By Hao Nguyen, Esq.
Senior Product and Regulatory Counsel
“One man’s trash is another man’s treasure,” said the state regulator as he filed paperwork against a dealership that would lead to fines that amounted to hundreds of thousands of dollars. Though this situation never actually happened (no regulator would ever say that, right?), it could very well have happened if a dealership was caught disposing of their waste improperly. In the seemingly countless ways a dealership could get penalized by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) or their local state agencies, I would argue that this is one of the easier ones to sidestep. In a perfect world, no dealership in the United States should ever pay these fines, but the reality is that many dealerships continually get this wrong. Sometimes it’s lack of knowledge and other times it’s out of their control. Whatever the case may be, let’s take a deep dive into your dumpsters now so that you will pass any dumpster dive in the future.
Please note that this article speaks in general terms. Laws may vary by state on how specific waste is categorized and how they should be properly disposed of. Please contact us at info@complyauto.com if you have any specific questions.
Categories of Waste
Waste found in the various departments of a dealership can generally be categorized into three streams and each stream has a very specific method of disposal. Not only do these methods protect your health and the environment, they will also protect your dealership from legal liability. These streams are called: non-hazardous waste (which we will call “general waste” for ease of understanding), hazardous waste, and shredded waste.
General Waste (Non-Hazardous Waste)
General waste can be easily described as everyday waste materials that do not pose a significant threat to public health or the environment. This includes most office or commercial waste. Some examples of General Waste are:
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These materials are usually suitable for standard waste management practices such as landfilling, composting, or recycling.
Hazardous Waste
Hazardous waste refers to waste materials that pose a significant threat or harm to public health and/or the environment. In fact, they are so significant that there are state and federal laws in place that say you, as the hazardous waste generator, must have proper permits and methods of disposal. Additionally, if you were to move this hazardous waste you must have a transporter permit. Hazardous waste is determined by examining four factors:
- Ignitability – The ease in which they can combust or catch fire
- Corrosivity – Ability to corrode metal containers or have high or low pH
- Reactivity – Instability of the waste and ability it can explode or release toxic fumes
- Toxicity – Harm or fatility when ingested, inhaled or absorbed through the skin
Some examples of hazardous waste are:
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These materials must be properly disposed of. Hazardous waste generators (i.e. dealers) must take the waste to specific collection centers and usually use hazardous waste transporters to deliver them on a recurring basis.
Shredded Waste
As the Federal Trade Commission and other state agencies focus on the unauthorized release of personal information through the Safeguards Rule amendment and personal data laws, dealers should take extra steps to ensure that personal information is protected not only digitally but also physically. Documents containing personal information should be stored properly to ensure that no unauthorized individuals gain access to them. These documents must be disposed of properly, too.
“Shredded Waste” is waste that is destined for the shredder and not the waste bin. This is because this form of waste usually contains sensitive information that should not be released to the general public. A good way to think about this is any waste that has customer information or business information on it should be shredded to prevent unauthorized access to the information. Some examples of waste that should be shredded:
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BONUS: Universal Waste
If “General Waste” and “Hazardous Waste” were on opposite sides of a spectrum, “Universal Waste” is a classification of waste that falls between them. Meaning, universal wastes are hazardous wastes that were determined to pose a lower immediate risk to the public and the environment compared to the traditional hazardous waste. Knowing this, the EPA created this separate category, and though they are still considered “hazardous waste,” universal waste generally has more relaxed rules in terms of handling and disposal. The EPA encourages states to develop and implement their own programs on how to manage universal waste as an alternative to direct EPA involvement. Any reputable handlers or collection centers that you currently use will know how to manage the waste. All of this is to say that dealerships should not dispose of them with general waste!
Precautions to Take (Now)
Here is a short list of things that you can do now to ensure that your organization will always dispose of its waste properly.
Educate Employees and Post Signs
Since they are the ones producing the waste, employees should know which items follow which waste streams so that they are disposed of properly. It is very easy to confuse, so an initial instruction and constant reminders in the form of signs posted throughout the dealership will help drastically. ComplyAuto Safety clients can access this sign through the dashboard. Preferably, every labeled waste bin or trash receptacle should have a sign to remind the employee on what type of waste is suitable for the specific receptacle.
Secure Dumpster Areas
If you have not properly shredded specific documents, your dumpsters can be a wealth of information for any perpetrator to access. Additionally, this treasure trove can be used as a drop-off site to dump waste that may not be suitable to be disposed of as general waste, such as automotive fluid and cleaners. At the end of the day, it will be your dealership’s responsibility for the contents of your dumpsters and both state and federal agencies don’t look kindly on businesses who improperly dispose of their waste. If possible, install fencing or enclosures around dumpsters or use locks on dumpsters to prevent unauthorized access to them.
Summary
Dealers across the country must be wary of their waste disposal practices and train their employees to follow important guidelines when throwing things away. Dealers should also think about locking or otherwise securing their dumpsters to ensure that no unauthorized persons gain access to them and dispose of their own waste. This is also a good time to remind dealers that properly securing personal data is just as important as disposing of it. Be sure that employees are trained on what documents go to the shredder as opposed to the trash bin. To make the process easier, we have created a sign that you can preview below. Print your own through the ComplyAuto Safety dashboard!
Questions?
Have questions about your own waste disposal or data protection practices? Send us a note at info@complyauto.com to review your existing practices with one of our industry experts.