WM is committed to transparent, clear and practical sustainability reporting that reflects what matters most to our business and stakeholders. Our disclosures are designed to provide clarity without overstatement and focus on the topics that meaningfully influence our strategy, operations, risk profile and long‑term value creation.
Our suite of sustainability resources includes our annual Sustainability Report, Sustainability Data & Metrics, and indices aligned with leading global frameworks including GRI, SASB, and UN SDGs. . We also continue to provide robust disclosures on climate strategy, including our Climate Brief (TCFD), along with targeted submissions to rating agencies and investor platforms. Together, these resources are intended to meet stakeholder needs and share details on our robust sustainability and business initiatives.
Our Approach to Materiality
Materiality informs how we prioritize Sustainability initiatives and disclosures across our enterprise. In 2025, WM completed a refreshed enterprise materiality assessment to take into consideration changes in our business, regulatory environment and stakeholder expectations since the prior assessment.
The enterprise materiality assessment was led with support from an independent, global professional services firm with deep sustainability and risk expertise, applying a structured and internationally informed methodology known as double materiality. This external perspective strengthened the rigor, consistency and objectivity of the process.
The assessment evaluated sustainability topics based on their relative importance to:
- WM’s business performance, resilience and risk profile, cross‑checked against enterprise risk management (ERM) priorities
- Stakeholders, including customers, employees, investors, communities, suppliers and regulators
Enterprise Materiality Assessment – Overview
The 2025 enterprise materiality assessment was conducted through a structured, multi‑step process incorporating both internal and external perspectives:
- Desktop research across industry standards, peer disclosures, rating methodologies and regulatory trends
- Development of a long list of potential Environment, Social and Governance (ESG) topics informed by leading frameworks and market expectations
- Engagement with internal leaders and cross‑functional subject matter experts through interviews, surveys and facilitated sessions, to identify impact, risks and opportunities
- Prioritization of topics using a 2×2 materiality matrix based on importance to stakeholders and importance to WM’s business
Stakeholder input was weighted alongside business impact considerations to ensure balanced prioritization. The assessment considered impacts and risks across WM’s enterprise operations and value chain, where relevant.
The results were reviewed by senior leadership and supported throughout the process by a steering committee with representatives from Enterprise Risk Management (ERM), Legal Investor Relations and Operations.
Priority Sustainability Topics
The enterprise materiality assessment identified eight priority Sustainability topics that warrant the greatest continued strategic focus, governance attention and reporting emphasis. Topics are listed alphabetically for clarity and do not reflect relative priority:
- Circularity
- Community Impact
- Ethics & Transparency
- GHG Emissions & Decarbonization
- Lower Carbon Energy Solutions
- Responsible Landfill Management
- Safety
- Workforce Evolution & Retention
These topics reflect areas where WM can most meaningfully manage risk, create value and demonstrate leadership, while supporting our role as a trusted service provider to customers and communities.
Topics of emerging or moderate importance continue to be monitored through enterprise risk management, regulatory tracking and ongoing stakeholder engagement, and may be elevated over time.
How Materiality Informs Reporting and Strategy
The results of the enterprise materiality assessment are used to:
- Guide WM’s overall enterprise-wide sustainability strategy, including target setting and program development
- Prioritize Sustainability initiatives and focus areas for disclosure and transparency
- Inform alignment between sustainability topics and enterprise risk management
This disciplined approach helps ensure our sustainability strategy remains credible, comparable and impactful — focused on what matters most and aligned with business and stakeholder priorities.
While the enterprise materiality assessment does not independently set senior leadership or Board agenda priorities, it establishes a common foundation for how priority sustainability topics are defined, monitored, and tracked across WM’s governance and oversight processes.
Materiality outcomes are cross‑checked with WM’s enterprise risk management (ERM) framework and help inform the sustainability topics and metrics included in our executive compensation incentive structure and reporting shared with senior leadership and the Board of Directors. This alignment supports consistent consideration of sustainability risks, performance, and priorities alongside broader enterprise risk and strategy oversight.
Integrity of Our Disclosures
WM’s disclosures are designed to reflect business realities rather than aspirational positioning, grounding our sustainability narrative in disciplined analysis, external validation, and enterprise‑wide alignment.
Consistent with this approach, we are developing a Sustainability Governance and Controls Framework aligned to the COSO Internal Control Framework for Sustainability Reporting, embedding governance, risk management, and reporting discipline across the organization. Oversight is provided through a cross-functional steering group of Internal Audit and Finance leaders, which guides strategic decision-making, drives alignment across key functions, and reinforces accountability for sustainability reporting.
Assurance and Transparency
WM’s sustainability reporting program incudes expansion of independent third-party limited assurance beyond greenhouse gas emissions to encompass the full Sustainability Data & Metrics dataset. This strengthens confidence in the accuracy, consistency and reliability of our disclosures across environmental, operational, workforce, community, governance and economic topics. By extending assurance across our reported metrics, WM continues to advance the rigor, transparency and credibility of information provided to investors, customers and other stakeholders.