Masaaki Kinoshita

Director, Office of Industrial Waste Management, Department of Water Supply and Environment Sanitation, Ministry of Health and Welfare
(1-2-2, Kasumigaseki, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo 100 Japan)

Abstract

Healthcare wastes are known to be harmful because they include infectious wastes, through accidents in the medical field such as when a doctor died by infectious disease in Japan. The Ministry of Health and Welfare has therefore made guidelines for healthcare waste treatment from hospitals in 1989. In 1991, the basic law (waste management law) was amended and a new system (specially controlled wastes) was introduced for better restrictions. The infectious waste was designated as one of the specially controlled waste with other harmful wastes. To manage the specially controlled waste properly, the generator has to appoint the staff as supervisor and to use the manifest, and treatment business must be licenced from local authorities. The guidelines are revised as a manual for infectious wastes and the wastes must be managed under this manual. Improvement on treating business through staff training, and introducing better devices and facilities is important for the future proper treatment of the waste.

Key words: healthcare wastes, infectious wastes, specially controlled wastes, manifest