The Wastebroker Blog

Waste and Pollution Are Good Partners

I hate paying for pollution insurance. It’s expensive.  .  . really expensive. And so many of my competitors don’t have it. “Why bother,” they say .  .  . “I’ll just ‘save’ the money” and “customers don’t know any better.  .  . “ But while I hate paying for pollution insurance, I buy it because I need it, for my company and for my clients’ companies as well. You see, neither of us can afford The Risk.

If you generate hazardous or non-hazardous wastes (in other words, everything more than standard garbage) and you’re working with a broker, a transporter or a disposal site that does not carry sudden and accidental pollution coverage, you’re taking a big chance and you need to ask yourself a question – Is this a chance I’m willing to take?

So, what’s at stake? Well, like all insurance, if nothing happens, your risk is minimal. But if something does, that’s another story. It’s not an exaggeration to suggest that your company could be at risk. Why’s that? 

1)      Chances are that the insurance you carry for your business does not cover pollution-related incidents. In fact, in all likelihood, pollution protection of any kind is specifically excluded.

2)      Accidents, fires and spills happen. And if, when they happen, they involve your waste, you’ve got an exposure problem.  .  .  and no coverage. That’s Risk

One of the biggest misconceptions (or misrepresentations, depending on the source) I often hear goes something like this, “I don’t need pollution insurance, I only generate non-hazardous waste.” Wrong! The facts contradict this sentiment. Most, by a wide margin, pollution events that occur on our nation’s roadways and in our streams, fields and storm/sewer systems involve “non-hazardous” wastes.

Just because the EPA defines a waste as “non-hazardous” doesn’t mean it also defines the same waste as “non-polluting.”  That’s not a subtle distinction, it’s an expensive one.

Wisconsin to Ban Oily Waste from Landfills

On December 2, 2009, Wisconsin Governor Jim Doyle signed a bill into law that prohibits the disposal in Wisconsin landfills of used oil filters and materials that have been used to absorb spent or used engine oil, like socks, oil dry, mats, etc. This ban takes effect in December or 2010.

While the majority of oil filters and oil-absorbent materials are still non-hazardous, the Governor felt that this new law would better protect Wisconsin's citizens and resources by encouraging the increased recycling of oil filters from the present rate of about 20% and oil-absorbent materials from the present rate of about 3% and by decreasing the potential risk impact to groundwater that oily wastes can pose.

As a leading processor and recycler of used oils and oily waste, AWS already offers our clients the safety and responsibility that Wisconsin's new law seeks to encourage and increase. We annually convert hundreds of thousands of tons of these wastes into clean, reusable energy-producing materials.