Environmental Services Acquisitions in 2021

TXE Capital, a Houston-based investor focused on testing, inspection and calibration (TIC) businesses, acquired Envirodyne Laboratories, a NELAP-accredited environmental testing laboratory in Houston. The transaction closed on December 31, 2021 and was advised by Generational Equity; owners Tanny Busby and Laura Bonjonia sold the business to TXE.

HeartLand, a portfolio company of Sterling Investment Partners, acquired four commercial landscape and facilities services providers: Landscape Services, Inc. (LSI), Sharp's Landscaping, Total Environment, Inc., and Merit Service Solutions. The add-on deals expand HeartLand's geographic footprint across multiple U.S. markets as part of a roll-up strategy (this marks HeartLand's 13th acquisition since Sterling invested in August 2019).

Graphene & Solar Technologies, Ltd. (GSTX) acquired Air-To-Water, LLC, a Nevada-based developer of atmospheric water-extraction technology. GSTX plans to manufacture the proprietary solid‑state units in the U.S.; single units produce about 13–20 gallons per day, are expected to sell for $5,000–$8,000, and have an anticipated lifespan of over 10 years.

Inframark, a water and wastewater operations company backed by New Mountain Capital, has acquired MR Systems, a provider of automation and cybersecurity solutions for municipal water and wastewater facilities. The acquisition expands Inframark's automation, SCADA and cybersecurity capabilities and brings MR Systems' skilled workforce and Eastern U.S. footprint into Inframark's platform.

Keter Environmental Services, a PE-backed national recycling and waste management platform, has acquired Atlanta-based M-PASS Environmental, a provider of waste management and recycling solutions. The acquisition strengthens Keter's service capabilities and expands its geographic and industry coverage; financial terms were not disclosed.

Delos Capital and The Silverfern Group partnered to acquire Pioneer Recycling Services, a Tacoma, Washington–based operator of materials recovery facilities (MRFs) serving residential, commercial, municipal and industrial customers across the Pacific Northwest. Capstone Partners advised Pioneer (a portfolio company of Central Valley Fund) on the transaction; the PE buyers said they will partner with Pioneer’s management to grow the business and invest in its processing capabilities.

ITOCHU Corporation, through its U.K. subsidiary EUROPEAN TYRE ENTERPRISE LIMITED (ETEL), has acquired Murfitts Group Ltd, a leading U.K. tyre recycling company based in Lakenheath. The deal brings Murfitts' tyre collection, rubber-crumb manufacturing and proprietary pyrolysis technology into ITOCHU/ETEL's tyre distribution and retail network to support sustainability and vertical integration across the tyre value chain.

Boathouse Capital has completed a growth investment in RBJK Marketing, the largest Jan-Pro franchisee operating in the Atlanta and Oklahoma City markets. The private equity firm partnered with RBJK’s management to fund organic and inorganic growth initiatives — including expansion within the Jan-Pro system and digital transformation efforts to scale the commercial cleaning business.

Sweeping Corporation of America (SCA), the largest power sweeping company in the U.S., has acquired Venco Power Sweeping, a long-established street and parking lot sweeping operator based in Oxnard, California. The acquisition expands SCA's presence and market share in Southern California; terms were not disclosed.

Super Home Services, a Dubin Clark holding company, has acquired SWAT Mosquito Systems, a Miramar, Florida-based provider of permanent automated mosquito misting systems. Route 2 Capital Partners provided subordinated debt and equity financing to support Super Home Services' acquisition and growth of the platform.

Commercial Energy Specialists Holdings LLC (CES Holdings), a platform backed by Turning Basin Capital Partners and Vigeo Investments, acquired Duffield Aquatics, Inc., a full-service provider of water treatment programs for commercial and institutional pools based in Anderson, South Carolina. The add-on expands CES Holdings' geographic footprint and strengthens its market position across the Southeastern United States; terms were not disclosed and the deal closed January 14, 2022.

Tide Rock Holdings, a San Diego-based strategic holding company, has acquired American Recycling Company, LLC of Modesto, California (renamed American Recycling Holdings, LLC). The full-service recycler — which handles paper, plastic, metal and organic waste and provides ESG-compliant analytics — will remain managed by its founders and will expand services and organics processing under Tide Rock's ownership.

