This report took months to write but years to create. In many ways, it began with the founding of Wastequip, based on a desire to better serve the needs of the waste industry and its customers. Over the course of nearly 35 years, through each phase of its growth, Wastequip has always recognized the power and importance of our industry.
Key to that power and importance is the fact that the waste industry can be one of the most critical players in driving down the resources we consume and responsibly collecting, transporting, and depositing the waste we generate. Wastequip has internalized this mission, with each of its leaders embracing the importance of integrity, not only doing what we know to be right but actively seeking still better ways of creating positive impact.
Codifying a formal sustainability program is a natural progression for a company with Wastequip’s values. In 2019, a small team planted the seeds for our sustainability program, and each year since, the ripple of people at the company addressing sustainability has widened.
In 2020, we officially launched our corporate responsibility program, CORE. We began our first life-cycle assessment with a leading consultancy, hired a full-time Sustainability Programs and Reporting Manager, and formed our CORE Steering Committee to define the most important next steps, ensure accountability and diversity of thought, and report progress to the Board.
In 2021, we incorporated CORE goals into Wastequip’s annual operating plan; we tied executive bonuses to our top initiatives and formally included people and planet in approving our capital investments and developing new products.
In 2022, we created a dashboard for our greenhouse gas emissions, which our Trucks and Containers division leaders will present in our monthly financial reviews. This will inspire the true collaboration that comes from working toward a common goal.
I can only imagine what great ideas will spark when we provide our division leaders and their teams with our ideas and data on emissions at their facilities. To me, this is the biggest ripple of all. We are proud to share our sustainability report with you, outlining where we started, what we’ve accomplished, and where we are headed. The tasks at hand are certainly not easy ones, but by working together as an organization and in concert with our customers and partners, we can ensure a brighter future for us all.
Kristin Kinder,
VP of Research and Sustainability