How to Recycle an Umbrella
Broken an umbrella in wet and windy weather? Don’t chuck it in the bin! Find out how to dispose of it responsibly with these ideas to recycle an umbrella.
When your business moves into a new building or starts work in a previously unused area of your premises, you might discover asbestos. Whether it’s already been taken out and just needs disposing or is still within the building structure and requires proper removal, when it’s out we can help you arrange safe and legal asbestos waste collection anywhere in the UK.
It’s essential that you have a professional assessment to determine if you need a licensed contractor to remove asbestos or not. Following the legal guidelines around proper disposal or asbestos waste helps protect the health and safety of everyone who uses the space. Contact us online or call 0800 211 8390 for a free quote for asbestos waste disposal near you.
Get a fast FREE quote for your asbestos waste
If you find asbestos within your business premises, the safest thing to do is bring in waste collection specialists like Business Waste for asbestos waste disposal near you. We can provide qualified, regulated, and approved contractors who offer fast asbestos waste solutions for a reasonable cost.
Removing asbestos is a hazardous process, risking the health and well-being of your staff and anyone in the area if it’s not carried out correctly. Specialist contractors will first seal off the area containing the hazardous material and then, wearing protective suits, carefully remove and double bag the asbestos waste for disposal.
If you discover waste asbestos on your site – either loose or bagged – that hasn’t been collected and disposed of, it’s crucial you don’t move or disturb it. Undisturbed asbestos is relatively safe, but when you touch or move it the most dangerous fibres release that can get into the lungs of anyone around.
Get a quote from Business Waste and within hours you can have specialist waste management disposal contractors on-site to safely remove the asbestos from your business.
Businesses that own or use any buildings containing asbestos require asbestos waste removal. Asbestos was banned in the UK in 1999, which means any building constructed before then could contain asbestos. If your company uses such an older building, then it’s advisable to conduct an asbestos survey when you move in to identify if it’s there.
The Control of Asbestos Regulations 2012 means the owner or manager of any commercial property has a duty of care around asbestos. Having a management plan is therefore a legal requirement when there’s asbestos found anywhere across your business premises.
In theory, any business could need asbestos waste removal – whether you work in retail, industry, construction, the public or private sector. Some of the common places that require asbestos waste removing include:
It’s quick and easy to organise commercial waste collection for your business.
Simply start by telling us the:
We’ll provide you with a free quote.
When you’re happy with the type, number, and size of free bins, tell us when you need your bins delivering.
Let us know about any access issues where you want the bins delivering – such as locked gates, access codes and times. We’ll get you up and running in no time.
After the free bins arrive at your chosen location, fill them up with the agreed waste type.
Make sure you remain within any weight limits for the specific waste type and bin size.
We’ll arrange waste collection at a time and frequency to suit you and the amount of waste you have.
Asbestos waste is any kind of product or material containing asbestos that’s ready for disposal. It’s commonly found within building materials but can also cover contaminated equipment – such as clothing, cleaning rags, and protective gear. This classes as hazardous waste and requires specialist disposal.
Asbestos is a natural mineral made up of flexible fibres resistant to heat, electricity, and corrosion. For these reasons it was used in construction up until around 1980. However, links between asbestos exposure and serious/fatal diseases such as asbestosis and mesothelioma mean its use was stopped and it requires specialist removal of asbestos waste today.
Common asbestos waste types can include:
Once you identify asbestos in your business, it’s important you arrange specialist removal. This ensures qualified, experienced professionals with the proper protective equipment and knowledge remove it in the safest way possible – avoiding further exposure for anyone else.
After it’s removed – or if you moved to a building where asbestos waste was already taken out – you need to store it safely. The Environment Agency details the proper procedures. As asbestos classes as hazardous waste, you must double bag it or securely wrap it if it doesn’t fit into an asbestos waste bag.
You must then store these filled asbestos waste bags in secure and lockable containers. Often these are asbestos skips. If you only have a small amount of asbestos waste, you can use professional asbestos waste collection solutions such as Business Waste.
The asbestos waste is transported safely in a skip or separate compartment that avoids contamination to a landfill site with a permit authorising acceptance of asbestos. It’s then added to landfill in the UK, which is currently the only legal option – although research into more eco-friendly chemical process to destroy it are ongoing.
