Business Recycling Canberra: 7 Tips for Effective Waste Management
Wouldn’t it be great to find some treasure in the trash you were throwing out? In a business recycling program, you separate valuable resources for processing from general waste.
Why do it? Business recycling helps you reduce waste and save on costs. Recycling also associates your business brand with sustainability. According to a 2022 AdNews article, 73% of Australian customers expect all businesses to do everything they can to be environmentally friendly.
Benefits of Business Recycling
Before we dive into tips for starting or improving your business recycling program, let’s look at 3 benefits of a tailored waste management program.
Money savings
An effective, innovative recycling program can reduce your business expenses for waste disposal. You may even be able to earn income from resource recovery of recyclable materials.
Compliance with regulations
If your area requires businesses to recycle, following these laws helps you avoid penalties and fines.
Sustainability improvements
Australia generates more than 2.5 million tonnes of plastic waste, and 84% of it goes to landfill. A business recycling program means doing your part to reduce that number. It also helps to preserve natural resources.
What’s the goal of business recycling?
It’s twofold: cut down on the waste your business generates and recycle as much of what’s left as possible. Here are 7 straightforward tips to help you manage your business waste more effectively and sustainably.
1. Do a waste audit
You can’t reduce business waste until you understand how much your business produces. You need a baseline of current waste levels. Conduct a waste audit for several days by physically opening waste bags and sorting waste into several detailed categories. Use your audit to answer questions like:
- What items make up most of your waste?
- Is your team recycling?
- What are they recycling?
- Are recyclable materials ending up in landfill instead?
- Is rubbish contaminating the recyclable materials?
Use your findings to make decisions about recycling and waste disposal at your business. For example, if you’re seeing lots of coffee pods or individual plastic water bottles, is there a way to switch coffee makers or provide filtered water stations and reusable water bottles instead?
2. Reduce, reuse, recycle
The next step is to look for opportunities to reduce, reuse, and recycle.
Reduce
Consider going paperless and using digital documents, platforms, and storage whenever possible. Avoid single-use plastics and stock up on reusable cutlery, cups, and bags. Reduce paper use by printing on both sides.
Reuse and repurpose
Encourage your team to be creative when it comes to office supplies and paper. Here are a few ideas:
- Turn old bins or boxes into storage containers.
- Use the other side of printed paper for scratch paper and notepads.
- Since shredded paper can’t be recycled, use it as packing or donate to animal shelters for bedding. (Contact the shelter first to be sure they accept it.)
Recycle
Put a bin for paper near printers and copiers. If you have a shipping or delivery area, add a bin for recycled cardboard. For electronic waste, or e-waste, designate somewhere in the office where your team can deposit their old electronics. Provide clear instructions for how to properly get rid of e-waste.
3. Set clear, measurable goals for your business recycling program
Understanding the waste habits of your business will help in setting clear, measurable recycling goals. Focus first on the material you waste the most.
Use SMART goals. The five criteria for writing SMART goals are:
S – Specific
M – Measurable
A – Achievable
R – Realistic
T – Time-bound
For example, perhaps your goal is to increase the amount of plastic you recycle by 20% in 6 months.
Involve your team in this process to get their input on goals and expectations.
4. Design your collection system
The easier the collection for your waste solution, the more effective it’s likely to be.
Get easy-to-access recycling and waste bins. Make sure the bins are big enough for the amount of waste your business is generating.
Label the bins clearly. You can use simple labels, colour coding, or pictures to clearly show what goes where. The aim is to exclude items that don’t belong.
Decide where the bins should go. Place them in areas where waste is commonly generated, such as the kitchen or break space, printing or copying areas, and meeting rooms.
5. Engage your team
Make it easy to participate. Your team (and customers) should understand what you’re doing, why, and how to participate effectively. Encourage everyone to contribute ideas and ask questions.
Provide ongoing training and use signs and emails to create a sense of purpose and remind your team about recycling rules. Give feedback too. For example, suppose you see that recycling streams are getting mixed. Take a photo of the problem and share it with the team.
6. Partner with local recycling companies
In Canberra and the ACT area, local councils don’t handle waste removal for businesses. Instead, you’ll need to partner with a local recycling and commercial waste management service. Look at local Canberra companies that handle your specific waste materials and offer recycling solutions. Make sure they have:
- Good reputations
- Recycling bins appropriately sized for your business needs
- Reliable pickups
- Transparency about reporting practices and how they responsibly handle your waste
Request quotes and compare pricing, pickup frequency, materials they accept, and whether they have information resources for your staff and customers.
The ACT government has 2 resource management centres where ACT residents can recycle and dispose of items at the drop-off areas. They are located on Mugga Lane in the south and in Mitchell to the north.
Retailers offer recycling services as well. With the Apple Trade In program, Apple stores accept used Apple products for trade-in on a new device or for recycling. Officeworks offers the Bring It Back program where you can recycle electronics, plastics, and consumables at recycling stations at the front of most of their stores.
7. Review and improve
Expect to see a reduction in total waste along with improvements in contamination rates in 3 to 6 months. Remember that effective waste management is an ongoing process.
Review your practices every few months against your goals to see how you’re doing and identify areas for improvement. Input from your team is critical. Ask them:
- Are the recycling bins in the right places?
- Are the labels clear?
- What do they suggest doing differently?
Use their feedback to adjust goals and practices to manage your business waste more effectively.
These 7 tips will help you to start or improve your business recycling program so that you can save money, comply with applicable regulations, and associate your business brand in the minds of your customers with sustainable practices.
