How to improve your electronic waste management

Sorting

To keep track of everything that leaves your business, you need to know how the production spill and waste should be sorted. Having the right containers and knowing which waste goes where is fundamental. In addition, it is important to have proper routines for transport. Logs for all the waste leaving your business are good to overlook how you handle your part of the recycling. In addition, it is good to sort well, because some types of waste can cost more to handle the less it is sorted. Keeping track of your waste quantities and qualities prevents this.

Hazardous waste

Electronics may contain hazardous substances and are therefore classified as hazardous waste. It could concern the power supply in the electronics product, or for example, the mercury and toxic plastics that many electronic products contain. But there are also other chemicals that are classified as hazardous waste. As far as batteries are concerned, you should as far as possible, ensure that they are removed from the electronics before you hand it over.

According to EU regulation (Directive 2008/98 / EC), ALL producing companies must be able to report on how they deal with their hazardous waste and to track where the hazardous waste is going. Fortunately, there is expert help available in the area, both to help you understand what is required and to take care of the material and the reporting (to the national authority, responsible for hazardous waste).

Security

Since there is hazardous waste in electronics and sometimes sensitive information, in for example, hard drives, it is important to have working routines for how you deal with computers and other advanced electronic devices.

It is also important that you choose a recycler who can securely and according to applicable rules handle and destroy the sensitive information.

Knowledge sharing

It is important that your employees really know how to handle electronic waste. Partly because of what has been mentioned above, and partly because you can in principle recycle all material and thus be able pursue a genuinely sustainable business. It is smart to have routines for how employees should know about company procedures. Training is important, but also knowing how to transfer skills. Knowing what to do when knowledgeable employees in waste management quits is important - before the employment ends.

Making sure that your waste management training takes place in conjunction with other training is one good way of doing this. Another is to make sure that the rules and procedures information can be found in print in an easily accessible place, for example in a specific binder or by a digital solution.

Communication

The information efforts for electronic waste should concern both internal and external communications. Your procedures for the management of electronic waste (and all other waste) should, as stated above, be written down in a suitable place. And that location / binder / digital solution should be easy to find for all employees involved.

When you have a well-functioning solution for your waste and you can even show results with clear improvements, sustainability communication is something the company may profit from. Both as brand-building marketing and as viable customer information. Make sure you can measure your waste goals, and you will soon find results that are easily translated into external communication.

Conclusion

Maintaining control over these five aspects (Sorting, Hazardous Waste, Security, Knowledge sharing and Communications) provides you with a sound basis. Also, remember to consider how they all should connect to become a part of the daily work routines at your workplace. You will without doubt benefit from it.