WM of Colorado, formerly Waste Management, on Dec. 5 unveiled its new 16-stall compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling station during a ribbon-cutting event at its 5.74-acre Grand Junction campus, which is home to WM’s local hauling site and area recycling facility.

The company has invested $7.8 million in CNG infrastructure, the purchase of 14 cleaner running CNG collection trucks, and necessary upgrades to the hauling site.

WM Senior District Manager Brad Kloos spoke to the group assembled for the event and said, “Twenty-five years ago, WM made our first significant sustainability investment in the Grand Junction community with the launch of a recycling processing facility. Today, we are proud to take another major step forward as the first waste hauler on the Western Slope to build a compressed natural gas (CNG) fueling station and convert our fleet to 100 percent CNG-powered trucks. This nearly $8 million investment underscores our commitment to reducing our environmental impact and supporting Colorado’s sustainability goals.”

WM CNG trucks are powered by engines that emit nearly zero particulate emissions, cut greenhouse gas emissions, save diesel fuel and run significantly quieter. To further conserve fuel and reduce emissions, the engines of these CNG trucks are designed to automatically turn off after five minutes of idling.