The topic of business waste, in all of its forms, is a very hot one right now, it forces you to ask yourself the question, how do you handle hazardous materials? And what exactly is the impact of your waste management policy? Or, you might be asking yourself, “do we need to get a waste management policy?” The answer to that one is “yes,” and here is how you need to implement an appropriate one into your working environment.

Measure The Waste

To get an overall appreciation of how much waste you are making, you have to measure it appropriately. It could be beneficial to hire a waste management officer to do this for you or make this part of your skeleton staff’s duties. This is a good approach if you are a small startup. Once you get an understanding of the average amount of waste you create during the space of a month, you can then multiply this by 12 to give you your overall impact on the environment, and your carbon footprint, during the year.

Take Appropriate Steps To Reduce Waste

The appropriate steps vary from business to business. Do you handle hazardous waste on a regular basis? A commonly used item like a battery is prone to leaking acid, and so, if you need to transport these items safely, a battery carton is one such option, or implementing proper policies to ensure that these items are disposed of safely. A ubiquitous example is recycling and using recycling bins. But if you are handling hazardous materials, especially those types of materials that could pose a threat to life. There will be rules and regulations on how you dispose of these depending on where your business is located, but it’s also important for you to add another layer of protection for the benefits of your own staff. In America, the Environmental Protection Agency could fine you heavily if you are found to be disposing of waste improperly. For those startups where the temptation would be to cut corners to save yourself some money, this is something that you cannot cut back on.

Implement It Into The Company Culture

To make an environmental process effective in a business is to make sure it’s imbued into every aspect of the company’s culture. Instead of just enforcing it without reason, if you work at developing this environmental mindset to the business, by showing how it impacts your customers and your clients, this becomes part and parcel of how your business operates. It’s not always implemented at the ground level. But if you instigate working ethics, especially in relation to the environmental impact, and begin to hire people who embody this mindset, it’s going to be far easier to implement it into the company culture. This is especially prudent if you’ve got people employed who are well worn in their old school ways.

The environmental impact, especially for businesses that handle hazardous materials, isn’t something that you should take lightly. It’s not just about the health and safety aspects anymore, it’s about implementing a policy that forms part of your business culture, and so it will impact positively on the caliber of your clients and customers.