Casella Waste Systems’ new sustainability progress report highlights improvements towards its recycling goals, but the company is working to catch up on certain labor and emissions targets, in part due to the company’s expansion in recent years. The 2025 progress report, published this week, is a supplement to its more detailed full-year 2024 biennial report.
The report comes as Casella recognizes its 50th anniversary and prepares for a leadership transition. John Casella will step down as CEO of Casella Waste Systems effective Jan. 1, 2026. Ned Coletta, Casella’s president, will take on the CEO role.
Emissions reduction
One area for improvement is Casella’s work to reduce emissions to 12% below a 2022 baseline by 2030. In 2023, greenhouse gas emissions were down 4% from that baseline, but the progress report shows emissions increased 12% from that baseline in 2024. Casella says it’s working to reduce emissions through ongoing landfill gas management projects and improvements in fuel efficiency.
In 2023, Casella updated its emissions reduction goal to better “align with our industry peers” by adopting the Solid Waste Industry for Climate Solutions model for quantifying greenhouse gas emissions from landfills. Casella’s previous goal was to reduce scope 1 and 2 emissions 40% from a 2010 baseline by 2030.
”Because of our growth and the non-linear nature of the timing of both facility development projects and market conditions, we do not anticipate a straight-line reduction in our emissions, which may rise and fall on our path toward our goal,” the company wrote.
In recent years, Casella has focused on expansion into the Mid-Atlantic through its acquisition of several GFL Environmental assets and other regional deals. Casella noted during the company’s Q2 earnings call in August that the company also planned to focus on other acquisitions along the Eastern Seaboard. That same month, Casella announced plans to acquire Mountain State Waste in West Virginia, moving the company’s footprint into that state for the first time.
Recycling
Casella has a goal to grow its Resource Solutions business, which includes its recycling operations, to reduce, reuse or recycle more than 2 million tons of solid waste materials per year by 2030. In the progress report, Casella estimates it recycled over 1.55 million tons of recyclables and organics in 2024. It reported recycling 1.43 million tons in 2023.
Casella says its annual recycling tonnage has grown, partly due to “disciplined investments” in upgrading its MRFs, particularly in Boston and in Willimantic, Connecticut. The progress report also highlighted Casella’s work with “college and university customers who come to us with visionary sustainability commitments and zero waste goals.” That included a partnership with Dartmouth College to recycle food waste, tires and e-waste.
The University of Vermont Medical Center also partnered with Casella to divert over 100 tons of surgical wrap from disposal. Casella noted hospital staff also composted 165 tons of food waste last year “with careful attention to sorting and quality.”
Recycling tonnages are also growing in part due to Casella’s M&A growth in new locations like Pennsylvania and its work to add more customers in legacy markets such as Boston, the report says.
Safety and labor
Amid those developments, over the past year, personnel has grown by more than 1,000 people, in part due to acquisitions. That brings Casella’s workforce to over 5,100 employees operating in 10 states, according to the report.
“With this tremendous growth comes a need to quickly and effectively deploy our safety systems, equipment, and culture to our new team members while providing steady support to legacy operations,” the company said in the progress report.
Casella’s total recordable incident rate goal is 4.0 by 2030. In 2024, the TRIR rate was 5.1, up from 5.0 in 2023.
Bonus plans for management have recently been updated to include new safety and employee turnover performance improvement goals, the report said. Casella continues to deploy more onboard computing technology and vehicle monitoring systems for fleets, along with “post-incident coaching,” according to the progress report.
During its Q2 earnings call, executives said the company is focused on route optimization and automation upgrades in its Mid-Atlantic region as part of its ongoing integration of GFL assets there. The move is also expected to improve emissions and fuel efficiency.
Casella also has its own CDL and technician training center, which it says has had 350 graduates since the facility opened in 2020.
