Assessment of bio-medical waste before and during the emergency of novel Coronavirus disease pandemic in India : A gap analysis

Considering the widespread transmission of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) globally, India is also facing the same crisis. As India already has inadequate waste treatment facilities, and the sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 virus has led to significant growth of Bio-medical waste (BMW), consequently s...

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Publié dans:Waste management & research : the journal of the International Solid Wastes and Public Cleansing Association, ISWA. - 1991. - 40(2022), 4 vom: 01. Apr., Seite 470-481
Auteur principal: Rajak, Rahul (Auteur)
Autres auteurs: Mahto, Ravi Kumar, Prasad, Jitender, Chattopadhyay, Aparajita
Format: Article en ligne
Langue:English
Publié: 2022
Accès à la collection:Waste management & research : the journal of the International Solid Wastes and Public Cleansing Association, ISWA
Sujets:Journal Article Bio Medical Waste COVID-19 Waste Management Policy Gaps State-Distribution Waste Generation Medical Waste
Description
Résumé:Considering the widespread transmission of Coronavirus disease (COVID-19) globally, India is also facing the same crisis. As India already has inadequate waste treatment facilities, and the sudden outbreak of the COVID-19 virus has led to significant growth of Bio-medical waste (BMW), consequently safe disposal of a large quantity of waste has become a more serious concern. This study provides a comprehensive assessment of BMW of India before and during the COVID-19 pandemic. Additionally, this article highlights the gaps in the implementation of BMW rules in India. This study uses various government and non-government organizations, reports and data specifically from the Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). The finding of the study demonstrated that most of the States/Union Territories (UTs) of India are lacking in terms of COVID-19 waste management. India has generated over 32,996 mt of COVID-19 waste between June and December 2020. During this period, Maharashtra (789.99 mt/month) is highest average generator of COVID-19 waste, followed by Kerala (459.86 mt/month), Gujarat (434.87 mt/month), Tamil Nadu (427.23 mt/month), Uttar Pradesh (371.39 mt/month), Delhi (358.83 mt/month) and West Bengal (303.15 mt/month), and others respectively. We draw attention to the fact that many gaps were identified with compliance of BMW management rules. For example, out of all 35 States/UTs, health care facilitates (HCFs), only eight states received authorization as per BMW management rules. Moreover, the government strictly restricted the practice of deep burials; however, 23 States/UTs are still using the deep burial methods for BMW disposal. The present research suggests that those States/UTs generated on an average of 100 mt/month COVID-19 waste in the last 7 months (June-December 2020) should be considered as a high priority state. These states need special attention to implement BMW rules and should upgrade their BMW treatment capacity
Description:Date Completed 11.03.2022
Date Revised 11.03.2022
published: Print-Electronic
Citation Status MEDLINE
ISSN:1096-3669
DOI:10.1177/0734242X211021473