Competition
We operate in a highly competitive industry. Entry into our business and the ability to operate proÑtably
in the industry requires substantial amounts of capital and managerial experience.
Competition in the non-hazardous solid waste industry comes from a few large, national publicly-owned
companies, including Waste Management and Allied Waste Industries, several regional publicly- and
privately-owned solid waste companies, and thousands of small privately-owned companies. Some of our
competitors have signiÑcantly larger operations, and may have signiÑcantly greater Ñnancial resources, than
we do. In addition to national and regional Ñrms and numerous local companies, we compete with
municipalities that maintain waste collection or disposal operations. These municipalities may have Ñnancial
advantages due to the availability of tax revenues and tax-exempt Ñnancing.
We compete for collection accounts primarily on the basis of price and the quality of our services. From
time to time, our competitors may reduce the price of their services in an eÅort to expand market share or to
win a competitively bid municipal contract. This may have an impact on our future revenue and proÑtability.
In each market in which we own or operate a landÑll, we compete for landÑll business on the basis of
disposal costs, geographical location and quality of operations. Our ability to obtain landÑll business may be
limited by the fact that some major collection companies also own or operate landÑlls to which they send their
waste. There also has been an increasing trend at the state and local levels to mandate waste reduction at the
source and to prohibit the disposal of certain types of waste, such as yard waste, at landÑlls. This may result in
the volume of waste going to landÑlls being reduced in certain areas, which may aÅect our ability to operate
our landÑlls at their full capacity and/or aÅect the prices that we can charge for landÑll disposal services. In
addition, most of the states in which we operate landÑlls have adopted plans or requirements that set goals for
speciÑed percentages of certain solid waste items to be recycled.
Regulation
Our facilities and operations are subject to a variety of federal, state and local requirements that regulate
the environment, public health, safety, zoning and land use. Operating and other permits, licenses and other
approvals are generally required for landÑlls and transfer stations, certain solid waste collection vehicles, fuel
storage tanks and other facilities that we own or operate, and these permits are subject to revocation,
modiÑcation and renewal in certain circumstances. Federal, state and local laws and regulations vary, but
generally govern wastewater or stormwater discharges, air emissions, the handling, transportation, treatment,
storage and disposal of hazardous and non-hazardous waste, and the remediation of contamination associated
with the release or threatened release of hazardous substances. These laws and regulations provide
governmental authorities with strict powers of enforcement, which include the ability to obtain injunctions
and/or impose Ñnes or penalties in the case of violations, including criminal penalties. The
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and various other federal, state and local environmental, public and
occupational health and safety agencies and authorities administer these regulations, including the Occupa-
tional Safety and Health Administration of the U.S. Department of Labor.
We strive to conduct our operations in compliance with applicable laws and regulations. However, in the
existing climate of heightened environmental concerns, from time to time, we have been issued citations or
notices from governmental authorities that have resulted in the need to expend funds for remedial work and
related activities at various landÑlls and other facilities. There is no assurance that citations and notices will