Northwell Health seeks partners to recycle sterilized medical waste

Northwell Health is turning blood collection tubes, needles and other lab waste into nonhazardous flakes — and hunting for a recycling firm that can make the material useful for manufacturers.

Northwell became the first hospital system in the U.S. to run a monthslong trial of Generations, a novel medical waste sterilizing machine, when the volume of diagnostic tests and debris from its central lab skyrocketed during the pandemic, according to Sunny Uberoi, head of public affairs for the equipment's manufacturer, Envetec.

Northwell, the state's largest health system, formally integrated the machine into its waste management system and sustainability campaign in January. Since then, staff have put 85,000 pounds of biohazardous rubbish through the machine, Uberoi said.

Debris that may contain biohazards and pathogens is generally put in red plastic bags, transported to an autoclave — where it is sterilized with pressured steam — and then brought to an incinerator, and ultimately, a landfill, Northwell officials said.

With Generations, large blades shred waste so that all corners of debris are exposed to a chemical cleaning solution, and about 20 minutes later, the machine spits out sterile, cereal-sized flakes. Using Generations has helped Northwell reduce emissions from its core lab in New Hyde Park, said Donna Drummond, the system's chief expense and sustainability officer.

The machine decreases how many trucks Northwell needs to transport waste since Generations shreds bulky items, reducing the size of sharps containers by about 70-to-80% and blood collection tubes by about 50-to-60%, said Patrick Purcell, Envetec's head of technical services and engineering in North America. Ultimately, Northwell wants to hire a recycling partner to segregate the various bits of plastic, metal and other material, and reformulate those into pellets suitable for wholesale, Drummond said. 

"We are very hopeful that we’re going to find a recycler," she said. "We’re very hopeful that we should be able to resolve this in the next couple of months. But at the minimum, we’ve got reduced volume going to landfill, so there’s an immediate benefit."

Medical waste contains several types of plastics, which have different melting points, so a batch of mixed flakes presents challenges for recyclers and manufacturers, said Christopher Bodkin, North America waste lead and manager of data and partner relations for Practice Greenhealth, a network focused on making the sector more sustainable.

Startups are developing AI to segregate the flakes by plastic type. Others are exploring advanced or chemical recycling, where the chemical structure of debris is changed so that it resembles a raw material that can be used to manufacture plastic.

Practice Greenhealth isn't supporting chemical recycling until it sees details on its emissions profile because the organization believes the process may generate more pollution than sending used plastic to a landfill, Bodkin said.

"I commend them [Envetec] for creating technology. It’s great that it’s low-energy, low-water," Bodkin said. "It's just figuring out that next step: What are we going to do with what comes out of this machine to actually reduce the emissions impact of the input?"

Newer recycling methods are not always a significant source of pollution, and Northwell will scrutinize contracts with waste haulers, recyclers and other partners to ensure that they handle the flakes responsibly, said Amber Patino, director of sustainability. 

Drummond said Northwell would look to add Generations to other labs and hospitals once it sees the flake on the path to being repurposed. Generations — which are the size of about three refrigerators — won't fit in all facilities, and cost between $350,000 and $400,000, Uberoi said. 

Northwell has pledged to rework its system so that it puts out a net total of zero emissions by 2050. The health organization is exploring several ways to reduce its carbon footprint, including strategies to curtail how much material it disposes of. Waste accounts for about 1% of Northwell's carbon footprint, Patino estimated.

Northwell is trying to reduce the use of disposable tools in operating rooms, rely on reusable mattress pads for incontinence and integrate sustainability into its procurement practices, Drummond said. Composting, buying local and curtailing waste in kitchens also can help, she said.

Globally, health care generates about 4.4% of emissions, with the United States contributing the most to this output, according to research from Health Care Without Harm, an environmental health and justice group. More than 70% of the industry's emissions come from the supply chain through the creation, distribution and disposal of pharmaceuticals, food, devices, equipment and instruments, the group noted.

By Sarina Trangle

sarina.trangle@newsday.comSarinaTrangle

Sarina Trangle covers affordability and cost of living issues and other business topics. She previously worked as an editor and reporter at amNewYork.