Waste Management Services
Industry Profile Report
Dive Deep into the industry with a 25+ page industry report (pdf format) including the following chapters
Industry Overview Current Conditions, Industry Structure, How Firms Operate, Industry Trends, Credit Underwriting & Risks, and Industry Forecast.
Call Preparation Call Prep Questions, Industry Terms, and Weblinks.
Financial Insights Working Capital, Capital Financing, Business Valuation, and Financial Benchmarks.
Industry Profile Excerpts
Industry Overview
The 20,200 waste management companies in the US provide hazardous and nonhazardous waste collection, hauling, and treatment; operation of transfer stations and landfills; septic system pumping; and remediation including specialized cleanup of contaminated buildings, mine sites, soil, or ground water. About 66% of industry sales receipts come from services to businesses, organizations, and farms; 19% to residences; and 15% to government.
Worker Injury
Workers are exposed to a wide variety of risks including contact with contaminated and hazardous materials in trash and remediation sites, working with heavy machinery, and handling curbside trash bins near traffic.
Vertical Integration
Waste management companies are using vertical integration to control their waste streams, broaden services, cut costs, and improve profitability.
Industry size & Structure
The average waste management company operates out of a single location, employs 25 workers, and generates about $6-7 million annually.
- The waste management industry consists of about 20,200 firms that employ about 500,200 workers and generate about $137 billion annually.
- Average revenue per employee is about $246,000.
- The industry is concentrated at the top with the four largest firms controlling 29% of revenue. Otherwise, the industry is fragmented with many companies offering one or a few types of waste services.
- Major US companies include Waste Management, Republic Services, Clean Harbors, and Casella Waste Systems.
Industry Forecast
Waste Management Services Industry Growth
Recent Developments
Oct 22, 2024 - Report Highlights Impact of Food Waste on Methane Emissions
- While activities upstream of the consumer – primarily food production – are the most significant contributors to methane emissions from food waste, improvements to downstream waste management can also help reduce methane emissions, according to a recent study by ReFED and the Global Methane Hub and reporting by Waste Dive. Downstream food waste activities, such as landfilling, create about 1.5 million metric tons of methane gas per year in the US, according to the ReFED and the Global Methane Hub report. The EPA estimates that while food waste accounts for just under a quarter of landfilled material, it accounts for 58% of fugitive methane landfill emissions. ReFED suggests centralized composting is the most effective way to reduce downstream methane emissions related to food waste.
- In October, prices for curbside materials were mixed, according to RecyclingMarkets.net. The national average price for old corrugated containers (OCC) used to manufacture new containers fell 15.7% in October from September but increased 17.8% compared to a year earlier. Mixed paper prices declined 21.4% in October from the month before but were up 292% compared to October 2023. Prices for post-consumer PET bottles and jars fell 4% in October compared to September, and PET prices were up 96% year-over-year. Natural high-density polyethylene (HDPE) prices increased by 11% in October over September and rose by 96% compared to a year earlier. Prices for color HDPE decreased 8% in October from the previous month but were down 36.9% compared to October 2023. Polypropylene prices were up 33% in October month-to-month and 95% year-over-year. Prices for aluminum beverage cans increased slightly in October from the previous month but increased 27% compared to a year earlier.
- North American demand for recovered paper is expected to grow as materials recovery facilities (MRF) leverage technology to produce higher volumes of cleaner fiber, according to a recent Fastmarkets webinar. MRFs are investing in optical sorters and AI-enabled equipment that yield cleaner fiber streams, which command higher prices. Improvements at MRFs come as newer paper mill machines have come online in the past year that can process higher volumes of recovered fiber, both mixed paper and old cardboard containers (OCC). Large paper firms – including Smurfit Westrock and Graphic Paper International - are increasingly prioritizing recovered fiber facilities as older plants are closed and remaining operations are consolidated and optimized.
- Some waste haulers that specialize in collecting organic waste for composting are expanding their offerings to include the collection of hard-to-recycle materials, according to Waste Dive. Organic material waste hauling and composting firm Black Earth Compost has partnered with TerraCycle to collect two dozen types of materials that are not ordinarily allowed in traditional curbside recycling bins, including coffee capsules, expanded polystyrene foam, and toothpaste tubes. TerraCycle’s “Zero Waste Bags” are distributed to consumers who subscribe to Black Earth’s organic material collection services, and Black Earth collects the bags along with the customers' organic waste. TerraCycle has similar partnerships with about 20 organic waste haulers nationwide.
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