Covanta Holding - GHG emissions profile

Emissions Insight: Covanta Holding

Covanta Holding reported 4.5M metric tons of CO2-equivalent in 2023, placing it at rank #116 among all EPA Greenhouse Gas Reporting Program (GHGRP) reporters and #3 within the Waste category. The company operates 23 reporting facilities distributed across 11 states, giving an average of approximately 196K metric tons of CO2e per facility. Only sites emitting 25,000+ metric tons of CO2e annually are required to report, so these figures represent the company's largest operational emitters rather than its entire carbon footprint.

Classified in the Waste sector (NAICS code 562213), Covanta Holding sits alongside peers subject to the same reporting thresholds under 40 CFR Part 98. Across the 13 reporting years on record (2011–2023), the data shows a rise of 10.2% in annual emissions. This multi-year lens is critical because year-on-year variation may reflect production volume, fuel mix, facility acquisitions or divestitures, and efficiency upgrades rather than underlying operational intensity.

For analysts and policy users, the key takeaway is that this profile reflects self-reported Scope 1 combustion, process, and fugitive emissions verified by the EPA, not Scope 2 purchased electricity or Scope 3 value-chain emissions. When comparing Covanta Holding to other large emitters, weight the 23-facility footprint against the 4.5M MT total to understand concentration risk. California SB 253 and SEC climate disclosure rules will push many GHGRP reporters toward broader Scope 1–3 reporting over the next reporting cycles, so this EPA baseline will remain the comparable backbone for tracking corporate carbon performance.