Financial markets were closed Monday, but the remaining days of the week featured no shortage of news. Big developments came out of New York, corporate leaders offered their insights and Friday culminates with more earnings calls.  

Let's get to it.

Stories that drove the week

In New York City, the Business Integrity Commission (BIC) released a voluntary safety manual for trash haulers, and the Department of Sanitation (DSNY) finalized rules for commercial organics collection.

• The manual, shared this week with Waste Dive, is broken down into sections to help small haulers develop safe operating practices. BIC will be hosting a safety symposium in April.
• DSNY published its final rules for commercial organics, subjecting about 1,800 new businesses to the rules requiring organics diversion.

DSNY is the largest municipal department in the country, so the changes made there can influence others to act. Many will be watching to see if safety improves among small haulers in the city, and to see if the organics program is successful without disrupting other local businesses. 

Covanta and Advanced Disposal released their respective Q4 earnings on Thursday, with earnings calls unfolding Friday morning.

• Covanta finished Q4 2017 with $495 million in operating revenue, up from $457 million in the year before. Changing expenses and lowered income means Covanta finished 2017 with a net income of $57 million for the year, up from a net loss of $4 million in 2016.
• Advanced Disposal finished Q4 2017 with $384 million in operating revenue, up from $352 million in the year before. Advanced finished 2017 with a a net income of $38 million, up from a net loss of $30 million in the year before.

We'll have more on both these companies come Monday, stay tuned.

San Diego is offering permits — for a limited time — for small haulers to become certified to collect and transport organics.

• Those who earn certification can transport up to 1,000 tons per year to community composting sites.
• Interested haulers have only until March 11 to apply, however.

The permits could hurt franchise fees in the city, and the franchised haulers — owned by Waste Management, Republic Service and EDCO — were opposed to the move. This move comes after the Healthy Soils Coalition raised concerns about how existing exclusions in the city's "zero waste" plan might hurt composting at local farms and community gardens.

And, in an interview with Waste Dive, Rubicon Global's VP of of sustainability David Rachelson talked about contamination, markets and the circular economy.

• Rachelson highlighted the company's new DIVERT method to help companies set up recycling programs.
• Rachelson said Rubicon would be watching, in addition to China's import policies, the trend of companies developing products that are recyclable and accepted in "very common locations" to break down the "silos within the value chain."

The latest in M&A

Meridian Waste Solutions, based in Atlanta, announced the sale of equity interest in its subsidiaries that house its solid waste group to Warren Equity Partners, for about $87 million in debt assumption and $3 million in cash. This deal reflects Meridian's shift from waste collection to its tech side, including biomass and healthcare technology services.

Did we miss a merger or an acquisition? Let us know by emailing cboteler@industrydive.com.

How are Chinese import policies playing out across the U.S.?

In Oregon, smaller communities are adapting to changing pressures by adapting services and focusing on contamination. Portland, the state's most populous area, is singing a different tune and not altering course. The state has issued disposal concurrences to 14 companies as of Feb. 21.

And, across the Atlantic, European MRFs are filling up, too. Reporting from France says that facilities around Europe are "full, saturated," especially after a peak in material from the Christmas season. The United Kingdom especially is filling up, with a recycling capacity that is far overshadowed by the amount of waste it produces.

Other stories from the week...

• We got an update from the National Transportation Safety Board on how the train crash that killed a sanitation worker may have happened.
• A landfill collapse killed at least 17 people in the African country Mozambique. 
• The Los Angeles Times Editorial Board called for a ban on all single-use plastic.
• In Charleston, WV, mayoral candidate Amy Goodwin is saying that the current mayor denied her request to do a ride-along on a trash truck, exhibiting gender bias.