Promising Waste Management Stocks To Follow Today – November 8th – MarketBeat

Analysis of the Waste Management Sector’s Contribution to Sustainable Development Goals

Introduction

An evaluation of key companies within the waste management sector reveals significant contributions towards achieving the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). These corporations provide essential environmental services and infrastructure that are fundamental to sustainable urban living, responsible production, and climate action. Their operations, which include waste collection, recycling, and resource recovery, directly align with global sustainability targets. This report analyzes seven prominent companies based on their operational focus and impact on specific SDGs.

Corporate Contributions to Sustainable Development

1. Waste Management, Inc. (WM)

   Provides comprehensive environmental solutions in the United States and Canada, directly supporting several SDGs through its operations.

   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): Offers essential collection services for residential, commercial, and municipal customers, ensuring clean and safe urban environments.
   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): Operates material recovery facilities (MRFs) to process recyclable materials, promoting a circular economy.
   • SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy) & SDG 13 (Climate Action): Develops and operates landfill facilities that capture landfill gas, a potent greenhouse gas, and convert it into renewable natural gas for electricity generation.

2. GFL Environmental Inc. (GFL)

   Delivers a range of environmental services in Canada and the United States, focusing on waste management and remediation.

   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): Manages non-hazardous solid waste through collection, transportation, and disposal services for diverse customers.
   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): Facilitates recycling and responsible waste management, which are key components of sustainable production patterns.
   • SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation): Provides soil remediation and liquid waste management services, preventing contamination of water resources and restoring land.

3. Custom Truck One Source, Inc. (CTOS)

   Supports the infrastructure necessary for sustainable development by providing specialty equipment to key industries.

   • SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): Supplies essential equipment to the waste management, electric utility, and telecommunications sectors, enabling the construction and maintenance of resilient and sustainable infrastructure.

4. Concrete Pumping Holdings, Inc. (BBCP)

   Offers specialized services that include environmentally responsible waste containment solutions.

   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): Through its Eco-Pan brand, the company provides industrial cleanup and containment services, ensuring the environmentally sound management of waste on construction sites.
   • SDG 6 (Clean Water and Sanitation): These containment services help prevent construction-related pollutants from entering waterways.

5. Avalon Holdings Corporation (AWX)

   Specializes in waste management services for a variety of clients, with a focus on proper disposal and management.

   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): Offers hazardous and nonhazardous waste disposal brokerage and management, ensuring that waste is handled in a manner that minimizes environmental and health impacts.
   • SDG 11 (Sustainable Cities and Communities): Provides captive landfill management and turnkey operational services, contributing to the foundational waste infrastructure of communities.

6. LanzaTech Global (LNZAW)

   A technology-focused company contributing to the circular economy through innovative carbon recycling processes.

   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production) & SDG 13 (Climate Action): Develops technologies that capture and recycle waste carbon emissions, transforming pollution into valuable raw materials for new products.
   • SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): Represents a significant innovation in industrial processes, creating sustainable infrastructure by closing the carbon loop.

7. ESGL Holdings Limited (ESGLW)

   A Singapore-based company dedicated to creating circular products from industrial waste.

   • SDG 12 (Responsible Consumption and Production): Directly advances the circular economy by regenerating industrial waste into new products, minimizing the need for virgin resources.
   • SDG 7 (Affordable and Clean Energy): Utilizes renewable energy in its technological processes, further reducing the carbon footprint of its operations.
   • SDG 9 (Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure): Employs innovative technologies to transform waste streams, showcasing a model for sustainable industrial production.

Analysis of the Article in Relation to Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)

1. Which SDGs are addressed or connected to the issues highlighted in the article?

   • SDG 7: Affordable and Clean Energy

     The article mentions companies involved in waste-to-energy processes. Specifically, it states that Waste Management, Inc. “owns, develops, and operates landfill facilities that produce landfill gas used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.” Additionally, ESGL Holdings Limited uses “renewable energy” in its processes. These activities directly contribute to increasing the share of renewable energy.

