Africa has been called upon to ditch incineration and instead use thermal methods for disposal of medical waste.
Incineration is the destruction of something, especially waste material, by burning.
Global Green and Healthy Hospital Coordinator Groundwork Azeeza Rangunwala said medical waste is the second-largest air pollutant and poses significant health risks.
She said it poses great risks to children playing with contaminated syringes in landfills, and leads to the persistence of microorganisms.
“We need to make sure we containerise the waste. The reason why I say we should move away from incineration is because it uses a lot of electricity at very high temperatures. The pollution from incineration is worse than a coal-fired power station for the same energy amount,” Rangunwala said.
She has proposed that Africa should embrace innovative non-burn technologies, such as microwave and frictional heating.
These technologies, she said, produce minimal emissions, primarily steam, offering a cleaner and more sustainable approach to waste treatment.
Rangunwala suggested that implementing non-burn technology directly at hospitals for on-site treatment would eliminate the need for waste transportation and prevent hospitals from contributing to pollution that sickens patients.
“The importance of collaborating with waste pickers is critical, as they are instrumental in South Africa's high recycling rates. While waste pickers typically handle general waste, there's an opportunity for them to work with hospitals on better segregation,” she added.
Rangunwala who is from South Africa, said in her country, waste management is guided by a robust legal framework, starting with its Constitution, which guarantees the right to a clean and healthy environment.
The same was echoed by Nairobi County Head of Medical Waste Management James Mwita who said that the public is often unaware of how medical waste is managed.
Mwita said many health facilities incinerate waste, adding that an effective incinerator requires two chambers, reaching 800 degrees and 1,200 degrees to prevent pollution.
Mwita added that the incinerators do not meet these temperature standards, therefore emit dangerous pollutants.
He warned that inadequate incineration releases 13 cancer-causing pollutants, contributing to the unexplained rise in cancer cases.
He emphasised that non-compliant incinerators, which lack air cleaning systems and do not meet Stockholm Convention Standards, continuously pollute the environment and pose a significant health risk to the population.
Mwita advocates moving away from incineration towards non-thermal methods.
“Alternatives like autoclaves and microwaves technologies destroy pathogens without emitting pollutants into the environment, unlike heat-based incineration,” he said.
