As part of my work in the environmental industry I lead a team of auditors of waste management/recycling centers (or recycling centers for short) across northern California. These recycling centers are designed to temporarily store wastes such as aerosol cans, electronic waste, batteries, and hazardous wastes in separate containers while the await pick up by specialized waste haulers.

Many recycling centers are poorly maintained which leads to their abuse by the employees who are meant to sort waste/recyclables into the various proper containers. Without proper maintenance, recycling centers can quickly degenerate into an expensive headache or even a safety hazard.

If the waste/recyclables are not stored or disposed of properly then hefty fines could be levied by state and federal environmental regulators, so it pays to manage your recycling centers effectively.

So here are 8 Pro Tips for managing your recycling center at your facility.

Keep all the surfaces of the recycling center wiped clean, and free of vermin and insects

This is probably the easiest and most overlooked way to increase proper use of a recycling center. Road dust, insects, and unidentified chemicals can range from inconveniences to serious hazards and should be kept out of a zone that you expect your employees to work in. The accumulation of these kind of hazards is easy to avoid and their removal will pay with greater compliance with your waste management practices by your employees.



Make sure all the containers are easy to access

In a poorly managed facility, containers may be stacked too close together which prevents a user from reaching the proper container to dispose regulated waste. In a situation like that, an employee will often leave the regulated waste on top of the correct container, an adjacent container, or throw it in an empty unlabeled container. This can quickly get out of hand and is a compliance issue that could lead to fines.



The same issue will occur if it takes special tools to open the container or even if it just takes two hands.



Therefore, I recommend when placing the containers to make sure they are set far enough apart to allow easy access and use lids that allow for one handed or no-handed (foot lever) access to the interior of the container.



Make sure all containers are labeled with the accumulation start date, contents, and facility address.

It is required by law to label your hazardous waste and universal waste containers with the accumulation start date, the contents, and the responsible party's address. This is such a simple thing but it is also often overlooked.



Don't let the regulatory agencies fine you over a simple mistake like that. Make sure to always have plenty of labels and permanent markers on hand and store them in the recycling center.



Make sure the labels are easily visible to the users

If a label is not visible because it has been obscured it is useless. You and your employees cannot be sure things are being disposed of properly if you can't tell which container is for which waste.



The labels are meant to be read so it makes sense to make sure it is easy to do so. Always place the labels so they can be easily seen.



Make one person responsible for maintaining the area in excellent condition.

In order to make sure a recycling center is maintained properly, one person must be put in charge and held accountable for its proper maintenance. If responsibility for the recycling center is spilt between several people or groups, it will fall into disrepair.



Create an "I don't know box" and audit daily

Some waste items are hard to categorize and may take a extra scrutiny to determine how properly to dispose them. In those cases those items should be placed in a small file box to be evaluated by a manager at the end of the day to determine the course of action. Once the manager determines which way to dispose of the item, that decision should be shared with the rest of the employees so that can know the proper waste determination next time. This way you can constantly improve compliance and ensure that everyone is on the same page.



Remove old labels from containers to prevent confusion

Sometimes containers may be reused. If that container has an old label on it, it should be removed. If the label is so well stuck on the container that it cannot be removed then X out the label with a large permanent marker, however, removing the label is strongly preferred.



Don't paint over a label or place another label directly over it. If you were unable to remove the old label make sure to place your new label adjacent to the old and be sure to have "X"ed out the old label as stated above. This will avoid confusion. It is good practice to avoid confusion when dealing with the disposal of regulated wastes.



Clearly indicate empty containers by labeling them "empty" and storing them upside down.

Label your empty containers as "EMPTY" and store them upside down so at a glance it can be seen that the containers are empty. 55-gallon drums can be stored upside down with their lids on and "EMPTY" written in thick black permanent marker on the bottoms of the drums where it will be easily visible. When you are ready to use that drum, cross out the EMPTY written on the bottom, flip the drum right side up, and label the drum with an appropriate label indicating its contents, the accumulation start date, and the address of the facility. 5-gallon buckets can be treated the same way or stacked upside down.

This list is not comprehensive and to truly accomplish the task of maintaining your recycling center in good working order, it needs constant review and active effort to improve it. As management theorist Peter Drucker says, "What gets measured gets managed."

Are you interested in getting your hazardous waste or recycling program up and running? Do you need a trainer for your in house operation? Get in touch via LinkedIn or at my company email at nicholas.moran@cbi.com or drop me a line at 786-263-9185

-Nicholas Moran

Environmental Professional

/ Project Manager