Did you know that it’s now a legal requirement for organisations to apply the waste hierarchy (reduce, re-use, recycle) when dealing with waste?
“What does this mean for my organisation?” I hear you say. In a nutshell, an organisation must take steps to prevent and reduce waste. Where this isn’t feasible you must demonstrate that your waste has been dealt with in the most environmentally friendly way possible.
Customers and other stakeholders are also placing ever increasing pressure on organisations to be “environmentally friendly”, so diverting waste from landfill and achieving Zero Waste to Landfill is a great way of demonstrating your commitment to the environment. Achieving Zero Waste to Landfill comes with loads of benefits, including cost savings, positive PR and competitive advantage over those in your industry who have not achieved this status.
What is Zero Waste to Landfill?
For those of you who are unsure, it is a status given to organisations that divert all of their waste streams so that they do not end up in landfill sites. Instead the materials are re-used or recycled. For example, cardboard goes to paper mills, glass goes to remelt.
It’s very important to note that it is simply not enough to ask your waste contractor to ensure that your waste does not to go to landfill. You should get a full audit trail to identify where your materials end up. Doing so means you can be sure that none of your waste materials have gone to landfill. If, for example, your waste is sent for incineration the ashes could end up in landfill which means you should not declare that your organisation has achieved Zero Waste to Landfill.
Valpak can help
Does all of this sound a bit daunting and time consuming? We’ve helped a number of organisations to achieve Zero Waste to Landfill (view our case studies).
So why not give us a call on 03450 682 572 or drop us an email at [email protected] and find out how we can help you too.
