Terms and Conditions

Waste Management, Inc. ("Waste Management", "we", "our" or "us") and its wholly–owned affiliates maintain websites (the "Sites") which provide services and information to you subject to the following terms and conditions ("Terms of Use"). These Terms of Use govern your use of the Sites and other digital content services, such as mobile device connectivity. Please read the Terms of Use carefully. Your use of the Sites signifies your agreement to these Terms of Use. Separate terms and conditions may apply to other Waste Management services or business transactions.

ELECTRONIC COMMUNICATIONS

When you visit the Sites or send e-mails to us, you are communicating with us electronically. You consent to receive communications from us electronically. We may choose to communicate with you by e-mail, text messaging, or by posting notices on the Sites. You agree that all agreements, notices, disclosures and other communications that we provide to you electronically satisfy any legal requirement that such communications be in writing.

INTELLECTUAL PROPERTY

Trademarks. The trademarks, trade dress, logos, and service marks (collectively the "Trademarks") displayed on the Sites are registered and unregistered Trademarks of Waste Management, its affiliates, its third-party licensors and others. You are not permitted to use any of the Trademarks displayed on the Sites, without the prior, express written consent of Waste Management, its affiliates, or the third-party licensors that may own the Trademark. You may not use any hyper or HTML links, meta tags or any other "hidden text" utilizing Waste Management’s or its affiliates’ name or Trademarks without the express written consent of Waste Management, its affiliates, or third-party licensors. All rights reserved.

Sites Materials. All Trademarks, and materials displayed on, or contained within the Sites, including, but not limited to, layout, color schemes, design, text, editorial materials, informational text, photographs, illustrations, artwork and other graphic or digital materials, and names (collectively, the "Materials"), are the property of Waste Management, its affiliates or its licensors and are protected by copyright, trademark, patent and all other applicable intellectual property laws. You acknowledge and agree that the Sites and the Materials are the property of Waste Management, its affiliates and licensors, and that you will not acquire any rights or licenses in any trademarks, patents, copyrights, or other intellectual property on the Sites or in the Materials. You may download a copy of the Materials for your personal non-commercial use. You may not frame or utilize framing techniques to enclose any Materials or Trademark or other proprietary information (including images, text, page layout, or form) of Waste Management or its affiliates without the express written consent of Waste Management.

Any copies that you make of the Materials must retain all our copyright and other notices. Except as expressly provided for in this Terms of Use, you may not (i) reproduce, modify, publish, transmit, display, perform, distribute, disseminate, broadcast, circulate, or otherwise exploit any content on the Sites, including, but not limited to, any Materials, in whole or in part, to any third party; (ii) participate in the transfer, license or sale of any content on the Sites, including, but not limited to, the Materials; or (iii) create derivative works or in any way exploit any content on the Sites, including, but not limited to, the Materials. No portion of the content on the Sites may be stored in a computer except for personal and non-commercial use. All rights not expressly granted herein are reserved.

PERMISSIBLE USE

You agree that you shall not use the Sites: (a) to delete, modify, hack or attempt to change or alter any of the Materials on the Sites; (b) for any unlawful purpose; (c) to solicit others to perform or participate in any unlawful acts; (d) to violate any international, federal, or state regulations, rules, laws, or local ordinances; (e) to infringe or violate our intellectual property rights or the intellectual property rights of others; (f) to harass, abuse, insult, harm, defame, slander, disparage, intimidate, or discriminate based on gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, race, age, national origin, or disability; (g) to submit false or misleading information; (h) to upload or transmit viruses or any other type of malicious code that will or may be used in any way that will affect the functionality or operation of our Sites, other websites, or the Internet; (i) to collect or track the personal information of others; (j) to spam, phish (email fraud), pharm (web traffic redirection fraud), pretext, spider, crawl, or scrape; (k) for any obscene or immoral purpose; or (l) to interfere with or circumvent the security features of our Sites, other websites, or the Internet. We reserve the right to terminate your use of our Sites for violating any of the prohibited uses. We may fully cooperate with any law enforcement agency or authorities, or court order requesting or directing disclosure of the identity of anyone suspected of use of the Sites for illegal purposes.

