Recycling of plastic wastes generated from COVID-19: A comprehensive illustration of type and properties of plastics with remedial options

Management of COVID-19 healthcare waste based on the circular economy hierarchy: A critical review

The overall objective of this work was to conduct a critical literature review on the application of the circular economy (CE) hierarchy for the management of COVID-19 healthcare waste (HCW). To describe the problem created by COVID-19 HCW, first, the subsystems of the overall management system, including generation, segregation, classification, storage, collection, transport, treatment and disposal, were reviewed and briefly described. Then, the CE hierarchy using the 10R typology was adapted to the management of COVID-19 HCW and included the strategies Refuse, Reduce, Resell/Reuse, Repair, Reprocess, Refurbish, Remanufacture, Repurpose, Recycle and Recover (energy). Disposal was added as a sink of residues from the CE strategies. Using the detailed 10R CE hierarchy for COVID-19 HCW management is the novelty of this review. It was concluded that R-strategy selection depends on its position in the CE hierarchy and medical item criticality and value. Indicative HCW components, which can be managed by each R-strategy, were compiled, but creating value by recovering infectious downgraded materials contaminated with body fluids and tissues is not currently possible. Therefore, after applying the circular solutions, the end of pipe treatment and disposal would be necessary to close material cycles at the end of their life cycles. Addressing the risks, knowledge gaps and policy recommendations of this article may help to combat COVID-19 and future pandemics without creating environmental crises.

Waste to energy: Trending key challenges and current technologies in waste plastic management

Due to the 'forever' degrading nature of plastic waste, plastic waste management is often complicated. The applications of plastic are ubiquitous and inevitable in many scenarios. Current global waste plastics production is ca. 3.5 MMT per year, and with the current trend, plastic waste production will reach 25,000 MMT by 2040. However, the rapid growth in plastic manufacture and the material's inherent nature resulted in the accumulation of a vast amount of plastic garbage. The current recycling rate is <10 %, while the large volumes of discarded plastic waste cause environmental and ecological problems. Recycling rates for plastic vary widely by region and type of plastic. In some developed countries, the recycling rate for plastics is around 20-30 %, while in many developing nations, it is much lower. These statistics highlight the magnitude of the plastic waste problem and the urgent need for comprehensive strategies to manage plastic waste more effectively and reduce its impact on the environment. This review critically analyses past studies on the essential and efficient techniques for turning plastic trash into treasure. Additionally, an attempt has been made to provide a comprehensive understanding of the plastic upcycling process, the 3Rs policy, and the life-cycle assessment (LCA) of plastic conversion. The review advocates pyrolysis as one of the most promising methods of turning plastic trash into valuable chemicals. In addition, plastic waste management can be severely impacted due to uncontrollable events, such as Covid 19 pandemic. Recycling and chemical upcycling can certainly bring value to the end-of-life plastic. However, the LCA analysis indicated there is still a huge scope for innovation in chemical upcycling area compared to mechanical recycling. The formulation of policies and heightened public participation could play a pivotal role in reducing the environmental repercussions of plastic waste and facilitating a shift towards a more sustainable future.

Driving sustainable circular economy in electronics: A comprehensive review on environmental life cycle assessment of e-waste recycling

E-waste, encompassing discarded materials from outdated electronic equipment, often ends up intermixed with municipal solid waste, leading to improper disposal through burial and incineration. This improper handling releases hazardous substances into water, soil, and air, posing significant risks to ecosystems and human health, ultimately entering the food chain and water supply. Formal e-waste recycling, guided by circular economy models and zero-discharge principles, offers potential solutions to this critical challenge. However, implementing a circular economy for e-waste management due to chemical and energy consumption may cause environmental impacts. Consequently, advanced sustainability assessment tools, such as Life Cycle Assessment (LCA), have been applied to investigate e-waste management strategies. While LCA is a standardized methodology, researchers have employed various routes for environmental assessment of different e-waste management methods. However, to the authors' knowledge, there lacks a comprehensive study focusing on LCA studies to discern the opportunities and limitations of this method in formal e-waste management strategies. Hence, this review aims to survey the existing literature on the LCA of e-waste management under a circular economy, shedding light on the current state of research, identifying research gaps, and proposing future research directions. It first explains various methods of managing e-waste in the circular economy. This review then evaluates and scrutinizes the LCA approach in implementing the circular bioeconomy for e-waste management. Finally, it proposes frameworks and procedures to enhance the applicability of the LCA method to future e-waste management research. The literature on the LCA of e-waste management reveals a wide variation in implementing LCA in formal e-waste management, resulting in diverse results and findings in this field. This paper underscores that LCA can pinpoint the environmental hotspots for various pathways of formal e-waste recycling, particularly focusing on metals. It can help address these concerns and achieve greater sustainability in e-waste recycling, especially in pyrometallurgical and hydrometallurgical pathways. The recovery of high-value metals is more environmentally justified compared to other metals. However, biometallurgical pathways remain limited in terms of environmental studies. Despite the potential for recycling e-waste into plastic or glass, there is a dearth of robust background in LCA studies within this sector. This review concludes that LCA can offer valuable insights for decision-making and policy processes on e-waste management, promoting environmentally sound e-waste recycling practices. However, the accuracy of LCA results in e-waste recycling, owing to data requirements, subjectivity, impact category weighting, and other factors, remains debatable, emphasizing the need for more uncertainty analysis in this field.

