The incorporators of SDSWMA were: Terry Keller, Steve Pirner and Clark Haberman. The first year's board of directors and officers included: Kelsey Alexander of the Paper Chase in Custer, Allan Arens of Arens Sanitation in Yankton, Morris Forsting of the Sioux Falls Public Health Department, A.A. Ray Hartman of the Pierre City Commission, William Huebner of Ace Steel and Recycling in Rapid City, Larry Mitzel of the Brown County Highway and Landfill Department in Aberdeen, Dorothy Neuhaus of the Clay County Recycling Center in Vermillion, Clark Sowers of Sowers Sanitation in Belle Fourche, and Bill Stoddard and Alderman from Parker. Bob McGrath of the Brookings Public Health Department was the President, Jerry Wright of the Rapid City Solid Waste Operations was the President-Elect, Joyce Ferris of Midwest Recycling in Huron was the Vice-President, and Mike Erickson of Dependable Sanitation in Aberdeen was the Secretary-Treasurer. The Executive Director position was contracted to Wasteline, Inc. (Deborah Barton, project manager) out of Rapid City.

The first governing board met every two months. Now, the board meets quarterly. The November and January meetings are generally in Pierre. April and September meetings are held in conjunction with the spring and annual conferences. Refer to the Governing Board Directory listed on our home page for an up-to-date listing of board members and officers.

In January of 1994, the governing board of adopted the formal logo of the association. It reflects the diverse nature of the state with its pristine environment. The recycling arrows surrounding the state are also representative of the integrated nature of the solid waste and recycling industry in South Dakota and the branch structure of the association for collection, disposal and recycling. The association's name often surrounds the logo.