Analysis
NAICS 562 is the 2022 subsector for waste management and remediation services, part of 56 (Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services). Census lists 117 example activities under it in the official index.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments grew 14% and employment rose 16%. The 2018 count used NAICS 2017, so part of a large move can come from codes being redefined rather than from businesses opening or closing.
By establishments it ranks 2nd of the 2 codes at this level within Administrative and Support and Waste Management and Remediation Services, with 6.5% of them.
County Business Patterns counts 29,237 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 493,864 people at an average annual payroll of $72,087 per employee (55th percentile of national industries). 47% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which is close to the national mix.
Across its national industries Census lists 117 index entries; typical ones are ash collection services, hazardous waste collection services, brush collection services and acid waste disposal facilities.
It splits into 3 more detailed codes. The largest by establishments is 5621 (Waste Collection) with 13,064.
Official definition
Industries in the Waste Management and Remediation Services subsector group establishments engaged in the collection, treatment, and disposal of waste materials. This includes establishments engaged in local hauling of waste materials; operating materials recovery facilities (i.e., those that sort recyclable materials from the trash stream); providing remediation services (i.e., those that provide for the cleanup of contaminated buildings, mine sites, soil, or ground water); and providing septic pumping and other miscellaneous waste management services. There are three industry groups within the subsector that separate these activities into waste collection, waste treatment and disposal, and remediation and other waste management.
Excluded from this subsector are establishments primarily engaged in collecting, treating, and disposing waste through sewer systems or sewage treatment facilities that are classified in Industry 22132, Sewage Treatment Facilities, and establishments primarily engaged in long-distance hauling of waste materials that are classified in Industry 48423, Specialized Freight (except Used Goods) Trucking, Long-Distance. Also, there are some activities that appear to be related to waste management, but that are not included in this subsector. For example, establishments primarily engaged in providing waste management consulting services are classified in Industry 54162, Environmental Consulting Services.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.
Index entries (117)
- Ash collection services
- Hazardous waste collection services
- Brush collection services
- Acid waste disposal facilities
- Dumps, nonhazardous solid waste (e.g., trash)
- Combustors, nonhazardous solid waste
- Compost dumps
- Asbestos abatement services
- Materials recovery facilities (MRF)
- Cesspool cleaning services
- Beach maintenance and cleaning services