FMJ.CO.UK WASTE MANAGEMENT FOCUS
MAY 2021 29
produced by employees working from home
is technically still commercial waste - and
may contain confidential data relating to a
company’s suppliers, employees and clients.
He advises: “Facilities and compliance
managers will need to be sure that any
waste generated o site is minimised, either
by enforcing electronic documentation, or
by ensuring that employees know to collect,
store and destroy any confidential data in
these instances.”
COVID DISPOSAL
When it comes to waste generated in
o ices as buildings open up, it is unlikely
that onsite recycling needs will change
drastically, and more consideration will
need to be given to waste disposal.
“This is particularly true for items such
as face masks,” says Woodhall. “While
these will not need to be separated from
other washroom waste under government
guidelines, it is still a point of concern for
people thinking about returning to the
o ice. Research from Initial Washroom
Hygiene found 66 per cent of people in the
UK want more bins in shared washrooms
so they can properly dispose of single-use
items such as gloves, face masks and tissues
- making this a priority action for facilities
and building managers.”
According to Government guidelines(5)
lateral flow waste is only classified as
‘clinical waste’ if testing is carried out on
registered healthcare and medical sites.
While this means that lateral flow testing
waste generated in o ices can be disposed
of in regular bins rather than in designated
PPE waste bins, it’s still crucial that facilities
managers ensure waste collection in
washrooms and on the wider premises is
safe and hygienic when employees return
to work.
Says Yarrow: “For that reason, and
also because the
regulations can
change, our advice
to FMs is to talk to us
as the compliance
experts. It is our
job to ensure that
all our customers
remain 100 per
cent compliant and
we can provide
the necessary
information and
materials, such as
specialist waste
sacks and separate
storage containers,
to make this as easy
as possible.
“Using our
experience, based
on the number of
employees and the
number of tests
taking place, we
can also advise on
the likely quantities
required and the
number of waste
collections needed. Where COVID-19 waste
needs specialist secure transportation and
treatment, we have our own vehicles and
disposal facilities to make this happen
safely with the minimum of fuss.”
Aragon advises that face masks may
be disposed of via a general waste, black
bag disposal and do not require any
form of special handling. In a home
environment this would refer
to the household waste
collected by councils.
“In a workplace this
is no di erent and
client sta may
freely dispose of
face masks in the
black waste bags.
Dependent on
the clients chosen
disposal route for
this a¤ erwards this
may allow them to
be freely disposed of to
landfill or other alternative
disposal routes such as
Waste to Energy if so desired,
the latter being the better
environmental route.”
Research from Initial Washroom
Hygiene found 66 per cent of people
in the UK want more bins in shared
washrooms so they can properly dispose
of single-use items such as gloves, face
masks and tissues - making this a
priority action for facilities and
RECYCLING TARGETS
Waste and recycling may have been greatly
disrupted due to the lockdowns of the past
year, but the waste management experts
advise that it’s a good time to start afresh
by carrying out a fresh waste audit. Your
business may have changed, employee
levels will have changed, and the amount
and types of waste will undoubtedly have
changed too.
Explains Yarrow: “A waste composition
analysis means we literally tip out your
waste and go through it, item by item,
analysing where it comes from, how much
of it there is and even why you need it.
We’ve helped a number of customers
to reduce their waste by making
sure their suppliers take back
items rather than leaving
them as the customer’s
responsibility.
“A typical example
is BRITA UK, which
successfully removed
metal from its waste stream
altogether, simply by asking
contractors to take their
waste away with them. Within
the healthcare environment we
successfully introduced a specialist
take-back scheme for single-use PVC –
typically used for oxygen masks and tubing
– which would previously have gone for
incineration.
He adds: “Opportunities for recycling
and reuse are improving all the time, from
recycling paper cups, to chewing gum and
even cigarette butts, waste is increasingly
being seen as adding value and becoming
a commodity of its own. The trick is to be
able to harness that for the advantage of the
building managers.”