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What is waste?
Waste has become one of the most talked about environmental considerations in recent times, but frustratingly for businesses, governments and consumers, there is no universal definition of waste. In its most simple form, waste can be described as anything that is not needed and then discarded. Whilst this definition is useful to conceptualise the idea of waste, it lacks the nuance and depth needed for those who are looking to improve their waste management to reduce their ‘waste’.
Other, more technical, definitions of waste include:
United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) & European Commission (EC) - Waste is any substance or object which the holder discards, intends to discard, or is required to discard
World Bank - Waste refers to the materials that are not useful and discarded from any sector of human activity, such as solid waste (municipal and hazardous), liquid waste, and gaseous emissions.
International Organization for Standardization (ISO)Â - Waste is any output that is not a product or is not intended to be part of the product, including excess material, scraps, or defective products. (ISO 14001)
As we can see, waste can be defined through its perceived use, an individual's intentionality or requirement to discard it, its form, and its worth. All of these factors feed into creating an effective waste management system.
What is waste management?
Waste management refers to the process that we use to handle waste from its creation to its disposal, intended to ensure the safe and effective disposal of waste.
In your home, the waste management system might look something like this: You order an item from an online store → You remove the packaging of the product (waste generation) → You place the packaging in your recycling bin (waste storage) → The recycling bin is collected from your house (waste collection).
In reality, waste management systems are more complex, and when using a holistic approach can be seen to stretch from the sourcing of the materials that make the packaging to the final use of the recovered materials from the recycling bin.
Key components of waste management include:
Waste prevention
Waste collection
Waste recycling
Waste disposal
Its time for you to integrating a waste management strategy!
An effective waste management system is not just a ‘nice to have’ option for your business, but it is needed in order to ensure compliance, improve your sustainability, and reduce costs.
There is an increasing regulatory burden for companies regarding their waste and recycling. Ensuring that you have an effective waste management system in place can support data gathering and reduce the burden on those required to report on waste. Moreover, with more sectors being required to report on their waste, both from governmental, consumer, and investor demand, all businesses should invest in waste management systems to improve the transparency of their waste.
Implementing an effective waste management system can help you identify opportunity areas to reduce waste generation, improve recycling rates, and reduce your environmental footprint. With increasing concern over the impact of waste on the planet, being able to demonstrate that you are working to identify waste and reduce it at source, or ensure that it is recycled instead of going to landfill, will help you to achieve your sustainability ambitions and the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.
Effective waste management also benefits your bottom line, as most waste management systems cost money to operate. If you can prevent waste generation, you will therefore need less waste to be collected, and so reduce your overall waste cost. Moreover, recycling collection costs tend to be cheaper then general waste costs, and so by ensuring that you are recycling as much material as possible, you can further reduce your waste costs.
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