YOUR OBLIGATION

By using the Sites, you represent and warrant that: (i) you are the age of majority in your place of residence, and have the power and authority to accept this Terms of Use and to enter into this agreement with Waste Management; (ii) you are capable of assuming, and do assume, any risks related to the use of the Materials on the Sites; and (iii) you understand and accept the terms, conditions and risks relating to the use of the content and Materials on the Sites.

If you are under the age of majority, you may use the Sites only with permission and involvement of a parent or guardian. Waste Management and its affiliates reserve the right to refuse service, terminate accounts, or remove or edit content in our sole discretion.

SUBMITTING OR POSTING CONTENT

The Sites may provide you and other users an opportunity to submit, post, display, transmit and/or exchange information, ideas, opinions, photographs, images, video, creative works or other information, messages, transmissions or material to us, the Sites or others ("Post"; Posting or "Postings"). By Posting, you grant us a royalty-free, worldwide, non-terminable, non-exclusive license to use, reproduce, modify, adapt, edit, market, publish, store, distribute, have distributed, publicly and privately display, communicate, publicly and privately perform, transmit, have transmitted, create derivative works based upon, and promote such Posts (in whole or in part) in any medium now known or hereafter devised, for editorial, commercial, promotional and all other purposes including, without limitation, the right to publish your name in connection with your Post; and the right to sublicense any or all of these rights. You acknowledge that we own all right, title, and interest in any compilation, collective work or other derivative work created using or incorporating the Post. Please remember that you are ultimately responsible for all of your Postings and you warrant and represent that: (i) the Post does not and will not infringe on any copyright or any other third party right nor violate any applicable law or regulation; (ii) you have the right to grant any and all necessary rights and licenses provided herein, including without limitation, all necessary, releases, copyright and other related rights to the Post, free and clear of all claims and encumbrances without violating the rights of any person or entity, including any right to privacy or publicity; and (iii) that each person depicted in any picture or photograph that you submit as part of the Post, if any, has provided consent to the use of the photograph. No compensation will be paid for the use of your Post, including, without limit, any photograph you may provide, and your Posts will not be returned to you, and will not be treated as confidential information.

Postings do not reflect the views of Waste Management or its affiliates. We do not have any obligation to monitor, edit, or review any Postings on the Sites. We assume NO responsibility or liability arising from the content of any such Postings nor for any error, defamation, libel, slander, omission, falsehood, obscenity, pornography, profanity, danger, or inaccuracy contained in any information within such Postings on the Sites. At its sole discretion, Waste Management reserves the right to remove any Posting from the Sites.

NO ENDORSEMENT OF THIRD PARTY SITES

The Sites may contain links to or references to third party websites, resources and advertisers (collectively, "Third Party Sites"). Your linking to such Third Party Sites is at your own risk. Under no circumstances shall Waste Management be held responsible or liable, directly or indirectly, for any loss, injury, or damage caused or alleged to have been caused to you in connection with the use of, or reliance on, any content, information, data, opinions, advice, statements, goods, services, or products available on such Third Party Sites. Waste Management also is not responsible for the availability of these Third Party Sites, nor is it responsible for the aesthetics, appeal, suitability to taste or subjective quality of informational content, advertising, products or other materials made available on or through such Third Party Sites. No endorsement of any third party content, information, data, opinions, advice, statements, goods, services or products is expressed or implied by any information, material or content of any third party contained in, referred to, included on, or linked from or to, the Sites. You should direct any concerns to the respective Third Party Site’s administrator or webmaster.

