| Overview : BACKGROUND
The project objective is to prevent and reduce health and environmental risks related to POPs and harmful chemicals through their release reduction achieved by provision of an integrated institutional and regulatory framework covering environmentally sound Health Care Waste and E-waste management. The project will reduce emissions of UPOPs as well as other hazardous releases (e.g. mercury, lead, etc.) resulting from the unsound management, disposal and recycling of a) Health-Care Waste (HCW), in particular due to substandard incineration practice and open burning of HCW; and, b) Electronic Waste, in particular due to the practice of unsound collection and recycling activities and open burning of electronic waste. The project will achieve this by i) determining the baseline for releases of UPOPs and other hazardous substances (e.g.
mercury, lead) resulting from unsound HCW and E-waste practices; ii) conducting facility assessments; iii) building capacity among key stakeholders; iv) implementing BEP at selected model hospitals, health-care facilities (HCFs) and a central treatment facility (CTF); v) introducing BAT and BEP to formal and informal E-waste processors; vi) preparing health care facilities for the use/maintenance of non-mercury devices followed by introduction of mercury-free devices; vii) evaluating facilities to ensure that they have successfully implemented BEP; viii) installing and evaluating BAT technology(ies) at one Central Treatment Facility based on a defined evaluation criteria; and, xi) enhancing national HCWM training opportunities to reach out to additional hospitals/HCFs. |
