Efficient and Green Way to Manage Waste at Commercial Businesses

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If you are planning to turn your business into an environmentally-friendly enterprise, it is time to go beyond the three Rs – Reuse, Reduce, Recycle. Sustainable waste management can provide businesses a lot of opportunities to improve their company’s eco-friendliness, minimize greenhouse gas emissions, as well as lower the operation cost. This article will help entrepreneurs find the best and most effective solutions for eco-friendly waste disposal if they are interested in all these things.

Conduct waste audits

To create an effective solution for the operation, entrepreneurs will need to gather as much information as possible. Audits will show them what quantities and kind of trash they produce every week to help them decide what type of sustainable waste management practices they need to implement.

It will also show them where they may be spending too much on energy use or trash disposal. Once businesses have completed their waste audit, they can set a long- and short-term trash reduction plan. They need to try the waste disposal methods listed below to minimize the amount of trash their company produces.

To find out more about auditing waste, click here for more info.

Minimize ink and paper

Two of the most significant trash categories for a lot of businesses are ink and paper. Cutting down the ink and paper usage is an excellent way to start their reduction effort.

Go paperless – Avoid using paper as much as you can. Keep procedure and policy documents, as well as anything else that is used by most people in the company, either on a shared server or online.

Minimize printing – Only print what is necessary. If someone needs a hard copy, decrease the margins and print double-sided to minimize the number of papers used over time.

Minimize using ink – Use draft mode to print documents to cut the ink consumption. Stick to printing in white and black only, since color printing tends to use a broader spectrum and greater ink volume.

Use other alternatives to paper – If you are in the bathroom, instead of using paper towels or toilet papers, use the dryer or hand sanitizer.

Want to know about eco-friendly alternatives to paper? Check out https://www.huffpost.com/entry/12-sustainable-alternatives-to-paper-towels-your-kitchen-needs_n_5a6ba264e4b01fbbefb1d20f for details.

Find other reusable options in the break area

If there is anything used by the employees regularly that can be replaced by reusable items, the easiest and best way to do this is, with drink-related and food-related items.

Listed below are some sustainable options companies can implement in the office kitchen:

Replace disposable items like paper cups, plates, or plastic utensils with reusable water bottles and coffee mugs.

Encourage the workers to bring their lunches in reusable plastic Tupperware.

Let the workers bring their own utensils or provide reusable spoons and forks to avoid using plastic ones.

Donate anything that is still useful

An excellent alternative to throw excess items in the bin is to donate them to charities. Not only do those donations benefit people who receive them, but the company can also get a little something from them, like a positive public image or tax incentives. Grocery stores and hotel restaurants usually donate additional prepared foods and perishables to food banks and shelters.

Hotels can also donate shampoos, soap, toiletries, and skincare products they kept on hand. If the business is updating its hardware, they can donate their old printers, scanners, computers, and other electronics. Cleanouts and office renovations usually provide the company with a way to purchase new furniture. They can donate chairs, desks, and tables to local schools.

Recycle if they cannot avoid waste 

Recycling can save energy, keep materials out of incinerators and landfills, as well as providing raw materials for making new products. It extends and conserves the use of these materials for as long as possible. Companies can bring trash bins for recyclables like glass, plastic, and paper or do waste management with dumpsters to give workers an alternative to trash cans.

Hotel gift cards and key cards can be donated to other businesses to be properly recycled. Even companies have these things delivered to their facilities, so that it will be convenient to other firms. Restaurants and sports bar can send their wine corks to grinding companies to repurpose them for other uses.

Compost food wastes

Composting is another way to dispose of food trash or paper products. An excellent place to compost within the company would be the cafeteria or break room. People can purchase tight-sealing compost bins to keep fruit flies, and other bugs, as well as to minimize odor. They can use compostable bags so that the waste can be easily transferred to their compost pile outside their building or to drop-off sites.