James K (James Karagiannis) has personally completed a stack of waste classifications. And in addition, he has reviewed somewhere between 1,000 and 1,200 reports written by other consultants for our clients. That gives him a rare, panoramic view of what great looks like … and what misses the mark.

Gunnar and Hammond, James Hammond, sit down with him to unpack what he sees when reviewing these reports: some work that’s brilliant, some … not so much. We talk about the “not so much” parts in this episode.

The original plan was to listen to James K. But with Gunnar’s well-known habit of  let’s say, sharing his thoughts, and Hammond’s nerdy knowledge in resource recovery and compliance, there may have been a little more talking than listening at times.

Still, we think you’ll enjoy the conversation, have a few laugh and maybe even pick up a few tips to sharpen your own waste classification skills. Enjoy!

The episode was recorded on 11 September 2025. 

Links mentioned in the episode:

Electric Vehicles are allowed to use transit lanes in NSW 

NSW Health Expert Advisory Panel on PFAS

Nightcrawler in Netflix

Episode with Linda Apthorpe on asbestos in soils analysis

Episode with Pierina Otness on how to sample for asbestos in soil on a site

Episode with Ross McFarland about sampling and Decision Units

Gunnar's method of re-running samples accountably

Listen to Below the Surface and collect CPD points. We have confirmation that you can claim 0.5 points for every hour you spend with us under the Self Education Category

Contact: bts@4pillars.com.au

https://www.linkedin.com/company/below-the-surface-podcast

The necessary disclaimer: The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed in this Podcast are the speakers’ own. They do not necessarily represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of 4Pillars Environmental Consulting Pty Ltd or any Client, Supplier or other party related to 4Pillars or the speakers.

(c) Gunnar Haid and James Hammond