All over the world, waste is a growing problem. Excess waste contributes to pollution, global warming, and adverse weather conditions. Fortunately, there are many ways for businesses to reduce waste.
If you’re interested in becoming more sustainable and lowering your costs, there are steps you can take.
Audit Your Business
It’s hard to reduce waste if you don’t know where exactly it’s coming from.
Start with an audit of your company to evaluate all the sources of excess waste.
Ask questions like “what’s contributing to the waste?” “Is this work-related or personal items from employees?” “Can these items be replaced by reusable or compostable items?”
Take note of where your trash cans or recycling bins are located and how many you have. If you put trash cans everywhere but only one recycling bin, busy employees are less likely to recycle.
To create lasting change, you should make it as easy as possible for your employees to act sustainably. Note places where you can improve, such as reducing the amount of printed paper and switching to recyclable or reusable items.
Reuse, Reuse, Reuse
In many businesses, a lot of trash is created during breaks and lunch.
Encouraging your employees to use reusable containers could significantly reduce waste.
A good place to start is to eliminate plastic water bottles and one-use coffee cups. A small financial investment to provide your employees with reusable water and coffee cups can reduce waste and save you money in the long run.
Go Paperless to Reduce Waste
We understand that you may not be able to go completely paperless. A running business runs on paper.
However, there may be areas where you can reduce waste created by paper.
Consider uploading important documents to a server, like Google Docs, so they can be accessed by everyone, or use e-signature documents to limit the number of printed pages.
Many companies have seen the benefits of investing in iPads or tablets for their employees rather than printing out hundreds of pages of paper. Reducing your paper waste is not only good for the environment but can help you save a lot of money in the long run on paper and ink costs.
Pay Attention to Packaging
Did you know that one-third of all the trash we produce comes from the packaging?
If you want to reduce waste in your business, check how the items you use are packaged. Opt for bulk purchases or limit the amount of single-packaged items you consume.
If you manufacture a physical product, eliminate plastic packaging and try to use sustainable materials instead. If this isn’t possible, look for ways to reduce the amount of packaging.
Reduce Waste by Recycling
One of the best ways to reduce waste is recycling.
There are a variety of materials that can be efficiently recycled to improve the economical and ecological outcomes of waste.
Your industry will determine the recycled materials you produce, what can be recycled in-house, and what needs to be sent out for recycling. Lean in heavily to your company audit to identify areas where you can implement or improve your recycling practices.
Donate or Sell Items
Keeping your business efficient means there are times when you need to de-clutter or replace old items.
But just because you can no longer use those items doesn’t mean that they won’t serve someone else well.
Instead of throwing out your items, consider donating them to a local charity or thrift store or selling them online for some extra cash. This can be an especially useful way to reduce waste if you’re upgrading rather than replacing something that’s broken.
Dispose of Your Waste Ethically
Once you’ve reduced waste, there are ways to dispose of your remaining rubbish in an ethically and environmentally friendly way.
Panhandle Dumpsters offers weekly trash pick-up, bulk item pick-up twice a month, and roll-off dumpster rental services.
Changing your business processes to reduce waste takes some time and effort, but it is worth it. Not only will you improve sustainability, but you’ll also save money. To get started, you can evaluate your current situation and work towards reducing waste one step at a time.
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