Shanghai Municipal Government spokesperson Jiao Yang took reporters' questions via the Internet on December 13 on the newly released "Shanghai Medical Waste Management Regulation".

Q1: How is Shanghai managing collection and safe treatment of  medical waste?

A: Shanghai is home to more than 2,400 hospitals and community clinics, generating 2 tons of medical wastes every year.

In 2003, the city government issued a guideline on temporary treatment of disposable medical waste.  This has made Shanghai the first city across the nation to introduce collective management of disposable medical waste, long before the treatment center is put in operation. 
Currently, Shanghai Disease Control and Prevention Center takes charge of collecting and transporting the city's disposable medical waste.  Four incineration plants treat most of the waste. Some medical institutions treat a small volume, and some incineration plants are consigned to handle the rest.

In a bid to push ahead collective and safe disposal of medical waste in the city, Shanghai established its first plant to collectively and harmlessly treat medical waste from across the city in 2003, after introducing favorable polices and reinforcing market operation and government supervision. This plant, based on rotary kiln incineration technology, is designed to treat 2 tons of medical waste each year, basically meeting the treatment demand for the city's medical waste.  Two operational lines have been built so far.  They are now on test and trial operation.  As planned, they will be put in full use by the end of this year.

When this medical waste treatment plant is put in use after completion, it will take in all the city's medical waste except for that from Chongming Island, Changxing Island and Hengsha Island.

Q2:  How will you manage safe treatment of medical waste that, due to certain factors, is unable to be collected for collective disposal?

A: The regulation states medical institutions can treat medical waste on the spot by themselves, if in one of the two following situations:

1) Medical institutions that are specialized in infectious diseases treatment have already built qualified treatment facilities that are qualified for medical waste treatment.

2) The waste cannot be transported to the collective treatment plants via road transportation.

The city's environment protection bureau has regulations on how to treat medical waste on the spot.

To make Shanghai Public Health Center for example, it is just such a medical institution specialized in infectious diseases.  Medical waste it generates is strongly infectious and inappropriate for a long trip.  Meanwhile, Shanghai Public Health Center has input a bulk sum of money to build a treatment facility of its own, which is qualified for medical waste treatment.  Therefore, the center shall treat the waste on the spot.  In this way, it will both do good to the environment by avoiding virus spread, and make full use of the existing treatment facility.  Repetitive investment will be avoided.

On the other hand, in such areas as Chongming, Changxing and Hengsha islands, there're no medical waste treatment plants, while road transport to the city is void.  Considering that water transport might introduce water pollution, the regulation rules that medical institutions on these islands shall deal with their own waste.

Q3: Is there any requirements for packing and transportation of those medical waste in the regulation?

A: In packing, the regulation requires that all the waste dischargers are supposed to get the waste packed before put them into utensils while the package should be consistent with the country’s "Regulation and standard for package of medical wastes", avoiding any direct contacts with the air to prevent any spread of viruses.

In storage, waste dischargers are required to set up storage houses exclusive for medical wastes with necessary facilities complemented and hospitals and treatment plants should display warning signs at medical waste storage sites to stop garbage collectors selling or recycling it as ordinary waste.

In transportation, waste treatment plants should check the list of the medical wastes item by item when they collect them and prompt corrections should be made if there’s any inconsistence. Reports to the local environment authorities could even be made if the waste dischargers refuse to take actions with their mistakes.

With the above measures, the transportation and packing of the medical wastes could be effectively managed and controlled.

Q4: How many categories of these medical wastes? And what kind of hazards could they bring out?

A: According to the catalogue of medical wastes released by Ministry of Health and State Environmental Protection Administration, medical wastes can be classified into five categories as infective wastes, disposed organ wastes, disposed medical instruments, expired medicine and chemical wastes. 

Infective waste: Any medical wastes that contains a large quantity of viruses, bacteria and other infectious hazards.

Disposed organ wastes: Any human and animal organs that are disposed during medical treatments.

Disposed medical instruments : Any medical instruments that are sharp-edged and can easily hurt human bodies.

Expired medicine : Any medicine that are expired or obsolete, contaminated or has already gone bad.

Chemical waste : Any chemical materials that are toxic, erosive, flammable and explosive.