COPYRIGHTS AND DIGITAL MILLENNIUM COPYRIGHT ACT

Pursuant to our rights under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (“DMCA”), 17 U.S.C. § 512, we have designated a copyright agent to receive copyright infringement notices for claims of infringement related to materials found on our Sites. Our designated agent is Waste Management’s General Counsel. Our General Counsel can be reached at dmca@wm.com, or via U.S. Mail at: Waste Management General Counsel, 1001 Fannin St. Ste 4000, Houston, Texas 77002.

DMCA Infringement Notification. To be effective, your infringement notification must include the following:

1. A physical or electronic signature of a person authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed;
2. Identification of the copyrighted work claimed to have been infringed, or, if multiple copyrighted works at a single online site are covered by a single notification, a representative list of such works at that site.
3. Identification of the material or content that is claimed to be infringing or to be the subject of infringing activity and that is to be removed or have access disabled, and information reasonably sufficient to permit us to locate the material;
4. Information reasonably sufficient to permit us to contact the complaining party, including address, telephone number and email address where the complaining party may be contacted;
5. The following statement: “I have a good faith belief that use of the material in the manner complained of is not authorized by the copyright owner, its agent, or the law”; and
6. The following statement: “The information in this notification is accurate, and under penalty of perjury, I swear that I am the copyright owner or that I am authorized to act on behalf of the owner of an exclusive right that is allegedly infringed.”

Upon receipt of the written notification containing the information as outlined in 1 through 6 above:

1. Waste Management will remove or disable access to the content that is alleged to be infringing;
2. Waste Management will forward the written notification to the alleged infringer; and
3. Waste Management will take reasonable steps to promptly notify the alleged infringer that we have removed or disabled access to the content.

DMCA Infringement Counter Notification. Pursuant to the DMCA, after the alleged infringer receives a notice of infringement from Waste Management, the alleged infringer will have the opportunity to respond to Waste Management with a counter notification (“Counter Notification”). To be effective, a Counter Notification must be a written communication provided to Waste Management’s designated copyright agent, and must include the following:

1. A physical or electronic signature of the alleged infringer;
2. Identification of the material that has been removed or to which access has been disabled and the location at which the material appeared before it was removed or access disabled;
3. The following statement: “I swear under penalty of perjury that it is my good faith belief that the material identified above was removed or disabled as a result of mistake or misidentification of the material to be removed or disabled”; and
4. The alleged infringer’s name, address, and telephone number, and a statement that the alleged infringer consents to the jurisdiction of the federal district court for the judicial district in which the alleged infringer’s address is located, or if the alleged infringer’s address is outside of the United States, or any judicial district in which Waste Management may be found, and that the alleged infringer will accept service of process from the person who provided notification or an agent of such person.

Upon the copyright agent’s receipt of a Counter Notification containing the information as outlined in 1 through 4 above, the DMCA provides that the removed material will be restored or access re-enabled and we will comply with this requirement as required by law, provided that the designated agent has noft received notice from the original complaining party that an action has been filed seeking a court order to restrain the alleged infringer from engaging in infringing activity relating to the material on our network.

TERMINATION / REMOVAL

Waste Management may, in its sole and absolute discretion, terminate your password, account (or any part thereof) or your access to the Sites, or remove and discard any of your Postings, communications transmitted by you, or information stored, sent, or received via the Sites without prior notice and for any reason, including, but not limited to: (i) concurrent access of the Sites with identical user identification numbers, (ii) permitting another person or entity to use your user identification number to access the Sites, (iii) any other access or use of the Sites except as expressly provided in these Terms of Use, (iv) any violation of the Terms of Use or the rules and regulations relating to the use of the software and/or data files contained in, or accessed through, the Sites, (v) tampering with or alteration of any of the software and/or data files contained in, or accessed through, the Sites, (vi) failure to use the Sites or portion thereof on a regular basis, or (vii) submitting Postings that are off topic or not in accordance with the mission or best interest of the Sites. Termination, suspension, or cancellation of these Terms of Use or your access rights shall not affect any right or relief to which Waste Management may be entitled, at law or in equity. Upon termination of these Terms of Use, all rights granted to you will automatically terminate and immediately revert to Waste Management and its licensors.

