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The COVID-19 National Public Hygiene Strategy and Implementation Plan developed by the National Department of Health, 2020. Waste management response to COVID-19 pandemic in South Africa Western Cape perspective, 2020

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The Ministry of Public Health of Afghanistan issued two national plans: (i) Preliminary Stakeholder Engagement Plan (SEP), March 2020; (ii) Environmental and Social Commitment Plan (ESCP), March 2020

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The Health Emergency and Disaster Management Unit of the Ministry of Health and Population has issued a number of interim guidance documents: (i) Interim Guidance for Extension of COVID-19 and Other Health Services, 2020; (ii) NMC Interim Guidance for Infection Prevention and Control when COVID-19 is suspected; (iii) Interim Clinical Guidance for Care of Patients with COVID-19 in Health Care Settings; (iv) COVID-19 Clinical Management Guideline; (v) Guidelines for use of PPE -COVID-19; (vi) COVID-19 Dead Body Management Guidelines; (vii) SOP for cleaning and decontamination of ambulance.

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Government of Mexico issued a guideline for better practices of COVID-19 prevention while handling municipal solid waste

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He says it is safer to mix face mask waste with other medical waste.

"If they can put them in their own sacks, that will be very good because we are looking forward to working with pharmacies where people can freely bring them and we can collect them," he said.

Among the guidelines for disposal of face masks, the place where the face masks were disposed of must not be used again before being disinfected with appropriate sanitary products.

In addition, the waste must not be within children's reach and must be conserved well until it is transported to the sellers of those face masks, at any healthcare centre or pharmacy.

"All authorised face mask sellers, health care facilities must put in place separate facilities to temporarily store used face masks from the population," the document further reads.

Zoubeda Faida, an environmental activist and co-founder of Save Environment Initiative (SEI), a non-governmental organisation, says public awareness is still needed.

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Face masks are essential for controlling the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and they have become an everyday accessory.

However, there is a risk that comes with the use of single-use face masks and PPE shields -- they put the gains made in environmental conservation in jeopardy-- particularly if they are not carefully disposed of.

Abias Maniragaba, a Lecturer at the University of Lay Adventists of Kigali, says that face masks should be sorted from other waste because they are considered to be hazardous.

As the country has put in place strict measures to deal with coronavirus, face mask-wearing is mandatory to wade off the virus, which has so far killed 1,384 people in the country.

Therefore, a huge chunk of face masks is not disposed of properly, potentially posing human health and environmental threats.

"Some people treat face mask waste like any other garbage," Maniragaba said.

To him, homes should have a specific bag for face masks instead of mixing them with other waste.

"Garbage collectors must also carry them separately from other waste," he added, calling for a nationwide campaign to sensitise people on waste sorting.

According to the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA) guidelines, solid waste must be sorted, collected and transported to appropriate destinations in accordance with the law NO 48/2018 of 13/08/2018 on Environment.

REMA also states used face masks must be isolated from other wastes--in households and offices.

"It's prohibited to dispose of anywhere, burn or mix with other municipal solid waste the used face masks," reads part of the guidelines.

The document adds that the waste should be disposed of in a dry place exclusively used for the face masks disposal within people's homes, workspaces or at any other essential service provider's space and that they should be within a 4-meter distance from people's activities or sleeping area.

According to Paulin Buregeya, the Founder and Chief Executive Officer of Compagnie pour l'Environnement et Développement au Rwanda (COPED) Ltd, they are currently carrying out sensitisation on how to sort and dispose of used face masks, adding that they provide them with materials like bags and a sorting guiding document to ease their work.

"When we collect used face masks, we separate them from other wastes. We do not recycle them; we dispose of them as waste. Masks are among wastes that are too dangerous like medical waste because we suspect people who have used them to have respiratory diseases or viruses," he said.

He says it is safer to mix face mask waste with other medical waste.

"If they can put them in their own sacks, that will be very good because we are looking forward to working with pharmacies where people can freely bring them and we can collect them," he said.

Among the guidelines for disposal of face masks, the place where the face masks were disposed of must not be used again before being disinfected with appropriate sanitary products.

In addition, the waste must not be within children's reach and must be conserved well until it is transported to the sellers of those face masks, at any healthcare centre or pharmacy.

"All authorised face mask sellers, health care facilities must put in place separate facilities to temporarily store used face masks from the population," the document further reads.

Zoubeda Faida, an environmental activist and co-founder of Save Environment Initiative (SEI), a non-governmental organisation, says public awareness is still needed.

"When people understand why they should separate the used face masks from other waste, they will help in conserving the environment while preventing pollution," she said.

She disclosed that some of the reasons why waste should be sorted is for people to know which kind of waste can be reused or recycled and make them easily available for companies that need them as resources.

She said that it also prevents pollution, adding that if people keep throwing masks anywhere, they can contaminate the environment including other people and transmit viruses like Covid-19.

"There are a few people who sort out waste because they have understood its importance. We count that as a great contribution to the environment and ecosystem conservation. Those people are the ones that sort used face masks from other waste," she said.

editor@newtimesrwanda.com

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Rwanda: Experts Call for Sensitisation On Safe Disposal of Face Masks

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Face masks are essential for controlling the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic and they have become an everyday accessory. However, there is a risk that comes with the use of single-use face masks and PPE shields -- they put the gains made in environmental conservation in jeopardy-- particularly if they are not carefully disposed of.

