scholarly journals Personal protective equipment use during COVID-19 pandemic and associated waste management in households in Sri Lanka

Author(s):  
Champika Ellawala Kankanamge ◽  
Thayanathan Nilojan ◽  
Ganga Nirosha Samarasekara ◽  
R.D. Upuli Indrachapa Rajapakse

Abstract The use of personal protective equipment (PPE) is compulsory when accessing public places due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic in many countries. Facemasks are the most common PPE used, however, some people use face shields and gloves. Frequent hand sanitizing is also recommended aiming to control the spread of the disease. All these activities generate a large amount of plastic waste daily. In Sri Lanka, it is estimated that 12 million facemasks are used daily, while 0.22 million gloves and 0.29 million face shields are used. Out of 12 million facemasks, 10 million are surgical or N95 masks. In addition, 0.79 million sanitizer bottles are used in a day, leaving empty plastic bottles. The most common method of disposing of facemasks in Sri Lanka is open burning by the users at their homes (55%). The rate of burning is comparatively low for other PPE. Although nearly 30% of people handover used facemasks to the municipal solid waste collection, there are no special precautions taken for separate collection and safe disposal. Guidelines are in place for handling healthcare waste generated in households under self-quarantine, but they are not applied for PPE waste generated in other households. Major drawbacks in PPE waste management is identified and mitigation measures were proposed. The estimate of waste plastics generated due to PPE use is 88.5 tonnes per day in the country. Energy recovery via pyrolysis may be a viable alternative to landfilling and affordable for developing countries.

2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Paulina D. Rakowska ◽  
Mariavitalia Tiddia ◽  
Nilofar Faruqui ◽  
Claire Bankier ◽  
Yiwen Pei ◽  
...  

AbstractViral infections are a serious health challenge, and the COVID-19 pandemic has increased the demand for antiviral measures and treatments for clean surfaces, especially in public places. Here, we review a range of natural and synthetic surface materials and coatings with antiviral properties, including metals, polymers and biopolymers, graphene and antimicrobial peptides, and their underpinning antiviral mechanisms. We also discuss the physico-chemical properties of surfaces which influence virus attachment and persistence on surfaces. Finally, an overview is given of the current practices and applications of antiviral and virucidal materials and coatings in consumer products, personal protective equipment, healthcare and public settings.


Economies ◽  
2018 ◽  
Vol 6 (4) ◽  
pp. 54 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hanke Ndau ◽  
Elizabeth Tilley

Insufficient staff, inappropriate collection vehicles, limited operating budgets and growing, hard to reach populations mean that solid waste management remains limited in most developing countries; Malawi is no exception. We estimated the willingness to pay (WTP) for two hypothetical solid waste collection services. Additionally, we tested the impact of the WTP question positioning relative to environmental perceptions on respondents’ WTP. The first scenario involved a five minute walk to a disposal facility; the second scenario involved a 30 min walk. Additionally, the order of the question was randomized within the questionnaire. A WTP value of K1780 was found for the five minute walk scenario when the question was placed first, and K2138 when placed after revealing the respondent’s perceptions on the environment. In the 30 min walk scenario, WTP was K945 when placed first and K1139 when placed after revealing the respondent’s perceptions on the environment. The estimated values indicate that there is both a willingness to pay for solid waste services and that there are at least two options that would be acceptable to the community; a pilot scale implementation would be required to validate the hypothetical values, especially given the dependency on problem framing. Community financing should be considered as a sustainable approach to solid waste management in underserved areas.


2020 ◽  
Vol 42 (2 suppl 1) ◽  
pp. 9-11
Author(s):  
Andrea Pio de Abreu ◽  
José Andrade Moura Neto ◽  
Vinicius Daher Alvares Delfino ◽  
Lilian Monteiro Pereira Palma ◽  
Marcelo Mazza do Nascimento

ABSTRACT These recommendations were created after the publication of informative note 3/2020- CGGAP/DESF/SAPS/MS, of April 4, 2020, in which the Brazilian Ministry of Health recommended the use of a cloth mask by the population, in public places. Taking into account the necessary prioritization of the provision of Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for patients with suspected or confirmed disease, as well as for healthcare professionals, the SBN is favorable concerning the wear of cloth masks by chronic kidney patients in dialysis, in public settings, except in the dialysis setting. The present recommendations have eleven items, related to this rationale, the procedures, indications, contraindications, as well as appropriate fabrics for the mask, and hygiene care to be adopted. These recommendations may change, at any time, in the light of new evidence.


2021 ◽  
Vol 8 (4) ◽  
pp. 6-18
Author(s):  
S. E. Okosun ◽  
A. O. Omodehin ◽  
I. S. Ajayi

Management of wastes which is a part of the daily activities of man is an important aspect of environmental management. Over the years, there have been concerted efforts made towards adequately solving the problems created by improper waste management and disposal in Nigeria cities. This study, appraises environmental management in cities; a perspective from the Ondo state Waste Management Authority (OSWMA) Akure. The broad objectives of this study are to identify types of wastes managed by OSWMA, describe the attitude and role of residents (household) toward solid waste management, and examine the possible constraints faced by OSWMA, Akure in the discharge of their duties. Samples were drawn from the total number of OSWMA staff and clients served by the authority in the core, transition and peripheral districts of Akure. 53 questionnaires were administered to the staff representing 10% of the total number of staff while 324 questionnaires representing 1% of residents were administered, collated and analyzed using SPSS version 19. The results of the analysis, revealed that majority (81.1%) of the staff respondents opined that the type of waste managed by the Authority is solid waste; using the door to door method of solid waste collection as submitted by 54.5% of the staff. On the other hand, majority of the households’ respondents (81.4%) expressed willingness to pay for service rendered by the authority. Findings also revealed that poor funding was the main constraints faced by the authority. The study therefore recommends proper funding, provision of equipment and facilities needed for smooth running of the authority in order to ensure effective collection and management of waste in the study area.