DISCLAIMER OF WARRANTIES

Waste Management and its affiliates attempt to be as accurate as possible. However, Waste Management does not warrant that descriptions of services or other content on the Sites are accurate, complete, reliable, current, or error-free. Neither Waste Management nor its affiliates are responsible for the availability of such external sites or resources and do not endorse and are not responsible or liable for any content, advertising, products, or other materials on or available from such sites or resources.

THE SITES ARE PROVIDED BY WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIATES ON AN "AS IS" AND "AS AVAILABLE" BASIS. YOU EXPRESSLY AGREE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITES IS AT YOUR SOLE RISK.

TO THE FULL EXTENT PERMITTED BY APPLICABLE LAW, WASTE MANAGEMENT, ITS AFFILIATES AND ITS LICENSORS, MAKE NO REPRESENTATION AND DISCLAIM ALL EXPRESS OR IMPLIED WARRANTIES AND CONDITIONS OF ANY KIND, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO, REPRESENTATIONS, WARRANTIES OR CONDITIONS REGARDING ACCURACY, TIMELINESS, COMPLETENESS, NON-INFRINGEMENT, SATISFACTORY QUALITY, MERCHANTABILITY, MERCHANTABLE QUALITY OR FITNESS FOR ANY PARTICULAR PURPOSE OR THOSE ARISING BY LAW, STATUTE, USAGE OF TRADE, OR COURSE OF DEALING AND WARRANTIES IMPLIED FROM A COURSE OF PERFORMANCE OR COURSE OF DEALING. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIATES DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SITES, ITS SERVERS, OR E-MAIL SENT FROM WASTE MANAGEMENT ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIATES WILL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DAMAGES OF ANY KIND ARISING FROM THE USE OF THE SITES, INCLUDING, BUT NOT LIMITED TO DIRECT, INDIRECT, INCIDENTAL, PUNITIVE, AND CONSEQUENTIAL DAMAGES.

WASTE MANAGEMENT, ITS AFFILIATES AND EACH OF THEIR LICENSORS, ASSUME NO RESPONSIBILITY TO YOU OR TO ANY THIRD PARTY FOR THE CONSEQUENCES OF ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIATES RESERVE THE RIGHT, IN ITS SOLE DISCRETION, TO CORRECT ANY ERRORS OR OMISSIONS, OR TO WITHDRAW OR DELETE ANY CONTENT, IN ANY PORTION OF THE SITES AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE.

WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIATES MAY MAKE ANY OTHER CHANGES TO THE SITES AT ANY TIME WITHOUT NOTICE. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS AFFILIAITES DO NOT WARRANT THAT THE SITE WILL BE UNINTERRUPTED OR ERROR-FREE, WILL BE AVAILABLE FOR USE, THAT DEFECTS WILL BE CORRECTED, OR THAT THE SITE, INCLUDING ANY STORAGE SERVICES AND ITS CONTENTS, OR THE SERVER THAT MAKES THEM AVAILABLE, ARE FREE OF VIRUSES OR OTHER HARMFUL COMPONENTS.

USE OF "COOKIES" AND TRACKING TECHNOLOGY. WASTE MANAGEMENT AND ITS SERVICE PROVIDERS MAY USE INDUSTRY PRACTICES AND METHODS, INCLUDING COOKIES, CLEAR GIFS, WEB BEACONS, IP ADDRESSES, AND LOG FILES, AND OTHER TRACKING TECHNOLOGY (“WEB TRACKING TECHNOLOGY”), TO ENABLE WASTE MANAGEMENT TO REVIEW VISITORS AND PAGES THAT A USER VISITS DURING EACH SITE SESSION. WASTE MANAGEMENT MAY LINK INFORMATION GATHERED USING WEB TRACKING TECHNOLOGY TO PERSONAL INFORMATION. YOU CONSENT TO THE USE OF SUCH WEB TRACKING TECHNOLOGY AND CONSENT TO ALL LEGAL USES OF PERSONAL AND NON–PERSONAL INFORMATION GATHERED THROUGH TRACKING TECHNOLOGY USED ON THE SITES OR BY WASTE MANAGEMENT’S THIRD-PARTY SERVICE PROVIDERS.

