“If large volumes of this waste come out of the back of the hospitals, in these areas that have no infrastructure, they will just set them on fire,” said Woolridge.
The United Nations Environment Program calculated last year that health centers around the world produced about 2.5 kilos of covid-related medical waste per person per day worldwide. According to this body, in Jakarta, Indonesia, and four other Asian megacities, the overall sanitary waste disposal rate has increased by around 500 percent.
Some of this waste inevitably ends up in the garbage. In the Indonesian capital, pre-pandemic studies of contamination at the mouth of a local river conducted by the Research Center for Oceanography did not show much PPE. But a recent study found that masks, gloves, protective suits, face shields, and other similar gear accounted for about 15 percent of the pollution.
“Even in Jakarta, which has the largest budget in the country for environmental management, waste continues to reach the environment,” said Muhammad Reza Cordova, a scientist participating in the studies. “What about other regions with lower budgets?”
Syringe hunt
An emerging concern is that as the flood of material creates new pressures for local authorities, syringes and other truly dangerous medical waste may end up in the wrong places.
In the world’s poorest countries, that would pose a health risk to waste pickers. In Bangladesh, for example, tens of thousands of people already scavenge in landfills. But only three or four of the country’s 64 districts have facilities to safely dispose of used syringes, said Mostafizur Rahman, a solid waste expert in the capital Dhaka.
“These landfills are not safe or hygienic, so it is really worrying in terms of health and environmental protection,” said Rahman, professor of Environmental Sciences at Jahangirnagar University.
–
