In 2024 and 2025, several corporate and public entities in West Virginia have been actively moving to expand their solid waste footprints. This activity includes physical landfill expansions, permit upgrades to handle higher volumes, and major corporate acquisitions that consolidate waste management across the state.
1. Casella Waste Systems (Corporate Expansion)
The most significant shift in West Virginia’s waste landscape occurred in July 2025, when Casella Waste Systems announced the acquisition of Mountain State Waste.1
Expansion Strategy: This deal allows Casella (a major Northeastern firm) to take over a massive network of hauling operations and transfer stations across North Central and Southwestern West Virginia.2
Context: Prior to this acquisition, Mountain State Waste had been aggressively expanding by acquiring routes in Lincoln, Mason, Boone, and Logan counties.3 Casella’s entry signals a move toward a more integrated regional waste infrastructure.
2. Waste Management (WM) of West Virginia
Waste Management, which operates some of the state’s largest facilities (including Meadowfill and Northwestern landfills), has been seeking significant regulatory upgrades:
Kanawha County Project: In January 2025, Waste Management submitted an application for a Certificate of Site Approval to the Kanawha County Solid Waste Authority.
The Goal: The application sought to convert or establish a Class A Landfill in the region. This is particularly critical because the City of Charleston Landfill is slated for closure in 2025, leaving a vacuum that WM is moving to fill with a new transfer station and potentially expanded disposal capacity.
3. Lackawanna Transport Company (Wetzel County Landfill)
The Wetzel County Landfill, owned by Lackawanna Transport (an affiliate of J.P. Mascaro & Sons), is currently one of the most active expansion sites in the state.
Cell Construction: As of 2025, the facility is constructing a new 4-acre cell designed to extend the landfill’s operational life.
Strategic Role: The landfill has been granted temporary accommodations by the WVDEP to exceed its standard monthly permitted capacity to handle "drilling mud" from horizontal drilling operations in the Marcellus Shale region.
4. Tucker County Landfill (State-Intervened Expansion)
This landfill is unique because it is currently under the intervention of the West Virginia Solid Waste Management Board (SWMB) due to previous operational impairments.
Physical Expansion: To keep the facility viable, a project is underway to add a new 3.33-acre cell (approximately 681,000 cubic yards of space).
Lifespan: This expansion is projected to add roughly 67 months of disposal life to the facility, which serves as a critical waste hub for the Eastern Panhandle.
5. Clean-Seas West Virginia (Alternative Waste Expansion)
While not a traditional landfill, Clean-Seas West Virginia broke ground in June 2025 on a major facility in Belle (Kanawha County).4
Expansion Plan: The company is building a plastic conversion facility. While Phase I processes 50 tons of plastic waste per day, they have already announced plans to expand rapidly to a capacity of over 200 tons per day, diverting significant volumes of plastic from traditional West Virginia landfills.5
Summary Table of Active Expansion Projects
| Entity | Facility / Location | Expansion Type | Status (2025) |
| Casella Waste Systems | Statewide (Mountain State Waste) | Corporate Acquisition | Expected to close Q4 2025 |
| Waste Management | Kanawha County | Class A Permit Upgrade | Application filed Jan 2025 |
| Lackawanna Transport | Wetzel County Landfill | 4-acre New Cell | Under construction |
| WV SWMB | Tucker County Landfill | 3.33-acre New Cell | Project ongoing |
| Clean-Seas WV | Belle, WV | Plastic-to-Energy Plant | Ground broken; Phase II planned |
Would you like me to find the specific public hearing dates for the Waste Management permit in Kanawha County or look into the environmental impact reports for the Wetzel County expansion?
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