Best Waste & Water Management Companies in Illinois, United States
The 128 best Waste & Water Management companies in Illinois, United States in 2026, ranked by funding and momentum. Funding, investors, founders, valuation, tech stack and live signals. Top: Stericycle.
Our analysis of 50 Waste & Water Management companies
$2.9b in tracked funding; 89% of the stack-profiled cohort runs cloud-native; funding activity peaked in 2025.
Ranked: Best Waste & Water Management companies in Illinois
| # | Company | Disclosed funding | Last round | Employees | Founder | Tech stack | Web popularity | Patents & IP focus | Recent signals |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | ace grease service Ace Grease Service provides recycling practices and emphasizes compliance with environmental laws and… | — | — | 15 | — | WordPressApple iCloud MailMySQL+24 | Top 50M | — | — |
| 2 | Agriwater Provider of environmental climate crisis and wastewater services | — | — | 1 | S. Bailey Founder & CEO | — | — | — | — |
| 3 | alar engineering corporation ALAR manufactures industrial wastewater treatment equipment for worldwide distribution. | — | — | 15 | — | PHPYouTubeBootstrap+18 | Top 10M | — | — |
| 4 | All American Recycling Provider of scrap metal recycling services and processing | — | — | — | — | WordPressMySQLRedis+36 | Top 10M | — | — |
| 5 | Alton Materials Alton Materials is a non-ferrous scrap management company that processes and recycles all types of scrap… | — | — | — | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+12 | Top 50M | — | — |
| 6 | AMS Environmental Industrial waste recycling company | — | — | — | Robert Stone CEO & President | — | — | — | — |
| 7 | Aqua Systems Manufacturer of smart water dispensers and coolers for offices | — | — | — | Bobbie Meredith Owner | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | aqua-aerobic systems, inc. Aqua-Aerobic Systems is a renewables & environment company that provides biological processes, filtration… | — | — | 154 | — | WordPressMySQLPHP+22 | Top 10M | — | — |
Top 12 Waste & Water Management companies in Illinois
#1
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2018 · 12 employees$7.5Mraised▾
Provider of solid waste recycling services
- Aug 2025Seed$2.1M
- Mar 2024Seed$3.9M
- May 2023Seed$2.2M
- 2022Seed$100K
#2
Series A · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2017 · 7 employees$4Mraised▾
Provider of affordable water data management software. This software simplifies water and wastewater operations by replacing spreadsheets and clipboards with a user-friendly digital solution. It facilitates real-time data transmission, enabling efficient data-driven decision-making and streamlined reporting. The software offers features for chemical dosage calculation, sample management, and regulatory report generation, improving operational efficiency and compliance. It integrates with various data sources, providing a comprehensive view of utility performance. The system is designed for ease of use and accessibility across various devices.
- Aug 2025Series A$4M
#3
Acquired · Lake Forest, Illinois · founded 1989 · 15000 employees$675Mraised▾
Provider of waste management and disposal services
- Mar 2020Post IPO—
- Jun 2019Conventional Debt$600M
- Aug 1999Post IPO$75M
#4
Series A · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2020 · 9 employees$20Kraised▾
Provider of drink water services
- Apr 2026Series A$150K
- Oct 2025Series A$9.1M
- Dec 2022Seed—
- 2022Seed$20K
#5
Acquired · Frankfort, Illinois · founded 2006 · 20 employees$1.5Mraised▾
Provider of mobile restroom rental services. The company provides mobile toilets, sinks, and restroom trailers and offers septic services, providing event organizers and construction companies with accessible, quality mobile restrooms.
- Jun 2024Conventional Debt$620K
- Mar 2024Conventional Debt$925K
#6
Funding Raised · Illinois City, Illinois · founded 2005 · 116 employees$123Mraised▾
Supplier of ferrous and non-ferrous scrap commodities to both domestic and international consumers
- Jun 2017Conventional Debt$60M
- Dec 2015Conventional Debt$63M
#7
Series B · Wood Dale, Illinois · founded 1999 · 1 employees$12.3Mraised▾
Provider of wastewater treatment technology services
- Mar 2012Series B$60K
- Aug 2010Series B$2M
- Aug 2009Series B$5M
- Dec 2007Series A$700K
#8
Funding Raised · Northlake, Illinois · founded 1981 · 25 employees$6.5Mraised▾
Provider of scrap metal recycling services catering to industrial, manufacturing and demolition clients. The company offers buying, processing, dealing, and exporting non-ferrous, ferrous and precious metals, copper, brass, stainless steel, aluminum, nickel alloy, insulated copper wire, steel, e-scrap, tool steel, tungsten, carbide, titanium and other related services to its clients.
- Jul 2016Conventional Debt$6.5M
#9
Funding Raised · Dieterich, Illinois · founded 2003 · 35 employees$2.3Mraised▾
EJ Water is a not-for-profit water Co-Op dedicated to making rural communities sustainable. Founded in 1989, EJ Water is now the fastest growing regional water system in rural Illinois. It has developed into a multi-county system, serving more than 11,000 members and a population of over 75,000 people through memberships, contract services and wholesaling to multiple communities.
- Aug 2010Grant (prize money)$333K
- Mar 2010Grant (prize money)$97K
- Dec 2009Grant (prize money)$140K
- May 2009Grant (prize money)$700K
#10
Acquired · Elk Grove Village, Illinois · founded 1975 · 117 employees$1.2Mraised▾
Provider of plumbing and sewer services for municipalities and residential customers
- Jun 2019PE—
- Dec 2009Grant (prize money)$1.2M
#11
Seed · Chicago, Illinois · founded 2022 · 5 employees$100Kraised▾
It is a company that aims to make composting mainstream by partnering with building managers to offer residents a convenient and sleek composting solution. They provide sustainable merchandise and offer an online shop with free domestic shipping. Demi is focused on reducing food waste and its impact on the environment.
- 2023Seed$100K
#12
Acquired · Elk Grove Village, Illinois · founded 1914 · 108 employees$1Mraised▾
Provider of waste collection, recycling, and disposal company
- Nov 2011Grant (prize money)$500K
- Dec 2009Grant (prize money)$500K
Funding & investor landscape
Notable founders
Market landscape — 10 sub-themes by coverage
Share of Waste & Water Management coverage by sub-theme.
Regulatory-risk over time rising
Funding & growth over time
funding rising · growth rising
How research on Water Treatment in Illinois is moving
A read on the academic research around Water Treatment in Illinois — which themes are gaining ground, the institutions and researchers driving them, and how the tone is shifting. Based on 54 papers.
University of Illinois institutions lead Illinois's moderately optimistic water-treatment research, predominantly advancing disinfection and nanomaterial remediation with cautious concern about environmental chemical impacts.
- University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign34
- University of Illinois Chicago9
- Southern Illinois University Carbondale5
- Illinois Archaeological Survey3
- Illinois Institute of Technology2
- Environmental chemistry3
- Capacitive deionization2
- Environmental engineering2
- Chloramination1
- Trihalomethane1
- Contamination1→3
- Adsorption1→3
- Environmental chemistry4
- Chlorine2
- Contamination2
- Environmental engineering2
- Water quality2
Common questions
Riya reads income statements for fun. She covers the real money in a sector — revenue, growth, who actually earns — and never met a vague claim she didn't want a number for.