Republic Services, Inc. is a North American waste disposal company whose services include non-hazardous solid waste collection, waste transfer, waste disposal, recycling, and energy services. It is the second largest provider of waste disposal in the United States (as measured by revenue) after Waste Management.
Company history
Republic Industries was created as a waste disposal firm in 1981. Wayne Huizenga became chairman of the board in 1995 , when Republic Industries began acquiring auto dealerships and car rental agencies. In 1998, Republic Industries spun off Republic Services as an IPO, and then changed its name to AutoNation.
In June 2008, Republic became the second largest waste management company in the United States following the acquisition of its larger competitor, Allied Waste Industries, for $6.1 billion in Republic stock. The merged company retained the Republic Services name.
The Wall Street Journal reported in June 2010 that Republic Services’ $4 billion acquisition of Allied in December 2008 "has been successful from the start", delivering at the high end of the annual savings projected when they did the deal ($191 million), a 27 percent increase in share price.
After 12 years as CEO of Republic Services, James O’Connor retired on January 1, 2011, and was replaced by the president and COO of Republic Services, Don Slager. In May 2019, Jon Vander Ark took over as president. In 2021, Slager retired and Vander Ark was named CEO.
James P. Snee and Katharine Weymouth were appointed to the Republic Services Board of Directors in 2018, resulting in a total of 12 board members, 11 of them independent.
Based on an annual report published in 2018, with a revenue of $10 billion, the firm retained the number two position in the industry.
Operations
Republic Services’ operations primarily consist of providing collection, transfer, and disposal of non-hazardous solid waste, recovering and recycling of certain materials, and energy services.
As of December 31, 2017, it operated in 40 states and Puerto Rico through 343 collection operations, 204 transfer stations, 195 active landfills, 90 recycling centers, 7 treatment, recovery, and disposal facilities, and 11 salt water disposal wells. Republic also operated 68 landfill gas and renewable energy projects and had post-closure responsibility for 124 closed landfills.
In January 2016, Republic realigned its field support functions by combining its three regions into two field groups, consolidating its areas, and streamlining select operational support roles at its Phoenix headquarters.
Landfills
Republic Services owns or operates 195 active landfills. They also have responsibility for 124 closed landfills, for which they have associated closure and post-closure obligations. Republic Services owns and operates the largest landfill in the United States at 2,200 acres (890 ha) located in Apex, Nevada.
In 2008, at the time that Republic Services bought Allied Waste, it acquired two closed St. Louis, Missouri landfills, West Lake and Bridgeton. An underground event (more accurately referred to as a “smoldering event”) was detected in the closed Bridgeton Landfill. Due to the odors emitted from the landfill and its proximity to the adjacent West Lake—an EPA-managed Super Fund site that contains low-level radioactive waste dumped there illegally over forty years ago—environmental groups got involved.
Republic operates the Bridgeton Landfill near St. Louis, Missouri. The landfill is the site of an underground event of concern to residents and the EPA.
Recycling centers
Republic owns or operates 71 recycling centers that process over 5 million tons of recyclables annually. These centers generate revenue through the processing and sale of old corrugated containers (OCC), old newsprint (ONP), aluminum, glass and other materials, which accounted for approximately 4% of our total revenue during 2021. Approximately 80% of our total recycling processing center volume is fiber-based and includes OCC, ONP and other mixed paper. During 2021, we processed and sold 2.2 million tons, excluding glass and organics, from our recycling processing centers. An additional 2.1 million tons were collected by us and delivered to third parties.