Recycling mercury-containing waste goes a long way in protecting the environment, but did you know that there are additional benefits?
Mercury is found in some surprising places around the home and workplace, including batteries, lighting, computers, televisions and even teeth fillings.
While the mercury in these products are safely contained for everyday use, even a small amount of the toxic material can have a destructive impact when it is dumped in landfill.
The mercury-recycling movement continues to grow bigger in Australia every day, however there are still far too many businesses that fail to safely dispose of products containing mercury.
Here are five benefits of recycling mercury-containing waste:
1) Keep harmful material out of the environment
Mercury can have a devastating impact on the environment and the community when it is discarded irresponsibly.
When mercury-containing products are thrown into the general waste bin, they end up in landfill, where they can leak into waterways.
Mercury can transform into methylmercury, where it can be absorbed by smaller fish and then bio-magnified up the food chain, as witnessed in the Minamata disaster in the mid-1950s.
While regulations and conventions now exist to prevent that sort of catastrophe from happening again, people still have to be careful about consuming the right types of fish today.
2) Cut down business costs
There are some important savings for businesses to consider when it comes to running a recycling program.
Landfill costs are rising, as local government authorities try to deal with the environmental impact of general waste.
Recycling companies can often charge businesses less to take away a truck load of waste because they can offset their prices by recovering materials and selling them on.
Businesses also need to watch out for tightening regulations, like the banning of dumping electronic waste in landfill in Victoria that starts later this year.
3) Recover non-renewable resources
Recycling mercury from old products reduces the need to mine more of it out of the ground.
Huge quantities of mercury are needed every day to make new products around the world but there are recycling companies and programs that are working towards a closed loop approach.
For example, mercury from old dental amalgam, or fillings, can be recovered and reused in new amalgam once it has been collected and processed.
4) Demonstrate a commitment to responsible recycling
By creating a recycling program at your business, you send a message to your customers and employees that you care about your environmental footprint.
Ecocycle provides recycling certificates to prove that your business is complying with company and government requirements by detailing the amount and type of waste recycled.
This can give you an advantage over your competitors in attracting clients, while also creating a positive workplace culture.
5) Recycling is easy
Recycling mercury-containing waste has never been easier, and it starts with just a call.
Ecocycle offers a spectrum of services to businesses ranging from one-off collections through to comprehensive recycling programs.
As one of Australia’s most experienced mercury recyclers, Ecocycle delivers commercial-scale solutions for companies of all sizes.
For more information, give us a call on 1300 32 62 92 or fill out the form below and one of our friendly specialists will help find a solution for your business.
