Post the COVID-19 outbreak, civic bodies world across have been saddled with one more kind of waste, especially in large quantities – single-use face masks and gloves, which are often found dumped in public places.
Anticipating the enormity of the problem, Thiruvananthapuram city Corporation has begun the necessary action early, by putting up collection boxes for used masks and gloves.
Tie-up
The civic body also held talks with the Indian Medical Association (IMA), following which the have decided to tie up for this purpose.
IMA will make available colour-coded bags, which will be placed near the 10 hand-washing counters set up by the Corporation across the city. Public can drop their used masks and gloves at these points, from where the IMA will collect it and carry it to the biomedical waste treatment plant.
‘Not aware’
“We have realised that used masks and gloves can be a huge threat, as improper disposal can lead to the further spread of viruses. A majority of the public have still not been made aware of how to dispose these. So, we held a discussion with IMA to address this issue, following which a decision was taken to put up colour-coded collection bags,” says a health wing official of the Corporation.
One-time use
Many are still not aware that the masks are for one-time use only, for a maximum of six hours. Masks which become wet or are stained before that time period should be disposed of earlier.
The shortage of masks are also making people reuse them. As per World Health Organisation (WHO) guidelines, the front part of the masks should not be touched, while removing.
Countries which had experienced COVID-19 outbreaks before the rest of the world have already begun witnessing a huge pile up of used masks, made of materials including polypropylene, in public spaces.
Cities like Chengdu in China have put in place strict systems for disposal of masks, by cutting them into pieces to prevent reuse and disinfection at every step of the collection and disposal process.
The Vietnam government has announced a fine for disposal of medical masks in public places.
