Folsom, Calif.-based Waste Connections posted a net income of $36.5 million on $331.5 million in revenue during first-quarter 2011. Both figures represent increases from the same period in 2010, when Waste Connections reported a net income of $27.6 million on $307.5 million in revenue.

Ron Mittelstaedt, chairman and CEO of Waste Connections, attributes the improved performance in part to strong markets for recyclables. “Core pricing, record recycling commodity values and tight cost controls drove continuing strong results in the quarter,” he said in a statement.

The release of Waste Connection’s first-quarter report comes less than a month after the company acquired Hudson Valley Waste Holding Inc. and its wholly-owned subsidiary, County Waste and Recycling Service Inc., for a reported $299 million. County Waste operates in New York’s Hudson Valley.

In the company’s release announcing its first-quarter earnings, Mittelstaedt said the acquisition will have a positive impact on Waste Connection’s financial performance in the year ahead and hinted that it could be just one of several notable purchases the firm makes in 2011. “Our previously announced acquisition of County Waste and Recycling provides a springboard for additional growth opportunities within its footprint and positions us for a potential record year for acquisitions,” he said.

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