Watching your waste line

As companies strive to be ecologically friendly, a spot of environmental management could be just what they need to go green, and to reap financial benefits

It is predicted that greenhouse gas production could raise average global temperatures by as much as 5.8oC by the end of this century, which would trigger devastating impacts on human society and the natural environment. Industry is a main source of greenhouse gas emissions - hence businesses have become the target of government initiatives and environmental legislation putting them under increased pressure to ensure their activities do not harm the environment. It is very important that companies establish effective strategies for environmental performance. An environmental management system can help identify potential sources of pollution and waste, whilst reducing energy consumption resulting in financial benefits, improved competitiveness and enhanced reputation.

Many organisations are failing to take advantage of this opportunity which is resulting in widespread industrial pollution. Legislation is constantly being introduced to tackle and prevent pollution of land, water and air by reducing emissions and placing a duty to recycle certain amounts of materials. The main piece of environmental legislation is the Environmental Protection Act 1990 which places a duty of care on anyone who produces, handles or disposes of waste to ensure it is dealt with properly. However there are numerous pieces of legislation to be complied with, so it is essential that companies identify exactly what applies to their organisation.

Government is trying to encourage employers to be more environmentally

“businesses have become the target of government initiatives and environmental legislation putting them under increased pressure to ensure their activities do not harm the environment.”

conscious by setting targets for greenhouse gas reduction and has introduced a climate change levy as an incentive to use energy more efficiently. As rates for this levy rise with inflation it is inevitable that fuel bills will increase also – a good reason to be energy conscious. Taxes are now placed on waste production with companies being charged by the tonne for landfill waste. Producer responsibilities are likely to be extended to make business more responsible for the environmental impact of products they produce, especially when they become waste.

When designing an environmental management system it is important to consider the organisations size, products or services, impacts on the environment (in terms of land, air and water) and any existing environmental arrangements. There are certain key elements which must be complied with including and environmental policy and audit.

An environmental policy sets out the organisations activities and states its commitment to the environment both from a legislative and best practice point of view. Employers also need to perform an audit of environmental performance which examines all areas of the company’s activities including energy use, raw materials and waste - then set targets to demonstrate improvements. Examples of some typical questions to ask include:

    How much energy and resources such as electricity are used?

    What amounts of raw materials are used and how much is recycled?

    What levels of waste can be recovered and recycled?

    What are the impacts of production on the environment?

    Are there any existing environmental emergency systems in place?

Water pollution is a major source of environmental contamination and companies should understand exactly how the law applies to them. It is illegal to put poisonous, noxious or polluting matter into controlled waters, therefore it is essential to understand how businesses can pollute water systems and how this can be avoided, for example, identify all existing drains and colour code them according to whether foul drain or surface water drain. Pollution can take place during delivery, off-loading or loading, manufacture or during waste disposal so measures need to be in place to prevent this.

Waste and energy management can lead to financial benefits in the form of reduced costs and lower energy bills. This can be done by changing working practices or redesigning processes. Waste is any object, material or substance that an organisation owns, or produces and wishes to dispose of or have recovered. This might include wood, plastic, metals and chemicals. Leaving lights on unnecessarily is a typical waste of resources. An organisation can save energy and reduce waste in various ways and may be achieved by maintaining production plant to work efficiently, reducing water usage in cooling or washing processes, recycling paper waste as note papers or packaging and having an efficient heating system.

Wherever possible waste materials like metals, plastics, glass, paper, oil or solvents should be recycled. The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations 2005 places legal requirements on companies producing, handling or supplying over 50 tonnes of packaging or packaging materials with a turnover of up to £2 million to recover and recycle certain tonnages of waste.

In general, solvent and oil waste can be recycled and waste glass can be collected and be sold to glass recyclers. However, regardless of the waste produced it must be stored safely and not be a threat to the environment itself. Storage tanks should not leak and waste skips covered over in some manner to prevent loss or contamination. Segregation is important to ensure that hazardous substances and non-hazardous substances are stored separately and clearly marked. If any hazardous waste is generated by a company then it must register itself annually with the environment agency and each movement of hazardous waste must be accompanied by a consignment note. Electrical and electronic waste is now classed as hazardous.

As with any effective management system, training is very important at all levels. Managers and supervisors must ensure that the environmental strategy is correctly implemented in their department, while workers must take care to avoid causing environmental pollution. Training should be given on the company’s environmental policy, objectives, impacts, benefits and include encouragement to suggest ways of improvement.  At ReAgent, I give a monthly presentation to all staff, from bottle washers to directors, to inform them of environmental developments – and I would suggest that other organisations consider the same.

A company should also review its environmental management system on a regular basis to ensure they are meeting environmental objectives and targets, which will reduce the impact of activities on the environment.

Graham Bayliss is Quality Assurance Manager for ReAgent, a chemical manufacturing company whose customers include the likes of Astra Zeneca and GlaxoSmithKline.