The impact of industrial waste on the environment: What you can do to reduce pollution

Nowadays, the earth is suffering tremendous environmental changes that put the planet’s health at risk. The main factors driving these issues are the intense industrial activities from all over the world, which directly impact the environment, creating climate changes and air and water pollution. Nowadays, sustainability is not a trend anymore, but it’s a need for us and our planet, aiming for its full recovery by 2030. Industrial waste has considerable negative effects, polluting the air because of improper waste management measures and the incredibly large amount of waste produced by companies. So, if you are a business owner who wants to embrace the green path, this is what you can do to reduce pollution and establish an effective waste management system:

What’s pollution?

Simply put, pollution is the addition of harmful substances or energy into the environment at a faster rate than it can be decomposed or recycled. There are three main types of pollution:

• Air pollution: this type of pollution refers to the human activity that unleash toxic substances, chemicals and smoke into the environment.
• Land pollution: when humans spill or throw materials that are not naturally found in the soil, and animals, plants and humans can be intoxicated by them.
• Water pollution: it refers to the toxic substances and chemicals dumped in the waterways like oceans, rivers, ponds and streams.

How industrial waste affects the environment

The large amounts of waste produced by companies are one of the main causes leading to pollution. Industrial pollution can contribute to the depletion of ozone and climate changes that come with severe and harmful health concerns for humans, plants and animals. Also, it can contaminate the soil, drinking water sources and emit harmful substances in the air, compromising its quality.

Find Efficient waste management strategies

To address industrial pollution and put a green label on your brand, promising a better future for our planet, finding efficient waste management solutions is essential. For instance, this is what you can do:

Measure waste production

The first step to establishing an efficient waste management program is to measure the waste production of your company to identify the weak areas and the departments that produce more waste than others. So, you can perform an audit considering these key factors:

• Waste generation: consider the amount of waste produced by your internal activities in the various departments. You can measure the generation based on the type, weight and volume, which can be compared to the production and consumption levels. By lowering the waste generation, you can save money, energy and resources and minimise your environmental impact.
• Waste diversion: measure the percentage of waste delivered to landfills, by tracking the final destination of the waste you produce and the materials that can be recovered and reused for other purposes to extend their life cycle.
• Waste intensity: divide waste generation by an output indicator which can turn it into a percentage to identify the waste intensity. This can help you monitor the progress of your initiative and optimise the efficiency of your resources.
• Waste costs: consider the money your company spends monthly for waste transportation, collection, disposal and recovery, by tracking the related expenses. The goal is to minimise the costs as maximum, finding efficient solutions that can increase the savings.
• Waste compliance: to become a green brand, it’s crucial to comply with the laws, rules and regulations regarding waste management, such as emission, disposal and monthly audits.
• Waste satisfaction: the last key factor to consider to improve your waste management is the overall satisfaction of your employees, customers, stakeholders and suppliers, so that you can understand their perception and try to improve your initiatives.

Minimise waste going to landfills

In order to reduce the amount of waste going to the landfills to address pollution, it’s crucial to establish an effective recycling program in your company. To do so, it’s important to communicate with your employees from the various departments, let them know about the new policies you are going to implement, and highlight the importance of sustainability. Now that you have exact numbers indicating the generation of waste in your business, you can focus on the areas that need to be improved and make data-driven decisions. Consider sorting the waste efficiently in dedicated bins, and take advantage of the modern types of machinery that could help you manage the waste efficiently. For instance, focus on finding solutions for handling plastic recycling, making use of machinery that can handle large volumes of waste to minimise their size, and making the transportation process easier and less frequent. To achieve your sustainability goals, it’s crucial to train your team about the importance of your practices and involve every department in the process because together, you can work toward a better future for the planet and promise breathable air for the next generations.

Reuse the materials

Another great way to manage your waste efficiently is to give the materials a new purpose. During the manufacturing process, many products might have some malfunctions or are simply unaesthetically, and your workers will most likely throw them away without rethinking their purpose. However, it is indeed possible to reuse the raw materials used for the production of goods to make a new, eco-friendly product which you can present on the market as such. Also, consider reusing cardboard and paper to create eco-packaging and win the hearts of eco-conscious customers who are willing to commit to a green brand.

The bottom line

As a company owner, your decisions matter for the planet. Once you choose to embrace new green values, you can develop an eco and future-oriented mindset that can determine the outcomes for the environment, so, every little step you take towards a green future, can be a promise of a better and healthy planet for the future generation.