With governments, businesses, and individuals alike working to respond to the climate crisis, waste reduction is a key part of the battle. Generally speaking, very little is known about where waste goes or how it is dealt with once thrown away – it can be easy to reassure yourself that it is dealt with responsibly, but there is almost no way of knowing for sure. For that reason, reducing the amount of waste your business produces is the only sure-fire way of knowing you are lessening your environmental impact and doing your bit in tackling climate change.
Improve Recycling Storage
One reason your business isn’t recycling enough or in an efficient manner could be that the way your recycling is stored needs to be improved. This might be down to not having the know-how, a deficiency of space, or a lack of effort – but something can be done.
Be organised in your storage, with clear labels and containers for each type of recycling. For materials such as cardboard, lessen the untidy space that it takes up by using strong cardboard baling wire from balingwiredirect.com to compact and secure the material for both storage and transport.
If recycling is stored more efficiently, you will be more motivated to keep on top of it and less likely to revert to throwing items straight into the trash.
Engage Staff Members
As a business owner, you can implement rules and guides for how your company reduces waste, but without the participation and engagement of your staff members then you are unlikely to succeed in your task. Engaging staff members with waste reduction policies should not be difficult – at the COP26 environmental conference, 75% of adults in Great Britain said they were worried about the impact of climate change and those worried said they would be more likely to make lifestyle changes in response – so tap into those existing interests to see results.
Only Buy What You Need
Across your business, reassess your purchasing systems and pay more attention to where materials are being wasted. This will not only help the environment but will see your profits become much healthier too.
In the USA, 130 billion meals are thrown away each year, with 61% of that figure coming from commercial organisations. If your company runs a canteen, an analytical review into its efficiency could be in order.
Recycling Programs
If you’re finding recycling certain materials a little difficult, it could be useful to sign up for, or partner with, a recycling program that offers solutions for offices and facilities to recycle everything, especially materials you might not normally know what to do with. Many of these programs are free and are incredibly helpful in providing advice for reducing waste.
Cut Out Plastic Packaging
Finally – cut out plastic packaging from your products. The packaging you use may not be thrown in the waste at your factory or outlets, but it almost certainly will be once it has been bought by the customer. Plastic wrap is not yet widely recyclable and ends up being a single-use material that is very harmful to the environment. Look into paper packaging options to reduce unnecessary waste by your customers.
