User:NKR2009/covantaholding

Covanta Holding Corporation is a public company headquartered in Morristown, New Jersey. It provides energy-from-waste and industrial waste management services. Most of its revenue comes from operating power plants that burn trash as fuel. Covanta charges a fee for waste disposal, sells electricity produced in the process and recovers metal for recycling.

Early history
Ogden Corporation, which later became the parent corporation of Covanta, was founded in 1939. Ogden was originally a holding company for investments in utility businesses. In 1952, Ogden acquired W.A. Case & Son Manufacturing Company, shifting its focus to manufacturing. Over time, it expanded into other industries, like entertainment and food, through acquisitions. In 1955, Ogden acquired a metal scrap recycling company called Luria Brothers. Luria's former CEO Ralph E. Ablon became the CEO of Ogden in 1962.

In the 1980s, David Sokol was appointed CEO. Ogden shifted from primarily a manufacturing business to a services company. By 1987, substantially all of Ogden's revenues were from services it didn't previously provide, like warehousing, running concession stands at stadiums, and janitorial services. Its first investment in the services industry was the $118 million acquisition of Allied Maintenance Corporation in 1982. In 1984, Ogden spun-off seven of its industrial businesses, which became owned primarily by Ogden employees.

Energy-from-waste
Ogden first entered the energy-from-waste business in 1983, when it acquired intellectual property rights to German incinerator technology commonly used in Europe, as well as a method of hazardous waste disposal. By 1986, Ogden had five energy-from-waste plants under construction and agreements in place to build four more. By 1995, half of Ogden's revenues were from energy-from-waste projects.

In 1991, Ablon's son Richard took over as CEO. Ogden acquired 19 companies in eight years. In 1991, it acquired a professional services company called ERC Environmental and Energy Services for $80 million. In 1995, Ogden was restructured into three divisions: aviation, energy, and entertainment. Some of its less profitable businesses, such as computer services and concession stands, were sold. In 1999, Ogden acquired several water parks, including Wet'n Wild Inc.

In 1999, Ablon resigned as CEO and Scott Mackin was appointed. That year, Ogden planned a restructuring where its aviation and entertainment divisions would be spun-off as a separate public company. However, instead Ogden sold its entertainment and aviation businesses to focus on energy and environmental services. Its theme and water parks were sold to Alfa Holdings for $148 million. Its concessions, food, uniform, and child-care interests were sold to Aramark Corporation for $225 million.

Covanta
In 2001, Ogden's name was changed to Covanta to represent its focus on energy. Covanta and its 155 subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy in 2002. The bankruptcy was prompted by the California electricity crisis and the economic downturn following the September 11 attacks.

In 2004, Anthony Orlando was appointed CEO. That same year, 20 banks agreed to provide $463 million in financing to help the company get out of bankruptcy, restructure, and sell itself. Covanta came out of bankruptcy in 2004, when it was purchased by Danielson Holding Corporation. In 2005, Danielson sold Ogden's interests in casinos, hockey stadiums, and other areas to focus on its energy-from-waste business. Later that year, Covanta acquired a energy-from-waste business called American Ref-Fuel for $2 billion.

In 2009, Covanta bought the energy-from-waste business of Veolia Environment for $450 million. This was followed by acquisitions of environmental services companies Advanced Waste Services and GARCO for undisclosed sums in 2014.

In 2015, Covanta appointed Stephen J. Jones as its new CEO.

Operations
Covanta develops and operates facilities that burn trash to produce electricity, recover metals from the waste stream for recycling and provide other industrial waste management services. As of 2013, about 60% of Covanta's revenue came from selling trash disposal services and 25% from selling electricity produced by burning it. The remainder of its revenue is from metal recycling, construction, and other services.

As of 2018, Covanta operates about 42 waste-to-energy plants in North America, China, and Europe. Covanta burns 20 million tons of trash annually and recycles 550,000 tons of metal. Most of Covanta's revenue comes from long-term contracts with local governments or utility providers. It also benefits from tax incentives for green energy projects.

A majority of the trash Covanta burns is organic substances. It also burns a smaller amount of pharmaceutical byproducts, like expired medicines. Each ton of garbage contains about 50 pounds of metal that is removed with magnets, then sold for recycling.

At its plants, Covanta feeds trash into a furnace burning at 1,800 degrees Fahrenheit. The furnace produces steam that rotates a turbine, powering a generator. The remaining ash is rapidly cooled to prevent the formation of toxic compounds, then goes through additional processing. Government agencies regulate and monitor Covanta emission stacks for harmful toxins. Filters and other equipment attempt to remove most of the harmful particulates and activated carbon removes most of the mercury. Steam is released into the atmosphere.

Environmental and social impact
Covanta supporters say burning trash to produce energy is an environmentally-friendly way to produce power and dispose of garbage that would otherwise fill landfills. Environmental critics on the other hand are concerned about mercury, lead, and other toxins produced from burning garbage. Covanta simultaneously receives awards for its positive impact on the environment, while being sued and protested for the opposite.

A 2008 study by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency found that waste-to-energy plants were better for the environment than landfills, in part because they reduce the methane garbage produced in landfills and reduce reliance on other fuels like coal. A study by Columbia University said if waste-to-energy was as popular in the United States as it is in Europe, the U.S. would reduce carbon emissions by 264 million tons annually. However, many environmentalists are skeptical about Covanta's claim that the steam emitted from a plant's furnace does not contain excess toxins. Some environmentalist distrust government monitoring of Covanta's emission stacks and lobby for more regulation.

Additionally, Covanta has been cited numerous times for exceeding air pollution standards. One Covanta plant in Newark was cited for violating emission standards. In 2010, the lawsuit was settled for $875,000, which was used for a local green space program. Similar problems have led to fines and settlements for mercury emissions in Florida, dioxin in Connecticut, and for hydrated lime in Dublin, Ireland.

An academic from Columbia University said most energy-from-waste emission criticisms are related to dated technology or misinformation. Covanta said its facilities are compliant with emission standards 99.9% of the time.

In 2014, there was a controversy about whether an Oregon Covanta facility was burning aborted fetuses and other human body parts as part of its medical waste. Covanta said its plant never received aborted fetuses as fuel. Covanta works with local governments to safely dispose of prescription drugs.