Radar › Companies › Environment · Charlotte
Radar · Environment in Charlotte

Best Environment Companies in Charlotte, United States

The 45 best Environment companies in Charlotte, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Wastequip.

45companies tracked
$726.9Mdisclosed funding
0unicorns
9have raised
FLIAR INTELLIGENCE · ENVIRONMENT × CHARLOTTE

Our analysis of 90 Environment companies

$38.2b in tracked funding; 89% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.

90companies analysed
89%cloud-native stacks
2025funding peak (by rounds)
3unicorns
2015median founding year
451kcombined LinkedIn audience
95%of audience held by top 3
1companies hiring publicly (12 mo)

Ranked: Best Environment companies in Charlotte

#CompanyDisclosed fundingLast roundStageFounderFoundedTech stackPatents & IP focusRecent signals
1Wastequip
Provider of waste collection and recycling services
$290M170 mo agoAcquiredCharles Walton
Founder
1989WordPressApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+3186 patents
Modular refuse containers and automated vehicle hoist systems for waste collection handling.
1 internship · 1 expansion
2ClearGen
Provider of solar financing services
$250M71 mo agoFunding RaisedCollin Franceschi
Co-Founder & CDO
2020———
3ReCommunity
Provider of waste recycling and disposal services
$90M158 mo agoAcquired—2006———
4Terrestrial Energy
Developer of small modular reactor
64Funding top 25%Moat top 31%Growth top 35%Tech top 38%
All 8 signals ▾
Fundingtop 25%
Moattop 31%
Growthtop 35%
Techtop 38%
Talenttop 38%
Newstop 48%
Marketbottom 38%
Globalbottom 37%
Funding: Raised $76.2M across 19 rounds · 19 rounds over 12 yrs (1.6/yr)
Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 8/10 · Soonicorn
rank vs industry peers · Fliar Intelligence Index 64/100
$76M5 mo agoSeries DChris Popoff
Ex-Co-Founder
2013DrupalApple iCloud MailMicrosoft 365+23—2 partnerships · 1 award
5Sencera
Refrigerant-free heat pumps for efficient, zero-carbon heating and cooling solutions
$19M214 mo agoSeries BRusty Jewett
CEO
2003———
6Boomerang
Sustainable water bottling system that reduces plastic water bottle waste
$1M62 mo agoSeedJason Dibble
Co-Founder
2020WordPress Block EditorWordPressMySQL+316 patents
Mobile device protective cases and advanced content transformation correlation algorithms
—
7Renu Energy Solutions
Residential and commercial solar project developer
$50K178 mo agoAcquiredJay Radcliffe
President & CEO
2010WordPressZohoMySQL+35——
8PROSHRED
Provider of document shredding and recycling services
$25K199 mo agoPublic—1986WordPressPleskUnbounce+32——
9Duke Energy
Producer and distributor of renewable electricity
—14 mo agoPublicLynn Good
CEO & President
1904WordPressApple iCloud MailMySQL+2485 patents
Smart grid control, transmission infrastructure, demand‑response, EV charging, and gas leak monitoring
1 award

Top 10 Environment companies in Charlotte

#1
Series D · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2013 · 78 employees
$76.2Mraised
▾

Developer of small modular reactor

Fliar Intelligence Index™ 64how this company ranks against its industry peers
Funding
top 25%
Moat
top 31%
Growth
top 35%
Tech
top 38%
Talent
top 38%
News
top 48%
Funding: Raised $76.2M across 19 rounds · 19 rounds over 12 yrs (1.6/yr) · Last round Series D (Mar 2026)
Moat: Editorial + unicorn rating 8/10 · Soonicorn · 9 curated direct competitors tracked
Growth: Fresh capital in last 24 mo
Audience (LinkedIn): 24k LinkedIn followers — 5.4% of this cohort's audience · 55 engagements/post (4.8× cohort median)
Activity (LinkedIn): 2 partnerships · 1 awards (incl. The Texas A&M University System) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
  • Mar 2026Series D$85.3K
  • Jul 2025Series D$25.8M
  • Mar 2025Grant (prize money)$500K
  • Feb 2025Series D$15.6M
Founders & team
Chris PopoffEx-Co-FounderSimon IrishCEO
Investors
ARPA-E, Sustainable Development Technology Canada, Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada, OSTI, Varana Capital
Tech stack
Acquia Cloud PlatformAcquia Cloud Site FactoryAdobe AnalyticsAdobe Experience Platform Identity ServiceAdobe Experience Platform LaunchAkamai
#2
Funding Raised · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2020 · 12 employees
$250Mraised
▾

