1. Conducting a Waste Audit

2. In This Lesson By the end of this lesson, learners will be able to:
(Knowledge Level) describe the primary steps to perform a waste audit/analysis
(Application Level) apply knowledge learned by conducting a waste audit at home, school or a businesses

3. The Audit Process Why Audit? Preparing for the audit
Completing the physical audit
Understanding how to analyze the data
Implementing Change

4. Why Audit?
Knowing what goes into the trash is the first step to keeping it out
Businesses pay for collection each time the bin is serviced - Most businesses over subscribe for trash service
Collecting empty and partially full bins is a waste of money
Un-flattened cardboard boxes and bags of air, waste bin space
It costs to dispose of recyclables in the trash
It’s a necessary part of getting a Zero Waste business certification

5. Prep for the Audit Gather the Data Visual Inspection
Objective of audit
List of Departments, contacts, interviews
List of all trash/recycling services and bin locations
Trash invoice & tonnage reports
Recycling reports 5

6. Hauler & Market Analysis
Existing Hauler data – rates sheet, recycling services/rates
Local recycling services (cost/rebate)
Special materials collection – HHW, CFL’s, batteries, food… 6

7. Material Flow Systems information: Materials flow
Overview of operations,
Facility layout, (map, mark bins)
Staff roles and concerns
Materials flow
Space available for separate bins
Safety considerations
Types of waste materials generated
Generation points
Office area/ Paper/lunchroom 7

8. When to Audit Identify business schedules Seasonal Flow – peak/slow
Days of week of operation
5 day v 7 day / day v night
Weekly Flow – busy days/light days
Heavy weekend/weekdays/special events
Heavier certain hours (mealtime)
Seasonal Flow – peak/slow
Avoid audits in peak or slow times
Report should contain accommodations for peak and slow (increase/decrease service) 8

9. When to Audit
Consider seasonal variations, or changes to production line
Inventory or file purge
Days of week of collection
Time materials taken to trash bins
Audit when bins are full
Time of day of collection
Audit as close as possible to time of collection (usually early morning hours on the day of collection) 9

10. Additional Considerations
Communicate with custodial
Consider multiple audit periods
Set sufficient samples aside
Label where samples originate

12. Get Started Set aside trash samples Benefits: Quantifiable data
Target program improvements
Reduce cost, recoup lost revenue
Challenges:
Effective communication Custodial team
Effective communication with staff
Potential to see blood born pathogens (training needed)
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13. Game Plan Identify staging and sorting areas
Communicate plans with the Day and Night Staff
Sort in the morning to mitigate odors
Know needs:
1-2 tilt trucks
200 pounds of trash
4 people for two hours.

14. Set Up Sufficient barrels/carts Proper signage
Plastic tarps to cover area
Scale
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15. Dress Appropriately Close toed – sturdy shoes Safety glasses Gloves
Old clothing, you will get dirty
Hat or hair up
Hand sanitizer or wipes
Change of clothing 15

17. Other Items to Have Clip Board Camera Tarps/Tables Stick/grabber
Auditing Forms/Notepad
Pens/Pencils/Highlighter
Bins/boxes for materials (capture volume)
Scale 17

18. What is sorted? Mixed Paper Cardboard Beverage containers:
Plastic bottles
Aluminum cans
Glass
Plastic Film
Packaging Material
Compostable items separately
Trash Bags
Trash
Further detail depending on space type
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19. How is Trash Sorted? Use a table to get bags up off the ground
Open bags (Be careful for excess liquid)
Sorting assignments:
Designate each person to a commodity
Review the process ahead of time
Sort
IMPORTANT NOTE: Sort materials into the categories they would have been before contamination. Example: soiled paper goes into paper and not compostable paper.
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21. Sorting Tips Make sorting convenient Keep smaller bins on table, for:
Liquids
Glass
Metals
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22. Effective sorting
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25. Finishing the Sort All material samples sorted by type
Weights taken from each stream
Information properly recorded
CLEAN-UP
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26. Validate through Pictures
Take pictures of:
the set up
People sorting commodities
If you notice odd items:
Examples include confidential waste documents
New items: we have seen entire equipment kits that cost a lot of money
Items that have liquid in them that are required empty
Found a bird and confidential material
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27. Tracking Results Create simple tracking forms to log data
You transfer the pounds and ounces into a separate spreadsheet to help get totals
You will need:
Waste Analysis spreadsheets
Cost of the trash by weight or ton
Average tons of waste a month
Average invoice for trash service for one month (haul and disposal)
Use compiled information for next steps
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28. Example of spreadsheet
Area 1:
6/1/2011
MATERIAL
WEIGHT Total lbs.
MATERIAL %
DESCRIPTION OF MATERIAL
COMMENTS (update as appropriate)
Mixed Paper
10.00
19.61%
Office paper, magazines, newspaper
Cardboard
5.00
9.80%
Boxes, pieces, Kraft paper
Beverage Containers
Plastics, Metal, Glass
Packaging Material
2.00
3.92%
Styrofoam, bubble wrap, etc.
Plastic Film
Stretch wrap, package wrap, etc.
Rigid / Hard Plastic Pieces
1.00
1.96%
Metals
Metal pieces large & small ( no bottles /Beverage)
Compost /Organic Waste
Food waste, soil, garden
Liquid
Residue from bottles, cans, etc.
Trash
Non recyclable items, wrappers, small misc pieces, wet material.
Recycle weights
26.00
50.98%
Trash weights
25.00
49.02%
Total weight
51.00
100.00%
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29. Example of Pie Chart
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30. Waste Analysis Results Graph
200 pound of trash were collected during the desk side trash audit.
100 pounds of recyclables were retrieved from the trash!
POUNDS
Chantel - Refresh
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31. Information to Action
Use the gathered data to implement reduction and recycling strategies

32. Let’s do this. It’s time to perform a waste sort.