ORIX Capital Partners acquired a majority interest in Odin, a Rocklin, California–based provider of environmental and geotechnical construction, remediation, and dredging services. Odin's founders and management will retain a significant equity stake as ORIX positions the company as a platform for growth within its environmental services and ESG thematic focus; financial terms were not disclosed.

Greenix Pest Control, headquartered in Orem, Utah, announced the acquisition of Rise Pest Control, adding more than 70 team members and service professionals across Iowa, Kansas, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Indiana and Nebraska. The deal increases Greenix's density in the upper Midwest and expands its footprint as the company continues rapid growth across multiple states.

Rockwood Equity Partners completed a recapitalization of Pase Environmental, partnering with founder and president Rina Kabouk to establish Pase as the first platform of Rockwood’s Fund IV. Based in Parker, Colorado, Pase provides erosion control and stormwater remediation services across residential, commercial and municipal markets; the deal is intended to fund growth initiatives and build underlying infrastructure using Rockwood’s operating system.

LRS, a Midwest waste diversion, recycling and portable services provider, acquired Johnson County Refuse along with two portable-restroom providers — Port 'O' Jonny and Action Services, Inc. — to establish an expanded presence across greater Cedar Rapids and Iowa City. The deals add roughly 50 employees from Johnson County Refuse and a combined portable-services fleet (25 trucks) to LRS’s operations; financial terms were not disclosed.

Valicor Environmental Services, a portfolio company of Pritzker Private Capital, has acquired ASI Environmental Services, a non-hazardous wastewater treatment provider based in Texarkana, Texas. The add-on expands Valicor’s centralized wastewater treatment and transfer facility footprint in Texas and establishes a presence in Arkansas.

Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan has joined KKR's Global Impact Fund as a significant long-term investor in GreenCollar, the Australian environmental markets project developer. The investment will support GreenCollar's international expansion and continued growth across its carbon, water, biodiversity and plastics offerings; terms were not disclosed.

Quest Resource Holding Corporation (NASDAQ: QRHC) has acquired RWS Facility Services from Atar Capital. The transaction brings RWS’s asset-light waste management, commodity recycling and facility services capabilities into Quest’s national platform to expand service offerings and customer reach across retail, QSR and real-estate end markets.

Scopes Facility Services, a Westbridge Capital portfolio company, has acquired Atlanta-based Davis Landscaping Group. Davis provides commercial landscaping installation and maintenance to multi-family properties, HOAs and commercial clients (representing over 170 properties and 20,000+ units); financing for the transaction was provided by Westbridge Capital Partners Income Trust and Davis' CEO/owner Jay Stephens will remain in a strategic client role.

Wind River Environmental, backed by Gryphon Investors, has acquired Koberlein Environmental Services, a septic and non-hazardous liquid waste services provider headquartered in Honesdale, Pennsylvania. The deal adds Koberlein’s three locations, more than 20,000 residential, commercial and municipal customers, and roughly 45 employees to Wind River’s platform to expand local service in New York and eastern Pennsylvania.

Deep Isolation, a Berkeley-based developer of deep-borehole nuclear waste storage and disposal technology, has acquired Freestone Environmental Services, a Richland, Washington environmental and water-resources consulting firm. The acquisition brings Freestone's team of roughly 25 scientists and engineers and strengthens Deep Isolation's environmental investigation, regulatory planning, and remediation capabilities—particularly experience on the U.S. Department of Energy's Hanford project.

Rockit Pest, a portfolio company of Halle Capital, has acquired Home Pest Control, a Columbia, South Carolina pest control services provider with nearly 60 years of history. The acquisition expands Rockit Pest's presence across South Carolina; Steven Leidinger will remain President of HPC and Curtis M. Loftis, Jr. (the company's current President and majority shareholder) will transition to Rockit Pest's Board of Directors.

3i Group plc has acquired EC Waste, LLC, a leading non-hazardous solid waste services provider in Puerto Rico, from Post Capital Partners. EC Waste serves over 100,000 residential and more than 8,500 commercial and industrial customers, operates multiple landfill sites and transfer stations, employs over 350 people, and hosts a large renewable natural gas project; financial terms were not disclosed.

Senske Services, a family-owned lawn, tree and pest services company based in Kennewick, Washington, has acquired Custom Insect & Weed Control of Gig Harbor, Washington. The acquisition transfers customer service to Senske’s Washington Tree & Lawn Care division as founder Larry Morrison retires and supports Senske’s ongoing M&A-driven expansion in the Western United States.