Provider of solar financing services

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 2k LinkedIn followers
Activity: 1 partnerships (incl. CBRE Investment Management) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
  • Sep 2020Conventional Debt$250M
Founders & team
Collin FranceschiCo-Founder & CDORobert HowardChief Executive Officer
#3
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1989 · 1552 employees
$290Mraised
▾

Provider of waste collection and recycling services

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 10k LinkedIn followers — 2.3% of this cohort's audience
Activity: 1 product launches · 1 expansions announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
  • Jun 2012Conventional Debt$290M
Founders & team
Charles WaltonFounderMartin BryantCEO
Investors
Littlejohn, Morgenthaler, PNC, CIVC Partners, H.I.G. Capital
Tech stack
Apple Icloud MailAutoptimizeCloudflareCloudflare Bot ManagementDrupalFastly
#4
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2006 · 1500 employees
$90Mraised
▾

Provider of waste recycling and disposal services

Funding rounds
  • Jun 2013Conventional Debt$90M
Investors
Ares Capital Corporation, HarbourVest Partners, Pegasus Capital Advisors, Intersection Partners
#5
Series B · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2003
$19.2Mraised
▾

Refrigerant-free heat pumps for efficient, zero-carbon heating and cooling solutions. They provide innovative, environmentally harmless heat pump technology, eliminating harmful refrigerants and reducing carbon emissions. Their patented systems offer a more efficient alternative to traditional vapor-cycle machines, decreasing electrical demand while delivering superior heating and cooling performance. They address the growing global demand for decarbonized HVAC solutions, offering a sustainable path towards Net Zero goals in the building sector. Their technology is designed to combat climate change, reduce energy consumption, and improve grid efficiency, making cooling more sustainable and accessible worldwide. They are focused on providing green heating and cooling systems for a more sustainable future.

Funding rounds
  • Sep 2008Series B$15.6M
  • Apr 2008Series A$3.6M
Founders & team
Rusty JewettCEO
Investors
Quercus, Quercus Trust
Tech stack
WordpressMysqlPhpHello ElementorElementorApache Http Server
#6
Seed · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2020 · 9 employees
$1.4Mraised
▾

Boomerang is a sustainable water bottling system that aims to reduce plastic water bottle waste. Their system makes it easy to reduce plastic waste through four easy steps. Boomerang has also formed an alliance with Ball Corporation to provide customers with on-site refillable bottled water solutions.

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 2k LinkedIn followers
Activity: 3 partnerships (incl. Boomerang Water) announced in 12 mo
Funding rounds
  • Jun 2021Seed$1.4M
Founders & team
Jason DibbleCo-FounderJerrod FreundCo-Founder
Tech stack
AccessibeCalendlyCloudflareCloudflare Bot ManagementCookiebotCore-Js
#7
Acquired · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2010 · 94 employees
$50Kraised
▾

Renu Energy Solutions provides residential and commercial installation services in North Carolina. Services include design, installation, consultation, engineering, construction, operation, activation, maintenance, servicing and others. Specializes in rooftop PV systems. Also provides tax credits and other financing options.

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 4k LinkedIn followers
Funding rounds
  • Sep 2011Grant (prize money)$50K
Founders & team
Jay RadcliffePresident & CEO
Investors
United States Department of Agriculture
Tech stack
Amazon SesAmazon Web ServicesApache Http ServerAutoptimizeCloudflareCloudflare Bot Management
#8
Public · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1986 · 179 employees
$25Kraised
▾

Provider of document shredding and recycling services

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 2k LinkedIn followers
Funding rounds
  • Jan 2010Unattributed$25K
Investors
Covington Capital
Tech stack
WordpressMysqlPhpWp RocketSiteorigin Page BuilderContact Form 7
#9
Public · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 1904 · 27037 employees
—raised
▾

Producer and distributor of renewable electricity. It is an independent power producer in the renewable energy sector which owns and operates utility-scale wind and solar parks. Operates multiple wind farms with a cumulative production rate and more than half solar parks with a high capacity of power. Involved in the distribution of electricity to the main grids of multiple states. Distributor of natural gas and electricity to local residents across the country. In 2022, the company recorded annual revenues of $28.78B and a net profit of $2.55B.