2021 ◽  
Vol 62 (5) ◽  
Author(s):  
Phan Thi Thu Trang ◽  
Vo Van Hai ◽  
Le Thi Thanh Huong

There are 11 rooms and 38 departments with 1791 staffs in Thu Duc District Hospital. Moreover, there are above 6000 patients coming for examination and approximately over 900 in-patients at the hospital. Although the medical solid waste management was concentrated and focused on, there is still some insufficient points that need to be researched. Therefore, we are now proceeding in researchingour aim to describe the reality of medical solid waste management at Thu Duc District Hospital in 2019 and evaluate the factor that affects the waste management. The method for this research is cross-section descriptive research. We have observed all tools, equipments used for managing medical solid waste, and observed the medical solid waste classification in 36 departments/ clinical units, paraclinical, also have used designed inventory. The ratio of the department that meet thegoals in general of collecting, transporting, storage and waste disposal is not really high, only 75%, in which that the ratio for collecting by department only is lowest with 77.8%; next for collecting the waste by equipments with 80.6%; for waste classification by equipments is 83.3%.


Resources ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 9 (10) ◽  
pp. 116 ◽  
Author(s):  
Piotr Nowakowski ◽  
Sandra Kuśnierz ◽  
Patrycja Sosna ◽  
Jakub Mauer ◽  
Dawid Maj

One of the social measures applied during the COVID-19 pandemic has been the use of personal protective equipment (PPE)—face masks and gloves. As a result, this waste category has expanded enormously. This study investigates waste management issues from multiple perspectives, including local governments, waste collection companies, and individual citizens in Poland using a telephone survey for institutions and an online questionnaire for individuals. The results of this study show that approximately 80% of local governments in the Silesian region have applied special measures for handling and collection of waste PPE. Only 13% of waste collection companies have applied special collection schedules for the waste generated at quarantine collection points due to the high costs of changing collection schedules, providing additional vehicles, and paying for more labor. The information campaigns focusing on new methods of PPE waste collection have been difficult to introduce on a large scale, and citizens need better information regarding how to handle and dispose of waste PPE. Results indicated the most helpful method in supporting waste PPE collection would be automatic PPE dispensers with waste PPE collection options and waste bags of a designated color. The respondents identified waste PPE pollution of the environment as an issue and the necessity for proper recovery of this waste stream.


2020 ◽  
Vol 12 (8) ◽  
pp. 3191
Author(s):  
Mentore Vaccari ◽  
Fabiola Zambetti ◽  
Margaret Bates ◽  
Terry Tudor ◽  
Teklit Ambaye

The effective management of solid waste, including waste electrical and electronic equipment (WEEE) in developing countries poses significant challenges. This paper reports on the development and utilization of a multi-criteria tool to improve the management of WEEE in Agbogbloshie, in Ghana. The tool was able to successfully evaluate key economic, social and environmental factors faced by workers and to suggest areas for improvement. In particular, the evaluation and comparison of different scenarios suggested that the best solution is the evolution from informal to formal management of WEEE, with workers provided with personal protective equipment, and the introduction of refurbishment activities, with the sale of components in the second-hand market. While it would require further use in other contexts, the tool could be adapted and employed for a range of other waste streams and in other developing countries.


Author(s):  
Mr. Venkateshwar A

Abstract: With the increase in population, the state of sanitation is declining. The abundance of garbage in public places creates a climate of impurity. It can cause several serious illnesses in the immediate vicinity. It also reduces the area rating. To avoid this and to improve sanitation, a 'smart waste management system' is proposed for this project. In the proposed system, the level of debris in dust bins is detected with the help of a Sensor, and transferred to a control room authorized by the GSM system. Microcontroller is used to communicate with the sensor system and the GSM / GPRS system. The Amazon application is built to monitor the information you want related to the waste of various selected sites. This will help to manage your waste collection more efficiently. Keywords: Smart Dustbin, Renesas, Force Sensor, IR Sensor, GSM, Android App.


2018 ◽  
Vol 7 (1) ◽  
pp. 82-87
Author(s):  
Marlis Silaban ◽  
Yusmidiarti Yusmidiarti

Based on the results of the data obtained from the Parks Department and the Health of Bengkulu in 2013 produced garbage 291 m3/day. and the number of officers in the waste collection market Bengkulu City numbered 40 officers of garbage collectors. The purpose of this research was to determine the relationship of the application of personal protective equipment and length of employment with the incidence of occupational accidents in the garbage collector. This research used an analytical survey research methods, with a cross-sectional design. The sample was a total sampling of 40 people. Analysis used chi square with α = 0.05. The results showed no significant relationship between the application of personal protective equipment in work accident at a garbage collector (p=0.034 and OR=7.46) and there were a significant relationship between length of employment with the incidence of occupational accidents at waste collection (p=0.001 and OR=37.50).


Sign in / Sign up

Export Citation Format

Share Document