BHB Installs Environmentally Friendy Hazardous Waste Disposal System

The Macerator

The Bermuda Hospitals Board is now using a new system to dispose of its hazardous waste. A macerator which uses steam to sterilize has been installed, tested and is in use. Biological and infectious materials as well as needles, syringes and disposable surgical equipment are now heated to 270 degrees – killing all pathogens and effectively sterilizing the material while producing no emissions.

The environmentally friendly macerator replaces BHB’s bio-oxidiser. The bio-oxidiser was an incinerator specially designed to burn biological and hazardous materials found at hospitals. These materials are referred to as ‘red bag ‘waste. (Government’s Tynes Bay incinerator did not reach high enough temperatures to handle BHB’s red bag waste.)

A major advantage of the new hazardous waste disposal system is that it does not produce any emissions or hazardous material. The “red bag” waste is simply placed in the body of the machine where a patented steam and maceration process renders the material sterilized at the end. The resultant material is fine confetti which is safe and can be disposed of as regular trash or recycled.

Daniel Moore, BHB Facilities Manager said: “The machine uses steam under pressure to sterilise the waste. It takes about 30 minutes for a 70-pound load of red bag waste to be processed and at the end the processed material is no longer recognisable as medical waste. It is a safe sterile confetti-like substance. The process is odour free and does not release any air emissions.”

BHB CEO Venetta Symonds said: “Investment in this new technology demonstrates BHB’s commitment to the community and the environment. We are excited to be able to use a system that does not generate emissions and converts hazardous waste to a safe product, in a process that does not jeopardize the safety of our staff.
We are also pleased to inform our neighbours that we have moved to this new system.”

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