Commercial waste is a significant part of many companies. The term waste can apply to items that you are purposefully discarding, items that you are required to discard, and items that you are sending to be recovered or recycled.
How much and which types of waste are produced at different companies obviously varies greatly.
Different types of commercial waste
- Businesses that deal with shipping and receiving usually have an abundance of cardboard waste that needs to be disposed of.
- Offices tend to generate a large volume of paper waste as well as other office consumables such as ink cartridges.
- Construction sites find that they have timber or plasterboard that must be disposed of in the proper fashion, while factories generate yet other commercial waste products.
- There is also the waste that results from replacing outdated electronics and electrical equipment.
The government mandates that specific items are disposed of according to strict guidelines.
Hazardous commercial waste
Any company that produces hazardous waste must dispose of it according to the law. Hazardous waste can be any type of commercial waste that could potentially harm humans or nature. Examples of hazardous waste are frequently found in certain workplaces, and can include batteries, chemicals that are discarded, oils that are considered to be waste, fluorescent light bulbs, and asbestos.
Any business that generates this type of waste is responsible for dealing with it in the proper way. Companies that store waste on site have responsibilities to do it safely as well. Items that are stored should be in drums or barrels that are properly labelled and that have lids on them. The company should check the barrels or drums regularly to ensure that there are no leaks or that they are not placed in an area where they could blow away.
If you have chemical waste that is being stored at the facility you should ensure that the chemicals are kept separate, in separate containers, and not mixed at any time. You have to ensure there will be no adverse chemical reaction that can cause an explosion or harm to the employees or the environment that it is being stored in. All hazardous and non hazardous materials must be separated for these reasons as well.
Commercial waste removal
You also have certain responsibilities when organising commercial waste removal. You must ensure that you are working with an authorised company that has the authority and the knowledge to handle this type of waste, so that you can be sure that they are being properly disposed of. There can be very strong penalties assigned to a company that does not follow the correct procedures for disposing of their waste, or doesn't have the relevant paperwork to prove it. An authorised waste removal company should provide you with a WTN, or waste transfer note, and this should be obtained at each pick up.
Ignorance of the law will not prevent a business from being penalised, therefore all businesses should familiarise themselves with the laws and regulations that govern commercial waste disposal, whether it is hazardous waste, electrical waste or other types.
Take a look at the Business Link website for more information on your commercial waste responsibilities.