Business & Commercial Recycling

Connecticut businesses are required by law to recycle; haulers are required to provide recycling containers wherever they provide dumpsters for refuse. You can request that your hauler pickup your refuse and recycling on a bi-weekly basis to help alleviate costs for an additional container. Call your hauler today to ask that they provide you with a recycling container.

Set Up Recycling at Your Workplace

Form a “Green Team”

Approaching recycling as a team can help ensure the success of your recycling program. A “green team” is a group of employees interested in recycling and helping to set up a program.

Determine Materials You Will Recycle

Performing a waste audit can help. A waste audit is an inventory of the amount and type of solid waste (trash) produced at a location.

• Aluminum cans
• Cardboard
• Commonly recycled business items include:
• Magazines and catalogs
• Newspaper
• Office paper
• Plastic bottles
• Toner and ink jet cartridges

Contact Your Property Manager

Find out if there are any recycling programs in place.

On Your Own

If your property manager cannot provide recycling, or you are a small business, meet with your green team, contact your waste hauler, and decide what materials you want to recycle.

Coordinate Collection

Coordinate collection with the recycling service provider, custodial crew and/or staff. Think about:

• Central bins - Locate large recycling bins in copy rooms or break rooms.
• Collection - Create a regular schedule and determine who will pick up recycling from the small and central bins. It may be staff, janitorial crew or a combination.
• Small bins - You can provide durable recycling containers to each staff person or ask them to use copy paper boxes or something similar at their work stations. Decide what type and size of bin to locate next to printers, fax machines and other machines that generate paper.

Communicate all this information to your entire staff and custodial crew.

Educate Staff

• Distribute fact sheets describing the new recycling program for employees and custodial staff and post updates on your company's intranet site
• Mark containers with signs labeled by item. It is helpful to use the “chasing arrows” recycling symbol
• Provide bins and collection containers

Plan a Fun Kick-Off Event

• Distribute fact sheets, signs and containers
• Fun events, giveaways and refreshments could be provided
• Schedule orientation sessions for each department
• Send a memo from management to all employees encouraging participation

Inform Others About Your Efforts

• Include your recycling efforts in company promotional pieces.
• Send out press releases to the local media. You may also want to include information in customer or client mailings.
• Write articles for the employee newsletter, intranet, and building and industry newsletters. Acknowledge people for changing their habits and keep people informed of the results of their efforts. Seek staff’s suggestions.

Maintain Your Program

• Have your green team meet regularly to evaluate your recycling program’s progress. A successful program will continue to grow in volume recycled. The team can also address other green issues such as energy consumption and alternative transportation.
• Identify a recycling point person to handle tasks such as answering staff questions, managing the green team and program oversight.
• Stay in contact with staff. Update your staff regularly on the program’s progress. Send out periodic recycling reminders. Train new employees about the recycling program.