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A recycling plant in Tanzania has started making and selling plastic face masks during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The plant used to process and export waste paper to customers in China and India.

Zaidi Recyclers has made thousands of shields so far and they are being used in hospitals around the country.

A recycling plant in Tanzania’s port city of Dar es Salaam has traded paper for plastic bottles and started making anti-coronavirus face shields that are being snatched up by hospitals and health centres nationwide.

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Three years ago, aged just 21, Namujju launched Kimuli Fashionability. A sustainable fashion label based in the central Ugandan city of Mpigi, it employs people with disabilities to upcycle plastic and other waste into eye-catching clothes, accessories and more recently, facemasks. But not just any facemasks.

As Uganda's pandemic lockdown eased in May and Namujju got back into the workshop with her team, she realized that those who were hearing impaired about half her 25 workers had a problem: Masks worn against the spread of COVID-19 prevented them from lip-reading.

Namujju and her team came up with a design that has a transparent screen made from treated waste plastic fitted into a fabric usually cotton mask, and finished with an elastic band and filter.

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The Environmental Protection Administration has introduced 122 US dollars ($NT 3600) fines for improperly disposing of masks under The Waste Disposal Act.

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Taipei City Government remarked that discarded masks are general waste and should be disposed of in regular garbage bins to prevent virus contamination, as per the Ministry of Health and Welfare (MOHW). It added that disposing of face masks on public property is dangerous, as virus remnants might persist.

City government encourages citizens to record and report evidence of mask littering acts to authorities for the cash reward of 30% of the fines issued to the offenders.

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Cleaning services on medical wastes are essential under the movement control order (MCO). In Kuala Lumpur, Alam Flora Sdn Bhd is the appointed cleaning contractor.

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Advised to fold masks with the contaminated part facing inwards, rolling it up, wrapping the mask in plastic and placing it in the rubbish before disposal by Kepong MP Lim Lip Eng.

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Face masks and associated wastes, such as tissues, with potential exposure to COVID-19 contamination is managed like ordinary non-contaminated municipal waste. Face mask disposal is advised in residential and public areas.

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Quarantined homes or other households: Used face masks are kept in a paper bag for 72 ​h before disposal as general waste.

Face masks’ straps are cut before disposal to prevent reuse.

Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has advised non-quarantined homes and residents to dispose of used masks by disinfecting them with ordinary bleach solution (5%) or sodium hypo-chlorite solution (1%). Masks are wrapped and kept in a closed bin before provision to the sanitary workers. They are treated as domestic hazardous waste and incinerated by GCC.

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In Lanzhou city, used masks are collected in special trash cans. If unavailable, waste is wrapped in plastic bags before disposal to prevent air exposure.

If special waste containers are unavailable, residents disinfect and fold their used face masks before placing them into sealed plastic bags in dustbins.

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Thailand Cultural Centre, Thiam Ruam Mit Road, Huai Khwang, 방콕 태국

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Thailand Cultural Centre, Thiam Ruam Mit Road, Huai Khwang, 방콕 태국

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Thailand Cultural Centre, Thiam Ruam Mit Road, Huai Khwang, 방콕 태국

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Bangkok Metropolitan Administration (BMA) places special red bins labelled ‘For used face mask only’ in highly visible areas to prevent the stealing of used face masks for reuse or resale. These bins are separated from ordinary rubbish bins.

Households can keep used face masks in Ziploc bags before disposal in red bins to waste collection vehicles, which have special bins to store masks while transporting them to the local government (municipality or waste management service provider) under the local administration organisations’ norms for proper disposal. The governor advised separating waste in different bags if there are no red bins near your area and labeling the bags containing HW so that disposal staff can dispose of them safely. HW separates and disposes incinerated waste at specialist facilities in Nong Khaem and On Nut.

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In Yongin-City, collection boxes dedicated to waste masks have begun to be installed, and projects to make plastic pet supplies or chairs using the collected masks are being carried out.

Used masks from households are disposed of in garbage bags labeled ‘Waste for incineration’ and ‘Waste bag for landfill’ through the volume-based waste fee (VBWF) system.

The recyclable waste is separated from the bag in the VBWF system for transportation to recycling facilities.

Used mask waste must be incinerated or disposed of in landfills without recycling.

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TerraCycle is a recycling program based in the United States. Citizens can request a recycling box, fill it with materials they need to recycle and send it back to TerraCycle. To participate visit their website.

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French company, Plaxtil has tackled the medical waste issue by collecting used disposable face masks in stores. By sanitizing the masks, and turning them into plastic fiber they can create textiles and even rulers to be used by students. To learn more about Plaxtil, what they're doing, and their products, visit their website

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Founded by Clarisse Merlet pre-pandemic, FabBrick has been working to up-cycle textiles into eco-bricks. However, after they noticed the waste produced by face masks, they also shifted to include masks in their upcycling. To learn more and to shop their products, visit their website!

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Dr. Binish Dusai has found a way to turn used disposable face masks into eco-bricks. These bricks are one of his many eco-friendly accomplishments. To learn more about Dr. Dusai or his products, visit this website.