A two-year R&D project dealing with the study, design, prototype plant development and operation of an integrated management system of infectious hospital wastes (IHW) has been recently performed by CO.PR.AM., an Italian industrial consortium. The project was concerned with the characterization, handling (collection, storage, transportation) and incineration of IHW produced by a large sanitary district (three hospitals, 191 different clinics, 40 laboratories, and a total of 2500 bedspaces) and permitted researchers to analyse in detail each major aspect of IHW disposal such as production handling and treatment in order to devise an optimal solution to their overall management. This paper deals with the sources of IHW production and the characterization of its individual components. Subsequent papers shall detail heavy metals content and other chemical characteristics of IHW, as well as environmental releases (i.e. atmospheric emissions, fly and bottom ashes) during incineration.
Aiolfi, A., Pasini, M., Zaniboni, F. (1990) Incenerimento di rifiuti ospedalieri (Hospital waste incineration). ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia6.
2.
Bencko, V., Culikova, H.Hospital waste management practice in Czechoslovakia. Proceedings European Conference on Hospital Waste Management, Copenhagen, Denmark. 13-15 May 1991,8.
3.
Bendix, G. (1990) Disposable articles as hospital refuse. Zentralbl. Hyg. Umweltmed, 189, 367.
4.
Bonaventura, V. (1991) Rifiuti ospedalieri e altri residui (Hospital and other wastes). D. A. Difesa Ambientale 1.
5.
Camplani, A., Schieroni, A. (1991) I rifiuti ospedalieri trattati (Infectious hospital wastes). D. A. Difesa Ambientale1.
6.
Carella, F., Ganapini, W. (1992) La gestione dei rifiuti speciali sanitari (Management of hospital wastes). Difesa Amb., Sett.48.
7.
Cattivelli, C. (1991) Quantità e qualità di rifiuti prodotti in ambito sanitario (Quantity and quality of sanitary wastes). Atti Conf. Rifiuti Urbani Speciali Tossici e Nocivi, Milano , Italy, Gennaio. 166-179.
8.
CCME—Canadian Council of Ministers of the Environment. (1991) Guidelines for the Management of Biomedical Waste in Canada, Feb., pp. 43.
9.
Cros, F.L. Jr. (1990) Hospitals start recycling and energy recovery programs . Pollut. Eng.22, 52.
10.
Distefano, D. (1991) Rifiuti ospedalieri (Hospital wastes). ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia1.
11.
Ferguson, J. (1987) Managing clinical waste. Wastes Management, 3, 44.
12.
Fremming, B.O. (1991) A Norwegian system for collecting and handling including incineration of hazardous hospital waste (A Norwegian experience of handling hospital waste). Proceedings European Conference on Hospital Waste Management, Copenhagen, Denmark. 13-15 May 1991, 13.
13.
Geraci, G. (1989) I rifiuti ospedalieri (assimilabili a quelli urbani) (Hospital wastes assimilable to municipal wastes). ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia8.
14.
Giampietro, F. (1991) Smaltimento dei rifiuti ospedalieri: sterilizzazione o trasfigurazione? (Disposal of hospital wastes: sterilisation or transfiguration?) . ACQUA ARIA1.
15.
Gilden, D.J. (1992) Disposable products in the hospital waste stream. WestJ. Med.156, 269.
16.
Horvath, A. (1991) Hospital waste management practice in Hungary. Proceedings of the European Conference on Hospital Waste Management , Copenhagen, Denmark, 13-15 May 1991 , 15.
17.
Jordan, J.W. (1991) Segregation of specific regulated medical waste items can be the center piece of medical waste reduction and cleaner incineration . Proceedings 84 Annual Meeting of the Air and Waste Management Association, Vancouver B.C. (Canada) Montreal 16-21 June 1991, 47.
18.
Lani, A., Pozzi, V. (1989) I rifiuti dell'industria farmaceutica ed i rifiuti ospedalieri in Italia (Wastes from hospital and pharmaceutic industry in Italy) . D.A. Difesa Ambientale8.
19.
Lee, C.C., Huffman, G.L., Nalesmik, R.P. (1991) Medical waste management. Environmental Science and Technology25, 360.
20.
Mencarelli, D., Cossignani, T., Anselmo, M. (1988) I rifiuti ospedalieri e simili: una proposta di raccolta e smaltimento (A proposal for managing hospital and similar wastes) . ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia9.
21.
Morelli, R. (1991) I rifiuti ospedalieri (Hospital wastes). ACQUA ARIA2.
22.
Myrback, K.E. (1991) Handling, storage and transport of waste within the hospital. Management procedure. Proceedings European Conference on Hospital Waste Management, Copenhagen , Denmark, 13-15 May 1991, 4.
23.
Neri, W. (1989) Caratteristiche quantitative e qualitative dei rifiuti solidi ospedalieri e implicazioni di ordine igienicio-sanitarie (Quali-quantitative characteristics of hospital wastes and sanitary implications). La TermotecnicaXLIII(11), 47.
24.
Oglietti, A.P. (1990) La raccolta differenziata negli ospediali (Separate collection of hospital wastes). Atti Conv. ECOTEC, 1.
25.
Pasini, M. (1987) Lo smaltimento dei rifiuti ospedialieri con forno inceneritore (Hospital waste disposal by incineration). ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia, 4.
26.
Reinhardt, P.A., Gordon, J.G. (1991) Infectious and Medical Waste Management. Lewis Publishers Inc., Chelsea, Michigan, U.S.A.
27.
Sales, J., et al (1986) EPA guide for infectious waste management , U.S. Environmental Protection Agency—Office of Solid Waste-Washington DC, U.S.A. May 1986.
Santarsiero, A., Ottaviani, M. (1989) Ipotesi di classificazione dei rifiuti solidi ospedalieri (Proposal for classifying hospital wastes). RS Rifiuti Solidi , 4.
30.
Santarsiero, A., Ottaviani, M. (1990) Reflui ospedalieri: Aspetti normativi e tecnici (Hospital refuses: technical and legislative aspects). I. A. Ingegneria Ambientale, 6.
31.
Taylor, R.B. (1987) Clinical waste collection and disposal in Enfield . Wastes Management3, 166.
32.
Teschke, D.A. (1991) Recycling program reduces hospital's disposal costs. Health &Financial Management45, 108.
33.
van de Vorde, M. (1973) La composition des dechets hospitaliers (Composition of hospital wastes). Giornate Internazionali de Perfezionamento in Igiene Ospedaliera, Berne, Switzerland.
34.
Viviano, G. (1991) I rifiuti dell'ospedale: adesso servono centri consortili regionali di smaltimento (Hospital wastes: need for regional disposal centers). ECO Il notiziario dell'ecologia, 4.
35.
Wagner, K.D. (1991) Managing medical waste. Environmental Science Technology25, 1208.
