If your team cares about protecting the environment and lowering business costs, then an active recycling program for your workplace may be the answer.
Recycling has become a serious agenda item for Australia’s business community, as regulations and public pressure mount on organisations to improve their environmental footprint.
According to the HP Australia Environmental Sustainability Study 2018, 79 per cent of consumers believe companies and brands should be responsible for their impact on the environment. Yet only 57 per cent of businesses believe they are doing enough in the sustainability space.
For businesses, there are a range of ways that recycling can save your workplace money and improve company culture. Here are a few reasons you should consider:
1. Recycling lowers waste disposal costs
Companies and brands are facing rising landfill costs, making it more expensive to dispose of waste at the rubbish dump.
Alternatively, much of the workplace waste may contain reusable materials that recycling companies like Ecocycle can recover. Recycling companies can often charge less to remove a truckload of waste for recycling than it would cost to send the same amount to landfill.
At the same time, Australian states are restricting the rules around what can be discarded into landfill to promote recycling efforts. For example, Victoria introduced the country’s first state-wide ban on electronic waste this year, meaning all household and business e-waste must be recycled or face hefty fines.
2. Consider selling certain waste
There are plenty of raw materials found in business waste that can be sold on with a little bit of effort.
If your business generates a lot of paper and cardboard waste, you can often sell it to recyclers at a profit.
Another example are electrical contractors and plumbers, who can sell off-cuts of copper wiring or piping, steel from light fittings or other scrap metals.
3. Recycling reduces the need for new materials
With a little creative thinking and elbow grease, you can repurpose waste like old cardboard cartons and shredded paper to save the business money.
Used cardboard cartons can be flattened out, slit and expanded into a replacement for bubble wrap packaging to protect your items in transit.
You can also use shredded paper as great padding to preserve delicate items during shipping and avoid using plastic bubble wrap.
4. Using recycled materials is good business
Your business can support recycling efforts by using workplace items made from recycled products, whether it’s 100% recycled printer paper, notebooks or cardboard boxes.
Using recycled materials is also good for workplace culture, with many workers supporting positive environmental practices like recycling.
Workplace recycling is easy
Starting an active recycling program in your workplace is a great way for your organisation to save money on waste costs.
As a specialist recycler of lighting, e-waste, batteries and other mercury-containing waste, Ecocycle can tailor a recycling program to your individual business needs.
If you want to learn more, fill in the form below or give us a call on 1300 32 62 92 and speak to one of our recycling experts.
