Tuesday, October 4, 2011

Waste Disposal In The UK

By Jamie Bell 

Waste disposal refers to the practice of discarding the waste materials that are generated daily by industries and businesses as a result of their operations. Waste materials should be managed efficiently and this involves their collection, transportation, processing, recycling as well as their disposal.

Considering the effects of waste on people and the environment around, it becomes the duty of every waste-producing business to take adequate steps to ensure its proper disposal. Often, businesses fail to fulfill their waste disposal duties because of the rising costs. However, the cost factor should not impact a business' decision to dispose off its waste; as a responsible corporation, all efforts should be directed to ensure proper waste disposal thereby minimizing the harm to the ecological balance.
The Government of United Kingdom has listed a list of directives for businesses that need to be adhered to for proper waste disposal.

The highlights of UK's strategy for waste disposal are:
o Limit the amount of waste generated and its harmfulness.
o Recover and reduce the waste by recycling.
o Dispose off the waste without jeopardizing human health and without causing damage to the environment.
o Re-use and reduce the waste from electronic and electrical equipment.
o Waste oil should be carefully collected and disposed without any risk.
o Hazardous waste should be discarded without any hazard to people and the environment.
o Packaging and packaging waste should be efficiently managed protecting the environment.
o Waste intended to be disposed in landfills has to pass strict technical requirements.
o Waste from end-of-life vehicles should be reused and recycled before getting disposed as useless.
o Portable, nickel-cadmium, automotive and industrial batteries have to pass a set of requirements before they can be disposed; the possibility of collection and recycling should be explored before disposal.
o Waste removal in incinerators has to meet certain criteria before the process of incinerated.
o Environmental Protection Act, The Producer Responsibility Obligations Regulations, and Waste Minimization Act passed by the UK Government and regulated by its Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA) are all aimed at ensuring that waste is recycled, reduced and disposed such that the resulting pollution and damage to the environmental factors is minimal.

Several corporations and industries realize the impact of waste on the environment and dutifully outline a bunch of rules that need to be followed for waste minimization. They summarize strategies that help to reduce, collect, recycle and dispose the resulting waste causing minimal damage to the environment. Many companies have been formed with the sole purpose of waste management. These companies specialize in waste collection, treatment, recycling and disposal. Aguachem Ltd., with its online presence on www.watertreatmentwaste.co.uk, is one such waste disposal company that helps businesses focus their resources on growth while it assumes complete responsibility of their waste management. In this fashion, businesses contribute to the well-being of the environment and simultaneously stay on their track. Aguachem Ltd. provides similar services like waste water treatment, effluent treatment, tank cleaning etc.

Recently, the hype about concern for the environment and its safety is on the rise. Further, with an increase in factors that contribute to environmental depletion, it has become all the more necessary to take steps to taper this trend towards a healthier and balanced ecosystem. In light of all this, corporations need to amend their policies and incorporate changes that serve this cause.
Corporations that contribute to environmental protection receive a lot of positive publicity and goodwill. Although this step primarily helps to conserve the very habitat we thrive in, corporations reap the benefits of good public relations as well. In addition, the fact that the UK government has passed legislation with guidelines for corporations to follow has added to the gravity of the issue. Bearing these considerations in mind, many local, national and multi-national corporations have included waste management efforts in their portfolio. Further, these companies advertise their efforts as well which contributes to their overall reputation. Examples of some environment-savvy corporations are Kingfisher, AstraZeneca and Sun Microsystems.

At the end of the road, there are two options to choose from. One provides plenty reasons for industries and businesses to embrace proper waste disposal measures while the other asks to ignore all considerations and gradually but eventually, cripple the environment that has given so much to us.

No comments:

Post a Comment