LinkedIn Pulse recent public activity · Jul 2026
Audience: 394k LinkedIn followers — 87.2% of this cohort's audience · 153 engagements/post (13.3× cohort median)
Activity: 1 awards announced in 12 mo
Founders & team
Lynn GoodCEO & President
Investors
Goldman Sachs, Elliott Management, GIC, OSTI
Tech stack
Acoustic Experience AnalyticsAdaAkamaiAkamai MpulseAmazon CloudfrontAmazon S3
#10
Deadpooled · Charlotte, North Carolina · founded 2013 · 4 employees
—raised
▾

Jenner Renewables is an independent power producer in the areas of wind, solar, hydro, and biomass. The company uses Framework of the International Finance Corporation (IFC) and the World Bank Group .

Funding rounds
  • Sep 2015PE—
Founders & team
Jorge CalvetFounder & CEO
Investors
Denham Capital
Tech stack
Apache Http Server

Funding & investor landscape

$726.9Mtotal disclosed funding
8companies funded
27disclosed rounds
0rounds last 90 days
Most active investors
OSTI2 rounds
ARPA-E1 rounds
Ares Capital Corporation1 rounds
Brigade REAP1 rounds
CIVC Partners1 rounds
Capitala Group1 rounds
Covington Capital1 rounds
Denham Capital1 rounds
Elliott Management1 rounds
GIC1 rounds

Notable founders

Chris Popoff
Ex-Co-Founder · Terrestrial Energy
Simon Irish
CEO · Terrestrial Energy
Collin Franceschi
Co-Founder & CDO · ClearGen
Robert Howard
Chief Executive Officer · ClearGen
Charles Walton
Founder · Wastequip
Martin Bryant
CEO · Wastequip
Rusty Jewett
CEO · Sencera
Jason Dibble
Co-Founder · Boomerang
Jerrod Freund
Co-Founder · Boomerang
Jay Radcliffe
President & CEO · Renu Energy Solutions
Lynn Good
CEO & President · Duke Energy
Jorge Calvet
Founder & CEO · Jenner Renewables
Prism market signals · United States · country-scoped Prism corpus, 6,440,608 docs

Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage

Share of Environment coverage by sub-theme.

Regulatory-risk over time rising

Funding & growth over time

funding rising · growth rising

RESEARCH SIGNALS · United States

How research on Environmental Monitoring is moving in the United States

A read on the academic research around Environmental Monitoring — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 3,039 United States-affiliated papers.

research sentiment over time
200820172026
enthusiastic · positive · guarded tone
Tone is overwhelmingly optimistic and softening — the enthusiastic (strongly-positive) share moved 41% → 38% across 2008–2026.
top research entities
  • United States Geological Survey157
  • Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies112
  • Environmental Protection Agency84
  • National Research Council79
  • National Park Service76
leading researchers
Kelly, Vicky · Kelly, Victoria · Catalyst Cooperative · U.S. DOE EM · McIntyre, Cheryl · Stocker-Waldhuber, Martin · Seiser, Bernd · Hartl, Lea
▲ Breakthroughs481 · 16%
▲ 12%→18% share
▲1.5× share momentum0 median citations77% since 2021mostly methods-led
Breakthroughs are rising (12%→18% of field), led by Software deployment.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
  • Software deployment2→31
  • Pollution3→27
  • Air quality index1→25
  • Water quality10→34
  • Air pollution3→25
Newly emergingScalability 0→21 · Biodiversity 0→18 · Climate change 0→14
Landmark Environmental sensor networks in ecological research · 165 cites
◆ Advancements804 · 26%
▼ 31%→24% share
▼0.8× share momentum0 median citations64% since 2021mostly methods-led
Advancements are cooling (31%→24% of field), led by Air quality index.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
  • Air quality index14→60
  • Air pollution8→51
  • Pollutant4→32
  • Sampling (signal processing)14→42
  • Water quality23→48
Newly emergingKey (lock) 0→17 · Range (aeronautics) 0→10 · Microplastics 0→10
Landmark Tracking complex mixtures of chemicals in our changing environment · 716 cites
▼ Concerns626 · 21%
▼ 21%→20% share
▲1.0× share momentum0 median citations68% since 2021mostly empirical
Concerns are cooling (21%→20% of field), led by Human health.
rising sub-themes (early→recent)
  • Human health1→32
  • Pollution4→33
  • Air quality index6→31
  • Pollutant6→28
  • Biodiversity1→22
Newly emergingMicroplastics 0→19 · Agriculture 0→18 · Marine debris 0→14
Landmark Past, present, and future perspectives of environmental DNA (eDNA) metabarcoding: A systematic review in methods, monito · 1,184 cites
RESEARCH HOTSPOTS · United States

