Instead of being carted away for expensive and environmentally detrimental disposal, the trash is delivered to the plant. There it is prepared and burned in special water tube boilers, making steam to drive the turbines that produce electricity. The resultant energy is sold to the New England Power Grid.
Unconsumed trash, usually in the form of clean, inert ash, is sent to a landfill in nearby Shrewsbury, Mass. Metal and glass are separated and recycled.