Environmental issues have long since transformed from something that is discussed in closed circles to topics that surround us on every step. You don’t even need scientific evidence – just look outside the window, and you will see something is going horribly wrong. Struggle for creating a healthy environment is a fight we all need to take part in, and if you are a business owner, your responsibility is even greater.
But, where to start? Let’s go to the basics for this one. Companies that employ dozens, sometimes hundreds of employees, generate far more waste than a regular household. Sometimes more than the communal garbage collectors are able to process. Let’s see how we can lend them a hand, shall we?
Cut the amount of waste you are sending to the disposal
In this day and age, every company looking for market success needs to embrace the green agenda and popular present-day environmental policies. That being said, the present-day sustainability practices are not that concerned with how you are going to dispose of the waste but rather how much waste you are going to produce. Here are a couple of ways to approach this problem:
- Go paperless and embrace the Cloud computing
- Reuse materials or inquire can these materials be used by other local businesses
- Use materials that can be recycled instead of one-time supplies
- Order smaller volumes of materials that will be used 100%
All these measures won’t only reduce the amount of waste you need to deal with on a daily basis – they might bring your company considerable financial benefits as well.
Photo by Artem Beliaikin on Unsplash
Use governmental incentives
As we have already mentioned, environmental policies have become a very hot topic in the last couple of years. Naturally, governments all around the world have taken this issue seriously and are trying to motivate local business owners to embrace more responsible business practices. If we take Australia, for example, we can see that the local authorities are spending dozens of millions of dollars to address infrastructure gaps for processing and remanufacture materials like glass and paper and encourage local businesses to take part in this process. Incentives like this may cover some of the financially concerning moves you planned to make.
Choose the capable waste management contractors
Leaving out the responsibility of waste management to the low-rent communal garbage disposal services may not always get you the best results. Putting aside the fact that overall green goals won’t always be met, your company may experience delays that may impede its operations. Fortunately, you always have a choice. If we once again go Down Under to find an example of a developed nation, we can see that professional waste management in Australia offers a plethora of different services (recycling, disposal, etc.), high efficiency, handling of larger waste volumes, and reliable results, so keep this option in mind.
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Enforce green policies at the workplace
All the efforts aimed at more efficient and economical waste disposal you are going to make are going to be considerably easier if your employees are on board. That is why you should do everything you can to properly motivate the staff to reduce the daily waste volume, separate the items that will be disposed of and undertake recycling efforts on an individual level. In this case, you should lean toward the carrot rather than stick. Your workers will be far more inclined to follow your instructions if you offer them some small perks like financial benefits or days off as compensation.
Consider investing in a trash compactor
This move will definitely require a considerable up-front investment, but the long-term benefits you are going to get will more than make up for these initiatives. First and foremost, trash compactors drastically lower the volume of garbage you are generating. Second – they are effectively preventing dumpster divers and pests from meddling with your waste. Both these things have an effect on the amount of money you’re spending on disposal on a monthly basis. Besides, going back to some of the steps we have mentioned in the previous passages should make enough room in your budget for this investment.
Introduce changes one step at a time
Last but not least, we have to mention that trying to do too much too fast can often strain your resources and cause turmoil amongst staff. So, take one step at a time and give yourself enough time to see the effect of your measures. Most of the steps we have proposed above will produce financial benefits, but they will need some time to start giving tangible results. So, wait for this money to start coming in before moving to the next step. Also, set the pace your employees will be able to keep up with. Asking them to drastically alter daily activities may take a bite out of their productivity.
Over to you
We hope these few steps will help you implement a policy that will reduce the volume of waste your company is generating and, in turn, make disposal more efficient and affordable. As time goes by, environmental policies will become something we need to pay more and more attention to. Finding a way to get rid of the waste in a reasonable and economical manner seems like an excellent place to start.
About the author: Mike Johnston is an experienced blogger and editor with a background in creative writing and digital media. He’s produced thousands of pages of original, engaging content for numerous online publications throughout his career. Mike’s specialties are business and technology, but he also often covers travel, lifestyle and work-life balance.
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