The concept for the Edmonton Waste Management Centre of Excellence grew from the vision of a core group in 1998. These leaders represented municipal government, education institutions and industry. They realized that the Edmonton area was becoming the hub for a world-class cluster of expertise and resources in waste management. They envisioned a public-private partnership that would unleash innovation and promote knowledge sharing in this field. The concept attracted strong support from six founding partners.

The Centre incorporated as a non-profit organization in February 2003. Dr. Jerry Leonard, a professor of bioresource engineering at the University of Alberta, became executive manager.  In 2004, two leading-edge research centres opened: the $4.4-million Solid Waste Research & Development Facility (Clover Bar site) and the $4-million Wastewater Research and Training Centre (Gold Bar site).