Waste Reduction Toolkit
Use these tools to start reducing waste across your business.
In the spirit of waste reduction, we have 'recycled' some of the best resources we could find put them in one place. Making things as easy as possible is the first step to ensuring success.
Office communication toolkit
Download this complete toolkit of posters/signs produced by the Queensland EPA.
Posters
Signs
Place signs on bins or around the office as constant reminders.
- Think before you print
- Print and copy on both sides
- Be a sport and recycle
- Waste and recycling signs
- Co-mix recycling
- Paper recycling
- Cardboard recycling
- Office recycling signs
For Gold Coast City Council publications (including bin stickers) click here.
Industry guides
Retail
The retail industry can generate a lot of waste through packaging for incoming stock and to hold customer purchases. There are many ways to reduce waste in the industry, from cutting back on plastic bags to green purchasing and recycling packaging.
According to Planet Ark, about five billion check-out plastic bags are used by Australians each year. Plastic bags take up to 1000 years to break down.
Retailers can follow some simple tips to cut back plastic bag usage:
- offer reusable bags for sale in-store
- keep empty stock boxes near the register and make them available for customers
- train staff to ask customers if they need a bag or to offer a reusable bag
- five items or less – no plastic bag policy
SA Waste has produced a guide intended as a tool for shopping centre management, commercial property owners and property managers involved with planning and implementing waste reduction and recycling programs within shopping centres.
Office and commercial
Becoming a green office is largely about paper – reducing its use, reusing it, recycling it and buying recycled paper. While electronic offices may not be a reality yet, there are many steps businesses can take to reduce paper use. With up to 55 per cent of office waste made up of paper, it is the best place to start.
eWaste – broken, unused or unwanted electrical equipment – is another growing area of the waste stream. By buying equipment wisely, maintaining it correctly and recycling old equipment, this sort of waste can be reduced. Equipment choice and operating habits have a great impact on energy consumption and running costs.
Office tenants can work with building owners and managers to achieve waste reduction targets and cost savings.
The NSW Department of Environment and Conservation has produced a waste reduction guide for office tenants.
The Green Office Guide, produced by Commonwealth, State and Territory environmental agencies, has information on green office equipment. [
The NSW Department of Environment and Conservation has produced a Green Lease Guide covering all aspects of resource efficiency for building owners and tenants.
Hotels
The hotel industry generates unnecessary waste in many ways, from incorrect storage and handling, to preparing too much food and delivering services inefficiently.
A survey of Victorian hotels found more than 80 per cent of waste generated in hotels is recyclable, reusable or compostable.
Sustainability Victoria has a guide to making hotel businesses more wastewise, developed through the City of Melbourne's Savings in the City program in consultation with a number of Melbourne hotels.
Events
Events generate a lot of waste because they rely heavily on disposable products.
A wastewise event is a public event that has efficient recycling and waste reduction systems in place, including:
- avoiding waste and litter where possible
- using reusable packaging instead of disposable packaging
- controlling packaging so less waste ends up in landfill
- giving preference to recyclable and recycled content packaging
- explaining the benefits of sustainable waste management to patrons
Sustainability Victoria has a toolkit to guide you in staging an environmentally friendly event.
The NSW Department of Environment, Climate Change & Water also has a guide to putting on a Waste Wise Event.
Catering
Caterers have a big role to play in reducing food waste, cutting the use of disposable crockery and cutlery and reducing costs.
Some simple actions include avoiding polystyrene and waxed cardboard as these are non-recyclable; setting up recycling stations back of house; and educating patrons to do the right thing.
This toolkit by Sustainability Victoria provides information on Waste Wise catering. A train-the-trainer toolkit, including training modules, PowerPoint presentations and quiz exercises is available on their website.
Construction
From planning through to demolition, there are many ways the construction industry can reduce waste. Some things to consider include using eco-friendly design that incorporates deconstruction principles for ease of demolition and recycling; sourcing recycled, recyclable and environmentally-friendly building materials; estimating quantities more accurately and separating and recycling waste onsite.
An increasing trend for sustainable buildings that efficiently use water, energy and materials has seen customers demand builders reduce waste with effective designs, a better choice of construction products and better management of construction sites.
Simple measures such as building to standard sizes and having some materials pre-fabricated offsite can reduce waste in the short and long term.
Sustainability Victoria has guidelines for going green in the construction industry. Its checklist for a waste minimisation plan helps builders calculate and record volumes of waste.
Next page: ecoBiz - - Updated on: Friday 04-Jun-10
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