Most modern businesses are becoming more and more aware of their responsibility to reduce their carbon footprint and having a sound recycling system is one of the easiest ways to achieve this without making drastic changes to the way the office operates.

In this article, we are sharing some of the best and simplest ways you can reduce your business’ carbon footprint through recycling.

Before that though, here are some of the most important reasons why you should consider reducing the amount of waste your office is producing.

  • Environmental protection – Finding ways to reduce the amount of paper, aluminium and plastic that is being wasted and added to landfill can make a huge difference to the environment. The production of all of these resources is an investment into energy, finite resources and money.
  • Cost Effective –   The amount of money that your business could be saving by recycling resources is unlimited and could be highly beneficial over periods of time. The more you recycle the less amount of money you are spending on waste management services that can be really expensive if used often.
  • Brand reputation – Having a powerful social conscience will ultimately help a business to earn company growth and win new clients and customers. Having a strong perspective on the importance of our need to be greener will attract the attention and interest of talent and potential partnerships for your business in the future.

Office Recycling Solutions

After considering the benefits of recycling, here are some of the ways you can increase the recycling opportunities in your workplace.

Recycling more

As obvious as it sounds, there are many ways you can increase your recycling by not only recycling paper, cardboard and plastic bottles – computers, office furniture and other technology resources can be recycled and refurbished or used for parts.

Introduce more recycle bins

Introducing recycle bins that are centralised and can be filled with both paper, plastic and even battery or metal waste is a great way to improve the ability to recycle in the office and allow employees to do so in the most efficient way possible to ensure they can get back to their projects without having to recycle at different stations throughout the day.

Get help from an app

One of the most common reasons for a lack of consistent and thorough recycling in the workplace is a lack of education on what is actually recyclable and what isn’t, which can be much more than employees initially realise.

You can download an app that tells you exactly what you can and cannot recycle based on the object whether that can be wholly recycled or whether you will need to take something apart to recycle the parts that can be – thus improving the rate that you are recycling at and making sure you are accurately disposing of waste in your office.

Invest in recycled resources

You can protect the environment and improve your carbon footprint by not only increasing the rate you recycle your current resources in the office but by also investing in recycled products that you need including furniture, paper and technology.

Stop using take away cups

Tea and coffee playing a big role in the British office but is it necessary to use single-use plastic or paper cups? Give your office a more personal and individual touch by encouraging employees to either bring in their own water bottles and mugs or buy a standard set of mugs and water bottles that can be used through out the office to reduce the amount of waste produced.

Reuse supplies

If you are looking for ways to increase your recycling efforts you can start by upcycling old and broken furniture and tech that could still have some life left in them to be refreshed.

Go Paperless

Going entirely paperless is not possible for some businesses but by just decreasing your paper usage by 25% – 50% can make a huge difference not only for the environment but to increase the functionality in your office by providing online storage solutions that don’t require the expense of printing and the constant usage of the printer which uses energy and ink whilst providing the end product.

With that being said, using our tips will help you to increase the sustainability in your office in no time at all and will mean you are not only doing your bit for the environment but also creating positive habits and potentially reducing the financial burden waste and energy usage has on your business.