Business Description

This Annual Report on Form 10-K contains forward-looking statements based on expectations, estimates, and projections as of the date of this filing. Actual results may differ materially from those expressed in forward-looking statements. See Item 7 of Part II – “Management’s Discussion and Analysis of Financial Condition and Results of Operations.” All references to “dollars” or “$” used herein refer to U.S. dollars, and all references to “CAD $” used herein refer to Canadian dollars, unless otherwise stated. Our Company Waste Connections, Inc. is the third largest solid waste services company in North America, providing non-hazardous waste collection, transfer and disposal services, including by rail, along with resource recovery primarily through recycling and renewable fuels generation, in 46 states in the U.S. and six provinces in Canada. Waste Connections also provides non-hazardous oil and natural gas exploration and production, or E&P, waste treatment, recovery and disposal services in several basins across the U.S and Canada, as well as intermodal services for the movement of cargo and solid waste containers in the Pacific Northwest. Our senior management team has extensive experience in operating, acquiring and integrating non-hazardous waste services businesses, and we intend to continue to focus our efforts on both internal and acquisition-based growth. We anticipate that a part of our future growth will come from acquiring additional waste businesses and, therefore, we expect that additional acquisitions could continue to affect period-to-period comparisons of our operating results. Waste Connections, Inc. is a corporation organized under the laws of Ontario, Canada. Our Operating Strategy Our operating strategy seeks to improve financial returns and deliver superior shareholder value creation within the solid waste industry. We generally target markets where we can establish a substantial presence and operate efficiently and profitably through exclusive contracts, vertical integration or asset positioning. We also target niche markets, like non-hazardous E&P waste treatment, recovery and disposal services, with similar characteristics. We are a leading provider of waste services in most of our markets, and the key components of our operating strategy, which are tailored to the competitive and regulatory factors that affect our markets, are as follows: Target Markets Where We Can Operate Efficiently . By targeting markets where we can operate efficiently, including secondary and rural markets, we believe that we are able to achieve a substantial presence, reducing our exposure to customer churn and improving our financial returns. In certain niche markets, like E&P waste treatment and disposal, early mover advantage in certain rural basins may improve market positioning and financial returns given the limited availability of existing third-party-owned waste disposal alternatives. Control the Waste Stream . In markets where waste collection services are provided under exclusive arrangements, or where waste disposal is municipally owned or funded or available at multiple sources, we seek to achieve efficiencies through our collection services that aid our growth and profitability. Optimize Asset Positioning . We believe that the location of disposal sites is often a critical factor to success in the waste services industry. Given the importance of and costs associated with the transportation of waste to treatment and disposal sites, having disposal capacity proximate to the waste stream may provide a competitive advantage. Provide Vertically Integrated Services . In markets where we believe that owning landfills will allow us to achieve efficiencies, we generally focus on providing integrated services, from collection through disposal of solid waste in landfills that we own or operate. 1 Table of Contents Manage on a Decentralized Basis . We manage