How much do you know about what’s in your garbage? While you might not give it a lot of thought, it’s crucial to prioritize waste management in order to shrink our environmental footprint. The best way to improve your waste management practices? Conduct a waste audit.

What is a waste audit?

A waste audit is an analysis of waste created over a specific period (typically one week). It examines what materials are being thrown away and determines opportunities where items can be diverted from landfills and recycled, composted, or otherwise safely disposed of. It can also help your business or organization re-evaluate purchasing decisions and become more strategic when it comes to waste reduction.

What are the benefits of a waste audit?

Identify ways to reduce waste
Understanding what is being thrown away can help pinpoint areas where waste can be reduced by making simple changes like looking for digital alternatives to paper products or opting for reusable materials over single-use items.

Improve recycling and composting
An audit can reveal if recyclable and compostable material is ending up in the trash. This can help your company establish or improve recycling and composting programs with increased education and awareness.

Save money
Reducing waste can lower waste disposal costs in addition to benefiting the environment.

Comply with regulations
Many industries and corporations have specific waste management requirements. A waste audit ensures you are complying with regulations and can help set targets for ongoing improvement and success.

How do you conduct a waste audit?

Build a team
Depending on the size of your company or organization, you’ll want to work with key stakeholders to increase awareness and ensure everyone is active in your waste reduction efforts. Once you establish your team, assign roles like waste sorters and data trackers who will record the results. Be sure to also establish safety measures and provide necessary protective equipment, like masks and gloves, to those handling waste.

Set goals
Before you begin your waste audit, it’s important to know what you’re trying to achieve. Is your business or organization trying to reduce overall waste? Improve recycling rates? Or something else entirely? Clear goals will also help ensure you’re able to use the data collected to take action.

Collect and sort the waste
The actual waste collection typically takes place over the course of a week. Avoid doing your audit during the holidays or major events as this can skew your results. During the collection period, separate waste by type, such as paper, plastic, food waste, etc. and then record the weight or volume of each category to get a sense of how much waste is being generated.

Analyze the data
Once the waste has been collected and sorted, it’s time to analyze the data. Look for trends such as:

•   The volume of recyclable material
  If a large portion of the waste is recyclable, you may need to implement a recycling program or create more awareness if you already have one.
•   The volume of food waste
  Food waste is a significant issue and identifying high volumes of food waste can help you create a strategy for composting.
•   The number of single-use products
  If your audit reveals a large number of single-use items like plastic bags or disposable cups, you may want to consider transitioning to reusable alternatives.

Identify opportunities for improvement
Based on the data, identify opportunities to reduce, reuse, recycle, or compost more effectively and improve your waste management tactics. Ensure recyclable materials are collected and sorted, opt for digital alternatives to print materials, reduce packaging, and implement a composting or food waste collection plan.

Create an action plan
Once you have the results of your audit, it’s time to develop an action plan to reduce your waste. Prioritize actions that will have the biggest impact on reducing waste and set measurable goals and timelines. Regularly review progress, adjust your plan as necessary, and share the results with your organization.

Educate others
For your plan to be successful, others need to be aware and involved. This could mean training employees or customers on how to sort recycling, offering reusable alternatives to single-use items, and encouraging sustainable habits. Sharing the results of your waste audit can help increase awareness of these issues and ensure everyone is working together to achieve your goals.

Conducting a waste audit is a practical and impactful way to evaluate your current waste management practices and identify areas for improvement. By understanding what you’re throwing away, you can develop a strategy to reduce waste, improve recycling efforts, and minimize your environmental footprint.

With extensive experience in waste management, our team is always ready to assist you with whatever your needs may be. Contact us now to get started.