TruHorizon Environmental Solutions announced the acquisition of the assets of Phase Engineering, Inc., bringing Phase’s environmental engineering and consulting team into TruHorizon to expand geographic reach and service offerings. Phase, founded in 1993 and co-owned by James Dismukes and Melanie Edmundson, has completed tens of thousands of environmental and property condition assessments for lenders, developers and property owners across the U.S.

Thompson Street Capital Partners' portfolio company PestCo Holdings, LLC has completed an investment in Ecoteam, LLC and Houston-based Envirotrol Pest Solutions, Inc. (together referred to as Ecoteam). The transaction positions Ecoteam for expansion across Texas (Houston, Dallas–Fort Worth, Austin and San Antonio); terms were not disclosed.

New State Capital Partners (via an affiliate) has made a majority equity investment in Wilmington Paper Corp., a recovered-fiber processor and intermediary headquartered in New Jersey. Management, led by CEO Stuart Lurie, retained a substantial minority stake; New State said it will support organic growth, technology and logistics investments, and pursue add-on acquisitions to extend the company's reach.

Greenrise Technologies, a holding of Boyne Capital, acquired Lake Murray Environmental Services (LMES), a South Carolina erosion-prevention and stormwater solutions provider. The transaction, advised by Generational Equity, closed on November 12, 2021 and represents an add-on acquisition to expand Greenrise's stormwater and erosion-control capabilities and geographic footprint.

D&H United Fueling Solutions acquired Valley Tank Testing, a Houston-based provider of underground and above-ground storage tank testing, compliance, and inspection services. The acquisition expands D&H United’s environmental compliance services and will have Valley Tank Testing operate as a standalone division; D&H United is PE-backed by KLH Capital, which recapitalized the company in 2020.

ERM has acquired Stratos Inc., a Canada-based sustainability and ESG advisory firm founded in 2000 in Ottawa. The deal adds more than 30 Canada-based sustainability practitioners to ERM and strengthens ERM's sustainability and climate-change advisory capabilities and presence in Canada, including expertise in Indigenous partnership and stakeholder engagement.

National Pool Partners (NPP) acquired Pool Doctor Service & Supplies (PDSS), a Cape Coral, Florida-based pool service, repair and retail company, in a transaction that closed on November 9, 2021. The deal—advised by Generational Equity—adds PDSS as an operator-brand within NPP's multi-regional pool service platform and provides continuity for owners Mark and Barbara Forster and their employees.

Thompson Street Capital Partners’ portfolio company PestCo Holdings, LLC acquired the assets of Presto Pest Control, Inc., a Telford, Pennsylvania-based commercial pest control provider focused on the restaurant industry. The deal is PestCo’s first add-on as it pursues a consolidation strategy in the fragmented pest control market; terms were not disclosed.

LetterOne, via its new energy arm L1 New Energy, has made an equity investment in Plastic Energy to accelerate the chemical recycling company’s growth and global plant rollout. The funding will support expansion beyond Plastic Energy’s two operational plants in Spain — including a plant under construction in the Netherlands and developments in France — and helps explore a potential UK facility with Nestlé.

Global consulting firm J.S. Held announced the asset acquisition of substantially all assets of Environmental Profiles, Inc. (EPI), an environmental, health, and safety consulting firm with offices in Maryland and North Carolina. The deal adds EPI’s toxicology, industrial hygiene, and safety expertise to J.S. Held’s EHS practice and gives the EPI team access to J.S. Held’s broader technical, financial, and strategic consulting resources.

West Sweeping Services Holdings, a platform backed by Broadtree Partners, has acquired Szeremi Sweeping Service, a Sacramento-based construction and commercial sweeping company. Bank Prov provided senior debt and True West Capital Partners provided subordinated debt to support the transaction; founders Bryan and Andrea Szeremi remain equity holders and will continue supporting operations.

Main Street Capital Corporation fully exited its debt and equity investments in J&J Services, Inc. following the sale of the Nashville-based roll-off dumpster and portable toilet rental operator to a strategic acquiror (buyer name not disclosed). Main Street originally invested $24.8 million in a 2019 recapitalization and realized an $11.0 million gain on the exit.

TPG Growth completed a significant growth equity investment in Keter Environmental Services, a US-based full-service recycling and waste management company. The capital will be used to broaden Keter's service offerings, strengthen its salesforce, expand go-to-market capabilities, and support strategic acquisitions to accelerate growth.

