This service is linked to the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

Zero Waste to Landfill

The assessment of companies' efforts to achieve the Zero Waste* to landfill and/or incineration target.

 

 

This protocol applies to any company or organisation, regardless of size or activity, whether it is industrial production or service provision. It can apply either to the whole company or organisation, or to specific activities or facilities.

The application of the Protocol demonstrates the companies' ongoing commitment to design and manage their activities in a way that reduces the amount of waste going to landfill or incineration.

The Protocol includes measurements and calculations relating only to solid, non-hazardous waste, which are recorded annually.

* Does not include incineration for energy production or the burning of some waste if required by law.

Benefits of Zero Waste Discharge

Waste reduction offers multiple environmental, social and economic benefits, enhancing sustainable development and the circular economy. Through strategic actions, companies optimise the management of their raw materials, products and waste, maximising their efficiency throughout the life cycle of their services and products.

By achieving the Zero Waste target, the following benefits result:

• Reduction of waste generation
• Reduction of waste management costs
• Reduction of waste management costs Reduction of waste disposal costs Reduction of waste management costs Reduction of waste disposal costs Reduction of environmental impact of the company's operations
• Reduction of environmental nuisance to stakeholders Reduction of environmental impact
• Reduced carbon footprint
• Improved environmental product footprint (Environmental Product Declaration-EPD)
• Reduction of impacts on human health
• Reduction of dependence on raw materials through the use of recycled materials and product reuse
• Upgrading the corporate image
• Improvement of ESG indicators

TÜV NORD Greece Evaluation System (TÜV NORD)

TÜV NORD Greece (TÜV NORD) has developed an integrated evaluation protocol, which includes two distinct evaluation systems and, upon successful completion of the verification, leads to the issuance of a Verification Statement.

The basic evaluation system is based on the Waste Diversion Rate %, which expresses the percentage of waste that does not end up in landfills or for incineration.

Specifically, the diversion rate is calculated as the ratio of the total amount of waste diverted to alternatives to the total waste of the facility.

Based on the achievement rate of each company/organization there is the following categorization.

Baseline Diversion Rate: waste diversion rate ≥ 80%

Green Diversion Rate: Waste diversion rate between 90% - 94.9%

Silver Diversion Rate: Waste diversion rate between 95% - 98.9%

Gold Diversion Rate: Waste diversion rate between 99% and 99.9%

Platinum Diversion Rate: Waste Diversion Rate: Waste diversion rate of 100%

 

At the same time, the company's commitment to the Zero Waste to Landfill or Incineration strategy is also evaluated by assessing elements such as:

• Education/actions/campaigns to raise awareness of the wider community
• Partnerships with suppliers to improve the outcome through redesign of raw materials (where feasible)
• Redesign of the production process, etc.

Waste reduction methods

Waste reduction can be achieved in the following ways:

1. Rethink/Redesign/Refuse: We carefully select our supplies, intelligently design production processes and avoid single-use products that pollute the environment.

2 . Reduce/Reuse/Repair: We reduce consumption and packaging materials, support the purchase of used products and encourage the repair and reuse of broken items.

3.

4. Recovery, including energy recovery: we use waste to recover materials and produce energy, helping to reduce the consumption of natural resources.

The safe disposal of waste in landfills should be the last option, as the basic principle of the circular economy is to keep materials and products in the economy for as long as possible.

Preparing for Verification

Each company or organisation is assessed for performance against specific criteria, which include:

1. Production Process Flow Chart and Waste Production Chart
2. Waste Flow Process Flow Chart and Waste Stream and Waste Quantity Calculation Methods
3. Total Waste Quantity Methods and Waste Flow Rate and Waste Management Methods
4. Methods of final waste management
5. Waste Quantity Reduction Strategies
6. Waste Diversion Methods
7. Waste Management Documents and Records
8. Supplementary documents and records based on the Checklist, to calculate the level of commitment of the company or organisation

The analysis is done in comparison with the Reporting Year, i.e. the first verification of the Diversion Rate. The Reference Year may be modified if there are significant changes, such as changes in the production process or acquisitions of new plants.