PPE Kit disposal causing serious impact on environment
The Covid-19 pandemic has created a state of distress all over the world, with people scared for their life and health workers stepping a foot forward and acting as warriors. The crisis has not only raised a red flag for health problems, but has led to several other issues including economic crisis, education crisis, and environmental crisis.
At the beginning of the spread of the virus, there was a drop in pollution rate across the globe, as people were locked-up in their homes due to strict government quarantine rules. This gave a chance to water bodies and nature to breathe freely, causing lower rates of pollution. But, this was too far-fetched as PPE kits used for the pandemic by health workers were being burnt in the open, to destroy any form of virus contamination. Apart from that waterlogged masks, gloves, hand sanitizer bottles and other coronavirus waste are already being found on our seabeds and washed up on our beaches, joining the day-to-day waste in our ocean ecosystems.
A PPE Kit includes single-use gloves, aprons and gowns, surgical masks, respirators and face protectors in the form of glasses, goggles or face shields. Hospital grade PPE Kits can only be used once, as these kits are more prone to being contaminated by the virus. The most effective way to dispose it is to burn it — high temperatures destroy viruses. Waste labelled as infectious is sent to hazardous incineration plants. Other types of used PPE can be land-filled or burnt in non-hazardous facilities.
Over the past few months, since Covid-19 was first identified as a strengthening threat, the Government has ramped up India’s capacities to manufacture PPE kits and ventilators in collaboration with private players. According to government data, India is currently manufacturing an estimated 6 lakh personal protective equipment (PPE) kits and around 1,000 ventilators daily.
In some cases the environmental crisis is increasing due to the pile up of these PPE Kits that are disposed of by the health workers. Delhi is still lagging in the systematic collection and disposal of this waste, which further poses a risk to the health of sanitation workers. The CPCB report indicates only 70 per cent of this waste is going to the incinerators. Improper segregation of waste has been reported from COVID-19 isolation wards, quarantine centres and homes.
An Indian Express report says, “There is still a gap of 30 per cent. Masks, gloves and PPEs have been found dumped outside the hospitals or even on the roads. There is no segregation happening at the household level. Waste collectors have to sort it, and in doing so are directly exposed to the potentially infected material. And the collectors reside in congested and densely populated places. In case they are asymptomatic or infected, they will pass the virus onto others.”
According to a report by the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) in the National Green Tribunal, India generates about 101 Metric Tonnes per day (MT/day) of COVID-19 related biomedical waste. This quantity is in addition to the normal biomedical waste generation of about 609 MT/day.
Several organizations are doing ground-work to understand and develop new ways to reduce or treat bio-medical waste. Based on intensive research, Indra has developed a PPE disinfection system called VAJRA, that can immensely help in reducing the excessive generation of Covid-19 related bio-medical waste. Indra’s VAJRA Kavach-E (KE) uses a multi-stage disinfection process with advanced oxidation, corona discharge, and UVC light spectrum to inactivate the viruses, bacteria, and other microbial strains present on the PPE enabling its re-use multiple times before disposal thereby ensuring availability, accessibility, and affordability for all.
Such necessary innovations with sustainability a priority is the only way forward. We must all rethink our actions at the earliest to avoid any form of crisis from hindering the recovery rate of the nation.
