Kelly Drums offers environmentally friendly waste alternatives. Discover what waste management is and why it’s so important.

Every now and then, we encounter a significant amount of waste material that needs to be handled properly.

Waste management involves all the methods for handling waste. But some are more effective than others.

If you’re curious about waste management and would like to know more, feel free to get in touch with us at Kelly Drums.

We’re a family business that’s been around for over 40 years.

Our company name is Patrick Kelly Drums, but many people are used to calling us Kelly Drums.

We’ve built strong trust with businesses all over the country by showing up, doing the job right, and caring about the environment.

We do everything based on our values, which are working hard, being honest, and doing our part to make the future better.

In this article, we’ll tell you everything you need to know about waste management, the different methods of waste management, and its importance. 

What is Waste Management? 

Waste management simply means the different actions taken and plans created to manage waste.

It could involve composting or recycling existing waste to reduce waste production in the first place. 

I’m sure you’ve heard people say “waste management” and “waste disposal.”

They aren’t the same thing.

Waste disposal is just one aspect of waste management, which involves the entire lifespan of waste, from its creation through to its disposal or recovery.

We currently generate a substantial amount of waste, with plastic waste alone accounting for approximately 400 million tons annually.

Managing it all is a complex process, and different countries and regions have come up with different solutions to tackle this problem.

Different Waste Management Methods 

When considering various methods of waste management, the first thing that you may picture may be landfill disposal.

But that’s not the only method available.

There are other more useful ways to handle the problem, including recycling, burning waste, waste-to-energy, and anaerobic digestion.

Let’s talk about these different options in more detail. 

1. Recycling 

Recycling is a major aspect of a circular economy. This is because it involves processing waste materials and turning them into new items.

Based on our experience, we believe that recycling is far better than disposal.

Why? Because it reduces waste and also reduces the energy needed to manufacture new products.

The sad part is that just about 9% of plastic is recycled worldwide.

Recycling itself needs energy, so reducing waste and reusing existing items are still preferable options.

You’ll find more recycling done in richer countries, because they can usually send their recyclable waste abroad for processing.

Sometimes, not all the waste is totally recyclable, so the receiving countries will have to bear the burden of waste disposal.

2. BurningWaste

Waste burning involves burning harmful materials at high temperatures so that they can destroy the contaminants.

This method reduces the amount of material that gets dumped in landfills, which has a positive impact.

But waste burning pollutes the air due to the release of chemicals and pollutants, which are harmful to both the environment and humans. 

3. Waste-to-energy

This process takes harmless waste and burns it, instead of disposing of it in a landfill.

It’s a good alternative to landfills because the burning process generates energy.

This way, waste can be converted into electricity and/or steam power.

Recently, many EU countries have been utilizing the waste-to-energy method to meet ESG requirements, and the future looks promising for this popular waste management approach.

4. Landfill

A landfill is a piece of land that’s used as a dumping ground for solid waste.

The wrong side of this method is that it often contaminates soil and groundwater.

It’s also against the concept of a circular economy because landfill waste is not repurposed or reintroduced into the lifecycle.  

5. Anaerobic digestion

Anaerobic digestion is another method of waste management that’s particularly encouraging.

This process involves bacteria breaking down food waste or animal manure in the absence of oxygen. 

The result you get is biogas, which can be used as an energy source.

This method of waste management is a great example of the circular economy, as the materials are brought back into the lifecycle in a helpful way.

The Importance Of Waste Management

As long as humans produce waste, it needs to be managed.

And I can tell you for free that we produce a lot of it.

According to Statista, over two billion metric tons of MSW are generated globally every year, a figure that’s expected to grow by about 70% by 2050.

From this stat, it’s clear that waste must be managed. But how we manage the waste matters, too.

When it’s managed properly, it can do a lot of great things for the environment.

Here are some of the importance of waste management and how it affects the environment:

1. Encourages a circular economy 

Waste management involves reducing the amount of waste we generate and reducing the impact of current waste.

So, it aligns neatly with the structure of a circular economy, where products and materials are repurposed at the end of their life cycle. 

2. Reduces plastic pollution 

We can reduce plastic pollution across the board by reducing the amount of waste that gets disposed of in landfills or littered in the environment.

Also, by repurposing or recycling existing materials. 

Waste management helps keep toxins out of soil and groundwater and makes the oceans safer for animals. 

3. Improves living conditions

Proper waste management means less contamination of our air, groundwater, and soil.

This results in higher-quality food products and healthier wildlife. 

Well-organized, formal waste management also ensures that workers handling the waste receive better pay and protection from harmful materials. 

4. Avoids landfill buildup 

The less waste we generate, the less it accumulates in landfills.

And when we have reduced waste to be managed, we can handle it in ways that produce electricity or steam power. 

Conclusion

Waste management is an obvious challenge of our time.

Whenever waste is produced, it must be managed well, considering potential environmental impacts. 

At Kelly Drums, way before everyone started talking about “being environmentally friendly,” we were already doing it.

We’ve always been committed to reducing waste and repurposing items that still have value.

Since we deal with large containers, like drums, barrels, totes, and boxes, we ensure they are not discarded.

Instead, we recycle, repair them, or safely dispose of them if needed.

We also clean up and manage all waste generated from our work, ensuring it doesn’t harm the environment.

And it’s not just about us. We also help other companies.

Businesses in the chemicals, medicine, food, and environmental sectors rely on us to help them stay eco-friendly and achieve their sustainability goals.

If you need a partner you can count on, get in touch with us today to learn more about our products, services, or history.