Are you looking to make your next major residential or commercial project more environmentally friendly? Whether you are trimming trees, performing demolition work, doing new construction, or remodeling a home or building, there are several ways that you can make your work site greener.

Seek out local recycling services.

Many communities have local recycling services that you can request for your work site. Here in Nevada, for example, we at Western Elite offer both front-load and roll-off containers to help you take care of your recycling needs, big or small. Before ordering a dumpster for your work site, ensure that the dumpster you order will be backed by a comprehensive recycling program.

Make use of a material recovery facility.

When you rent dumpsters or containers from a waste management company that takes 100 percent of the waste it collects to a material recovery facility (MRF), you can rest assured that any recyclables that are commingled in your construction and demolition (C&D) waste will be manually removed and sorted along with other recyclables. Overall, this reduces the amount of waste going to a landfill and maximizes your community’s recycling efforts. Some materials in your C&D waste that may be recycled include metal, glass, plastics, cardboard, and even less frequently recycled materials like concrete, rock, masonry, tile, porcelain, lumber, carpet, and insulation. So before you choose a waste management company for your waste disposal needs, ask about how the waste they collect will be disposed and processed.

One thing to keep in mind: you can still make use of a MRF, even if you do not rent dumpsters or containers from a waste management company that uses one. If you are a contractor, project manager, or landscaper who hauls their own waste, you can take your waste materials directly to a MRF and dispose of them there. This ensures that any recyclables in your waste will be sorted out, and you can rest knowing that you are doing your part to help keep our planet green.

Hire a clean-up service.

A comprehensive clean-up service will ensure that your work site remains clean and free of waste and debris. The right clean-up team will have the experience and expertise necessary to handle any clean-up project, be it landscaping, plumbing, electrical, lathing, stucco, drywall, slab construction, or framing. Keeping your work site clean with a clean-up service will ensure that waste and recyclables will go where they need to—and that you will not pollute the area surrounding your work site.