TheBurg

16 | theburgnews.com | 07.18 I n 2013, Jim Warner saw a big opportunity—one that required a big risk. He led his organization, the Lancaster County Solid Waste Management Authority, in making a major acquisition—the financially distressed Harrisburg incinerator. Since then, LCSWMA has invested millions to upgrade the plant and the property, transforming it into the Susquehanna Resource Management Complex, a state-of-the- art waste-to-energy complex. At year-end, Warner plans to retire as LCSWMA's long-serving CEO. So, we asked him to reflect on his past and on the career-defining decision to acquire the debt-ridden Harrisburg facility. is interview has been edited for clarity and space. eBurg: How did you get into this industry? Warner: I got out of graduate school in 1984 from Ship [Shippensburg University] with a degree in environmental science. I got a job in Gloucester County (N.J.) as one of the first county recycling coordinators in America. eBurg: What year was that? Warner: at was 1985, when the "garbage crisis" first manifested itself, in New Jersey. So, government responded by saying, "Well, maybe we should recycle part of the waste stream, and we wouldn't have as big of a problem." So, counties in the mid-'80s began hiring . . . professionals to manage and implement recycling programs in a region or a county. en Lancaster became the first county [in Pennsylvania] to write a comprehensive waste management plan, in 1986. eBurg: Where were you from originally? Warner: I grew up in Lebanon, Pa. eBurg: So, you were coming back home? Warner: Not only that. I went to Millersville for my undergrad and, actually, most of my best friends were from Lancaster. My senior year, I lived in downtown Lancaster. So, yeah, I was coming back. I've been here for basically 31 years. eBurg: So you became Lancaster County's recycling coordinator? Warner: I did. I was like the third or fourth employee in the office. And, during that time, we borrowed a lot of money and built a waste-to- energy plant, built the first double-lined landfill in 1988 and then implemented a recycling program. at year, July 1988, is when Pennsylvania passed their mandatory recycling law under Bob Casey's administration. So, I set up the recycling and hired an assistant or two. And my desire was to really get into the business component more. So, then, as we grew, I had a series of promotions and more responsibility until about 1994 or '95, when I was sort of the general manager. en our executive director at the time made a pretty quick exit, and the board of directors decided that I was capable enough to manage the system as it was then, which was not nearly as complicated as it is now. So, as a young 38-year-old, I became executive director and, eventually, my title changed to CEO. e organization went from about $35 [million] to—I wouldn't doubt if we did $90 million this year and 350,000 tons to 1 million. Some of that was organic, but a lot of it was strategic. Probably the biggest piece ever in that evolution was the acquisition of Harrisburg [incinerator], as far as a big chunk of business. eBurg: Let's talk about Harrisburg then. Take me through the process of how you ended up buying the incinerator here. Waste not A Q&A with LCSWMA CEO Jim Warner bY LAwrAnce bIndA

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