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A Fairfax County waste-to-energy facility could face closure under Virginia’s carbon-reduction rules, potentially sending about 1 billion pounds of trash to a King George County landfill each year, according to state Sen. Scott Surovell.
Surovell, the Democratic Senate majority leader representing District 34, plans to introduce legislation exempting the I-95 Energy Resource Recovery Facility at 9898 Furnace Road in Lorton from regulations scheduled to take effect in 2031.
Reworld operates the facility, which processes more than 1.12 million tons of waste annually from Fairfax County, Arlington and Washington, D.C. The plant burns the material instead of placing it in a landfill, using the resulting steam to generate 93 megawatts of electricity.
The facility falls within the scope of the Virginia Clean Economy Act because the law applies to electricity-generating units producing at least 25 megawatts, regardless of their fuel. Signed by then-Gov. Ralph Northam in April 2020, the act directs the state Air Pollution Control Board to establish regulations reducing carbon dioxide emissions from those generators.
The board could not approve the regulations before July 1, 2024. Virginia’s broader effort to phase out greenhouse gas-producing fossil fuels received less emphasis under Gov. Glenn Youngkin, whose energy policy supported natural gas and nuclear power alongside other sources.
That direction could change when Gov.-elect Abigail Spanberger takes office Jan. 17, 2026. With Democrats controlling both chambers of the General Assembly, lawmakers are expected to renew their focus on clean and renewable energy. Regulations developed by the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality could then affect the Lorton facility from 2031 through 2050.
“This could significantly change the economics of the County’s incinerator and/or require it to be shut down,” Surovell said by email.
He said a closure would force about 1 billion pounds of trash to be transported annually to a landfill in King George County—equivalent to roughly one tractor-trailer passing through the Occoquan bottleneck on Interstate 95 every two minutes.
Surovell’s proposal had not been formally filed, so its text was unavailable before the General Assembly’s 2026 session began Jan. 13.
Both Reworld and the Fairfax County Department of Public Works and Environmental Services, which manages the county’s trash and recycling programs, said the facility’s unusual role warrants a change in state law.
“We cannot confirm or comment on Senator Surovell’s legislation or intent, although DPWES does concur that a legislative adjustment is warranted specifically for the unique waste-to-energy generation operations of Reworld,” a department spokesperson said.
The incinerator releases carbon dioxide, carbon monoxide, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxide and particulate matter. Reworld Communications Director Linda Ribakusky argued, however, that its emissions are substantially lower than those associated with conventional landfills, where decomposing organic waste produces methane.
“Without an exemption, the Virginia Clean Economy Act would incentivize higher greenhouse gas emissions—which is contrary to the intent of the legislation,” Ribakusky said.
She said applying the same requirements to waste-to-energy operations and conventional power plants fails to account for the facilities’ roles in limiting landfill methane, meeting local waste-disposal needs and generating dependable renewable electricity.
Unlike a conventional power plant, the Lorton operation cannot switch to a different fuel to reduce its carbon footprint. Its fuel is the solid waste supplied by Fairfax County and other participating jurisdictions, the county public works department said.
Reworld said its thermomechanical treatment facilities operate as much as 97% below federal emissions limits while meeting stringent environmental standards. The company said it intends to work with regulators and state, local and Fairfax County officials to keep the Lorton facility operating while supporting Virginia’s climate objectives.