What is a Waste Audit and Waste Characterization Study?

What is a Waste Audit and Waste Characterization Study?

A waste audit is a systematic process used to identify and analyze the types, quantities, and sources of waste generated by an organization, facility, or community. It aims to understand waste generation patterns and identify opportunities for waste reduction, recycling, and improved waste management practices.

A waste characterization assessment, also known as a waste composition analysis, is a process used to determine the types and amounts of materials present in a waste stream. This assessment helps identify the specific components of waste generated by a facility, organization, or community, providing valuable insights into the composition of waste for effective waste management and recycling strategies.

These tools and techniques are sometimes used interchangeably but there are a few key differences.

Waste Audits...

• Are more comprehensive and cover the entire waste management process
• Aim to improve waste management practices and reduce waste generation
• Often include broader considerations, such as operational inefficiencies and potential improvements

While Waste Characterization Assessments...

• Focus specifically on analyzing the composition of the waste stream (% breakdown of mass and volume of each waste type)
• Aim to provide detailed information about the types of materials present in the waste stream (i.e, coated paper coffee cups, coffee grounds, electronics, etc.)
• Are overall more concerned with identifying and quantifying specific materials in the waste.

Reasons to Conduct an Audit

• To establish a baseline of your company’s current processes & waste generation
• To understand where the opportunities for improvement and diversion are
• Trend monitoring and development of new green initiatives
• To understand what resources your company utilizes and to what extent

These assessments and audits can be as simple as dumping the contents of a waste bin on a tarp and counting each item, or they can involve cutting-edge equipment to quantify waste generation. In this lesson, we will explore auditing methods and what you need to run a successful waste audit or characterization assessment.

Materials you will need

Luckily the most important thing in a waste audit (the waste) is free. But there is some equipment you will need to generate more data insights and make the audit more efficient.

‍Personal Protective Equipment (PPE):

• Gloves (preferably thick, puncture-resistant)
• Safety goggles or glasses
• Masks (for dust and odors)
• Protective clothing (e.g., coveralls, aprons)

Containers and Bags:

• Separate bins or bags for different types of waste (e.g., paper, plastics, organics, hazardous materials)
• Clear bags for visibility & colored bags to group waste of different types

Sorting Tools:

• Tongs or grabbers
• Scales (for weighing waste categories)
• Tarps or sheets (to sort waste on a clean surface)

Documentation Tools:

• Data sheets or audit forms
• Laptop (Spreadsheets & Forms)
• Clipboards and pens
• Camera or smartphone (for photographing the process and specific items)

Labeling Materials:

• Labels or tags for identifying different categories of waste
• Markers

Safety and Hygiene Supplies:

• Hand sanitizer
• First aid kit
• Cleaning supplies (e.g., disinfectants, wipes)

Preparing for Sampling and Audit Week

Before you start emptying trash bags around the office it's important to have a project scope and plan.

‍Planning and Scheduling

Determine the Scope and Objectives: Decide what you aim to achieve with the audit. This could include understanding waste composition, identifying recycling opportunities, or assessing waste reduction strategies. As useful as a pile of waste is it is important to understand what you are looking to reduce and key insights that you'll want to share with facilities and management teams.

• Set the Date and Time: Schedule the audit during a typical week to get a representative sample of waste. Ensure all participants and necessary personnel are available.
• Communicate with Staff: Inform all relevant staff and stakeholders about the audit, its purpose, and any changes in waste handling procedures during the sampling period.
• Contact Your Waste Hauler: Work with your waste hauler to understand if the volume of waste that is being stored may require an additional container. We did an audit for a chocolate factory, and due to regulations, they had to procure an extra container for the week to store all the extra waste. This is often an easier solution than storing it indoors, where it can smell or, even worse, attract pests.

Gather Necessary Materials

• Ensure all required materials (as listed previously) are available and ready for use. This includes PPE, sorting tools, containers, and documentation tools. Nothing is more frustrating than having to find items at the last minute when a time-sensitive audit is taking place.

Safety and Hygiene Protocols

• Conduct a Safety Briefing: Review safety protocols with all participants, including the proper use of PPE, handling of hazardous materials, and hygiene practices. This is especially true for facilities that are under food-safe regulations.
• Prepare for Emergencies: Ensure a first aid kit is on hand and that participants know emergency procedures. Needle pokes and injuries from broken glass are common in the solid waste industry.
• Provide Hygiene Products: Make sure there are plenty of gloves and soap so participants can sanitize repeatedly.

Documentation and Data Collection

• Prepare Data Sheets: Have data sheets ready for recording the types and quantities of waste collected. Ensure all fields are clearly labeled and easy to understand. A waste audit data template is attached on the next page.
• Assign Roles: Designate roles among the audit team, such as sorters, weighers, recorders, and photographers. By having everyone work together in assigned roles, preparations and audit day can progress smoothly.

Notify and Educate Building Occupants

• Inform Occupants: If the audit is being conducted in a workplace, school, or public building, inform occupants of the audit schedule and purpose. By having everyone cooperate a higher capture rate of waste can be guaranteed. It is especially important to notify all custodial and facilities teams to make sure waste is brought to the right place.
• Minimize Disturbance: Plan the audit to minimize disruption to normal activities. For example, avoid peak hours if auditing a commercial space. We have found that Fridays are the best day for a waste audit as team members have wrapped up important tasks for the week, and other team exercises, such as a lunch or party, can be planned on the same day.

