Waste Management Services NAICS 562

Jun 23, 2026 - Waste Firms Leverage AI to Improve Efficiency

• Waste Dive reports that major waste companies are accelerating AI investments to improve routing, pricing, fleet operations, billing, and customer service. Executives at the Waste Leadership Summit said AI tools are helping reduce miles traveled, improve service reliability, detect contaminants, support predictive maintenance, and personalize pricing. Waste Connections plans to spend about $100 million on seven AI projects through 2027, while Republic Services expects AI efficiencies to add $100 million in earnings by 2028. Companies including WM, GFL Environmental, Casella Waste Systems, and Republic are also using AI to boost employee productivity, automate customer service, reduce customer churn, and improve margins.
• Recent White House revisions to Section 232 tariffs on steel, aluminum, and copper are expected to have little direct impact on the waste management and recycling industries, according to Resource Recycling. The changes, effective through 2027, reduce tariffs on certain equipment, create a 10% preferential rate for imports made mostly with US metals, and lower the threshold for products considered entirely American-made. The Recycled Materials Association said the revisions do not appear to cover many, if any, products used by recyclers, so the industry should see no significant effect. Earlier tariff changes provided greater clarity and lower costs for some imported recycling equipment, including high-throughput shredders and optical sorters, which are often made in Europe. Still, the latest revisions offer only minimal additional relief.

• In June 2026, prices for curbside recyclable materials showed mixed movement across categories, according to RecyclingMarkets.net. The US average price for post-consumer PET bottles and jars increased 27.7% month over month in June but remained down 80.9% year over year. Natural high-density polyethylene (HDPE) declined 32.4% month over month and was down 18.5% from June 2025. Color HDPE declined 14.6% month over month but increased 217.9% year over year. Polypropylene (PP) declined 25.1% month over month but was up 80.1% compared to a year ago. A-grade film prices were unchanged month over month but were down 21.3% year over year. Prices for old corrugated containers (OCC) increased about 17.9% month over month and were roughly unchanged from a year earlier. Aluminum can prices increased 4.5% month over month and rose 11.0% from June 2025. Sorted residential paper prices increased 13.3% month over month but were 24.1% lower than a year earlier.
• The top North American, publicly traded solid waste and recycling companies spent nearly $700 million on mergers and acquisitions in Q1 2026, down from about $1.5 billion a year earlier, with Republic Services leading at $437 million while WM reported no deals, according to Waste Dive. WM remains focused on integrating Stericycle and expects limited tuck-in acquisitions later this year. Republic continues pursuing deals in core and new markets, with about 90% tied to recycling and waste, and aims to exceed $1 billion in acquisitions for the year. Waste Connections and GFL Environmental signaled continued or increased M&A activity, with GFL emphasizing long-term growth. Casella Waste Systems expanded its regional footprint through multiple deals, including Mountain State Waste and Star Waste Systems.