There’s no safe level of asbestos exposure but the control limit is 0.1 asbestos fibres per cubic centimetre of air – defining asbestos waste. When more than this amount is found in building materials it’s classed as hazardous waste. Asbestos fibres are believed to consist of at least 3000 products.
Sadly, around 5,000 people die every year in the UK due to asbestos related diseases developed after exposure, usually many years before.
Despite asbestos being banned since 1999 in the UK, it’s estimated that 1.5 million buildings still contain six million tonnes of asbestos. Some of the main buildings in the UK that contain asbestos are:
I made an enquiry about a collection and contacted the customer service department. After Oli B, looked into my enquiry and resolved the issue swiftly and courteously.Site manager
Asbestos comes from the Greek word for inextinguishable. It refers to two distinct groups of fibrous minerals found naturally in the earth:
There are at least 30 types of asbestiform minerals but only these two have any industrial significance. Different asbestos types have good resistance to high temperatures, acids and alkalis, which made them great to for construction and industrial use – until links between exposure to asbestos and serious diseases were made.
A wide range of materials can contain asbestos. It’s mainly found in items within buildings such as:
Within the home some items may include asbestos are:
Some of the first evidence of asbestos date back around 4,500 years in Finland. Here it was used to strengthen pots and utensils. In the UK its history is more recent when ships, steam engines and other power generating machinery began to take advantage of its properties in the 1870s.
The main sources of chrysotile asbestos – the commonest fibre in industrial use – were first mined in Quebec, British Columbia, South Africa, Russia, Italy, America, Greece, and Cyprus. Crocidolite was mined in South Africa and Australia, while amosite was mined in Australia and South Africa (the name amosite derives from AMOSA – Asbestos Mines of South Africa).
Asbestos isn’t always an immediate hazard. If it’s maintained in a good condition, it’s recommended you leave asbestos alone and regularly check its condition. Only when you disturb or damage asbestos-containing materials (ACM) does the risk of exposure increase. Damage to the materials can separate the fibres so they become airborne and hazardous.
It was discovered in the 1930s that when microscopic asbestos fibres (up to 100 times finer than a human hair) become airborne, you may inhale them. The fibres are so slow to move that they can’t be dispelled from the lungs and can cause cancer. When asbestos is disturbed, these fibres can be inhaled and cause significant respiratory health problems.
Researchers still haven’t determined a safe level of exposure. We know the greater and longer the exposure, the higher risk of contracting an asbestos-related disease.
Asbestos-related diseases kill more people than any other single work-related cause in the UK. There’s a long period between exposure and onset of the disease (15 to 60 years). Therefore, most associated deaths today are from exposure during the 1950s and 1960s when asbestos was widely used.
You should never try to remove asbestos yourself, as once it’s disturbed it can release fibres that may cause disease in later life. The Health and Safety Executive has stringent regulations for asbestos waste removal – normally it should be handled by licensed operators.
If you find asbestos, carry out a thorough risk assessment and restrict the number of people with access to as few as possible. Anyone dealing with asbestos removal should refer to the HSE’s EM9 sheet, which lays out the law in handling it wherever you are in the UK.
HSE direction says all waste should be double-bagged or double wrapped in stout plastic sheeting with the correct warning signs attached. If a skip is used, it must be lockable and for asbestos waste only. It’s not acceptable or safe to put waste – no matter how well wrapped – in a standard skip.
The best thing to do is to leave asbestos waste disposal to professionals. They know what they’re doing, have effective procedures in place, and will remove hazardous waste with skill and care to make sure nobody and nothing remains contaminated.
Asbestos exposure can lead to a range of serious and possibly fatal diseases many years later. Some of the main types of diseases asbestos exposure may cause include:
To dispose of asbestos, you must double bag it – ideally in specific asbestos waste bags – or secure it safely. Then you can place it in a covered and locked skip with just asbestos waste or other hazardous waste to avoid contamination. Always check with the skip provider or asbestos waste collection company whether you can put asbestos in a skip or not.
No, asbestos is a hazardous material that you cannot currently recycle in the UK. Waste asbestos goes to landfill with a specific permit allowing the site to accept asbestos. Research is ongoing to try and develop safe and environmentally friendly ways to convert asbestos into new materials. However, legally it must go to landfill in the UK at the moment.
Get a fast FREE quote for your asbestos waste collection
Broken an umbrella in wet and windy weather? Don’t chuck it in the bin! Find out how to dispose of it responsibly with these ideas to recycle an umbrella.
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