   • SDG 9: Industry, Innovation, and Infrastructure

     The companies described are part of the environmental services and infrastructure sector. Custom Truck One Source provides “specialty equipment” for “waste management, and other infrastructure-related industries.” ESGL Holdings Limited “regenerates industrial waste into circular products using technologies.” This highlights the role of specialized infrastructure and technological innovation in making industries more sustainable.

   • SDG 11: Sustainable Cities and Communities

     The article repeatedly mentions services provided to municipal customers. Waste Management, Inc. and GFL Environmental Inc. both serve “municipal” clients, offering services like “collection, transportation, transfer, recycling, and disposal services.” This is central to managing municipal waste, a key aspect of creating sustainable cities.

   • SDG 12: Responsible Consumption and Production

     This is the most prominent SDG in the article. The entire focus is on companies that “collect, transport, process, recycle and dispose of municipal, industrial, and hazardous waste.” The mention of recycling, material recovery facilities (MRF), soil remediation, and regenerating industrial waste into circular products are all core components of sustainable waste management and reducing waste generation.

2. What specific targets under those SDGs can be identified based on the article’s content?

   • Target 7.2: Increase the share of renewable energy

     This target is directly addressed by Waste Management, Inc.’s practice of converting landfill gas into “renewable natural gas for generating electricity.” This is a clear example of increasing the share of renewable energy in the energy mix by utilizing waste as a resource.

   • Target 9.4: Upgrade infrastructure and retrofit industries to make them sustainable

     The services provided by companies like ESGL, which “regenerates industrial waste into circular products using technologies,” represent an effort to retrofit industrial processes for sustainability. The entire waste management sector described provides the necessary infrastructure to support a circular economy.

   • Target 11.6: Reduce the adverse environmental impact of cities, including waste management

     The core business of several companies listed, such as Waste Management, Inc. and GFL Environmental, is providing “environmental solutions to residential, commercial, industrial, and municipal customers.” Their services, including the collection and management of municipal waste, directly address the need to reduce the environmental impact of cities through proper waste management.

   • Target 12.4: Environmentally sound management of chemicals and all wastes

     The article mentions companies like Avalon Holdings Corporation, which provides “hazardous and nonhazardous waste disposal brokerage and management services,” and GFL Environmental, which offers “soil remediation services.” These activities are crucial for the environmentally sound management of all types of waste throughout their lifecycle.

   • Target 12.5: Substantially reduce waste generation through recycling and reuse

     This target is central to the article’s theme. The text describes companies that “collect, transport, process, recycle and dispose of… waste and recyclable materials.” Waste Management, Inc. operates “material recovery facility (MRF),” which are key infrastructure for recycling. ESGL’s regeneration of industrial waste into “circular products” is a direct form of reuse and recycling.

3. Are there any indicators mentioned or implied in the article that can be used to measure progress towards the identified targets?

   • Indicator for Target 7.2: Amount of renewable energy produced from waste

     The article implies this indicator by stating that landfill gas is “used as renewable natural gas for generating electricity.” Progress could be measured by the volume of such gas captured and the amount of electricity generated from it.

   • Indicator for Target 11.6: Proportion of municipal solid waste collected and managed in controlled facilities

     The description of companies offering comprehensive “collection services” and operating “transfer stations,” “material recovery facility (MRF),” and “landfill facilities” for municipal customers implies that the volume of waste managed by these companies is a key metric for progress.

   • Indicator for Target 12.4: Amount of hazardous waste treated or disposed of

     The mention of “hazardous and nonhazardous waste disposal brokerage and management services” by Avalon Holdings implies that a key performance indicator for this company, and a measure of progress for the target, would be the quantity of hazardous waste managed in an environmentally sound manner.

   • Indicator for Target 12.5: National recycling rate and tons of material recycled

     The article’s reference to companies that “recycle… waste and recyclable materials” and operate “material recovery facility (MRF)” points to the volume of materials processed for recycling as a primary indicator. The creation of “circular products” by ESGL also implies a metric based on the quantity of waste diverted from landfills and regenerated.

SDGs, Targets, and Indicators from the Article

Source: marketbeat.com