Whether big or small, every business should have a waste management plan to prevent unnecessary spending and rubbish generation.
From hiring skip bins for big clean-ups to joining a compost service, here are our top waste management strategies for office consumables to help your business become more efficient and eco-friendly.
Five Tips for Keeping Office Waste in Check
1. Audit and track inventory
To help you track the amount of waste your office generates, it’s essential to collect some data on what you have, what you use most and what you need to avoid overstocking and unnecessary budget spending. Use a spreadsheet or even a barcode scanner to keep track of inventory.
Next, conduct a waste assessment to identify the main source of trash that goes into your garbage cans and determine what percentage is recyclable. Office waste primarily consists of paper and cardboard, so implement plans and policies to help you deal with this more sustainably. Then, take action to deal with other types of waste, such as food and organics, the second most common type of office waste.
Top 5 types of office waste
- Paper: This includes newspapers, envelopes and sticky notes.
- Cardboard: Including stationery and packaging.
- Mixed recycling: Metal, plastic and glass products.
- Organics: Food waste, coffee grounds, etc.
- Non-recyclable waste: This includes takeaway coffee cups.
2. Set waste collection and management goals
Set waste reduction targets for your business to minimise disposal costs by cutting your waste output as much as possible. You might begin by using the insights gained by your audit to purchase in bulk to reduce packaging waste or try to reduce the amount of paper your business uses. For example, you can reduce printing costs by digitising where you can and using electronic documents or cloud storage.
You could also start by developing a recycling program or by minimising the use of single-use plastics by using bio-degradable products or reusable alternatives. You might even consider joining a program like CitySwitch, which helps businesses to become more sustainable.
Continue to track your waste and measure how much of it is being recycled to ensure you’re hitting your goals and post a report where everyone on staff can see it.
3. Set up compost and recycling systems
Set up collection systems for recyclable materials, such as paper, cardboard, plastic, bottles and glass. Clearly label and add signage to your bins and research companies that provide responsible disposal services.
Reduce your business’s greenhouse gas emissions by starting a compost collection for food and other organic waste, such as coffee grounds. Composting can also help reduce the frequency of your general waste collection, thus saving your business money. If you can’t maintain your own system, consider joining a compost scheme at your local community gardens. Alternatively, visit Compost Connect to find a compost pick-up service near you.
4. Get your staff to reduce, reuse and recycle
People are very open to acting responsibly when they know the requirements and procedures, so communicate your mission with your employees and find a way to reward them for saving money and reducing waste. Be open to feedback about what works for employees and what doesn’t.
Education is key when getting staff on board, so train employees to reuse items such as envelopes to keep them out of landfills and post reminders about reducing waste around the office. For example, pin steps on two-sided printing next to your office printers.
Educating your employees on how and where to dispose of hazardous materials such as chemicals, batteries or electronics (e-waste) that shouldn’t be put in landfills is also important. Let them know if your business has in-house drop-off points for recyclable goods such as polystyrene, lightbulbs or paint. Even substances like oil can be recycled.
5. Partner with businesses that care about the environment
Find businesses that align with your eco-friendly ethos and choose disposal methods such as skip bins for recyclable goods.
Many people don’t understand that skip bins are eco-friendly, but Best Price Skip Bins ensures that everything that can be recycled is so that as much waste as possible is kept out of landfills. From wood or steel leftovers from your office fit-out to unwanted furniture and used office supplies, when you hire a skip bin, you can rest assured that your recyclable goods are being dealt with responsibly because sustainability is important to us, too.
Best Price Skip Bins offers guaranteed next-day delivery. Call us on 1300 791 132 to see if we service your area or for more information on the types of skip bins we offer.