Houston — The long-time CEO of Waste Management Inc., which has been ringing alarm bells about recycling, including recycling of plastics, has stepped down.
David Steiner, who held the top job at nation's largest trash company for 12 years, will stay on the company's board of directors. He is being succeeded by CFO Jim Fish.
Waste Management is the largest plastic recycler in North America, handling more than 580 million pounds per year, according to the latest Plastics News ranking. That's just ahead of KW Plastics of Troy, Ala.
Steiner has gained particular attention in recent years for his comments about the financial viability of recycling as commodity prices have been in a prolonged trough.
Waste Management, while the largest trash company in the country, also is one of the country's largest recyclers. He has pushed to move the company away from recycling contracts that exposed Waste Management to the ups-and-downs of the recycling commodity pricing.