CERTAIN STATE LAWS DO NOT ALLOW LIMITATIONS ON IMPLIED WARRANTIES OR THE EXCLUSION OR LIMITATION OF CERTAIN DAMAGES. IF THESE LAWS APPLY TO YOU, SOME OR ALL OF THE ABOVE DISCLAIMERS, EXCLUSIONS, OR LIMITATIONS MAY NOT APPLY TO YOU, AND YOU MIGHT HAVE ADDITIONAL RIGHTS.

LIMITATION OF LIABILITY

YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THAT YOUR USE OF THE SITES AND ANY INFORMATION SENT OR RECEIVED IN CONNECTION THEREWITH, MAY NOT BE SECURE AND MAY BE INTERCEPTED BY UNAUTHORIZED PARTIES. YOU ASSUME RESPONSIBILITY FOR THE ENTIRE COST OF ALL NECESSARY MAINTENANCE, REPAIR OR CORRECTION TO YOUR COMPUTER SYSTEM OR OTHER PROPERTY. IN NO EVENT SHALL WASTE MANAGEMENT, ITS AFFILIATES OR LICENSORS BE LIABLE FOR ANY DIRECT, INDIRECT, PUNITIVE, INCIDENTAL, SPECIAL, CONSEQUENTIAL OR OTHER DAMAGES ARISING OUT OF OR IN ANY WAY CONNECTED WITH THE USE OF THE SITES OR WITH THE DELAY OR INABILITY TO USE THE SITES, OR FOR ANY INFORMATION, SOFTWARE AND SERVICES OBTAINED THROUGH THE SITES, WASTE MANAGEMENT’S REMOVAL OR DELETION OF ANY MATERIALS ON THE SITES, OR OTHERWISE ARISING OUT OF THE USE OF THE SITES, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO NEGLIGENCE), STRICT LIABILITY OR OTHERWISE, EVEN IF WASTE MANAGEMENT OR ANY OF ITS AFFILIATES OR LICENSORS HAVE BEEN ADVISED OF THE POSSIBILITY OF DAMAGES. THIS WAIVER APPLIES, WITHOUT LIMITATION, TO ANY DAMAGES OR INJURY ARISING FROM ANY FAILURE OF PERFORMANCE, ERROR, OMISSION, INTERRUPTION, DELETION, DEFECT, DELAY IN OPERATION OR TRANSMISSION, COMPUTER VIRUS, FILE CORRUPTION, COMMUNICATION-LINE FAILURE, NETWORK OR SYSTEM OUTAGE, OR THEFT, DESTRUCTION, UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS TO, ALTERATION OF, OR USE OF ANY RECORD. YOU SPECIFICALLY ACKNOWLEDGE AND AGREE THAT WASTE MANAGEMENT, ITS AFFILIATES OR LICENSORS SHALL NOT BE LIABLE FOR ANY DEFAMATORY, OFFENSIVE OR ILLEGAL CONDUCT OF ANY USER OF THE SITES.

THE ABOVE LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS SHALL APPLY TO YOU TO THE FULLEST EXTENT THAT APPLICABLE LAW PERMITS, IN ALL ACTIONS OF ANY KIND, WHETHER BASED ON CONTRACT, TORT (INCLUDING, WITHOUT LIMITATION, NEGLIGENCE) OR ANY OTHER LEGAL OR EQUITABLE THEORY. ANY CLAUSE DECLARED INVALID SHALL BE DEEMED SEVERABLE AND NOT AFFECT THE VALIDITY OR ENFORCEABILITY OF THE REMAINDER OF THIS TERMS OF USE.

