Commercial Waste Disposal - Things Your Business Should Be Aware Of

COMMERCIAL WASTE DISPOSAL - THINGS YOUR BUSINESS SHOULD BE AWARE OF Are you disposing your commercial waste legally and in a responsible fashion? Under the 1990 Environmental Protection Act, no matter what kind of business you operate you have a responsibility based upon legal foundations to securely store and take steps to dispose of any waste that may be produced by your business. If you don't comply with these regulations you may be taken to court to account the offences you may have wittingly or unwittingly committed.

This law applies to any business including those working from home such as, for example, gardeners (gardening waste), online seller (packaging), child minders (nappies and other sanitary products), home offices (used stationery), barbers and hairdressers (human hair) and any other home business you can think of. Any waste of this type is known as commercial waste and you, the business owner, is responsible for its disposal.

With such a variety of types of waste, some with special disposal regulations of their own such as those deemed hazardous waste, it can be quite difficult working out the best way to dispose of such detritus.

Generally speaking you have two options. Firstly you can attempt to dispose of them yourself although you must be able, at all times, to produce certain documents known as waste transfer notes showing what you disposed of, how much there was of it, and how much you disposed of. This is usually done at a waste transfer station. Alternatively you can take the second available option and have the waste collected for you.

Hiring a firm that specialises in commercial waste disposal can have several advantages. Firstly they are able to meet any amount of demand and have the logistical capabilities to be flexible in the quantity needed to be removed. Secondly, they are able to deal with a whole range of types of commercial waste including hazardous waste and other more difficult to remove waste items. Finally, if there are any issues or questions raised, they will be able to provide you with an informed and expert opinion. Just remember to hire only licensed waste carriers and that you fill in a form together with your chosen contractor known as a Duty of Care form. You can be prosecuted for the relevant offence if you choose to dispose of your commercial waste through an unlicensed operator or don't sign the paperwork first. The Environment Agency maintains a list of all operators licensed to remove commercial waste, so check with them first if you are unsure.

It is tempting for many much smaller businesses to think that the duty of care is inapplicable in their circumstances as they may produce negligible amounts of waste. However, whatever the waste is that is produced, whether floor sweepings, food packaging or cleaning materials, if they are produced upon your working premises then you are responsible for their disposal. However, because it is commercial waste it is an offence to simply take that waste with you and put it in a domestic rubbish bin. Better to let the professional deal with it than risk a fine...or worse.