Waste can become a serious problem for any business. Aside from regulations that you have to comply with, there is a growing social pressure, both from customers and from your own workers, to ensure that your business is not having an unnecessary impact on the environment around it. How you deal with your waste plays a big part in that consideration. As such, here, we’re going to look at the many kinds of waste that businesses have to handle, from the office to the production line. We’ve listed 9 things you can do to ensure that you’re handling waste with the right level of responsibility.
By Team Savant
Image: Jack Church
Carry Out A Waste Audit
The truth of the matter is that many business owners and managers may not even be fully aware of the different kinds of waste they produce or how much of it they produce. With the help of a waste audit, you can make sure that you’re able to assess where you’re generating waste, as well as your areas for improvement. This process involves systematically analysing your waste streams, categorising materials, and measuring how much waste is being produced over a specific period. There are several types of waste which we’re going to take a closer look at, especially in regard to how you can cut down on them, but it has to begin with accurately identifying what the problem is.
Aim To Go Paperless
Most businesses have the capacity to generate a lot of paper waste. The paper that can be used in printing out documents related to your finances, HR, invoices, and everything else can not only cost a lot of paper but a lot of space to store it all, as well. Minimising your reliance on paper and even going paperless, if you can, can help you make your workplace much more efficient, on top of reducing how much paper waste you have to deal with on a regular basis. Using cloud storage, digital contracts, and electronic billing systems reduces the need for printed materials and helps businesses operate more efficiently.
Be Mindful Of Your Packaging
If your business is in the business of selling physical goods to customers, then you have to be mindful of how much packaging waste you produce with each product, as well. This is especially true for retail and e-commerce businesses. Although you may not have to deal with the waste directly, using excessive or non-recyclable packaging still contributes to landfill waste and pollution when your customers have to throw their packaging away. Evaluate your packaging choices and opt for more eco-friendly options like biodegradable or recyclable packaging instead. You can also reduce unnecessary packaging by designing more minimalist packages for your products, so you don’t have to worry as much about how exactly the waste is being disposed of.
Implement A Recycling Program
Not all waste can be reduced, so it’s important to make efforts to better ensure that the waste you produce goes to the right place. Without a recycling program, much more of your waste is likely to head to the landfill. Create a recycling program that is easy for your team to carry out, and actively promote it within your organisation. This can include working with local recycling facilities to ensure that your waste is processed correctly. You should also consider offering incentives to members of staff who participate in waste reduction initiatives, encouraging them to take notice of the program. A well-structured recycling program is about more than providing employees the tools to recycle; but rather ensuring that they are actively encouraged to do so.
Invest In Waste Segregation
Even with efforts to reduce how much waste you produce, your workplace is likely to generate some that needs to be handled appropriately. This can include various types of waste, like recyclables, organic waste, hazardous materials, and general trash. Without proper segregation, recyclables can become contaminated, making them unsuitable for processing, while hazardous materials can pose environmental risks. You can invest in waste segregation by placing clearly labeled waste bins throughout the workplace and by educating your employees on which materials go into which of them. Using color-coded bins for different waste types can help you streamline the process and minimise the effort on the part of your team, so they’re more likely to follow the guidelines you set.
Compost
If your business generates food waste, then you can easily ensure that it doesn’t end up in a landfill. Businesses like food production lines, restaurants, cafes, and even any workplace that has a cafeteria in it can implement a composting system that makes better use of their food waste. Some businesses, like farms, can use this compost directly in their own production efforts. Otherwise, you should look to local composting facilities that will take your food waste and ensure that it’s used in the production of compost that can then be used by those who need it. If more businesses invest in composting, it can greatly decrease the methane emission problem currently present in landfills.
Deal With Specialist Waste
There are many types of waste, and not every business can easily handle the more specific kinds with the help of recycling or composting centres. Those that require special handling, like motor oil, batteries, chemicals, and medical waste, may need to abide by added regulations, as many of these can be hazardous if not disposed of directly. To that end, you should look to licensed disposal companies that specialise in treating and recycling these materials as best as possible, like Oil Salvage. Not only can you ensure that your business is compliant with regulations regarding special types of waste, but you can also reassure your customers and clients that you offer a greener solution than some of your competitors.
Hire A Skip When You Need To
Many of the tips above can help you deal with the standard waste that accumulates as a matter of course while running a business. However, when your business is carrying out operations like renovations, cleanouts, or big inventory changes, you might find yourself with significantly more waste than usual. In those cases, hiring a skip is usually a much more practical way to deal with waste disposal. Ensure that you choose a skip hire company that ensures that materials are disposed of correctly. There are several that will sort and recycle waste from skips to better help you manage your environmental impact. Just be sure to look closely at what types of waste they do and do not take, as most companies have their own policies over what types they can handle responsibly.
Consider Waste-to-Energy Solutions
One solution that is currently undergoing a lot of investment is the innovative approach of waste-to-energy. These solutions aim to offer a way to reduce landfill contributions for businesses that produce a lot of non-recyclable waste while also potentially generating useful energy. Basically, they work by converting waste materials into electricity or heat. There are different methods to do this, most of them involving incineration. While not a true renewable source of energy, WTE solutions may provide some businesses with an alternative to relying on fossil fuels alone. However, it’s not as simple as burning your waste, you have to work with waste management companies that offer specific energy recovery services.
The specifics of how exactly you handle your waste will come down to the specifics of your business, especially when it comes to specialist waste like oil, wastewater, and the like. Start with a waste audit and find out where you need to go from there.