The CNG shift: How solid waste companies are saving time, money, and the environment

In a recent interview with Bloomberg Television, Waste Management CEO David Steiner said the industry's shift to compressed natural gas (CNG) vehicles is good for both the environment and for a company's wallet.

"You will see everyone turn to natural gas because, from a heavy-duty fleet point of view, it makes great economic sense," he explained. Now, a new tax credit — which will retroactively extend tax credits for natural gas that expired last year from Jan. 1, 2015, through Dec. 31, 2016 — has provided even more impetus.

Steiner and other solid waste CEOs are leading the way in the CNG shift. These companies are further realizing their role to reduce carbon footprints, and some are entering on the ground floor to build infrastructure in a relatively new arena, hoping to further capitalize on what they figure is a mushrooming trend....   ...more