COVID-19: Recommendations on household waste management

COVID-19: Recommendations on the management of household waste from households with isolated/quarantined people

The FEMP and the Ministry for the Ecological Transition and the Demographic Challenge have communicated to all the Local Entities some recommendations, which the Federation has already transmitted to Town Halls, Provincial Councils, Town Councils, and Island Councils, on the management of domestic waste from households with people isolated / quarantined by COVID -19. Since waste management is the responsibility of the Autonomous Communities and Local Entities, these are guidelines of good practices, which have been previously discussed with all the competent authorities, including the regional administrations and the Indian Federation of Municipalities and Provinces, taking into account the principle precautionary.

The recommendations affect both the home management of waste, following the advice of the Ministry of Health, and the management of the bag with the patient's waste.

 HOME HANDLING OF WASTE

For the first case, the disposable material used by the sick person and their caregivers (gloves, handkerchiefs, masks), the personal protective equipment (PPE) of the health personnel (except glasses and mask), and any other residue of the patient, has been to be disposed of in the garbage can arrange in the room, preferably with a lid and an opening pedal. The plastic bag where it is deposited must be hermetically sealed and closed before leaving the room.

The mask and goggles must be removed outside the patient's room, where there will also be a container for this purpose, with similar characteristics to those described above and with a hermetic plastic bag. After each deposit of waste in these bags (bag 1), they should be closed and discarded as indicated below.

Bag 1, with the previous waste management, will be placed in the garbage bag destined to contain the rest fraction (bag 2), which will also be hermetically closed.

 MANAGEMENT OF THE BAG WITH THE PATIENT'S WASTE

Bag 2 will be deposited exclusively in the waste fraction container, and it is strictly forbidden to deposit it in separate collection containers for any of the separated fractions (organic, packaging, paper, glass, or textile) or its abandonment in the environment.

 The remaining fraction collected:

It will go directly to landfill or incineration without manual opening of the bags, if possible.

In case the previous treatment is necessary, this treatment will be carried out automatically avoiding the manual opening of the bags.

Material recovery will only be done automatically; To maximize security, the competent authorities may agree that the materials are stored for at least 72 hours.

Both for the collection of waste and in all the plants that receive these bags, specific protocols will be developed for the protection of the workers or the existing ones will be revised with the same objective and the necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) will be provided for the workers.

Differentiated collections of bags (type 2) may be established from centers/places where there is a high level of people affected by COVID19 (residences, hospitalized hotels, etc.) while the crisis lasts. These bags will be identified externally and easily (for example by insulating tape or similar) and will be deposited according to the form established by the authorities responsible for waste collection. These bags will be managed in the same way as mentioned above.

HOSPITAL AND SIMILAR WASTE

In relation to the management of waste from hospitals, ambulances, health centers, laboratories, etc., in contact with COVID 19, the provisions for them in the regional regulation on health waste will be addressed, as has been done habitually.