Recycling the List of Questions I Want

Recycling

The list of questions I want to ask about the company's recycling program include the following:

What types of plastic (identifiable by numbers) are eligible for recycling on -- site?

For the types of plastic that are not eligible for recycling on-site, what alternative brands or products can be used so that the company does not generate any excess unnecessary waste?

What changes to the company's operations do you recommend, so that less waste is generated?

For recycling electronics, what are the best procedures and practices you recommend?

To answer these questions, I interviewed the waste management commissioner of the city. Commissioner Eleanor Tubman has been working in waste management services for fifteen years, and heads the city's recycling departments. Most of the recycling in the city is done by a private service.

First I asked Commissioner Tubman what she thought were the greatest steps our company could take to reducing the amount of waste we create. The commissioner responded with the adage "reuse, reduce, recycle." To reduce waste, the commissioner suggested switching to digital communications wherever possible and minimizing the use of hard copies in the office. The reusing part of the equation pertained most of all to electronics, which the commissioner said were the biggest culprits of hazardous waste disposal. Rather than discard old equipment, the commissioner suggested repurposing it or donating it to local charities.

This led me to the next question I had for the commissioner, which was related to the best procedures and practices recommended for a company using electronic equipment. The commissioner answered, "Recycling electronics requires much more effort than recycling paper and plastic. To recycle electronics at the enterprise level, I recommend establishing an account with a private service that will arrange for pick-up and proper disposal."

When asked about the types of plastic that are currently eligible for recycling on-site, the commissioner had to ask which area the company headquarters was located before answering. Then she said that plastics numbered 1,2, and 5 are eligible for on-site pick up by the private recycling company that services the area. If the company has other products that need to be recycled, such as plastics numbered 6, then someone in the organization would be responsible for dropping it off at an appropriate waste management center. Those locations could be found on the municipal waste management Website, Commissioner Tubman claimed.