When thinking about environmentally friendly attitudes towards healthcare waste, the NHS net zero carbon targets come to mind.
These ambitions aim to meet two key targets. They are:
- Net zero on all emissions controlled directly through care (NHS Carbon Footprint) by 2040, aiming to reach an 80% reduction by 2028 to 2032
- Net zero on all emissions that the NHS influences (NHS Carbon Footprint Plus) by 2045, aiming to reach an 80% reduction by 2036 to 2039
Understanding how this can be achieved, and the role that healthcare waste management plays in the entire process, is important for all professionals.
Is the NHS meeting Net Zero targets?
Current approaches to environmentally friendly workflows differ across the globe. The NHS has embraced the need to achieve net zero, and by 2020 reduced by approximately 62% of climate emissions since 1990, exceeding the 37% requirement in the Climate Change Act.
Since the NHS Net Zero Carbon targets were implemented in 2020, emissions have decreased by a further 14%, totalling a 68% reduction since 1990. The NHS Net Zero expert panel hails this as a victory amidst the contextual challenges facing the healthcare industry.
When looking at the impact of healthcare waste, the latest figures show that NHS clinical waste volumes have declined for three consecutive years, avoiding a reported £22 million in costs and reducing landfill disposal to just 2% of total waste.
A 2021 report in The Lancet estimated that, of the 2019 footprint, 62% of total emissions came from the NHS supply chain, 24% from the direct delivery of care, 10% from staff commute and patient and visitor travel, and 4% from private services commissioned by the NHS.
How does healthcare waste affect net zero?
Healthcare waste is immediately linked with the target of net zero emissions. Waste items can be disposed of in landfill, which is damaging for the environment, and infectious items pose risks to the population, wildlife, and the world around us.
Health Technical Memorandum 07-01 (HTM 07-01) is an essential piece of guidance issued by the NHS regarding safe waste management in general and dental healthcare settings, as well as in laboratories and veterinary surgeries.
It recommends that, where possible, items are recycled or used in renewable waste cycles, such as at Energy from Waste (EfW) facilities, where energy (and sometimes heat) is produced in order to retain some benefit from item disposal.
However, waste items have designated disposal streams, distinguished by colour. This ensures waste management services can treat items differently based on the risks they present to people and the environment; sometimes a method such as incineration or landfill, though non-environmentally friendly, is indicated, as it is the best way to protect the health of living things.
All healthcare services, inside the NHS and in private care, must follow the clinical waste colour code with confidence. This requires specialised solutions that can support the entire team.
Waste management with Initial Medical
Initial Medical presents a range of colour-coded and environmentally friendly waste management solutions, including the Bio-Bin Containers. Made from paper, and available in a range of colours in line with HTM 07-01, ensuring that all healthcare services can have appropriate containers on hand.
For helpful reminders about the waste workflow, clinicians can also download convenient colour coding guide posters from the Initial Medical website. These can be placed at points of use to ensure the waste workflows are used properly and safely.