Recycling Hazardous Waste Encouraged by the RCRA

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Recycling Hazardous Waste Encouraged by the RCRA
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Recycling Hazardous Waste Recycling is an
important method for the conservation of natural
resources. By adopting the practice of recycling,
companies can benefit in many waysearn a good
reputation, attract environmentally conscientious
investors and customers, protect scarce resources
for future generations, contribute to climate
change prevention initiatives, minimize
liabilities and risks, lower costs, create new
revenue streams, circumvent tedious and detailed
regulations of hazardous waste management, among
others. When companies pursue recycling goals,
they indirectly create broader benefits that
benefit the community and the environment in the
long term. What is Recycling? According to the
EPA, Recycling is the process of collecting and
processing materials that would otherwise be
thrown away as trash and turning them into new
products.
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Who should Recycle Hazardous Waste?
Everyone should recycle hazardous waste whenever,
wherever, and as much as possible. Most people
and organizations are very familiar with the idea
of recycling glass, paper, plastic (a hazardous
waste in its way), and other materials we use as
part of our everyday lives, but most dont pay
adequate attention to recycling hazardous
waste. Organizations do seek to store, dispose,
and treat hazardous waste and hazardous materials
are per OSHA, EPA, and the Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act (RCRA) regulations, but there is
further room for improving this disposal process
by considering the effectiveness of recycling
parts of the hazardous waste, materials, and
chemicals used and produced when executing
business processes and activities. Thus, all
organizations must research and implement
recycling as part of their hazardous materials
and hazardous waste disposal processes. Recycling
activities by those hazardous waste generators
identified by the RCRA as large quantity
generators (LQG), small quantity generators
(SQG), and very small quantity generators (VSQG)
must become a priority as their efforts would not
only benefit their organization but also result
in protecting the planet and the health and
safety of workers and the public in the longer
term.
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6 Reasons to Recycle Hazardous Waste
Here are six reasons organizations (irrespective
of the amount of hazardous waste generated)
should embark on hazardous waste recycling. 1.
Broaden your recycling goals Organizations
that are identified as hazardous waste generators
are already segregating, collecting, and
disposing of hazardous waste as per the OSHA,
EPA, and RCRA regulations. These organizations
also likely have in place recycling goals for
other types of waste collected. So, why not
broaden recycling efforts and incorporate
hazardous waste recycling as part of being a good
corporate citizen? Furthermore, those
organizations that report using internationally
recognized standards such as GRI and integrated
reporting principles require to disclose their
efforts regarding hazardous waste management. So,
if you produce sludge, scrap metal, other
hazardous waste materials that can be recycled or
reused then you will not only reduce the amount
of hazardous waste being disposed and treated but
create new avenues for minimizing the use of
scarce resources and extending organizational
recycling goals.
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6 Reasons to Recycle Hazardous Waste
2. Contribute to organizational cost control
measures Recycling or reusing hazardous
materials and hazardous wastes as part of
manufacturing operations would result in an
indirect benefit of contributing towards
organizational cost control initiatives. Just
think about it when sludge is treated and
reused within manufacturing operations, then the
safe disposal (including storage and
transportation) cost of this sludge is negated,
and the cost of purchasing other materials that
the sludge has replaced would also be nil. 3.
Generate new revenue streams If hazardous
waste, chemicals, or other hazardous materials
are recycled to produce a by-product then these
could be sold to the marketplace and the
organization could create a new revenue stream
adding to business profitability. Alternately,
where there is an excess of recyclable hazardous
waste, then the organization could sell this
waste to specialized entities for treatment and
reuse, converting an expense-centric activity to
a revenue-generating one!
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6 Reasons to Recycle Hazardous Waste
4. Follow EPA and RCRA recommendations on
hazardous waste reduction Laws and regulations
recommend organizations reduce the amount of
hazardous waste created. So, when hazardous
wastes like sludges, scrap metal, spent solvent
wastes, wood preserving wastes, electroplating
and other metal finishing wastes, and partly used
or unused chemical wastes are reused or recycled,
organizations can benefit from regulatory
exclusions where such products/by-products are
not considered as hazardous waste. This also
reduced organizational risk and exposure to
rigorous management of hazardous waste as imposed
by RCRA requirements. Remember, when signing off
a hazardous waste manifest as required by the EPA
and Department of Transportation (DOT)s
Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) for the
off-site transportation of hazardous waste, the
organization is attesting to the fact that every
effort has been made to reduce the quantity of
hazardous waste generated.
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6 Reasons to Recycle Hazardous Waste
5. Benefit from RCRA regulatory exceptions To
encourage recycling of hazardous waste where
possible, the EPA and the RCRA offer regulatory
omissions and guidance through alternative
standards for the recycling of hazardous wastes,
hazardous materials, and solid wastes to
hazardous waste generators as part of their
regulatory compliances. Some items that fall
within the RCRA relief measures include
batteries, scrap metal, Cathode Ray Tubes (CRTs),
used oil, aerosol cans, certain pesticides,
mercury-containing equipment (thermometers),
lamps, and precious metals. For in-depth details
on the EPA and RCRA regulatory exclusions and
alternative standards read here. 6. Enhance
organizational reputation When all the above
elements are combined and considered
holistically, the organization will be able to
enhance its reputation as an ethical business
entity striving towards profitability while
making every effort to conserve natural
resources, protect the environment, and embark on
a sustainable journey for meeting the needs of
triple bottom line business activities.
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Thus, as important as it is to follow the RCRA
and EPAs rules and regulations on the
generation, transportation, treatment, storage,
and disposal of hazardous waste, it is equally
important to implement recycling aimed at
reducing the quantity of hazardous waste
generated by an organization. To better
understand these RCRA regulations for hazardous
waste generators, enroll in our RCRA Hazardous
Waste Generator online training course. Also,
remember that the RCRA recommends annual
retraining which can be obtained through our RCRA
4-hour Refresher training course. By following
this training, you will be able to apply the RCRA
regulations for hazardous waste management by a
hazardous waste generator. This training will
also support your endeavors to comply with the
EPA guidelines for hazardous waste management, as
the RCRA has been created to give the EPA the
authority to control hazardous waste from cradle
to grave!
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