Healthcare waste is all the waste generated by healthcare facilities, medical laboratories and biomedical research facilities, as well as waste from minor or scattered sources.
This compendium reviews basic data on healthcare waste, including material constituents, moisture content, incombustibles, heating value, chemical composition, and bulk density. The classifications of healthcare waste are described following the World Health Organization‘s classification system as found in the WHO reference guidelines Safe management of wastes from health-care activities. In general, between 75% and 90% of the waste produced by healthcare facilities is non-risk (non-infectious, non-hazardous) general waste, comparable to domestic waste. Only a small portion of healthcare waste is regarded as hazardous and may create health risks. The compendium recommends qualitative factors and estimation parameters pertaining to healthcare waste.Also, this outlines a process of technology selection based on UNEP‘s Sustainable Assessment of Technologies (SAT) methodology.
