With the increasing numbers of COVID-19 cases and related fatalities in Ghana, the importance of a strong municipal solid waste management response has become particularly apparent.
This is due to its potential in minimising the risk of COVID-19 local transfers caused by contaminated solid waste.
Across the globe, national and regional governments, waste sector operators, and households have been presented with a unique health risk challenge to solid waste management – how to appropriately manage solid waste from persons in self-isolation due to suspected exposure to the novel coronavirus? A critical analysis of the Ghana Health Service’s COVID-19 Self-Quarantine Guide reveals no mention of precautionary measures relating to the management of solid waste.
With persons in self-isolation outside of health facilities – mainly in hotel rooms or at home – being advised to dispose of in dustbins all tissues used when coughing and sneezing, serious consideration must be given to the risk of spreading the COVID-19 virus due to improper management of solid waste.
The 72-hour rule
In a letter published in the New England Journal of Medicine, dated on 17 March 2020, COVID-19 was described as being able to survive for anywhere between 4 to 72 hours on surfaces, depending on the type of surface.
For example, the authors of the letter indicated that their scientific study of the virus found it to survive longer on plastic than on cardboard surfaces. Hence, it is vital that any solid waste generated by persons with suspected exposure to the virus be isolated over a sufficient time period prior to collection to eliminate or significantly reduce the risk of the virus spreading.
As a result of this insight, many developed nations have already begun advising persons with suspected exposure to COVID-19 to store their waste for 72 hours before collection.
Appropriate Localised Responses
However, such a one size fits all approach for appropriately managing waste from persons in self-isolation is unlikely to be completely applicable in Ghana due to the uneven access to sufficient waste storage capacity and reliable waste collection services. This challenge is further compounded by the expected increase, in the near term, of the number of people requiring mandatory self-isolation.
Hence, a multi-pronged approach based on a collaborative effort between quarantine surveillance officers, the Ministry of Sanitation and Water Resources, local governments, hotel operators and affected individuals will likely be needed to effectively address this waste management challenge.
Currently, with the majority of persons under mandatory quarantine concentrated in a number of hotels in the country, these sites are of topmost priority.
Here, all types of solid waste generated by the affected individuals must be tracked and segregated from the regular waste generated by the hosting establishment.
Evidently, for the hotels with sufficient storage capacity, the 72-hour rule should be considered. Also, if feasible, additional waste skips could be acquired to accommodate the storage of potentially contaminated waste.
However, in the event that a hosting hotel cannot provide the needed waste storage capacity, the authorities would have to make arrangements for special waste collections, with the ideal frequency of collections determined by the hotel’s management team. The collected waste would then have to be transferred to a secure storage location for the recommended number of hours prior to its disposal. Alternatively, the waste could be immediately diverted towards an allocated site for controlled burning or incineration.
These set of options would also be applicable for managing the solid waste generated by persons self-isolating at home, though this would require even stricter monitoring from quarantine surveillance officers as the number of such households increases.
Necessary Hygiene Standards
Irrespective of the eventual method adopted, it is of great importance that the highest standard of hygiene is applied when handling and collecting solid waste potentially exposed to COVID-19. Some of these standards include the following:
- Individuals in self-isolation must securely double-bag their solid waste, especially any tissues used when coughing and sneezing, before placing it into the appropriate waste bin;
- Waste collectors must practice social distancing during waste collection runs;
- Affected persons must wash their hands thoroughly with soap under running water or apply alcohol-based hand sanitiser immediately before and after handling their double bagged waste or waste bins;
- Similarly, waste collectors must have access to a sufficient supply of soap and water and alcohol-based hand sanitisers, sprays or wipes;
- All waste vehicles used for transporting the targeted waste should be cleaned periodically; and
- When cleaning the waste vehicles, a special focus must be placed on door-handles, handholds or rails, dashboards, steering wheels, hand-brake levers, and gearbox controls.
The Citizen’s Role
Though the risk management steps for waste collection indicated above are critical and would require a proactive stance from authorities at the national and local level, their viability would depend primarily on having receptive individuals that take the threat of the novel coronavirus seriously.
Hence, as fellow citizens, we owe it to each other to immediately report to the Ghana Health Service when we start to show any of the symptoms associated with the COVID-19 virus, commence and comply with self-isolation requirements, and undergo approved testing.