How the Pandemic is Changing Waste Management
When the World Health Organization declared the COVID-19 pandemic on March 11 last year, wearing personal protective equipment became a crucial obligation as a part of the health prevention measures. However, this problem is much worse than a worldwide health crisis as a new problem has emerged. While COVID-19 cases increase, experts have found that medical facilities are also seeing a surge in the volume of infectious medical waste which could pose a threat to the environment, health, and waste management systems.
Recently, there was an increase in the production of surgical masks in the industry. Taiwan alone roughly made 1.3 billion surgical masks from February to May 2020. It is estimated that a considerable part of this may end up disposed of improperly with the daily use of face masks. Many experts stressed that this spike in medical waste generation will accumulate over time and contribute to the waste management problem.
Consequently, the Asian Development Bank reported that the medical waste drastically increased by 600% and found that medical facilities in Metro Manila generate 280 metric tons of waste every day. The Department of Health also found an estimated 29 tons of infectious medical waste such as swabs, syringes, and personal protective pieces of equipment. And due to the surge of infectious medical waste, it pressured and overloaded the medical incinerators and waste disposal sites in hospitals.
The World Health Organization said that one reason for the collapse of the waste management system is facilities being oblivious to health hazards. They also emphasized that those countries that do not enforce proper rules and regulations and training are the ones who experience waste management problems. It is therefore very essential for authorities to find solutions and enforcement of appropriate waste management systems in ensuring the community’s health security while reducing the risk of spreading the COVID-19 virus.
Face masks are designed to be single-used that will remain for thousands of years to decompose at their disposal, which poses an environmental risk. Some people lack disposal practices that also contribute to the waste disposal problem. Even before, face masks already had a bad reputation for polluting the cities. In Hong Kong, environmental teams stressed that this disposal problem is threatening the marine and wildlife ecosystem. Surgical masks were being washed up on beaches and could contribute to the continuing problem of ocean pollution and threatening the marine fauna.
Another environmental risk is the emission of hazardous chemicals in waterways when it degrades into microplastics. In addition, the World Health Organization said that the untreated medical waste disposed of in landfills might contaminate the drinking waters. Not only that, the incineration of medical waste releases particulates into the atmosphere, causing air pollution. Additionally, the dioxins and furans that are the by-products of the incinerated waste are carcinogens. Despite the withdrawal incineration of medical waste due to these environmental
concerns, it still comes as the preferred means for getting rid of garbage. Alternatively, in the Philippines, many facilities use the sterilization method where the medical waste is subjected to high temperatures and pressure to kill pathogens before its disposal.
This concerns the health and environmental experts as this problem will continue to persist when left unsolved. That is why people are encouraged to follow proper face masks guidelines and take the initiatives to eliminate waste disposal’s environmental and health impact.
As the COVID-19 pandemic continues to wreak havoc on our country’s economic development and healthcare systems, there is a pressing global appeal for waste management to be treated as an essential public service. Although the process of establishing a good healthcare waste management system is complex, health and environmental experts must initiate useful systems to eliminate the impact of these medical wastes. They must work hand-in-hand to evaluate and develop waste management plans, promulgate institutional policies and guidelines, and establish waste management organizations.
By: Aidre Love Cabrera
