Planning waste removal and recycling on site
The mixed-waste bin fills during the strip-out, and trades start stacking bags beside it. Metal offcuts have gone into the same bin despite a separate collection arrangement. The superintendent has a bin location on the logistics plan but no plan for what fills it or when it leaves.
Plan the waste streams, bin capacity, collection triggers and responsible people around the work sequence. Confirm the local and project disposal requirements and the facilities that will accept each stream. A bin location alone does not organize the waste. The useful plan tells the crews how to sort, who checks it and how removal will keep pace without blocking work.
- Review the upcoming activities with the trades and identify likely waste streams. Separate ordinary waste planning from material needing specialist assessment or handling; do not assume every demolition item belongs in a mixed bin.
- Confirm the project's diversion requirements and the local acceptance arrangements with the waste provider. Obtain current conditions for each facility and ask how contamination or rejected loads are handled.
- Choose bin capacity and pickup arrangements for the expected work. Agree a collection trigger with the provider and keep an alternative plan for a missed pickup or a sudden change in waste volume.
- Assign sorting and bin checks to named roles. Label each stream clearly and brief trades on what the selected receiving facility actually accepts.
- Keep collection records with weights, destinations and charges where available. Reconcile them to the project's reporting method rather than treating the number of bins as a diversion measure.
- Review the plan when the work changes. Adjust streams and collection frequency before finishing work begins or the remaining laydown area disappears.
US Environmental Protection Agency guidance notes that recycling markets vary by location and recommends checking recyclers' compliance with applicable requirements. It does not establish your project's diversion target or local disposal permission.
Common mistakes
- Copying a recycling list without checking the local facility's acceptance conditions.
- Waiting until a bin overflows to request a collection.
- Counting every outgoing load as diverted without its destination record.
- Mixing specialist waste into an ordinary stream to keep the collection simple.
Checklist
Before the next work stage
- Expected streams identified
- Local acceptance conditions checked
- Capacity and pickup trigger
- Sorting owner and clear labels
- Weights, destinations and charges
- Contingency for missed collection
Check your understanding
Your wood bin is rejected because its contents do not meet the facility's rules. Can you still count it as diverted?
