Waste Management to acquire Southern Waste Systems

Houston-based Waste Management Inc. (WM) has reportedly received assurances from the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) that it does not see antitrust issues in WM’s effort to acquire Southern Waste Systems (SWS), Davie, Florida.

According to an online report from the Fort Lauderdale, Florida-based Sun-Sentinel, WM expects the transaction to close by the end of 2015, now that it has received clearance from the DOJ.

News of the acquisition was discovered when it was on a list of granted applications by the Federal Trade Commission and Department of Justice that was issued on Dec. 1, 2015.

Southern Waste Systems and its Sun Recycling affiliate operated 12 locations with 760 employees as of August 2014, when the Recycling Today Media Group profiled the company.

The company initially grew as a hauling, waste and recycling company in the construction and demolition sector. It was founded in 1999 with one location and 30 employees in Pompano Beach, Florida.

SWS and its sister company, Sun Recycling, expanded geographically in southeast Florida, adding processing locations, transfer stations and routes.

As the company evolved, it also started hauling and processing municipal solid waste and household recyclables and in 2012 it added a metal recycling operation.

WM describes itself as having more than 21 million residential, commercial, industrial and municipal customers in the United States and Canada, providing services that include the collection, transfer, recycling and resource recovery and disposal of discarded materials.

Spokespersons from both SWS and WM reached by the Sun-Sentinel said they would have no further comment on the acquisition until it closes.