IN MEMORY OF NWRA HALL OF FAME MEMBER CHARLES “MICKEY” FLOOD
National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA) Hall of Fame Member Charles Francis “Mickey” Flood Jr. of Fort Worth, Texas entered into eternal life May 10, 2021 at the age of 75. Mickey’s obituary can be viewed here.
The following is reproduced from Mickey Flood’s 2008 Hall of Fame application detailing his extraordinary life submitted by Tom Brown of IESI:
Mickey Flood began his career in the solid waste industry at the age of 15. Growing up in the Bronx and Westchester County, New York, Mickey worked most holidays and summers during his high school and college years for a privately owned local waste hauler, mainly tossing garbage from the back of a rear load garbage truck. After graduating from the University of Miami in 1968 with a degree in education, Mickey taught school for a few years. However, in 1976 he returned to his first love, coming back to the solid waste industry when he joined SCA Services (SCA). During his tenure with SCA through 1984, Mickey served in numerous different capacities with increasing responsibilities, ending as a Region Vice President for SCA, located in Texas, and with management responsibilities over operations in 13 states.
In 1984, when SCA was acquired by Waste Management, Inc. (WMI), Mickey became the President of GSX Corporation North America (GSX), located in Texas. GSX had acquired, as part of the WMI acquisition of SCA, former SCA operations that the U.S. Justice Department had required WMI to divest. In 1986, GSX was acquired by Laidlaw Waste Systems Inc. (Laidlaw), at which time Mickey became President of Laidlaw’s U.S. operations. In 1987, Mickey left Laidlaw.
Over the next few years, he started a couple of private business ventures in the solid waste industry, one of which he sold to WMI in 1989. Also in 1989, Mickey joined WMI as a Region Vice President, and in 1992 he became one of the Company’s four Group Presidents in charge of their solid waste business in North America. In 1994 Mickey left Waste Management to live his dream of building his own solid waste services company. At the time, he felt strongly that the large national companies in the solid waste industry had lost touch with their customers and employees, due to all of the industry consolidations over the past two decades.
In 1995, Mickey, with his wife Ellen and daughter Kim, made his dream a reality with the acquisition of a small, two-truck, privately owned solid waste company in Justin, Texas and renamed it “Independent Environmental Services Corporation”, eventually becoming known as IESI Corporation (IESI). In 1996 the Company, through his leadership, started a solid waste industry roll-up strategy, acquiring two small solid waste trucking companies and securing two key municipal contracts. In 1997, after adding some new private investors, the company acquired eight more small solid waste collection companies and purchased the company’s first landfill, a construction and demolition landfill located in Kennedale, Texas. By the end of 1997 IESI was generating approximately $10 million in annual revenue and had Texas collection operations located in the cities of Justin, McKinney, Haltom City, and Austin. IESI had a banner acquisition year in 1998, completing 56 acquisitions and expanding operations for the first time outside the borders of Texas into the states of New York, New Jersey, Arkansas, and Missouri, finishing the year with annual revenue of more than $49 million. During 1999, IESI acquired 33 more companies and entered the states of Oklahoma, Pennsylvania and Maryland, as well as expanding its existing operations through municipal contracts and organic growth that more than doubled the Company’s revenue from $49 million the prior year to over $112 million.
Over the next five years, IESI continued acquiring companies and growing internally. By the close of 2004, the Company had added operations in Louisiana, purchased the largest solid waste landfill in New York State, and completed, since its inception in 1995, over 150 acquisitions. At the close of 2004, IESI was operating in 9 states, from 43 collection operations, 23 transfer stations, 17 landfills, and 6 recycling operations. In addition, IESI had more than 1,750 employees, operated over 800 trucks, serviced nearly 600,000 customers, including exclusively 270 municipalities, and was the 10th largest solid waste company, with reported revenue of over $322 million.
On January 21, 2005, IESI was acquired by BFI Canada Income Fund (BFIC), a publicly traded income fund listed on the Toronto Stock Exchange. Mickey is the President of BFIC and serves as a member of the Board of Directors. The merged companies continue to execute a roll-up strategy similar to the one Mickey envision in 1996. Today, BFIC is the 6th largest solid waste management company in North America. Fiscal year 2006 revenues was $772 million, as reported in Canadian dollars.
Mickey has also served in numerous positions with the industry organizations including:
- EIA Board of Trustees from 2002 to 2007
- Chairman, EIA Board of Trustees 2003 to 2006
- NSWMA Board of Governors 2002 to Present
- Chairman, Flow Control Task Force
- Active member of the NSWMA’s Texas Chapter
- Major Player in building momentum for rate cap relief in New York City
- Dependable industry speaker on leadership characteristics, flow control and business topics to NSWMA (now NWRA)
- Mentor of young leaders, e.g., Future Industry Leaders Alliance
- Currently a Board Member of the Detachable Container Association (DCA)
In recognition of his many contributions to the industry, Mickey was awarded a Special Trustee Award by EIA (now NWRA) in 2007.
