Analysis
NAICS 562211 is the 2022 national industry for hazardous waste treatment and disposal, part of 56221 (Waste Treatment and Disposal). Census lists 17 example activities under it in the official index.
Between 2018 and 2023 the number of establishments grew 18% and employment fell 13%. 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.
County Business Patterns counts 994 US establishments in this code in 2023, employing 29,880 people at an average annual payroll of $90,323 per employee (78th percentile of national industries). 36% of the establishments have fewer than five employees, which is close to the national mix.
Census lists 5 related activities that belong elsewhere, most often in 562212, 562213, 221320 and 562219. Businesses that do several things are classified by their primary activity, the one that generates the most value, so check those boundaries before settling on this code.
Its index entries, the activities Census uses to assign businesses to this code, include acid waste disposal facilities, acid waste treatment facilities, combustors, hazardous waste and hazardous waste disposal facilities, among 17 in all.
For example, operating landfills for the disposal of nonhazardous solid waste are classified in 562212 (Solid Waste Landfill) instead.
Official definition
This U.S. industry comprises establishments primarily engaged in (1) operating treatment and/or disposal facilities for hazardous waste or (2) the combined activity of collecting and/or hauling of hazardous waste materials within a local area and operating treatment or disposal facilities for hazardous waste.
Source: US Census Bureau, NAICS 2022 Manual.
Not this code if…
| The business mainly does | Use instead |
|---|---|
| Operating landfills for the disposal of nonhazardous solid waste | 562212 Solid Waste Landfill |
| Operating combustors and incinerators for the disposal of nonhazardous solid waste | 562213 Solid Waste Combustors and Incinerators |
| Collecting, treating, and disposing waste through sewer systems or sewage treatment facilities | 221320 Sewage Treatment Facilities |
| Operating nonhazardous waste treatment and disposal facilities (except landfills, combustors, incinerators, and sewer systems or sewage treatment facilities) | 562219 Other Nonhazardous Waste Treatment and Disposal |
| Pumping (i.e., cleaning) cesspools, portable toilets, and septic tanks or renting portable toilets | 562991 Septic Tank and Related Services |
Index entries (17)
- Acid waste disposal facilities
- Acid waste treatment facilities
- Combustors, hazardous waste
- Hazardous waste disposal facilities
- Hazardous waste disposal facilities combined with collection and/or local hauling of hazardous waste
- Hazardous waste material disposal facilities
- Hazardous waste material treatment facilities
- Hazardous waste treatment facilities
- Hazardous waste treatment facilities combined with collection and/or local hauling of hazardous waste
- Incinerators, hazardous waste, operating
- Medical waste treatment facilities, hazardous
- Radioactive waste collecting and/or local hauling in combination with disposal and/or treatment facilities
- Radioactive waste disposal facilities
- Radioactive waste treatment facilities
- Waste disposal facilities, hazardous
- Waste treatment facilities, hazardous
- Waste treatment plants, hazardous