Monday, September 26, 2011

Basics of Waste Management

By Michiel Van Kets 

Mention waste management to most people and they either don't have a clue what you are talking about, or they really aren't interested! It just sounds a load of rubbish, what do you care what other people do with stuff they don't want? However, once you start delving into what waste management is all about, then you realize there's a whole cycle of events going on and it's quite an interesting topic to find out about.

Waste management is basically how rubbish and trash is disposed of without causing any harm to others or the environment. There are various aspects to waste management; these include monitoring, collection, transportation, processing, and disposal or recycling. When carried out properly, waste management is efficient and extremely environmentally friendly, and in today's world is something every conscientious company should take responsibility for.
There are specialized environmental companies that provide advice and services for waste collection, not only for householders, but also for industries and businesses. They are experienced in all areas of waste management solutions and will remove all your waste efficiently and quickly, transporting it to be disposed of in the correct manner, or recycled.
Some of the waste services offered to industrial clients include waste collection, recycling and disposal, hazardous waste management, emergency response, laboratory services, asbestos removal and re-Insulation.

In the first instance the environment service is concerned with monitoring, this is to identify the type of waste produced and in what quantity; they can then evaluate the processes they need to put into place to reduce the amount of waste produced. Records are kept to see if methods put into place are working and, if not, strategies can be changed and re-examined to make their implementation more efficient.

Once the waste has been monitored and assessed it is time for the collection process. Skip bins and containers have to be emptied before they become too full and prevention of overspill or produce to rot is very important. Depending on the amount of waste produced will dictate the size and number of containers required, and how often collections will be needed. There are different containers for each type of waste, some of these include drums for hazardous liquid waste, tanks for acid or caustic waste, collection bins for e-waste and bulk bins and skip bins for construction site waste.

Next in the cycle is organizing the transportation of all waste products collected. Specially designed waste vehicles make scheduled collections and are responsible for safely transporting it to the landfill, or treatment site where it will be treated and then processed for Recycling. Vehicles have to meet safety standards and be licensed for this purpose, as waste can be a health hazard and even dangerous if not handled correctly, drivers and personnel connected with the transportation are required to have the necessary training and experience to deal with any potential danger.

Once the waste has all been collected it needs to be processed. This involves separating the waste collected, treating and then packaging the raw materials and sending the parts that can be recycled to the various factories that are all part of the recycling procedure. Materials that can't be recycled will be transported to a landfill, and liquid and hazardous wastes will be disposed of safely.
Improvements and new practices in waste management and environmental solutions are in the news all the time, thanks to research and development projects that are committed to finding more efficient and safe ways of disposing of waste. There are many things that are recyclable now that just a few years ago would have been thrown into a rising landfill, everyday items such as paper, glass, newspapers and plastic bags to printer cartridges, corks, mobile phones, even fluorescent lamps can be treated and re-used.

Society has experienced a huge learning curve in the fact that if we don't take action now to make certain our waste is processed correctly; nature will gladly do it for us, and in ways which can be detrimental to our environment. Look online today for an environmental service that can help you to implement effective, innovative and sustainable waste management and industrial services solutions.
Michiel Van Kets writes articles for Veolia Environmental Services, Australia's environmental services leader in all facets of waste management and resource recovery, as well as Industrial services such as Industrial Cleaning and Facilities Management. Visit the website for information on waste management, facilities management and waste recyclers.

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