A waste management process is both important and required under the law. The regulations intend to reduce commercial waste, recycle waste, and safely move or store it to prevent fires, slips, trips, and blocked exits.
Commercial waste is any waste originating from industry, agriculture, demolition, or construction. This could be scrap metal, compostable materials, chemical waste, paper, wood, glass, plastic, or rubber.
Waste management and health & safety are crucial in all businesses, and here we take a look at the processes and guidelines you must follow.
Waste Management Processes & Guidelines
Reducing waste is the first goal that the guidelines for waste management intend to achieve. You must do everything in your power to keep waste to a minimum and follow this three-step process in the following order:
- You must first search for ways to prevent waste
- If waste cannot be prevented, you must determine if it can be reused
- If waste cannot be reused, you must recycle it, if possible
You must also store and sort waste safely. This means using suitable labelled containers, and these should be covered if they are situated outside, to prevent wind blowing the rubbish away and prevent contamination from runoff.
You must fill out a waste transfer note for every load of rubbish that leaves your business premises and keep this for two years. You need to ensure the waste carrier is registered for waste disposal and not allow the waste carrier to illegally dispose of your waste.
Hazardous materials come with stricter waste management policies and procedures.
Waste Management Equipment
Vehicles that help businesses with their waste management are extremely useful in streamlining processes. These vehicles come in many different forms, such as road legal waste tippers, bin tugs, and electric pedestrian trucks with mesh cages for rubbish bags.
Epower Trucks provides several solutions:
- Electric platform trolleys are ideal for warehouses, waste management plants, factories, and retail units
- The N1 electric utility vehicle is for inner-city rubbish collection
- The Glutton Vacuum electric pedestrian range makes light work of collecting general rubbish from streets and pavements