Clinical Waste Disposal

Solutions for your clinical waste streams

Our Licencing/Accreditation for the Disposal of Clinical Waste

Due to the nature of clinical waste, we make certain that we don’t take risks with patient or staff safety alike. We have all the necessary licencing and accreditation to allow us to deliver the highest standards of staff safety and environmental and regulatory compliance. This includes ADR-qualified drivers and compliant vehicles to collect and transfer waste streams. As a result, you can rest assured that your staff and patients are protected with Novus Environmental.

Our expertly trained waste consultants will work with you to complete a site compliance audit to identify and categorise the waste you are producing, and from this, will design a bespoke clinical waste collection plan.

Clinical Waste Collections

Whether you have a small or large amount of clinical waste to dispose of, we’ve got you covered. Using our diverse, mixed fleet of ADR-regulated specialised vehicles, we can provide anything from small bag collection services all the way up to large-scale multi-bin exchanges, ensuring we have an appropriate collection solution to suit your needs.

In order to help you manage your waste, we provide a variety of specialist products. This includes the following:

• Yellow waste bags (for infectious or potentially infectious clinical waste that is contaminated with chemicals or pharmaceutical/medicinal waste)
• Orange waste bags (for infectious or potentially infectious soft clinical waste that has been contaminated with blood/bodily fluids)
• Tiger stripe waste bags (for offensive, non-infectious waste like nappies, incontinence pads, etc.)
• Yellow lidded sharps container – Various sizes (For the storage and disposal of sharps containing or contaminated with medicinal products and their residues, such as needles used to give injections)
• Orange lid sharps container - Various sizes (For the storage and disposal of sharps that do not contain or are contaminated with medicinal products or their residues)
• Purple lid sharps container - Various sizes (for the storage and disposal of sharps contaminated with cytotoxic or cytostatic medicines)
• Blue lid pharmaceutical container (For the disposal of pharmaceutical waste, including expired medicines, glass bottles, and vials)
• Rigid cardboard containers - Our ultra-lightweight and easy-assemble cardboard containers are effortless to move and are flat-folded for onsite storage. These containers are lined with high-density polyethylene, suitable for the disposal of solid clinical and pharmaceutical waste. Manufactured from 75% recycled cardboard, these cardboard containers are a sustainable solution whilst remaining the most reliable of containers to store pharmaceutical waste. 25L and 50L sizes are available to cater for the waste output of your practice.
• Lockable colour-coded waste wheelie bins (available in 240 litres, 360 litres, 770 litres, and 1,100 litres)

Clinical Waste Pick-Up Legislation

The Controlled Waste (England and Wales) 2012 Regulations state that there are two different types of clinical waste, each of which is explained in further detail below.

The first type of clinical waste comes from a healthcare activity, including veterinary healthcare. The following statements may apply to this type of clinical waste:

• It contains viable micro-organisms or their toxins, which are known or reliably believed to cause disease in humans or other living organisms.
• It contains or is contaminated with a medicine that contains a biologically active pharmaceutical agent.
• It is a sharp, body fluid or other biological material (including human and animal tissue) containing or contaminated with a dangerous substance within the meaning of Council Directive 67/548/EEC on the approximation of laws, regulations, and administrative provisions relating to the classification, packaging, and labelling of dangerous substances (Category B clinical waste).

The second type of clinical waste is of a similar nature; however, it comes from a non-healthcare activity:

Most clinical waste is produced by the healthcare sector, such as hospitals, GP surgeries, dental practices, nursing homes, and veterinary practices. That said, sharps/clinical waste can also come from zoological institutes and research centres, acupuncturists, tattooists, and piercers.

Clinical waste is defined by the European Waste Catalogue, which provides clinical waste EWC codes. These six-digit codes identify and classify waste; Subchapter 18 01 categorises human-related clinical waste, while Subchapter 18 02 categorises animal-related clinical waste.

Common Clinical Waste EWC codes:

• Clinical waste – 18 01 03* (human) / 18 02 02* (animal)
• Sharps waste – 18 01 03* (human) / 18 02 02* (animal)
• Anatomical waste – 18 02 02*
• Cytotoxic and cytostatic – 18 01 08* (human) / 18 02 07* (animal)
• Offensive waste – 18 01 04 (human) / 18 02 03 (animal)
• Non-hazardous pharmaceutical waste – 18 01 09 (human) / 18 02 08 (animal)
• Healthcare chemical waste – EWC 180106*

Our fully licenced waste management service provides you with the assurance that we are handling and transporting clinical waste in accordance with the Department of Health guide, HTM 07:01 Safe Management of Healthcare Waste.

The Process of Treating Clinical Waste

Different types of clinical waste require different modes of disposal; however, Novus Environmental is one of the few waste management companies in the country using in-house autoclave technology to sterilise bagged clinical waste. Similarly, we provide a complete incineration service for all sharps & pharmaceutical waste.

All our clinical waste bins are UN-approved. We have our own fleet of vehicles for clinical waste collection and dedicated waste disposal facilities - this means that we can offer you compliant, fully trackable, and auditable end-to-end specialist clinical waste management solutions that will help you protect your business, your employees, and your clients.

The Sustainability of Our Commercial Sustainable Clinical Waste Disposal

In managing your clinical waste, we also work to minimise your carbon footprint. This is achieved via effective waste diversion, optimising your waste collection process, using energy-efficient transport, sustainable fully recycled waste receptacles, and green treatment methods. Additionally, our waste audits and waste categorisation practices allow us to reduce the volume of waste.