Drawing the right conclusions.

In this issue we unveil our first ever list of the largest mixed C&D recyclers in the United States. As you might expect, it can be difficult to compile a comprehensive list of C&D recyclers of any size, let alone to identify the largest or to get their tonnage figures. Fortunately, this magazine has its circulation list, which is by far the best list of these kinds of facilities I have ever seen.

But that is our job, to get the magazine in the hands of those in the C&D recycling industry. And to verify we do that, we recently finished an audit of our circulation by BPA International, the magazine industry's auditing firm. Construction & Demolition Recycling magazine has taken this professional step to ensure our advertisers that we reach who we say we do.

So what about these big recycling plants? In the article that begins on page 18, we provide a ranking of the largest companies in the mixed C&D recycling industry that we have been able to identify.

We first went directly to the most reliable source, soliciting plant operators with a request to provide the information that would allow them to be ranked accurately. Additionally, we used public and private resources, using our industry knowledge and our sources throughout the country to get a general idea of what companies should be on the list.

For those plants about which we could not get direct information, we relied on our sources' knowledge of the equipment in the plant, products made and hours run per day.

No allowance was made for recycling rates, and we did count alternative daily cover (ADC) production toward the recycling goals. Some will quibble whether ADC should be counted, and especially whether those plants that produce 90 percent or more of just ADC should be included, but we contend that it is recycling. It is a product replacing a virgin material, and some percentage of fines will always be created by all C&D recycling plants--it is just a matter of how much.

What jumps out at you about this list is the name at the top--Waste Management. Though the publicly owned company rarely participates in industry events and projects, including those sponsored by the CMRA, just how many tons the company does recycle shouldn't be overlooked.

Of course, even with the vast knowledge and resources of the leading publication of the C&D industry, this being the first such list ever, errors of omission could be part of this attempt. We want to hear from you if you think you can update or improve this information. If you've been left off of this list or you'd like to correct inaccurate information, please contact editor Brian Taylor at [e-mail] to make sure an addition or correction can be made.