'Green' your workplace through recycling rubbish

Running a business means, inevitably, that you're going to generate quite a bit of waste. But the good news is that you can minimise how much of it goes to landfill through recycling rubbish. 

And recycling is not just for paper and cardboard. Many materials, including containers, fluorescent tubes, plastic, steel, aluminium, glass and metals, are able to be recycled, which is good for both your business and the environment.

Save through recycling

Landfill taxes are likely to go up in the future, making recycling a cost-effective option for businesses. "In NSW, recycling rubbish is already cheaper than the landfill alternative," says Mike Ritchie from Sita Environmental Solutions.

There are also huge greenhouse-gas savings associated with recycling business waste. "If Australia achieved an 80% recycling rate nationally (we're currently at 48%) we would save about 35 million tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions," says Mike. 

Encouraging recycling

Getting your staff on board is imperative for the success of any recycling program. You can encourage them to recycle paper and cardboard by placing receptacles near desks, printers, photocopiers and fax machines.

But many other materials can be recycled, including: 

• green waste
• plastic
• IT equipment
• electrical goods
• batteries
• metal
• wood

Green waste management 

'Green waste' refers to organic rubbish such as food scraps and garden waste. This organic waste can be recycled and used for compost.

In places like schools and factories, where a large amount of organic waste is produced, this is particularly important. The Department of the Environment, Water, Heritage and the Arts estimates that the average school could reduce the amount of green and organic waste it produces by up to 85% through recycling.

Making it easy

While you should separate as much of your rubbish as you can before collection, new advanced waste-treatment technologies do the bulk of the work for you, leaving you to concentrate on actually running your business. 

"The technology allows us to take the garbage bin and sort it mechanically - so we can take the front-lift garbage bin, or the 240-litre garbage bin, and recycle that material," says Mike.

A recycling assessment

Setting up a rubbish recycling program can sometimes seem overwhelming. If your business needs a hand implementing a solution, a recycling company can help by coming to your workplace and discussing the best waste disposal solution for your needs.

"We offer a free waste audit, where our experts go to your business, provide a waste assessment and make recommendations," says Mike.

Turn your business green

As all businesses strive to be greener, rubbish recycling plays an increasingly important role in their everyday activities. So if you're keen to go green, call a recycling company today and discover how you can build a cost-effective and environmentally responsible workplace.