Sustainability

Sustainability at GFL

From the time of our founding, sustainability has been integral to our success and we have a long-standing commitment to investing in sustainable solutions. The success we have achieved comes from sustainability being core to who we are, what we do and how we work – from our front line to our leadership.

We recognize that our customers rely on us to provide viable alternatives to more traditional waste management options, including solutions that help them meet their own sustainability goals.

As GFL has grown, we have made significant investments in new technology and in innovating our management and operating processes. Our investments reflect our commitment to providing sustainable environmental solutions that are also value-enhancing to our business. Our Sustainability Value Initiatives (SVIs) are some of the key actions that we are pursuing in order to reduce our GHG emissions as well as to help our customers achieve their own GHG emissions reduction goals.

Examples of our SVIs include:

• RE-REFINERY FACILITY: The re-refinery uses a process to crack molecules of used motor oil from passenger and commercial vehicles collected by GFL and reprocesses it into diesel fuel for use in marine applications, as a crude oil diluent, or a crude oil blend component. Displacing virgin fuels helps us and our customers avoid the environmental impacts of resource extraction.
• COMPRESSED NATURAL GAS (CNG) VEHICLES: At the end of 2019, 14% of GFL’s solid waste collection fleet was powered by CNG, and we currently have 22 CNG fueling stations across North America. Investing in CNG technology allows us to support a cleaner and more sustainable fleet and reduces GHG emissions by up to 25% per truck, compared to a diesel-powered vehicle. With our current level of fleet conversion, GFL has been able to avoid approximately 17% of our total fleet GHG emissions.
• ALTERNATIVE ENERGY GENERATION AT LANDFILLS: Seventy-nine percent of GFL owned and operated municipal solid waste landfills had gas collection and treatment systems by the end of 2019. Collected landfill gas is typically treated through flare combustion or diverted to an on-site facility for conversion to alternative energy. One of GFL’s largest solid waste landfills in Eastern Ontario, Canada, generates power for approximately 4,000 homes using landfill gas harnessed from the facility. Our on-site landfill gas recovery systems recovered 2,117,730 MMbtu of landfill gas for a reduction of 899,647 CO2e and as a result, 39,751 tons of GHG emissions were avoided in 2019 from alternative energy generation at our landfills.
• SOIL REMEDIATION FACILITIES: GFL operates 14 soil remediation facilities across North America. These facilities receive soils that would otherwise be destined for landfill disposal and recycles them for reuse in a broad range of construction and development projects. Using recycled soils in construction and development projects also reduces the need to use raw materials. This not only benefits our customers by lowering costs on construction projects, but also reduces the GHG emissions needed for additional transportation and raw material extraction.

Learn more about our commitment to sustainability by clicking the links below.

• Our 2019 Sustainability Report
• Our 2019 Sustainability Report (French)
• Our 2019 SASB Report