Environmental Impact of Bronchoscopy: Analysis of Waste Mass and Recyclability of Bronchoscopic Equipment and Consumables

BACKGROUND

Greenhouse gases (GHGs) are significant contributors to climate change, and CO2 equivalent (CO2-e) is measured to compare emissions from GHGs. The healthcare sector contributes 4.4% of global CO2-e emissions, mainly with energy consumption and, in lesser extent, waste production. In this regard, bronchoscopy procedures produce a large amount of waste and are responsible for a significant consumption of energy.

OBJECTIVE

We aimed at quantifying the impact on waste mass production, energy consumption, and recyclability of bronchoscopic procedures.

METHODS

We conducted a prospective single-centre observational study; for each type of procedure (performed with either reusable or single-use instruments), the number of items used, their weight, and recyclability were evaluated, as well as the material of which recyclable waste was made of. We then calculated the total amount of waste produced, its recyclability, energy consumption, and CO2-e produced over 10 days of activity in our Interventional Pulmonology Unit.

RESULTS

Sixty procedures generated 61,928 g of waste, of which only 15.8% was potentially recyclable. Single-use instruments generated nearly twofold more recyclable waste than reusable ones, 80% during the procedure phase. Reusable instruments generated 45% of waste during the reprocessing phase, of which 50% was recyclable. The recyclable material was totally composed of paper and plastic. During 10 days of activity, we consumed 64 kWh and produced more than 67 kg of CO2-e due to non-recyclable waste and energy consumption.

CONCLUSIONS

Our results confirm the compelling need to recycle as many materials as possible, even if the amount of recyclable waste is limited. In this respect, official documents issued by international societies are urgently needed to align our activity with climate requirements and improve the sustainability of our work.

Environmental and Human Health Impact of Disposable Face Masks During the COVID-19 Pandemic: Wood-Feeding Termites as a Model for Plastic Biodegradation

The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has resulted in an unprecedented form of plastic pollution: personal protective equipment (PPE). On the eve of the COVID-19 pandemic, there is a tremendous increase in the production of plastic-based PPE. To control the spread of the virus, face masks (FMs) are used as primary PPE. Thus, the production and usage of FM significantly increased as the COVID-19 pandemic was still escalating. The primary raw materials for the manufacturing of FMs are non-biodegradable synthetic polymers derived from petrochemicals. This calls for an urgent need to develop novel strategies for the efficient degradation of plastics. Furthermore, most of these masks contain plastic or other derivatives of plastic. The extensive usage of FM generates millions of tons of plastic waste for the environment in a short span of time. However, their degradation in the environment and consequences are poorly understood. Therefore, the potential impacts of disposable FM on the environment and human health during the COVID-19 pandemic are clarified in the present study. Despite structural and recalcitrance variations, lignocellulose and plastic polymers have physicochemical features, including carbon skeletons with comparable chemical bonds as well as hydrophobic properties in amorphous and crystalline regions. In this review, we argue that there is much to be learned from termites by transferring knowledge from research on lignocellulose degradation by termites to that on plastic waste.

Waste Management and the Perspective of a Green Hospital-A Systematic Narrative Review

The concept of a "green hospital" is used in reference to a hospital that includes the environment as part of its quality services and one that pays attention to the sustainable design of buildings. Waste disposal represents a potential risk for the environment; therefore, waste collection from healthcare centers is a key environmental issue. Our study aims to systematically review the experiences acquired in worldwide nosocomial settings related to the management of healthcare waste. Nineteen studies, selected between January 2020 and April 2022 on Scopus, MEDLINE/PubMed and Web of Science databases were included in our systematic narrative review. Operating room and hemodialysis activities seem to be the procedures most associated with waste production. To deal with waste production, the 5Rs rule (reduce, reuse, recycle, rethink and research) was a common suggested strategy to derive the maximum practical benefit while generating the minimum amount of waste. In this context, the COVID-19 pandemic slowed down the greening process of nosocomial environments. Waste management requires a multifactorial approach to deal with medical waste management, even considering the climate change that the world is experiencing. Education of health personnel and managers, regulation by governmental institutions, creation of an "environmental greening team", and awareness of stakeholders and policymakers are some of the measures needed for the greening of healthcare facilities.