OfficeSpace

Cut Office Waste: Sustainability for Your Workplace

Bill Griffith, a sustainability expert with 30 years of experience, emphasizes that effective office waste management requires not only implementing recycling programs but also purchasing recycled-content products to create a sustainable market, while businesses often misunderstand the true costs of waste disposal, including hidden fees, which complicates their efforts to achieve cost-effective and compliant sustainability practices.

There are many rules and regulations surrounding waste disposal, and with more likely on the horizon, businesses are often left scrambling to manage new mandates, let alone find the true value in how they deal with trash. Generally speaking, they know it’s something they should be doing but sometimes struggle to understand the cost savings and cause and effect aspects.

A sustainability expert with 30 years of experience in the industry, Bill Griffith leads Reduction In Motion, a sustainability consulting firm that specializes in waste management solutions. They help organizations implement waste management strategies that are designed for both efficiency and longevity.

The Link Between Waste Management and Sustainability

In an office environment, if the business is going to do a waste diversion program or recycling program, that’s great. However, if they’re not going to buy back office paper that has recycled content in it, they’re defeating the purpose.

For the cycle to work fluidly, you need to invest your dollars at the front-end into buying materials that have recovered product in them. This creates a market and the knowledge that there’s someone who wants to recover them when they’re disposed of. Many businesses miss this simple act. Often, recycled paper is the same price as non-recycled paper, and it just takes a little effort to look for it.

Common Misconceptions About Waste Management

The biggest misconception for customers is that they don’t fully understand the expense of disposing their waste. This includes reviewing invoices to understand the cost of disposal, rental equipment, fuel environmental surcharges, and energy surcharges. These all factor into building the expenses behind starting a recycling program and what the true cost of that program will be.

People often think it’s too much energy, too much work, or not worth it, believing that recycling is more expensive. Sometimes it is, but with increasing regulations like plastic bag bans, styrofoam bans, and plastic straw bans, regulations are only going to get more stringent.

It’s important to start the process on your own program before a mandate comes down so that when it does, the process is already established. Starting with a waste baseline assessment is key. This involves analyzing 12 months of the organization’s actual expenses and figuring out the cost-per-pound for managing each waste stream. Factors to consider include:

  • Volume generated
  • Cost generated
  • Cost to manage on site
  • Type of collection containers
  • Communication and stewardship

A strong business case is necessary for a viable or sustainable program. Most of the time, there is a business case—it’s just about how you look at it.

Impact of Improper Waste Management on the Bottom Line

The impact depends on the municipality. In an office building, recovery and recycling should help save about 50 percent on the low end and up to 75 percent on the high end, with most material being paper or fiber. Improper disposal of electronics, lightbulbs, and batteries (universal waste) can result in fines if not handled correctly. Some municipalities enforce strict recycling programs and will fine organizations for improper disposal.

Cost Savings from Proper Waste Management

The average facility can save about 20-35 percent initially. A baseline waste assessment identifies current waste volumes and costs-per-pound, as well as whether current waste equipment types and service fees are reasonable and cost-effective. There are inefficiencies in nearly all waste programs, and identifying them can lead to immediate savings. Sustaining those savings requires understanding how much you generate and spend, and setting up a dashboard to track expenditures when signing new agreements.

Haulers may add varying fees to invoices, so having a strong advocate to monitor and make you aware of these charges is important.

Building a Long-Term Waste Management System

Reduction In Motion follows a lean process for every project:

  1. 1.Start with a waste baseline assessment to know your starting point.
  2. 2.Create a documented plan outlining potential savings and benefits.
  3. 3.Educate and communicate with everyone involved, either in-person or through educational sessions.
  4. 4.Deploy the changes.
  5. 5.Monitor and track progress, returning regularly to check in.

Programs are rolled out in phases, reassessing and re-evaluating after each phase. Lessons learned are applied to subsequent phases. Funding and fueling a program only for the first six months is a waste of money; ongoing advocacy and involvement are necessary for success. There must be an advocate for every person in the process to ensure everything works together.

How do you think a properly functioning waste management system can impact business? Join the conversation and leave a comment below.