INDEMNIFICATION

You agree to indemnify, defend and hold Waste Management and its affiliates, and their respective officers, directors, owners, employees, agents, information providers and licensors (collectively the "Indemnified Parties," or individually, “Indemnified Party”) harmless from and against any and all claims, liability, losses, actions, suits, costs and expenses (including attorneys’ fees) arising out of or incurred by any breach by you of this Terms of Use. Waste Management reserves the right, at its own expense, to assume the exclusive defense and control of any matter otherwise subject to indemnification by you, and in such case, you agree to cooperate with Waste Management’s defense of such claim. Waste Management and its affiliates have no duty to reimburse, defend, indemnify, or hold you harmless resulting from, relating to, or arising out of, this Terms of Use or the Sites.

RELEASE

All users of our Sites acknowledge and agree that each Indemnified Party is released, discharged, and held harmless from any and all liability from third-party claims made in connection with the Sites, including, without limitation, wrongful death and personal injury, money damages, out-of-pocket and court costs, attorney’s fees, damage to tangible property or reputation, including, without limitation, libel, defamation, right of publicity and invasion of privacy. Waste Management reserves its right to all forms of equitable and legal relief related to fraud or illegal activity connected to the use of our Sites.

LIMITATIONS ON ACTIONS

You agree that any claim or cause of action arising out of your use of the Sites or these Terms of Use must be filed within one (1) year after such claim or cause of action arose or it shall forever be barred, notwithstanding any statute of limitations or other law to the contrary. Within this period, any failure by Waste Management or its affiliates to enforce or exercise any provision of these Terms of Use or related right shall not constitute a waiver of that right or provision.

DISPUTES

Any dispute relating in any way to your visit to the Sites shall be submitted to confidential arbitration in the exclusive jurisdiction of Houston, Texas, except that, to the extent you have in any manner violated or threatened to violate Waste Management’s intellectual property rights, Waste Management may seek injunctive or other appropriate relief in any state or federal court in Houston, Texas, and you consent to such exclusive jurisdiction and venue. Arbitration under this agreement shall be conducted under the rules then prevailing of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitrator’s award shall be binding and may be entered as a judgment in any court of competent jurisdiction in Houston, Texas. To the fullest extent permitted by applicable law, no arbitration under this Agreement shall be joined to an arbitration involving any other party subject to this Agreement, whether through class arbitration proceedings or otherwise. Except for punitive and consequential damages (which may not be awarded), and subject to these Terms of Use, the arbitrators shall be authorized to award either party any provisional or equitable remedy permitted by applicable law.

Each party hereby consents (a) to the exclusive jurisdiction of the courts in Houston, Texas for any action (i) to compel arbitration, (ii) to enforce any award of the arbitrators, or (iii) at any time prior to the qualification and appointment of the arbitrators, for temporary, interim or provisional equitable remedies, and (b) to service of process in any such action by registered mail or any other means provided by law.

SITE GOVERNANCE AND SEVERABILITY

Please review other policies posted on the Sites. These policies also govern your visit to the Sites. If any provision of this Terms of Use shall be unlawful, void, or for any reason unenforceable, then that provision shall be deemed severable from this Terms of Use and shall not affect the validity and enforceability of any remaining provisions. This Terms of Use and any posted operating rules constitute the entire agreement of the parties with respect to the subject matter hereof, and supersede all prior or contemporaneous communications and proposals, whether oral or written, between the parties with respect to such subject matter.

CHANGES TO THE TERMS OF USE

We reserve the right to amend the Terms of Use, and to modify, add or discontinue any aspect, content, or feature of the Sites. Such amendments, modifications, additions and/or deletions shall become effective upon notice thereof, which may be provided to you by posting on the Sites, via e-mail or any other means. You agree to the new posted Terms of Use by continuing your use of the Sites. You agree to review the Terms of Use periodically and your continued use of the Sites following such modification will indicate your acceptance of any modified Terms of Use. If you do not agree with the modified Terms of Use, your sole and exclusive remedy is to discontinue using the Sites.