrat, said that describes his city.
We don’t want it here either,” Roots said. “An incinerator that size in a city this small, so close to a population center shouldn’t happen.”
Chester has a population of roughly 35,000, and the incinerator sits along its Delaware River waterfront among other industrial facilities.
Roots confirmed Chester also sends its own trash to the Reworld facility, though he said the disposal contract is through Delaware County rather than the city. Roots estimated Chester accounts for less than 2% of the waste burned at the facility.
Why should this community of 35,000 people have to carry the burden of at least two million people’s trash?Zulene Mayfield
Last year, Delaware County adopted a Zero Waste Plan aimed at reducing the amount of waste generated and ultimately eliminating the county’s reliance on incineration.
Roots urged Philadelphia leaders to consider the burden their waste places on Chester.
“You’ve already protected your people, Philadelphia. You eliminated incineration in the city of Philadelphia years ago,” Roots said. “Kind of look back and have some sympathy for us. We don’t want incineration here either.”
The economics of Philadelphia’s trash
Philadelphia city leaders have said their decisions about how to manage the city’s trash are also driven by economic realities. The Chester facility remains one of the cheaper disposal options available to Philadelphia, according to City Council documents.
Under Philadelphia’s proposed new waste contracts, Reworld would charge $47 per ton in 2027, making it one of the least expensive disposal facilities listed in the proposal, second only to a facility in Conestoga in Lancaster County.
Philadelphia officials have said waste-disposal proposals are evaluated on more than cost, including environmental impacts, impacts on surrounding neighborhoods and operational efficiency.
Roots argues there is another cost that isn’t captured by the per-ton price.
“You can’t build a condo next to a trash incinerator, even though it’s on the most beautiful waterfront around,” Roots said. “It’s just not going to happen. No, it’s not fair.”
State records list 14 enforcement matters since 2014
Pennsylvania law sets emissions limits for the facility and requires pollution controls, testing and monitoring.
Through a public records request, the NBC10 Investigators obtained a compliance history filed with the state for the Chester facility. The document lists 14 enforcement matters since 2014, including air-permit violations, a radiation-inspection violation and penalties involving emissions-monitoring data.
The penalties listed in the records total more than $241,000. Some of that money also returns to Chester, along with taxes Reworld pays the city, Roots said.
The facility is currently in compliance with state requirements, according to Pennsylvania regulators. An October 2026 Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection inspection found no violations.
John Ryder, a deputy commissioner with Pennsylvania DEP, told the NBC10 Investigators the department’s responsibility is to ensure the facility follows state environmental laws and regulations.
“We have regulations in place to handle those waste streams,” Ryder said. “Our job is to make sure they’re complying with the regulations and statutes.”
NBC10 investigative reporter David Charns asked Ryder whether Chester residents could be assured that the state was doing everything it could to make sure the facility was operating by the rules.
“You know, Dave, that’s one question I have a very, very high level of confidence in answering,” Ryder said. “Absolutely.”
If it isn’t burned, where does it go?
Ending Philadelphia’s reliance on the Chester incinerator would not eliminate the environmental consequences associated with the city’s trash, Saxe said.
The trash would still have to go somewhere. That could mean sending more waste to landfills or pursuing other waste-reduction and disposal alternatives.
“It still needs to be taken somewhere,” she said. “And there are going to be people that live near the composting facility, perhaps. There are still similar concerns, like with transportation and kind of local impact with any option.”
That is part of the question Philadelphia City Council faces as it considers the city’s next waste contracts: how to balance costs, capacity and environmental impacts when every disposal option has consequences.
For Mayfield, however, the issue is also about where those consequences have been concentrated for decades.
She does not want Chester to continue serving as what residents describe as a dumping ground for Philadelphia and the surrounding region.
“You have a living, thriving community here that’s struggling,” Mayfield said. “Struggling.”
Reworld responds
In a statement to the NBC10 Investigators, Reworld defended its relationship with Chester and its role in the community.
“Reworld is proud to be part of the Chester community and has a longstanding commitment to being a good community partner. Through ongoing outreach, education, community engagement and local initiatives, we continue to invest in the people and organizations that make Chester a strong and vibrant community,” a company spokesperson said.
Reworld has also argued that waste-to-energy provides benefits over simply burying garbage in landfills, including significantly reducing the volume of waste, recovering metals from the waste stream and generating electricity.
“Reworld operates the Chester facility safely, transparently and in full compliance with extensive environmental regulations,” the spokesperson said. “The facility operates up to 99% below federal emission guidelines, as verified through continuous emissions monitoring and stack testing, and an independent health risk assessment found risks to human health to be well below EPA thresholds. Despite claims to the contrary, the facility contributes well under 1% of countywide fine particulate emissions.”
The company provided an additional statement in response to questions about the enforcement actions.
“Reworld takes compliance with all environmental regulations seriously,” a spokesperson said. “Our Delaware Valley facility is designed to operate well within permitted limits, with emissions up to 99% below federal guidelines and a 99.88% compliance rate with continuous emissions monitoring standards.”
Philadelphia City Council is expected to hold a hearing on Wednesday, Nov. 18, to review the proposed waste contracts as councilmembers decide where the city will send its trash in the years ahead.
For Chester residents who have spent decades fighting the incinerator, that decision is about more than where Philadelphia’s garbage goes after it leaves the curb.
It is about who ultimately bears the burden of taking it.
The NBC10 Investigators can be reached at [email protected] and [email protected].
View original article here: https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/news/local/philadelphia-chester-incinerator-trash/4494072/
