Within the hazardous waste management industry, dry cleaning is a very specialized, niche market. The waste generated in that business is deemed hazardous, though, and several federal bodies highly regulate its handling, shipping, and treatment. If you’re in the dry cleaning industry and you’re working with a waste management company, it’s your responsibility to ensure that company has undergone and received the proper training, permitting, and insurance to safely, legally, and effectively handle dry cleaning waste.
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From Paper to Digital – Now What?
Many companies have made the transition from hard copy documents to digital files, while others are in the process of converting paper to pixels. There are several benefits to be realized from making the conversion. However, once the conversion is made, the issue of...
Space Waste? There’s a Laser for That
You often think that once something is disposed of and goes to the landfill that it’s gone. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. In December 2014, 18,000 fruit cakes were discarded at a landfill in Kragujevac, Serbia after the owner of the cakes determined they were spoiled. Surveillance footage later showed the cakes being removed from the landfill and then offered to the public.
Stolen from a Landfill and Sold to the Public
You often think that once something is disposed of and goes to the landfill that it’s gone. Unfortunately, that isn’t always the case. In December 2014, 18,000 fruit cakes were discarded at a landfill in Kragujevac, Serbia after the owner of the cakes determined they were spoiled. Surveillance footage later showed the cakes being removed from the landfill and then offered to the public.
How Medical Waste is Treated and Disposed
Generally speaking, the process for handling and disposing of medical waste involves decontamination, either with an autoclave or incinerator before being taken to a landfill. Once decontaminated, medical waste residual materials can be treated as nonhazardous waste and disposed of accordingly. Heat, chemicals, or a combination of the two represent the primary disposal methods of medical waste, though untreated waste can be processed by other means of decontamination are unavailable.
Proper Ways to Collect and Transport Industrial Waste
With the management of industrial waste, organizations must take extra care to follow all mandatory procedures from the moment waste is generated, to collection and transportation for processing and disposal. The U.S. EPA, as well as other federal, state, and local regulations, has developed a set of rules mandating how industrial waste should be collected, stored, and transported. Failure to follow these requirements can result in civil and criminal penalties and even jail time.
Complying with Hazardous Waste Regulations
The number of industries generating hazardous waste covers everything from large manufacturing facilities to small “mom-and-pop” businesses, but regardless of size, every hazardous waste generator must comply with the US Environmental Protection Agency’s regulatory guidelines, as well as any other federal, state, or local laws. Failure to comply with the relevant statutes and guidelines could result in penalties, fines, and other legal liabilities.
UN-Rated Containers for Hazardous Waste and Non-hazardous Waste
One of the most important factors in proper nonhazardous and hazardous waste disposal is selecting the right container in which to place that waste. Several factors affect this decision. For example, it matters what type of waste you’re containerizing, and the actual specifications of the container itself matter too. If you’re at all confused or unsure about this process, here are some waste management tips to help you along the way.
How to Choose the Proper Hazardous Waste Container
The process of hazardous waste removal involves many steps, and a crucial part of this is how to select the proper hazardous waste container. Unfortunately, there isn’t one rule you can follow. The right container for the job depends on many factors, including type of waste to be containerized, amount of waste generated, and more.
What Is RCRA Hazardous Waste?
No matter what industry you’re in, there are a variety of categories that relate to generated waste. It’s essential that you and your employees all understand these different categories because the type of waste you’re dealing with will dictate how that waste needs to be stored, containerized, transported, and treated before disposal. One particularly important category is RCRA hazardous waste.