Casella Waste Systems has a local division in Oneonta that services Chenango, Otsego, Delaware, Schoharie Counties. The branch recently celebrated its 25 year anniversary and supports community involvement and local sponsorship. (Submitted photo)

ONEONTA – Commerce Chenango would like to highlight Casella Waste Systems, Inc.

Casella has a local division in Oneonta services Chenango, Otsego, Delaware, Schoharie Counties. The company views waste as a resource for producing renewable energy and as a raw material for manufacturing new products.

Founded in 1975 as Casella's Refuse Removal in Rutland, Vermont, John W. Casella co-founded the company, along with his brother, and has served as Chairman of their Board since July 2001, and as their Chief Executive Officer since 1993.

Adam Stoutenburg, Casella’s Territory Sales Manager, disclosed that the brothers built the company's first, and the state's first, recycling facility in Vermont.

“It was an inspired vision, one that anticipated the opportunities around resource renewal as well as viewing waste management as an integrated set of services – collection, recycling, transfer, and disposal,” Stoutenburg said.

The company is now publicly traded on the NASDAQ exchange under the symbol CWST.

Casella offers residential waste collection and recycling solutions, waste and recycling services for businesses, and dumpster rental services for construction, clean outs, events, and projects. Stoutenburg states, “We have a range of service options and a wide selection of waste containers and compactors to fit your needs. Our customer service staff is available to help you choose the right service level for your business.”

In 2023, Casella was named Business of the Year by the Otsego County Chamber of Commerce. Stoutenburg claims, “In 2024 we hope to continue to grow our service footprint as we strive to bring value to our customers and communities by combining outstanding service with sincere community engagement. Doing our part to support thriving, sustainable communities is an essential element of our approach to Sustainable Growth. To organize our efforts, we focus on three pillars of community engagement: community giving, employee volunteering, and educational outreach.”

Casella recently worked with their customers to capture 191,500 million tons of recyclables and organics from the disposal stream. This includes over household, commercial, and industrial recycling; food waste, municipal biosolids, and other organics; and other recycling such as construction debris, mattresses, tires, and electronic waste. Stoutenburg states, “We leverage our robust, proprietary network of qualified vendor partners to redirect recyclable and hard to manage materials from disposal to higher and better uses.”

Casella has its own CDL training program, through which people can earn their commercial driver’s license and begin a career path as a Casella driver.

Stoutenburg states, “We are very passionate about community engagement, donating and volunteering to local non-profits and community events in our four-county area including: Commerce Chenango and the Taste of Chenango festival, Pathfinder Village tennis and golf tournament, Oneonta Boys & Girls Club, Susquehanna SPCA, Animal Shelter of Schoharie County, and Delaware Valley Humane Society, ARC Otsego ReUse Center, local events, and Education outreach at local schools and community groups to inform on what we can do together to Recycle Better. We also partner with our local colleges and universities to create more sustainable campuses.”

Casella’s local division office in Oneonta on Lower River Street is open from 8am-4:30pm Monday through Friday. Casella Waste Oneonta just celebrated 25 years in the fall of 2023, with just over 40 employees in that office. Casella employs over 4,000 employees. To learn more about this company, visit www.casella.com or stop in their office on Lower River Street in Oneonta.