Covanta Energy Corporation
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| Public company | |
| Traded as | : CVA |
| Industry | Renewable Energy/Waste Management |
| Headquarters | Morristown, New Jersey |
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Key people
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Samuel Zell (Chairman) |
| Revenue |
 US$ 1,699.0 million (2016) |
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US$ 109.0 million (2016) |
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 US$ -4.0 million (2016) |
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| Total assets |
US$ 4,284.0 million (2016) |
| Total equity |
US$ 469.0 million (2016) |
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Number of employees
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3,600 (2016) |
| Website | www |
Covanta (formerly the Ogden Corporation) is a large global corporation that provides a variety of waste-management and incineration services. Annually, Covanta’s Energy-from-Waste (EFW) facilities, also known as waste-to-energy plants, burn approximately 20 million tons of waste from municipalities and businesses, while also generating sufficient electricity to power one million homes. Covanta recycles approximately 500,000 tons of metal each year. Through a large network of treatment and recycling facilities, the firm also provides industrial material management services to companies in various industries.
Post-recycling municipal solid waste is gathered from homes and businesses, and is then delivered and temporarily stored in a bunker at the Energy-from-Waste facility. The building around the tipping and bunker area is maintained under negative pressure, and this air is then fed into the combustion process as an odor-control measure. The waste is moved into the combustion chamber and is burned at high temperatures in a self-sustaining process. Heat from combustion boils water to create steam which in turn powers a turbine-driven generator to produce electricity, or may sometimes be used directly for heating or industrial processes. Electricity is distributed to the grid and used to power homes and businesses.
Air pollution control equipment is used to cool, collect, and clean combustion gases. This equipment operates under the regulatory framework that applies to the jurisdiction in which it is situated, and thus the sophistication of emissions controls will vary between facilities. At Covanta EFW plants, particulate-matter emissions are primarily controlled through baghouses (fabric filters chosen to remove particles down to a certain diameter, as specified by regulations applicable to the facility). The air-emissions control systems are continuously monitored to ensure compliance with the relevant state and federal standards.
Residual material from the combustion process is collected for automated processing. Ferrous and non-ferrous metals are extracted for recycling. Remaining residual materials (including fly ash) can sometimes be used as an aggregate admixture, or they can be disposed of via landfilling. The fly ash may be considered hazardous waste, in which case the destination landfill must be licensed to accept such waste.
Several of the company's facilities have been cited for air emissions violations and have experienced some labor relations disputes all of which have been settled appropriately. In 2001, Florida Department of Environmental Protection fined $104,100 (originally proposed $230,700) or $156,000 worth of "in-kind penalty projects" the Covanta Energy, formerly Ogden Corporation, for two mercury-pollution violations at the Okahumpka plant in 1998 and 1999.
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Wikipedia