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A state bill to prohibit trash incinerators near national parks is unlikely to affect the Resource Recovery Facility in Dickerson, according to sponsors of the legislation.

The proposed bill, introduced Feb. 27 by Sens. Alexander X. Mooney and Brian E. Frosh, would bar the Maryland Department of the Environment from permitting incinerators located within a mile of a national park. The legislation was drafted in response to a proposal in Frederick County to construct a trash incinerator near the Monocacy National Battlefield, according to Mooney, who said last week he had received nearly 500 e-mails about the issue from constituents.

"It would be an eyesore," said Mooney (R-Dist. 3) of Urbana. "…They probably wouldn't have had the audacity to do this next to Antietam, but this battleground is important too."

The legislation could also impact Montgomery County's Resource Recovery Facility, a waste-to-energy incinerator located within a mile of the C&O Canal National Historic Park, according to Bill Davidson, chief of northern operations and planning for the county's Division of Solid Waste Services. The state must periodically reissue incinerator permits, he said.

Mooney said he was not aware of existing incinerators located near national parks when he introduced the bill and that he is open to amending it if necessary for the legislation to move forward.

He said he expects to learn more about other facilities that could be impacted when the bill goes to public hearing. It is currently in the Senate Rules Committee, he said.

"I don't think anyone's talking about tearing down existing facilities," said Frosh (D-Dist. 16) of Bethesda.

In addition to the Montgomery facility, Baltimore City and Howard County each have a municipal solid waste incinerator, according to MDE.

The Resource Recovery Facility, which opened in 1995, is owned by the Northeast Maryland Waste Disposal Authority and operated by Covanta Montgomery Inc., according to the county's Web site. The facility faced opposition when it was first proposed, and a group of upcounty residents unsuccessfully sued the waste disposal authority to block the construction.

"I would like to see the thing gone, and I think it should be gone — it never should have been built — but I don't think it's going to be affected," said Jane Hunter of Dickerson, who opposed the incinerator.

At the incinerator, trash is burned and converted into electricity that is sold, Davidson said. The amount waste is reduced by about 90 percent, and the remaining ash is disposed of in a landfill outside of the county, he said. Ferrous materials are also separated out and sold as scrap metal.

About half of the county's trash goes through the facility, Davidson said.

"There would be a substantial economic hit" if the county could not use the incinerator, he said.