White goods play a crucial role in homes within the country and beyond. Besides their highly functional roles, durability is another good thing about them. For example, refrigerators can last as long as 10 – 15 years, on average. Some can go way more than this. By the way, some other examples of white goods include:
- Dishwashers
- Air Conditioners
- Water Heaters
- Washing Machines
- Ovens
- Freezers
- Dryers
All of these and more serve very crucial roles and can be very durable. But regardless of the level of durability, they all come to their end-of-life period at some point. The question is what happens after that? For many people, disposal comes next.
This is no problem provided the right methods are used. The right approach would entail engaging waste removal services like Ridly Rubbish Removal which offer white goods disposal services. For the record, not every rubbish removal service is qualified to dispose of white goods because of the complexities involved.
To this end, some of the importance of properly disposing of white goods will be disclosed in this article. So, read on to be well-informed.
Reasons Why White Goods Should be Properly Disposed Of
We all stand a lot to gain when these rubbish items are disposed of appropriately. Proper disposal entails using the services of rubbish removal companies that offer white goods disposal services, as mentioned earlier. Some of the several benefits of doing this include the following:
Environmental Protection
The adverse effects of greenhouse gasses are one of the biggest concerns on the global scale. Inappropriate disposal of these items plays a large part in the emission of greenhouse gasses, which causes a lot of environmental havoc. Some of the havoc that it causes include:
- Global warming effects – Such as intense heatwaves
- Rising sea levels as a result of melting ice
- Climate change disrupting the order of seasons
- Ocean acidification – This does not only adversely affect marine life but the atmosphere at large
- Food scarcity and insecurity
- Disruption of the ecosystem
- Adverse economic consequences
- Adverse health impacts
- Environmental migration
These are just a few of the adverse environmental impacts of inappropriate disposal of waste items, including the kinds discussed here. For this reason, everyone has to play their part in engaging in proper waste management practices.
Conservation of Resources
An end-of-life white good is not entirely useless. What this means is that while the appliance cannot serve its functional purpose any longer, some of its components can be reused. Such parts can be used to make new and even upgraded appliances.
However, this calls for proper waste management practices; one that will not bypass rubbish recycling.
These kinds of rubbish items have to be taken apart for separation. Some parts would be recycled in recycling facilities, while some would be compressed and taken to landfills afterward.
For the record, there is a long list of appliances that can be made from components recycled from white goods. Some of these appliances include:
- Lighting Fixtures
- Art & Sculptures
- Household Heaters
- Small Appliances – Such as coffee makers, toasters, and blenders
- Metals Products – Such as building materials, metal tools, and metal appliances at large
- Furniture & Shelving
- Automotive Parts
- Jewelry & Accessories
- Custom Electronics
- Air Circulation Products
Frankly, the aforementioned are just to mention but a few. In other words, inappropriate waste disposal tactics mean that we miss out on the opportunity to make new and improved products from useful components from damaged and expired white goods.
On the whole, you realize that proper disposal of white goods benefits everyone through resource conversation. This is because the recycled and reused components from disposed white goods would have been sourced from mined materials. This is to say that the appropriate disposal of white goods promotes resource conservation.
Reduced Energy Consumption
There are two ways that appropriate disposal of white goods contributes to reduced energy consumption. The first is through reduced mining activities.
As mentioned early on, components that are recycled and reused from these items would have been sourced from mines. Given that mining activities consume a lot of energy, the reduced need for mined materials would translate to reduced energy consumption in mines.
Secondly, more energy is required to make new products out of virgin materials than from recycled components. In other words, the more recycled components are made available, the lesser the consumption of energy at manufacturing facilities.
More Space in Landfills
Many landfills will be filled to the brim sooner than expected if improper waste management practices are not brought to a halt. For one, this is because many of the items that would end up in landfills are not supposed to be there in the first place.
Some of them are supposed to be recycled in recycling plants for reuse. Furthermore, even items meant to be in landfills are supposed to be properly compressed before they make their way there. Considering how compression reduces the mass of the collected waste, more space will be made available in landfills.
It is also worth mentioning that besides the problem of space, there are other concerns in landfills where wastes are inappropriately disposed of. The severe adverse effects of heavy metals and toxins disposed of in these sites are some of the concerns. For example, groundwater can be severely contaminated by mercury and other toxic elements that should have been recycled for use in new products.
Healthy Community
White goods that are not properly disposed of can provide a suitable breeding ground for rodents, insects, and other pests. Some of these are disease carriers and this can compromise public health and safety.
Additionally, some white goods contain substances that can be very harmful when released into the atmosphere. These substances therefore impact air quality negatively.
This makes people very vulnerable to their harmful effects. Refrigerants found in items such as refrigerators, heat pumps, chillers, dehumidifiers, air conditioners, ice makers, and wine coolers are prime examples.
Strategies for Ensuring Proper Disposal of White Goods
In light of the numerous benefits of proper disposal of white goods, some of the strategies for ensuring that people properly dispose of these items are outlined below:
Education & Awareness
There are two categories of people guilty of inappropriate waste disposal methods. The first are those that are not aware of the adverse consequences. The second are those who are aware but do not care about the environment. Educating people on the adverse effects of improper waste management practices solves the problem of the first set of people discussed above.
Law Enforcement
The local and global community is adversely affected when rubbish items are not disposed of the right way. As a result, there should be laws in place to apprehend people found guilty of inappropriate waste management practices.
Quality & Affordable Rubbish Disposal Service Providers
Rubbish disposal companies should offer top-quality, as well as affordable rubbish disposal services. They need to have working relationships with recycling plants and other partners in the waste management business.
Conclusion
Inappropriate disposal of white goods and other rubbish items threatens the local and global community in many ways. Some of the ways that it does this have been disclosed here in this article. To this end, the strategies for ensuring that proper waste management practices are upheld should be implemented in various quarters for the greater good of everyone.
