Waste management and recycling  - Health

• Introduction
• Bioaerosols and 'Green Waste'
• Green waste collection - health issues
• Discarded needles
• Personal hygiene
• Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
• Noise

Introduction

HSE is working to the targets set out in the government’s 10-year occupational health strategy Securing Health Together [1MB].

The strategy aims to achieve a:

• 20% reduction in the incidence of work-related ill health;
• 20% reduction in ill health to members of the public caused by work activity;
• 30% reduction in the number of work days lost due to work-related ill health.

Within the waste management and recycling industry, some key health hazards being addressed include:

• Bioaerosols
• Needlestick injuries
• Personal hygiene
• Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)
• Noise

Many of the health hazards posed by working in the waste management and recycling industry are commented on in:

• Health hazards in the waste and recycling industry (Waste15)

This document includes guidance on:

• Infectious media found in waste
• The routes to infection
• Preventive and protective measures
• Health surveillance

Bioaerosols and 'Green Waste'

Further information

More details on the bioaerosol hazards associated with composting are given in:

• Biodegradeable waste
• Bioaerosols in composting sites

Research

• DEFRA Research: review of the environmental and health effects of waste management
• RR130 - Occupational and environmental exposure to bioaerosols from composts and potential health effects - A critical review of published data

Green waste collection - health issues

Good practice guidance to reduce green waste dust by operating a system of controls that help minimise dust clouds is set out in the following guidance written in consultation with the Waste Industry Safety and Health Forum (WISH).

• Green waste collection - health issues

Discarded needles

The issue of dealing with drug-related litter, and especially needles, remains a matter of concern. WISH has produced guidance on this issue in Handling needles in the waste and recycling industry

Personal hygiene

Statistics for lost working time attributable to poor health education and poor personal hygiene practices remain unreliable since many absences are of short duration, or their causality can be questionable. Consequently, such incidents do not often feature in RIDDOR data. However, one examination of a local authority suggested that some 30% of lost time may be caused by:

• poor hygiene education;
• lack of adequate washing facilities;
• poor personal hygiene practices among staff.

The provision of adequate washing facilities is important. Antiseptic hand wipes alone may be insufficient for refuse collection workers who may need to deal with skin contact with poisons and aggressive acids/alkalis.

• These facilities will have more usage than in usual industrial situations and should be sufficiently robust to account for this. They should also be designed to be easily cleaned because of the amount of waste, dust and other residues that will be deposited.
• Good personal hygiene is vital for waste and recycling workers so as to prevent infections and other ill health caused by working with waste. The quality and performance of the washing facilities should reflect this need and be of a high standard.
• Provide adequate education and training to ensure workers understand the importance of hygiene and utilise the facilities that are available.

WISH have produced a convenient pocket-sized card, which requires minimal understanding of written English. It is aimed at improving the understanding of the importance of maintaining good health amongst waste workers.

• Stay clean - stay healthy. Looking after your health in the waste/recycling industry [PDF 574KB]

HSE also produces a workers’ pocket card advising on Leptospirosis (Weil’s Disease) which can be transmitted by handling waste that has been infected by rats:

• Leptospirosis - are you at risk? (INDG84) [PDF 75KB]

Musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs)

Musculoskeletal disorders account for approximately one third of all reported injuries in the industry, the majority of these being associated with collection activities, and can be both acute (sudden injury) or chronic (cumulative injury). There are sources of information and guidance throughout the HSE website, both waste management and recycling industry guidance and general guidance to be found at the HSE’s MSD portal.

Noise

Noise-induced hearing loss is a matter of concern and can occur within the industry at:

• Kerbside glass collections when the methods of glass collection, the equipment provided and/or the personal protective equipment has not been adequately risk assessed and effective preventive measures taken.
• Material recycling facilities (and similar facilities) where acoustic barriers or similar preventive measures have not been provided to attenuate the noise coming from process machinery (eg separation magnets, eddy current separators, drive motors etc).