Pre-Sampling Setup

• Review Waste Handling Procedures: Ensure that waste collection and handling during the sampling period align with the audit's goals. This may include ensuring that no unusual cleanups or waste disposal activities occur that could skew the results.
• Establish a Baseline: If possible, collect preliminary data on waste volumes or types to serve as a baseline for comparison.

Post-Audit Preparation

• Plan for Waste Disposal: Arrange for the proper disposal or recycling of the sorted waste after the audit. If the amount of waste does not deviate from normal pickup volume, your hauler can pick up the waste the same as usual with no disruptions.
• Prepare for Data Analysis: Have a plan in place for analyzing the data collected, including methods for categorizing and interpreting the results, as well as a common format for reporting.

During Audit Week

‍During Audit week ensure all waste and recycling bags are labelled and brought to the correct storage area. It is important to label not only the contents but where the bin came from as some bins in the office may be underutilized and wasting space & custodial time. Key Data Points to Label the Bags With:

• Waste Type
• Date & Time
• Bin Location

The week during the audit is usually smooth, as most of the preparation comes before and after. For bonus data points, take pictures of all the waste and recycling bins before bringing them to the storage area to have visual evidence as well. This is a great way to show timelapse, common contaminants, or waste items when it is time to present the findings. Check-in with facilities & custodial staff to make sure all things are moving along smoothly and no adjustments need to be made.

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‍Create a Sorting Station

‍Sorting stations do not need to be complex. They can be comprised of a scale or two, containers, and a table. Sorting on the floor is possible as well but it will make it harder to sort as the materials aren't as accessible. If the sorting station is outside, we recommend a tent (to protect from the sun), tarp, and weights to prevent trash from blowing around from the wind. Once you have built your sorting station, begin to organize the collected waste from the week by the labels that you defined.

‍If the material collected is too much to process in one afternoon, a representative sample from different days throughout the week will suffice.

‍Take out the data sheets and log the label on the bag and begin itemizing each item in the bags. It helps to take all of the items out of the bag and organize them on the table. This way similar items can be counted at the same time.

‍For Each Item:

• Name the item in the spreadsheet (Brand Name and Product Name)
• Weigh the item and each of its respective components to your desired specificity (Bottle, Cap, label).
• Note the type of material each component is.
• Take count of how many times each item appears.
• Create a column for each bag so items can be counted across all bags
• If there are too many bags to count, take a simple random sample of bags to calculate an average for each of the bags.

Repeat these steps for each bag. Until all the desired data is accounted for. Once items are counted, they should be placed into their respective waste containers for the final organization of the total amount of waste of each type. This method yields great photos for visualizing the total amount of waste and leaving an impact. Presenting the Results

‍How to Present the Results

‍Presenting waste information can be a challenge. Not everyone speaks in landfill diverted, tonnage of material, contamination rate, and so on. It is important to convert the findings into units of measure that people can understand using equivalencies.

For example: Instead of saying we found 7 kgs of disposable coffee cups, present it as finding 80 coffee cups throughout the week or 1500 over the course of the year, which when they are stacked up is 4x taller than our office building.

‍A Picture is worth 1000 Words:

‍Graphs, tables, & figures are your friends. These will be great sharable insights for sustainability reports, ESG reporting and evidence for receiving new quotes from your solid waste hauler.

‍Present Your Findings In Financial Terms:

‍Waste is expensive. A strong presentation will mention the financial strain an inefficient waste system can have on facilities. Key Metrics to observe in the audit and on solid waste invoices are

• Contamination Fees
• Missed Pickup or Overflow Fees
• Frequency of Collection
• Organics Diversion (If a composting program is active)
• Common Items that were Wasted (over-procured)

Present Your Findings In a Relatable Way

‍Waste has shock value when shown to people who believe there is a magic place called "away." A strong presentation will show the impact waste has as well as visuals as a way for team members to understand. These can be

• A coworker next to the weekly amount of trash from the office
• Show the impact of waste on the local community and the environment.
• Show the most common items and the volume of waste produced for each item.
• Show what the office could look like after adopting a few new waste policies (before and after photos).

Creating Lasting Change

‍Permanently changing behavior after a waste audit is not easy. Every environment is unique in its solid waste issues, and the solutions are as well. The best way to create change across all sites is to connect the impact of individual actions to positive outcomes (or, in terms of correcting bad behavior, the negative outcomes).Examples of this are:

• Take photos of all the waste from the audit and post them by the bins around the office.
• Create educational posters about the proper disposal of items around the office.
• Adopt a compost or food waste program to prevent organic material from going to landfill.
• Establishing a baseline and then setting an attainable diversion goal.

This concludes our lesson on Waste Audits and characterization. If you have any questions or want to run an audit of your own, join us at our weekly office hours on Wednesdays from 11 am-12 pm EST.

How can Scrapp help?

Scrapp uses software to help automate this entire process. Rather than spending the time and energy working through bins, our software helps your organization track waste at the source through supplier and procurement data, allowing you to make more informed waste decisions - without ever having to get messy. Reach out to the team to learn how we can help you minimize your waste with better data.