Page 67 - Solid Waste Analysis and Minimization a Systems Approach

INDUSTRIAL ECOLOGY AND SOLID WASTE EXCHANGES 45

efficiency. Material efficiency is defined as the percentage of process by-products
that are recycled or reused divided by the total by-product generation for a company
or industry.
Industrial ecology and waste exchanges examine the material efficiency and meth-
ods to improve that efficiency. Whereas waste audits examine an individual company’s
ability to reduce, reuse, or recycle, waste exchanges examine an entire industry’s or
region’s ability to reduce, reuse, or recycle. In essence, waste exchanges examine
methods for one company to use another company’s by-products as a raw material,
diverting this material from entering a landfill. Waste exchanges are a great tool that
can enhance a company’s recycling levels and generate economic benefits as part of
the solid waste auditing process. Waste streams identified during a solid audit that the
company cannot reduce or reuse could be sent to another company using one of many
solid waste exchanges operating around the world.
With increased pressures on companies to improve profitability and reduce envi-
ronmental impacts, waste exchanges are more popular then ever. Many companies and
nonprofit organizations are turning to these exchanges to bolster corporate images and
reduce costs. The Internet has simplified, streamlined, and reduced the costs associ-
ated with the administration of waste exchanges, as well. Information is available in
real time, 24 hours per day, which makes such systems more accurate and user
friendly, while allowing the exchanges to reach a larger client base.

2.6.2 HISTORY AND BACKGROUND

Waste commodity exchange is defined as the ability of a company or organization to
use another company’s waste as its raw material. As the old adage goes, “One person’s
trash is another person’s treasure.” Instead of sending seemingly worthless items or
process by-products away to a landfill, the goal of the waste commodity exchange is
to find a company that may get more use out of these products.
A good household example of this is garage sales, which are an excellent way to
reuse products. Another alternative is to find different ways to reuse items. Baby
food jars, for example, can be reused to store miscellaneous nuts, bolts, and washers
in a workshop.
Waste exchanges have been around for over 60 years. The British government
established the earliest documented industrial waste exchange, called the National
Industrial Materials Recovery Association, in 1942. This waste exchange was created
to conserve materials for the war effort during World War II. The first North American
waste exchange was started in Canada in 1974 for hazardous waste. The National
Industrial Materials Recovery Association is no longer active as it disbanded after the
war. The Canadian waste exchange is still active as the Canadian Waste Materials
Exchange (CWME).
Waste commodity exchanges are reuse and recycling services that help these types
of material exchanges to occur on a much larger scale for businesses. These services
help businesses save money, as well as helping the environment by diverting waste
into usable raw materials.