Where environmental monitoring is researched across United States

Location clusters by institution affiliation — each city's volume, stance tone, and a quick read on its hot topic, what's advancing, the opening opportunity, and the main concern.

SF Bay Area80 · +0.27
Hot · Wireless sensor networkAdvancing · Environmental DNAOpportunity · Hazardous wasteConcern · Environmental planning
Boston61 · +0.43
Hot · Exposure assessmentAdvancing · Environmental dataOpportunity · Software deployment
New York54 · +0.35
Hot · BiodiversityAdvancing · HabitatOpportunity · Geospatial analysis
Seattle53 · +0.24
Hot · Air pollutionAdvancing · Environmental epidemiologyOpportunity · Citizen scienceConcern · Estuary
Los Angeles37 · +0.39
Hot · Wireless sensor networkAdvancing · Air monitoringOpportunity · GroundwaterConcern · Contamination
San Diego33 · +0.26
Hot · SustainabilityAdvancing · Citizen scienceOpportunity · ContaminationConcern · Environmental quality
Atlanta32 · +0.25
Hot · Human healthOpportunity · Ozone
Ann Arbor22 · +0.24
Advancing · WorkflowOpportunity · Water quality
Pittsburgh19 · +0.37
Hot · Software deploymentOpportunity · Environmental impact assessment
Philadelphia19 · +0.41
Hot · Air quality indexAdvancing · Software deploymentOpportunity · Climate change
PATENT SIGNAL · United States

Who's filing environmental monitoring patents in the United States

United States environmental monitoring patent filing is accelerating — 450 filings from 343 assignees (2016–2025), led by LEEO, Valencell, United Parcel Service; annual filings 47→49.

450 filings343 assigneespeak 60/yr2016–2025
filing momentum (YoY 2016–2025)
top patent filers
  • LEEO41
  • Valencell25
  • United Parcel Service21
  • Honeywell INT20
  • Apple18
  • Venturedyne18
  • Pillar TECH17
  • IND Scient16

Common questions

How many Environment companies are there in Charlotte, United States?
Radar tracks 45 indexable Environment companies headquartered in Charlotte, United States that meet our profile-completeness bar.
What is the total funding raised by Environment companies in Charlotte, United States?
The Environment companies in Charlotte, United States on this list have raised a combined $726.9M in disclosed equity funding across 8 funded companies.
Which is the highest-funded Environment company in Charlotte, United States?
Wastequip is the highest-funded Environment company in Charlotte, United States, with $290M in disclosed equity funding.
How many Environment companies in Charlotte, United States are funded?
8 of the 45 Environment companies in Charlotte, United States on this list have disclosed at least one equity funding round.
How many Environment unicorns are there in Charlotte, United States?
None of the Environment companies in Charlotte, United States on this list currently has a disclosed valuation of $1B or more.
Who are the top investors in Charlotte, United States Environment companies?
The most active investors in Charlotte, United States Environment companies on this list include OSTI, ARPA-E, Ares Capital Corporation, Brigade REAP, CIVC Partners.
Rohit KhannaTrends & Stories

Rohit lives in the feed. He covers what's moving right now — the funding rounds, launches and shifts breaking across the trade press — and ties them back to where the sector is heading.

Coming soon