Waste is produced throughout the globe in tons on daily basis and if this waste keeps piling up, it can pose major sanitation issues for everyone. So, there is a dire need for the proper management and the potential utilization of the the generated waste this leads directly to Waste Management Industry growth in the next 5 years.
Did you know?
In 2018, the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) reported that 292.4 million tonnes or 4.9 pounds per person per day of waste were generated. These are astronomical numbers and the efforts that are being done in order to manage this waste have progressed a lot since the time waste management was first adopted. However, all the approaches that are being taken in this case are considered insufficient. For the ultimate goal of a sustainable future, the world as a whole and every nation individually is aiming for zero waste approach. Thus, even after so much efforts the professionals are still looking for more efficient ways to reduce the waste to zero.
The first waste management company was opened by George Waring Jr. in 1880s; who himself was a sanitation engineer at that time.
Briefly after the cholera and yellow fever epidemic in Memphis, Tennessee, that took almost 10,000 lives, George Waring Jr. set the foundation for the waste management company while caring for the ones who were suffering. This made George the first person in the history to collect and dispose in a systematic way. Moreover, he was the first person to use Garbage trucks for the purpose of waste collection. Since that time, the management of waste has come a long way. Now a days, there are methods like incineration that can be used in order to convert waste into energy. These days the waste management industry in the United States has grown out to be massive and it has become very lucrative as well.
A massive waste water treatment facility stands on the shores of Lake Michigan. The processes being opted at the Calumet Water Reclamation Plant have progressed a lot in the recent times. This facility is contributing to a major portion of waste treatment in the city of Chicago.
When we talk about waste management it is not just a specific type of waste, on the contrary it includes all kinds of waste whether it is domestic, industrial or agricultural waste. This also accounts for other detailed categories of medical and pharmaceutical waste, nuclear and hazardous waste. Waste can further be of solid or liquid, in form of water, state. Solid state of waste has further categories in it such as; plastic waste and food waste. Are you aware that in 2016, nearly 54 million tonnes of food waste was collected in the United States? Even today, food waste remains a major concern for the waste management companies in the United States.
Waste management industry has grown out to be extremely huge from the starting time of the 19th century. Waste management is an environmentally friendly act that promotes the betterment of the environment, while being a profitable approach too. The waste management companies are earning hefty amount of profits by converting the waste into the product of utilization. Currently, it is reported that 292 million tons of Municipal Solid Waste is generated in the United States out of which only 32.1% of the waste is being recycled while 50% of the waste is openly dumped into the landfill sites (Landfill sites are open areas that are allocated specifically for the purpose of storing waste until or unless it degrades, for this specific purpose landfill facilities are established that don’t leach out the hazardous material into the ground further reaching the groundwater and contaminating it. Landfill sites approach has been one of the most conventional strategies taken into consideration for the management of the solid waste).
The growth of waste management industry can be evaluated from the fact that only for North America alone, the waste management market size is almost 208 billion US dollars while for the United States hazardous waste management and disposal revenue is as big as 8.7 billion US dollars.
Not all of the waste can be stored within the country and potential trade can be done when the other party is interested. From the record and facts, Canada stands to be the top destination for the most US scrap plastic. This means that most of the plastic scrap generated within the United States is sent off to Canada according to the settlement between both the nations. Similarly, India stands out to be the top contender for the export of recovered fiber. A crazy amount of waste, 118.5 million lbs., is to be sent off to Malaysia from the United States.
Veolia, is the number one waste management company in the United States on the basis of revenue. The company’s aim is to focus on water management, waste management and energy services; all of which are interrelated. Waste Management Inc. and Republic Services are the other major companies currently working in the United States with an annual revenue of 17.931 billion USD and 11.3 billion USD respectively.
The future of waste management in the coming years is ever so bright. There are countless factors contributing to this, mainly the recent pandemic of Covid-19 did hit the world by storm but it also raised awareness among people about the eco-friendly way to live.
From the recent reports it is estimated that the Compound Annual Growth Rate of 5% is expected in the next 5 years (till 2027), with an extensive potential to further grow in the coming years. The key factors contributing to this growth is the sense of awareness among the authorities, the continuous use of resources that keeps on piling the waste generation and the dire need to resolve the current scenario of the humongous task to tackle the waste piles throughout the United States. Among the already mentioned leading companies Biffa PLC and Clean Harbors Inc. are the other close competitors running in for the marathon of waste management in the United States.
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