Waste Prevention
There are many things you can do to reduce your waste that involve little to no cost. With a little dedication, these tips can become best practices for your organization.
CalRecycle's business waste reduction page includes resources to get you going.
Industry-specific fact sheets and case studies hone in on issues and successes.
Reduce Paper Use
Although the prevalence of laser printers and high quality copiers made the fabled "paperless office" a joke, with over three times more paper consumed each year by American business, the Internet era has made the goal far more attainable. Here are some ideas for reducing paper use:
- Print double-sided.
- Use single-sided discards for draft prints and photocopies.
- Print only the number of copies you need.
- Save documents and share them through email.
- Use Word's annotation features to edit and markup documents on your computer screen.
- Use Adobe Acrobat and Adobe Reader to share and markup drafts of documents on your screen.
- Route paper-only documents to the various stakeholders rather than making photo copies for each person.
Reduce Shipping Materials
- Reuse boxes and packing for packages you send.
- Use shreded office paper for packing instead of new styrofoam peanuts.
- Whenever possible, use or request that suppliers use durable packaging that can be reused.
Other Tips
- Stem the tide of junk mail and waste paper by removing yourself from unncessary mailing lists.
- Review your internal business processes to ensure that your use of supplies does not generate extra and unnecessary waste and expense.
- Purchase durable equipment and regularly maintain it. From tractors to office chairs, you can avoid waste by buying quality gear and taking good care of it.
- Buy recycled toner cartridges and recycle spent cartridges.
Tips for Specific Industries
CalRecycle offers tips for specific businesses and industries including facts sheets, case studies, posters and links.