Evolution Capital Partners has made a growth investment in LEW Corporation, an environmental inspection, testing, remediation and training services firm headquartered in Mine Hill, New Jersey. The deal represents the second investment for Evolution's Mainline Environmental platform (launched July 2021) as the firm seeks to scale a portfolio of environmental consulting, remediation and training businesses serving property owners, municipalities and schools across the U.S.

Environmental Risk Information Services (ERIS), a division of Glacier Media, has acquired LGI Copy Service Canada to strengthen ERIS' Canadian operations and expand its historical and current environmental data offerings. The deal integrates LGI's city directories and historical aerial photographs into ERIS' platforms to improve property due diligence products and nationwide scale.

E Source has acquired Water Systems Optimization (WSO), a Nashville-based water-loss analytics and consulting firm, as a strategic add-on to expand E Source’s water market capabilities. The acquisition, announced by E Source’s owner Align Capital Partners, integrates WSO’s analytics, leak-simulation models, and program management services into E Source’s Technology Planning and Implementation unit to better serve utilities and municipalities.

H.I.G. Capital’s portfolio platform United Flow Technologies (UFT) completed the add-on acquisitions of Tesco Controls, Inc. and The Henry P. Thompson Company to expand its capabilities and geographic footprint in the municipal and industrial water/wastewater markets. Both businesses will remain under their existing leadership and brands as part of the integrated UFT platform; terms were not disclosed.

Rockit Pest has acquired East Cooper Termite & Pest Solutions, a Mt. Pleasant, South Carolina‑based pest control company serving the greater Charleston area. The founder, Christopher Bavosa, will continue to manage the business as Rockit expands its presence in South Carolina through the add-on acquisition.

Duke's Root Control, a portfolio company of Altamont Capital Partners, has acquired Hydrostructures, P.A., a regional wastewater and sewer services/engineering provider with offices across North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The acquisition expands Duke's service capabilities, regional presence and supports its Duke's360 smart wastewater strategy by integrating Hydrostructures' field services and engineering expertise.

LRS announced the acquisition of Orion Waste Solutions territories across Arkansas, Kansas and Wisconsin and the RAMCO-Alternative Waste Management (AWM) waste and recycling business from Waste Recycling Solutions in the Little Rock, Arkansas MSA. The transactions add 19 municipal contracts, 140 employees, 115 trucks, one C&D landfill and nine facilities, expanding LRS’s geographic footprint and service capabilities in the Midwest and Arkansas.

Environmental 360 Solutions Ltd. (E360S), a PE-backed environmental services operator based in Aurora, Ontario, has acquired Le Géant du Conteneur, a Châteauguay, Quebec–based provider of solid non-hazardous and construction waste management. The acquisition expands E360S's footprint into the Montreal market and adds material-recovery and construction-waste diversion capabilities that complement its existing Quebec operations.

Reclamation Technologies USA, LLC (RTI), a joint venture formed by Heritage Environmental Services and Fielding Environmental, has purchased DFW Refrigerant Services, LLC to expand its refrigerant reclamation footprint in the Dallas–Fort Worth market. The acquisition adds local EPA-certified refrigerant recovery, reclamation, cylinder exchange and sustainability programs to RTI's national service offering.

American Working Capital (AWC) and Delos Capital, alongside company management, have made an investment in ACT GeoKinetics Topco to acquire Advanced Construction Technologies (ACT) and Applied GeoKinetics. The combined business will offer full-lifecycle environmental engineering and soil vapor intrusion mitigation services, with the investors backing the company's national expansion and continued growth.

Platinum Equity has completed the acquisition of Madrid-based environmental services company Urbaser from China Tianying for an enterprise value of approximately $4.2 billion. Urbaser, which operates in waste collection, treatment and waste-to-energy across multiple countries and employs more than 50,000 people, will continue to be led by CEO José María López Piñol as Platinum looks to expand capabilities in sustainable waste-management solutions and grow the business across Europe and other markets.

Partners Group and Kohlberg & Company jointly acquired BluSky Restoration Contractors from majority owner Dominus Capital, which retained a minority stake; BluSky management also retains a meaningful ownership position. Denver-based BluSky is a national restoration, remediation, environmental, and roofing services provider with more than 900 employees and 40 branches; the new owners plan to expand branches, national accounts, capabilities, and pursue add-on acquisitions.