• Resource recovery
• How to recover materials better
• How to recover...
  Paper  Office equipment  Vegetation materials  Construction materials

Resource recovery

Recovering valuable materials from the waste stream benefits everybody:

• Government agencies benefit by reducing operating costs eg. waste disposal costs through more efficient use of expensive resources
• Industry benefits by gaining a source of valuable recovered waste materials and new markets for services and products
• The community benefits from reduced waste costs and improved environmental quality
• The environment benefits from reduced pressure on natural resources (eg. mining and forestry reserves) and impacts from waste disposal.

Recovery of materials includes a number of actions or processes often lumped under the word ‘recycling’. Some of terms included under the broad heading of ‘recycling’:

• source separation – recyclable materials are separated at the point of generation (eg. an office or home) into different streams for recycling
• post-collection material sorting –recoverable materials are pulled out of mixed waste by machines or by hand at a specialised waste facility for recycling
• reuse – materials or products are used again without substantially changing their original shape or form.
• composting – organic wastes (food scraps, vegetation waste etc) are processed to make a range of organic products for.
• waste-to-energy – a range of technologies where waste is used as a fuel. It is sometimes used to generate electricity.

Where possible, contamination of recovered material with unrecyclable material should be minimised. This ensures clean raw materials are available to be remade into new products and keeps the cost of these products down.

How to recover materials better

• Find out how wastes are managed in your organisation. Look at:
  ~ types and quantities of waste being generated
  ~ waste management and recycling infrastructure (eg types of bins used, where they are located etc)
  ~ who provides waste services to your organisation
  ~ how and where it is disposed of and
  ~ how much it costs to dispose of your waste.
  You may need to identify and work on a particular waste stream to start with.
• Quantify amounts of waste and materials being recovered. The best way to do this is by doing a waste audit.
• Identify where valuable recoverable materials are being put into the general waste stream.
• Identify where the greatest potential improvements can be made to the existing system. This could be in terms of reducing cross contamination, increasing recycling rates, improving services provided by contract cleaners etc.
• Consider the alternative uses that can be made of existing wastes to turn them into a resource for your or other organisations to use .
• Prioritise – tackle a couple of easy wastes first and then move on to larger or more difficult ones.
• Identify key players and stakeholders managing waste and recycling systems and work with them to improve practices.
• Educate staff, management and contractors on proposed improvements to waste management and recovery systems.

How to recover...

Paper

• Do occasional rapid visual surveys of office waste and recycling bins to check for problems eg. recyclable paper in waste bins or non-recyclable waste in the recycling bins. Use survey results to focus waste education messages.
• Audit quantities of paper used and disposed of by different offices.
• Collect data on the quantities and types of waste being generated in your office to monitor the effectiveness of waste management initiatives. This is often simpler than you think.
• Ensure cleaners know how your office waste and recycling systems work and are actively supporting these.
• Check with building management what local recycling services are available.
• Position recycling bins near photocopiers, printers and other places where waste paper is generated.
• Install small desk recycling bins for paper printed on one side which can be reused.
• Separate white paper from other paper colours and types (eg cardboard) where possible.
• Run staff education programs on how office waste management and recycling system work. Include this program in staff induction programs.
• Find alternative uses for shredded paper if no recycling services are available eg. donate to local childcare centres, animal bedding at local zoos or wildlife centres, compost or mulch paper.
• Tell suppliers to provide products in minimal packaging or take back used packaging (especially computer boxes).
• Have supplies delivered in reusable crates which are taken back by the supplier.

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Office equipment and consumables

• Find out what happens to obsolete or used machines at the end of their useful life. Can they be remade into new machines? Can recyclable components of machines (eg plastic panels) be stripped off and made into other products?
• Donate obsolete but functioning machines to charities or sell them at auction.
• Ensure toner cartridges are not put out with other office wastes – send them back to the supplier or manufacturer.
• Many suppliers, manufacturers and charities run cartridge return programs. Ask you supplier if they offer this service. Some supply boxes to put used cartridges in or envelopes to mail them back.

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Vegetation materials

• Use compost and mulch where possible to reduce dependence on chemical fertilisers and herbicides.
• Use recycled organic products where soil revitalisation, erosion control and water conservation is needed.
• Use recycled organic products in landscaping applications, parks and playgrounds, roadway landscaping, erosion control projects and more.
• Apply mulches to a depth of 75 to 100mm on the soils surface for the most effective results. Top up every 6-12 months.
• Carefully follow manufacturer’s instructions for each compost product with respect to the nutritional content and any need for additional fertilisers.
• Use an Australian Standard mulch or compost to avoid introducing weeds and pests
• Use selective pruning to reduce green waste generation.
• Install low maintenance gardens with natives or species that require little water.

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Construction materials

• Develop and enforce a site waste management and recovery plan. The plan will vary depending on the size and type of job and should outline materials to be targeted, causes of waste, responsibilities, training, measuring performance and minimisation practices.
• Coordinate and communicate the plan to site project managers, supervisors, workers and contractors.
• Establish a specific area within the site for the storage and removal of different streams of recovered waste materials. It should be secure and access restricted to authorised personnel.
• Ensure waste is separated into recoverable and non-recoverable streams. Also ensure new and undamaged recovered waste materials are kept separate.
• Collect data and record the movement of waste and recovered waste materials on and off the site. Require contractors to supply this information as part of the contract.
• Stockpile unused or waste materials for future use. Ensure stockpiles are well managed
• Reuse off-cuts where possible.
• Store off-cuts that are of a reasonable size and condition for use in smaller maintenance jobs.
• Organise with suppliers pallet returns with follow on deliveries.
• Consider using fly ash, the by-product from coal powered plants as a component of concrete to reduce the use of virgin materials.

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