Department of Justice Seal

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                          AT
FRIDAY, AUGUST 22, 1997                            (202) 616-2771
                                               TDD (202) 514-1888

     JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REQUIRES SALE OF PITTSBURGH LANDFILL
        IN SETTLEMENT WITH USA WASTE/UNITED WASTE SYSTEMS


        Pennsylvania Attorney General Joins in Settlement

     WASHINGTON, D.C. -- USA Waste Services Inc. will be allowed
to acquire United Waste Systems Inc. as long as the companies
sell off a Pittsburgh landfill company and meet other conditions
to eliminate antitrust concerns, under a joint settlement filed
today by the Department of Justice and the Pennsylvania Attorney
General's office.  USA Waste and United Waste are two of the
largest waste hauling and disposal companies in North America.

     The Department's Antitrust Division said that if USA Waste's
acquisition of United Waste had gone forward as originally
proposed, it would have eliminated the vigorous competition that
had existed between the two companies resulting in higher prices
for municipal solid waste disposal and hauling services in
Allegheny County, Pennsylvania. 
 
     "Without this settlement, businesses and residents in
Allegheny County would have paid higher prices for waste hauling
and disposal," said Joel I. Klein, Assistant Attorney General in
charge of the Department's Antitrust Division. 
 
     The joint antitrust suit, filed in U.S. District Court in
Pittsburgh, said that without the settlement, the acquisition
would have substantially lessened competition by giving USA Waste
control over about 60 percent of the disposal services offered to
haulers of municipal solid waste generated in Allegheny County,
with nearly twice the market share of the next largest firm in
the area.

     At the same time, a proposed settlement was filed that, if
approved by the court, would settle the suit.  The proposed
settlement will maintain competition by requiring the divestiture
of a Pittsburgh-area landfill owned by Kelly Run Sanitation Inc.,
a subsidiary of United Waste. 

     Under the restructured deal, residents of Allegheny County
will continue to enjoy the benefits of competition for municipal
solid waste disposal and hauling services, the Department said.

     Klein said that the joint settlement is one of a recent
series of settlements in the waste industry which preserves
competition and protects consumers from increased prices.

     Municipal solid waste includes residential and commercial
trash and garbage.  Municipal solid waste generated in Allegheny
County is collected by haulers that transport the waste to
landfills for disposal. 

     United Waste, based in Greenwich, Connecticut, is among the
largest hauling and disposal companies in the United States, with
operations in 23 states.  In 1996, it had sales of about 
$336 million.

     USA Waste, based in Houston, is the third largest waste
management company in North America, with operations in 36
states, the District of Columbia, Canada, Mexico and Puerto Rico,
and sales of $1.3 billion in 1996.

     As required by the Tunney Act, the proposed consent decree
will be published in the Federal Register, along with the
Department's competitive impact statement.  Any person may submit
written comments concerning the proposed decree during a 60-day
comment period to J. Robert Kramer II, Chief, Litigation II
Section, Antitrust Division, U.S. Department of Justice, 1401 H
St., N.W., Suite 3000, Washington, D.C. 20530 (202/307-0924).

     At the conclusion of the 60-day comment period, the court
may enter the consent decree upon a finding that it serves the
public interest.
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