ENVIRONMENT

BUSINESS: 295 PRACTICES


TOPIC:

Initiative

Zero Waste Office

Zero Waste Office
SUBMITTED FROM:

POLYECO SA

Polyeco is the first and sole integrated and fully licensed waste management and valorization industry in Greece.

 

Read more:  www.polyeco.gr


Contact

Objective Action

Polyeco, with a deep awareness of modern environmental problems and many years of experience in waste management and sustainability practices, implements the "Zero Waste Office" program in its facilities.

The initiative began to be implemented gradually in the offices of POLYECO facilities, at the beginning of 2020 with the aim of minimizing the generation of waste during working hours, exploiting the generated waste as a resource [PM1] and zeroing the amount of waste sent to sanitary facilities burial. The above objectives are in line with European legislation, the waste framework directive and the waste management hierarchy.

 

Target Audience


The initiative is addressed to all human resources employed by the company, as well as its visitors. With its employees as allies, Polyeco has implemented measures as new daily working habits in its facilities, which are observed by all employees.

Running a zero-waste company is not easy, as the people employed must be trained and make many changes in their daily habits, even giving up some of the "luxuries" they were used to.
 

 

Duration

The "Zero Waste Office" program started in 2020 and has no expiration date.

It will continue to be implemented and developed, contributing significantly to reducing our environmental impact on the planet.


Description

From "Waste Management" to "Resource Management"

The program includes measures to reduce waste generation, maximize recycling and sorting at source, as well as reuse. The measures cover the full life cycle: from production and consumption to waste management and the production of secondary raw materials.

The design of the program was based on the basic principles of the zero waste philosophy:

REVISION / REDESIGN / AVOIDANCE

At Polyeco we adopt a new approach that strikes the problem at its root. We're rethinking how we produce, consume and get rid of what we don't need, focusing on how we make decisions collectively. This means we make careful choices in our supplies and our daily habits and remember that single-use items are harmful to the environment.

REDUCE / REUSE / REPAIR The key for us is to avoid the need to manage waste that shouldn't exist. For this reason, we reduce the consumption of products and the amount of their packaging materials.

At Polyeco we have invested in an integrated [PM1] equipment in the dining areas of our facilities, so as to avoid ordering coffee or food via delivery (reducing the carbon footprint due to the elimination of transport & necessary packaging that would be required) and to enhance the eating home-cooked food with the aim of accurately portioning out meals and avoiding food waste.

We avoid the reckless use of paper and prints are made only when there is a need, as all files are transferred with storage devices (usb sticks, hard-discs). All prints follow the option to print on both sides of the paper sheet. Any unused sheets of paper are stacked in a special area next to the printer to be used for employee rough notes. Those sheets that are completely used are deposited in a special bin for paper recycling.

We buy pencils, refillable pens and special printing equipment. Printer inks are collected in special bins and sent to partner companies for refilling. The maintenance department operating within the facility undertakes the repair of damaged products and machines or their reuse in ways that creatively extend their life (upcycling).

RECYCLING / COMPOSTING / ANAEROBIC DIGESTION

Polyeco has procured special separation and collection bins for the various material streams (paper, plastic, glass, aluminium, bio-waste, cigarette butts) and has trained its staff on which materials are recycled and how.

Employees are asked, after cleaning the packaging, to separate and deposit in the appropriate bins the packaging materials they have used. In the kitchens of the facilities there are also bins for collecting coffee (filter and espresso - with a separate collection of coffee capsules). For the large packages of ground coffee that the company supplies for the employees, there is a special area where they are cut and deposited to be given as raw material to artists (upcycling). In the case of unavoidable food waste, state-of-the-art food dryers have been purchased, where the collected bio-waste is placed and taken for further management by the Megaeco company and its transformation into a soil improvement product (composting and anaerobic digestion processes).

In the areas of the facility where smoking is allowed, special bins for collecting cigarette butts have been placed. The remains of tobacco products, after their collection, go through a special treatment and through innovative solutions and technologically advanced methods are transformed into useful materials for the benefit of the circular economy. More specifically, from the collected piles, ash, smoke and paper, after being separated from the rest of the pile body, are taken to further management for compost production. The filter is mechanically recycled and secondary raw material is produced, which is included again in the production process, since it can be used as a construction material in new products.


Stationery together with materials that are no longer useful are deposited in a special bin for further recycling or secondary fuel production at Polyeco. The same tactic is followed for printing equipment. The batteries are first collected in a special battery collection bin and then transferred to Polyeco's household battery processing unit. Recycling bins for electrical devices have been placed on all floors, since they are the most frequently discarded devices of the electronic and technological equipment that modern businesses have.

RECOVERY

The fraction of waste that cannot be recycled is sent to Polyeco's alternative solid fuel production line for its energy recovery in licensed kilns of the Greek cement industry. The production of alternative solid fuels is carried out by applying a set of physicochemical treatments and is completed during the last stage by the addition of biomass. The fuel delivered to the cement industry carries the EKA of hazardous waste (19 12 11*) and presents specifications similar to pet coke.
 

 


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Impact on Society

The "Zero Waste Office" program contributes to the "closing of the life cycle" of products, through more recycling and reuse, bringing benefits both to the environment and to the economy. Through its implementation, the company derives maximum value and use from all raw materials, products and waste, saves energy and reduces greenhouse gas emissions.

So far the company has managed to divert 90% of the solid waste that is sent to landfills and incineration from the offices and production areas, while our goal is that by 2030 the use of recyclable materials and recyclable packaging will reach 100 % will arrive.



Initiative Location


The program is already being implemented at Polyeco's facilities and offices in Attica and by 2023 it will also be implemented at the company's facilities in Thessaloniki.
 


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Working with Organization

The program is implemented within the facilities and there is no collaboration with another organization.


Workers Participation

The successful implementation of the program depends solely on the employees of our company. They are the ones who implement the measures and change their daily habits. All employees use their own thermos for their coffee and water and their own reusable and biodegradable straws, which are made from sustainable bamboo and offer an eco-friendly alternative to plastic straws. For each visitor, the company has procured disposable wheat straws made from natural wheat, 100% biodegradable and compostable.


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Benefits for Οrganization

Adopting measures for zero waste practices brings benefits both for the environment and the sustainable development of the company:

  • We save resources and energy.
  • We limit the environmental impact.
  • We reduce waste management costs.
  • We comply with statutory requirements
  • We set a good example in protecting the natural environment and responsible consumption



Connection with Global Goals







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