Did you know?

•  Over 90% of office waste is paper
• Each employee generates 192 kg of waste per year
• It has been estimated that UK businesses lose up to 4.5% of annual turnover every year through avoidable waste.
• The average resource use for a computer and monitor amounts to 240kg of fossil fuels, 22kg of chemicals and 1500 litres of water.

It is estimated that 1 to 1.5 million tonnes of recyclable material goes to landfill from the commercial industry each year, and 80% of all office waste contains discarded stationary.  With new legislation pending, directors of companies could be fined £20,000 or face 6 months imprisonment if stringent measures are not adhered to. 

So it is not just in the environments interest that your business should seek help on sustainability.  For a business with a turnover of £800,000, a total of £36,000 could be saved by using alternate waste pathways, and even profit from selling raw and waste materials. 

Want to find how you can become more sustainable? Please contact Business Link London on 0845 6000 787

Environmental law and you:

The law on environmental issues is continually changing so it is important for you to know what could affect your business.  Listed below are some examples that could be relevant:

•  Climate Change Levy (CCL) – A levy introduced to limit the quantity of energy used by businesses such as gas and electricity.
• Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment Regulations (WEEE) - Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipments Regulations affect all forms of electrical equipment, from mobile phones to battery power tools. These will be classified as hazardous waste and need to be deconstructed before disposal.
• Duty of Care – Requires you to store, keep records and transfer waste to an authorised person.
• Hazardous Waste Regulations (HWR) – Associated with the expanding list of hazardous wastes.
• Trade Effluent and Discharge Consents – Offices may discharge water which isn’t of a domestic nature. 

Get the full picture - contact Business Link London on 0845 6000 787

For more advice on legislation, please visit the NetRegs site here.

Please note that this is only an overview of legislation should not be taken as legislative advice.