Is skip hire really better for the environment?

Thirty or so years ago, people weren’t too concerned about how they disposed of their rubbish.

But these days, many of us are making an effort to be more eco-conscious by recycling more, upgrading to energy-efficient appliances and making many other small (but effective) changes to our daily routines.

Back then, part of the appeal of skip hire was that you could toss your waste right in, without having to think much else of it – and this is still true, but only to a certain extent.

Now though, with recycling being a big part of our daily routines, people have some concerns about where their waste ends up when it’s carted away by skip hire firms. And rightfully so.

So, where exactly is your skip hire waste going, and is skip hire in Leyland as eco-friendly as people say it is?

Here’s what you need to know.

Where does skip waste go?

Many people think that skip waste gets taken straight to landfills, but this couldn’t be further from the truth.

When your waste gets taken away, it will go through a couple of stages before disposal – including:

• Sorting

Waste disposal experts will sort through your waste at a specialist facility, organising it into recyclable categories and putting any large, bulky items that aren’t suitable for recycling to one side.

This step also helps waste disposal teams to identify any hazardous waste in skips and allows them to deal with it appropriately.

• Treatment/processing

Once your waste is sorted into categories, it will be piled into loading bays and prepared for treatment.

Usually, this involves compacting, screening, and shredding – but some materials will be shipped away to specialist facilities where they’ll be reused.

• Disposal

Once your rubbish has been processed, everything will be disposed of in the most appropriate way possible. Typically, skip hire companies will try to recycle at least 90% of your waste and anything else taken to the local landfill.

Why is recycling so important?

One of the biggest problems presented by landfill is the amount of time it takes non-organic materials to decompose.

While paper and other such materials only hold up a couple of weeks, others can linger for much longer – up to a thousand years in some cases – contributing to ground pollution and releasing potentially harmful emissions into the atmosphere.

In the past, there were no requirements for skip hire companies to recycle any of the waste that they collected in their containers.

But since changes to EU and UK Environmental Protection legislations, they’re now required to dispose of everything in the most environmentally friendly way possible.

When you hire a skip in Leyland, you can be confident that as much of your will be disposed of ethically, and that you’re making a positive contribution not just to your local environment, but our shared global environment, too.

Work with a skip hire company you know you can trust

Unfortunately, you’ll come across skip hire companies that are more interested in their hire rates than their disposal methods.

You won’t have to worry about this though when you work with a reputable, trustworthy team, like the waste disposal specialists over at Leyland Skip Hire.

If you have further questions or concerns or would like to book one of their skips for your next project, be sure to get in touch with them today!