Municipal Solid Waste Sorting and Recovery

Montgomery County, Maryland's Department of Environmental Protection is requesting proposals for design, construction, operation, and maintenance of a municipal solid waste sorting and recovery processing system under RFP #1195755, with proposals due September 14, 2026 at 3:00 p.m. EST. The County seeks a single contractor for a public-private partnership to extract recyclable materials and compostable organics from MSW delivered to the Shady Grove Processing Facility and Transfer Station.

The system must process up to 3,000 tons per day and separate target materials including metals, cardboard, paper, plastics, glass, food scraps, and other commodities. Recent annual MSW tonnages range from approximately 468,000 to 497,000 tons (2020–2024). The contractor must achieve a minimum diversion rate specified in its proposal, with higher diversion rates receiving preferential evaluation scoring.

The contract term is twenty years from Notice to Proceed, with optional renewal periods up to five additional one-year terms at the County's discretion. The contractor bears all design, financing, and construction costs during the pre-operations phase. The County provides site access and pays a per-ton processing fee during operations, with no minimum tonnage guarantee. The County will not compensate the contractor for design and construction expenses if the contract terminates before operations commence.

Financial assurance requirements include 100 percent of restoration costs during pre-operations and 50 percent of anticipated annual contract value during operations. The County does not disclose budget information for best-value procurements.

Evaluation criteria cover written proposals (100 points): technical approach, operational reliability, diversion performance, implementation schedule, qualifications, financial capacity, and pricing, plus potential interview scores (10 points). Prevailing wage may apply to construction activities.

The pre-submission conference was held August 4, 2026 via Microsoft Teams. An on-site Transfer Station tour is scheduled for August 14, 2026 at 1:00 p.m. Submissions are required through BidNet Direct.