Tips to Make Your Business Greener and More Secure

What can you do to make a difference?

Each year, the world produces more than 300 million tonnes of paper, which becomes a major component of many landfill sites. That’s a lot of paper that isn’t being recycled! By contracting Shred‑it for secure Document Destruction and by implementing our Shred‑it All Policy in your workplace, you can rest assured that your confidential information won’t end up in the wrong hands and that ALL of your paper waste is being securely recycled. Recycling is an important part of our proprietary document destruction process which not only ensures the safe-keeping of sensitive material, it demonstrates our commitment to safeguarding the environment.

What is a Shred-it All Policy?

Simply put, if a document is ready to be discarded, it goes into the Shred-it container. Not into the waste or recycling bin. But directly into the Shred-it container; each and every time. Good for your business. Good for the environment.

Secure Recycling is only the beginning

Our commitment to the environment goes beyond recycling. Our consoles are made out of 100% recycled wood particleboard. As we phase out older vehicles we’re replacing them with more fuel efficient new ones. By optimising our vehicle routing, we’re improving efficiency, reducing driving times and lowering emissions. And we’re continuing to assess new innovations and technologies to make us even greener in the future!

6 Recycling Fast Facts:

Globally, only just over half of waste paper products are recycled each year ₁
Approximately 4 billion trees are cut down each year for the world’s paper use ₁
Using old paper to make new paper uses 65% less energy than making paper from trees ₂
Every tonne (907 kg) of recycled paper can save 17 trees, 1,728 litres of oil, 2.7 cubic metres of landfill space, 4,000 kW of energy, and 31,823 litres of water ₂
The 17 trees saved per tonne can absorb a total of 113 kg of carbon dioxide from the air each year. Burning that same tonne of paper would create 680 kg of carbon dioxide₁
Recycled paper produces 74% less air pollution than if it was made from raw materials ₃

6 top tips to be a greener, more sustainable business.

These tips can save the earth and save you money too.

Watt’s up: You would never leave home with all the lights on, computers and printers running, so why is it OK to do this at the office? Using a multi-socket extension lead for devices like computers, lights and printers makes it easy to shut down an entire desktop at once.
Light for less: Up to 40% of a building’s electricity use is accounted for by lighting. Using occupancy sensors to dim or switch off lighting when there is nobody in a room can reduce electricity use by 30%. ₄
Smarter heating: Create an after hours and weekend thermostat setting. If you know your employees aren’t going to be in the office, use a lower setting that conserves more energy during these hours. Be sure to allow an override function so that it can be changed if someone decides to come in to work.
Be a creative commuter: If you live close to your office, you may be able to ride your bike to work. For those with a longer commute, investigate sources of public transport or car share with a co-worker/neighbour.
Use re-usable shopping bags: It could take 1,000 years for a plastic bag to degrade, and with the unnecessary pollutants and environmental strain they cause, re-usable bags are a simple and ideal solution. ₅
Recycle your e-waste: Old mobile phones or printer cartridges can be recycled too, so don’t simply throw them out. Remember that computer hard drives and other datasensitive electronic media need to be securely destroyed before recycling. For more information, visit shredit.ie/hard-drive

They may not know it, but most UK businesses can combine waste streams in order to reduce their negative environmental impact as well as protecting their reputation and bottom line.

You can get the best of both worlds – environmental sustainability and information security. Learn how you can be secure whilst still being ‘green’ at work, plus a wealth of recycling information and energy-saving tips for your business.

Combining waste streams not only saves time and money but also has a better impact on the environment
What are the environmental benefits of secure recycling?
Shred-all, recycle all – ’Green’ your office – top energy-saving tips for UK businesses
Shred-it’s environmental commitment

_{1. www.recyclingbins.co.uk/recycling-facts

2. https://bir.org/industry/paper

3. ecologycenter.org/wp-content/uploads/2012/05/recycling-and-waste.pdf

4. www.carbontrust.com/home/

5. www.niassembly.gov.uk/globalassets/Documents/RaISe/Publications/2011/Environment/3611.pdf}