At a ceremony at its Carson, Calif., property, the company commemorated the delivery of the 1,000^th natural gas vehicle with Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster starting up the new recycling truck that will serve Long Beach residents.

The trucks Waste Management runs out of its Carson service yard—as well as a third of its California clean fleet—are powered by liquefied natural gas (LNG) derived from the decomposition of organic waste in its Altamont Landfill in Livermore, Calif.

Since November 2009, the landfill has been generating as much as 13,000 gallons of LNG per day. In one year, Waste Management’s 1,000 natural gas trucks will displace eight million gallons of petroleum and eliminate 45,100 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.

Waste Management also has CNG and LNG fueling stations at 17 of its facilities throughout North America with more under development. The company hopes to develop a new landfill-gas-to-LNG facility at its Simi Valley, Calif., landfill.

Waste Management was the first solid waste company to join the California Climate Action Registry. In 2003, the company committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions through increased recycling, the use of alternative transportation fuels, and the beneficial use of landfill gas. The natural gas fleet is part of the company’s environmental sustainability initiative to direct capital spending of up to $500 million per annum over a 10-year period to reduce its fleet emissions by 15% and increase the fuel efficiency of its fleet by 15% by 2020.