Why is Waste Segregation Important?
Segregation of waste is important for businesses and households to ensure garbage is disposed of properly. It’s estimated that around one third of waste worldwide isn’t managed in an environmentally friendly way. That means millions of tons of trash end up in landfills despite recycling or recovery options being available.
Sorting waste separates materials into different streams so they should go down the appropriate processing route. This helps ensure as much trash as possible is recycled and value extracted from the materials that are reused and recovered. It also reduces the risk of exposure to potentially hazardous and dangerous waste types.
Every business should have steps in place for waste separation to help look after the environment, save your organization money, and protect human health. Learn everything you need to know about waste segregation, including the benefits and methods, with this guide.

What is waste segregation?
Waste segregation is simply the process of sorting trash materials into different categories. This involves identifying, classifying, and dividing trash types to ensure it’s disposed of properly. It’s putting garbage into different bins, containers, or dumpsters based on their type, composition, and suitable disposal or treatment method.
Sorting waste at the source or point of production is simple and effective in reducing contamination and keeping materials apart. For example, having various bins for food waste, glass recycling, and solid waste could help a restaurant segregate these materials and keep any food and glass away from landfills.
Common waste types to segregate are:
How to separate trash
Every business should separate trash at the source. The easiest way to do this is with a waste audit. Work out what different types of garbage and volumes your company creates and write down the various materials. Use the results to determine what waste types you need to separate and those you can store together.
This can depend on the amount of waste you produce and your storage space. For example, if you generate lots of glass, cardboard, and plastic packaging then using individual bins to separate trash makes sense. If you have limited space or only produce small volumes, then you could use a single stream recycling container to combine them.
These are a few tips to separate trash within your organization:
- Use different waste containers – have individual dumpsters and trash cans in place across your site to separate and store each type of waste material your business produces. This makes sorting waste at the source simple.
- Add signs and color coding – ensure all trash cans have clear signs that state the waste materials they accept. A color coding system can also work well. This should reduce instances of contamination.
- Follow clear processes – create a waste separation policy that explains the materials to segregate, what can go in specific dumpsters or trash cans, and which materials can be mixed or kept separate. Enforce the policy to minimize contamination.
- Arrange waste collections – schedule dumpster and bin collections for all the different waste streams your organization generates. This should ensure the trash is removed and disposed of responsibly based on the material.
- Train staff – explain the importance of waste segregation to employees in terms of helping the environment and saving money for the business. Run simple training sessions about what waste materials must be separated, which dumpsters they go in, and where they’re located.

Why is garbage segregation important?
Segregating garbage helps direct different waste materials towards appropriate destinations for responsible disposal. Keeping them separate limits contamination risks so as much trash as possible is kept away from landfills and value retained from the materials. It could be composting food waste, recycling glass bottles, or recovering precious metals from e-waste.
The main benefits of waste segregation are that it helps improve recycling rates and minimizes the amount of garbage sent to landfills. This reduces the carbon emissions and pollution created by landfill sites, which contribute to climate change. Separating trash types can also work out cheaper for many businesses.
These are the main benefits of waste segregation:
- Reduce contamination – separating waste materials means they can be processed in their individual streams. Contamination may mean an entire load goes to landfill or for incineration rather than recycling.
- Protect the environment – waste segregation reduces the amount of solid waste that normally gets landfilled or incinerated, which is more harmful to the environment than recycling.
- Save money – mixing trash types together may cost more as solid waste can be more expensive to dispose of than recycling streams. Splitting up materials into their individual types is often more cost-effective.
- Meet recycling targets – segregating waste ensures as much as possible is recycled. This can help your organization work towards its sustainability goals and any recycling targets set.
- Boost eco reputations – having visible waste segregation bins and recycling more can enhance your green credentials.
- Improve health and safety – safely separating hazardous and infectious waste away from daily trash like cardboard also protects the health of workers. There should be less risk of exposure to dangerous waste types across your site.
Ensure proper waste segregation
with Business Waste
At Business Waste, we can provide a wide range of dumpsters and bins to ensure proper waste segregation within your organization. These include everything from smaller 2 yard dumpsters to compactors and large roll offs. Regular collections are available on daily, weekly, or fortnightly frequencies.
All commercial trash is disposed of away from landfills in line with relevant regulations. This ensures your garbage is recycled and disposed of responsibly. Get a free quote for waste segregation bins and commercial trash collections – call 888 584 2118 or contact us online.

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