Covanta Energy Corp., Morristown, N.J., has signed an agreement with the city of Waterbury, Conn., to provide recycling and disposal services. Covanta owns and operates three energy-from-waste facilities in Connecticut: Covanta Projects of Wallingford, Covanta Bristol and Covanta SECONN in Preston.

Under terms of the agreement, Covanta will handle the disposal of 40,000 tons of Waterbury’s municipal solid waste at its Covanta Bristol energy-from-waste facility. Additionally, Covanta will handle 5,000 tons of recyclables collected by the city. The five-year agreement was slated to begin July 1, 2013.

“After a considerable amount of due diligence and negotiation, we are confident that Covanta will be an excellent partner and service provider to the City of Waterbury,” says Waterbury Mayor Neil O’Leary. “The new agreement saves taxpayers at least $2 million and we will be handling our waste in a sustainable manner by utilizing Covanta’s energy-from-waste facilities and recycling services instead of landfilling. We make these decisions with our taxpayers’ best interests in mind. The critical importance of these value-added services cannot be overstated.”

“We commend Mayor O’Leary and his team for their hard work to reach the best deal possible for their constituents,” says Steve Diaz, vice president and regional business manager for Covanta. “As the sustainable waste management leader in Connecticut, Covanta is proud to be able to now provide our services to the City of Waterbury, a well-respected and leading city in Connecticut. We look forward to a long and mutually-beneficial partnership.”

As part of the contract, Covanta and Waterbury have agreed to establish an educational outreach program for the citizens of Waterbury that will cover a variety of projects including recycling education and hazardous household waste collection.