Casella 2024 Sustainability Report Cover
Every day is an opportunity to create change, to have an impact, to make a difference. Every day is an opportunity to care for the world around us, our communities, and each other. Every day is an opportunity to walk the path of sustainability.Casella is right there with you every step of the way.Together, we are making a difference.
RUTLAND, Vt., Sept. 24, 2024 – Casella Waste Systems, Inc. (Nasdaq: CWST) (“Casella,” the “Company”) published its 2024 Sustainability Report today, outlining its progress toward five key sustainability metrics, while highlighting significant achievements in several areas since its last report was issued in 2022.
“With this year’s report, we are pleased to highlight several areas of achievement, and exceedingly proud that our commitment to our team continues to shine through in several areas of reporting,” said Casella Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, John W. Casella. “The investments we have made in our people, infrastructure, and logistics have had a positive impact on the sustainability and strength of our business, while also benefiting our customers and the communities we serve.”
The Casella team has grown by more than 32% since 2022 and is approaching 5,000 total employees. Even with its growth, the Company reported continued improvement in its safety performance, with its total recordable incident rate (TRIR) dropping nearly 20% since 2019. A key contributor to improving safety performance has been the Company’s success in filling vacancies and maintaining near-full staffing levels, buoyed by the more than 300 drivers and technicians who have successfully trained at the Company’s Kenneth A. Hier Sr. CDL Training Center with a focus on safety, service, and commitment to excellence.
In order that the Company’s commitment to safety is felt from the front line to the back office, Casella enhanced its annual incentive compensation plans so that all such plans include goals to improve safety and reduce turnover year over year. “Safety is critically important to our success, and it is imperative that everyone shares in the commitment to achieving this goal,” Casella said.
Another milestone highlighted in the report is the successful achievement of Casella’s community giving goal, well ahead of the 2030 timeline, as the Company contributed more than $2.2 million in charitable donations, local sponsorships, and in-kind services. In addition, the Casella Foundation was established in 2024 to support qualified non-profit charitable organizations demonstrating community impact in environmental and natural resource conservation, and the Company announced employee volunteering hours as its next community engagement goal.
“We believe that investing in the communities where we operate, beyond the services we provide, is paramount to building and nurturing sustainable communities for the long term,” Casella said. “Through continued contributions and volunteer services, we are able to play a vital role in creating and sharing value throughout our operations.”
The Company also continues to make significant progress in climate leadership and earned a spot on the USA Today’s “America’s Climate Leaders 2024” list for the second consecutive year.
“We estimate that for every ton of greenhouse gas we emit through our operations, we help prevent more than five tons of greenhouse gas emissions elsewhere in the economy through our recycling, renewable energy, and carbon sequestration services,” Casella said. “This reflects our focus on simultaneously reducing our emissions and growing our emission-reducing services. We expect progress will continue as we work to advance renewable natural gas infrastructure and make further upgrades to our recycling infrastructure.”
Continued investments in infrastructure, innovation, and education have the Company currently positioned to achieve its materials management goal of recycling more than 2 million tons in 2030.
“Since 2019, we have increased the amount of material we recycle by more than 36%, representing nearly 400,000 tons recyclables being put to a higher and better use,” Casella said. “In 2023, we completed a full retrofit of our largest recycling facility, while adding new facilities in New York and Pennsylvania through acquisition. Further investments in the critical infrastructure required to help achieve our materials management goals are scheduled to occur in Connecticut and Pennsylvania, positioning us to see tonnage growth in our resource solutions line of business in 2024 and beyond.”
The cumulative benefits of Casella’s investments in these core areas have led to the Company’s recognition on Time Magazine’s America’s Best Midsized Companies 2024 list, which recognizes U.S. companies that generated between $100 million and $10 billion in revenue and have excelled in the areas of employee satisfaction, revenue growth, and sustainability transparency based on 15 different criteria measurements.
