Follow Up: Evergreen Disposal

Continuance Granted for July 21st

A continuance was granted by the Planning Commission (PC) for the review of Evergreen Disposal’s concept site plan for a waste transfer station in Charlotte Hall. The applicant’s attorney, Steve Scott, agreed to the continuance in order to bring forward additional traffic related information. Planned for the 8 acre site, off Carpenter Lane, is a 17,400 square foot transfer station and a 12,008 square foot maintenance building with parking for employees and company equipment. The property, and surrounding area, is zoned Industrial, which permits Use Type 96 - Waste Processing/Acceptance. 

To meet approval requirements, the applicant must prove there is a need for the service, and that it complies with the county’s Comprehensive Plan (CP) and Comprehensive Zoning Ordinance (CZO). Stacy Lagana, representing the project’s engineering firm, said the CP Section 1.2.5.D includes language referring to a project like theirs. “To serve the solid waste disposal needs of a growing population, this plan calls for a county permitted transfer station,” the CP reads. St. Mary’s County, Lagana said, is the only county in Southern Maryland without a privately-operated transfer station. The CP, last revised in 2010, is currently being updated.

Attorney Steve Scott pointed to the county’s Solid Waste Management Plan, last updated in 2022, specifically mentioning this project twice. “At the time of this plan update, a solid waste transfer station is to be constructed in Charlotte Hall, a stand alone transfer station privately owned by Evergreen, accepting between 500-700 tons daily waste.” Scott said the document’s short-term goals also call for the construction and use of Evergreen’s facility. 

Locations of County Convenience Centers

St. Mary’s County operates 6 convenience centers–Charlotte Hall, Oakville, Clements, St. Andrew’s, Valley Lee, and Ridge–where residents can drop off trash for collection. Contracts are in place for haulers to pick up and transport waste to Calvert’s Appeal transfer station. From there, it is hauled to larger landfills near Baltimore or in Virginia. Opportunity exists for the county to save money, said Larry Foster, by having Evergreen’s transfer station built. A partner in Evergreen Disposal, Foster said convenience center trucks aren’t always full when picked up. If county trash were hauled to the Charlotte Hall location, consolidated, then transported directly to a landfill, it would save hauling trips.

Initially, however, Evergreen’s facility would only collect trash from their customers in the area. Once that’s going well, Foster said they could consider taking on the county as a customer. Evergreen will not accept hazardous or toxic substances, and aren’t currently planning to accept construction materials. Garbage is dropped off in the 17K SF building by smaller trucks, then consolidated and loaded into trucks hauling up to 25 tons each. Wastewater used to clean the floor area runs to a basin which is emptied by a septic hauler and recycled offsite. 

Concept rendering.

Evergreen intends to move their operating location, currently based in Charles County, to the Charlotte Hall site which may create up to 25 additional jobs. Trash from Evergreen’s other service areas could be brought to this location and consolidated, Foster acknowledged. A Charles County regulation permits only trash from that county to be dumped there, but there are no rules like that in Calvert or St. Mary’s. Evergreen’s current location in Charles County is not a transfer station. The proposed site could hold up to 600 tons of trash, which is hauled out daily or by the next morning at the latest Foster said.

Planning Commission members voiced several concerns about traffic. Carpenter Lane is a county owned right-of-way, so the project requires a variance to access their site from the road. Those representing the project maintained that Carpenter Lane was designed for industrial use because of the area’s zoning. But several PC members questioned if the median crossover was wide enough to accommodate large trash-hauling trucks. Traffic in Charlotte Hall has gotten worse, noted member Lynn Delahay, with the increased construction. Delahay said she was “a little skeptical of this traffic study.” The sentiment was echoed by member Patricia Robrecht who said the traffic study didn’t consider how return-to-work orders have increased the number of vehicles on the road.

from Evergreen Disposal’s presentation

Chuck Marsh, a traffic engineer from Weaver Companies, presented the traffic report via Zoom. The report states more than 260 additional vehicle trips per day are projected, with the majority of them being large trash trucks and about 30 trips accounting for Evergreen’s employees. Marsh explained that Evergreen’s trucks would turn left or right onto 235 from Carpenter Lane depending on their schedule and “based on how the facility is located relative to population centers.” Most of the traffic occurs earlier than morning rush hour because of Evergreen’s earlier operating time. Any changes needed for the intersection of Route 235 and Carpenter Lane could be considered as Evergreen’s site ramps up to full use, Marsh said.

The public can still submit feedback ahead of the new meeting date on July 21, 2025 at 6:30PM. The meeting location is 41770 Baldridge St, Leonardtown for anyone wanting to attend in person. Otherwise, comments can be emailed to megan.higgs-carter@stmaryscountymd.gov.