The topic addresses environmental issues associated with hazardous and non-hazardous waste generated by the operations of companies. It covers treatment, handling, storage, disposal, and regulatory compliance. The impact of the company does not only lie in the absolute amount of waste produced and the types of waste but more critically, the amount of waste that is not recycled.
In your analysis, you must first look at the company’s overall waste production. Most companies now report this information in their CSR/Sustainability annual report. Make sure to report the most recent year. Yearly waste produced should be expressed in tonnes and its multiples.
DIRECT DATA FROM THE COMPANY
Whenever there are doubts about the meaning of something, we encourage to thoroughly read the reports of the company, considering footnotes, and methodology frameworks, as those might contain the answer to your doubts.
Please do not use estimations from other sources for specific companies.
What to include:
State how much of the total waste produced is hazardous and non-hazardous (as an absolute number and relative one percentage).
Then, mention what type of waste they produce, as they have different impacts on the environment, and note the effects of the relevant waste category.
As the scale of the impact lies within the amount of waste that ends up in landfills or is disposed of through unsustainable methods such as incineration, you should also specify the waste recovery percentage/absolute amount compared to landfilled waste.
Disposal methods of the waste:
- the absolute amount and % of waste disposed of unsustainably (landfilled + incinerated with and without energy recovery)
Some definitions:
% of waste recycled: Should include % of waste disposed of sustainably (recycle + compost + reuse)
- Recycling is when you take an item's materials and reprocess them to be used elsewhere. This cuts down waste and ensures useful resources are converted into new products, rather than being wasted after a single use.
- Reusing, on the other hand, is about repurposing items and products for extended use.
Note: A new study on waste-to-energy energy efficiency recovery has shown the method's poor performance against its peers. The study also recommended the distinction between energy recovery through incineration and pure energy incineration be abolished. Likewise, major European financial institutions have opted to exclude waste-to-energy incineration from further funding because of its high carbon intensity and low contributions to a circular economy.
For the above-mentioned reasons, waste disposed through incineration should be considered as waste unsustainably managed.
You should include any fully-fledged industry average (absolute waste figures in X industry, etc.)
You may mention the waste reduction initiative the company has put in place. However, this should be secondary to the company’s current impact (i.e. total waste produced). Your analysis should not be based on the company’s remediation efforts.
Not to include: Product End-of-Life Waste
If a company only reports on hazardous waste or non-hazardous waste, we need to estimate the total amount of waste produced. Of course, research is required to ensure that the company, depending on the industry it is in and what is being said about operational waste in its report, does in fact generate both hazardous and non-hazardous waste.
To estimate total waste:
- Calculating the % of the company's total waste when the company states how much (total or %) is landfilled, diverted, or other.
Example: The company claims that X% and Y tonnes of its total waste is diverted from landfill. So, its total waste would be (Y/X)*100.
- Look into past years' reports to see if the company mentioned/reported its total waste (non-hazardous & hazardous), and hence their split (absolute & relative threshold). We apply the %s to the most recent data found.
Example: The company's 2020 report mentioned that hazardous waste accounted for X% of its total waste. So, apply that % to non-hazardous waste by adding it.
If neither is applicable, then we can publish the analysis without knowing the total amount of waste produced. What is most important to know is the amount of waste not treated, making it clear whether it is partial or complete.
Units:
1 tonne = 1 metric ton
If the figures are given in tons in the report, then we must check whether the company has used the metric system or not (check whether the company has used kg, km,°C, etc.);
Common mistakes:
In the past, we used to ask for a competitor analysis by picking three close competitors and estimating their waste intensity.
We also used to accept benchmarks in terms of people, weight of other substances, etc.
Things to remember:
The analysis should stress the amount or percentage of waste that was disposed of unsustainably
Always look for the coverage/scope of the data
Always make sure to check the footnotes/superscripts to see if there is anything valuable there
Data Points:
Disclosed: When the data is directly disclosed by the company, i.e., we did not do any calculations/estimations to obtain the figure
Estimated: When we have estimated the figure
Complete: When the data represents 100% of the company’s operations
- Partial: When the data is given for only a portion of its operations (not 100%)
In your analysis, make sure you add value to your readers and go beyond the company’s CSR report by not merely reporting data from the company’s report, but going the extra mile of providing additional metrics, studies, and sources to make your analysis robust and the impact value and scale are clear.
Sources you can use - DIRECT DATA FROM THE COMPANY
Whenever there are doubts about the meaning of something, we encourage you to thoroughly read the reports of the company, considering footnotes, and methodology frameworks, as those might contain the answer to your doubts.
Please do not use estimations from other sources for specific companies.
