Medical Waste Incinerator

Medical waste incinerators (MWIs) burn hospital waste. .... Summary of Results of EPA Test Program for Medical Waste Incinerators

Since much of the waste that hospitals produce, including hypodermic needles, body parts and fluids, diapers, laboratory cultures, etc., is infectious and potentially dangerous, many hospitals feel it is safer to burn this waste, rendering it harmless, rather than to bury it in landfills. When burned, hospital waste and medical/infectious waste emit various air pollutants, including hydrochloric acid, dioxin/furan, and toxic metals (lead, cadmium, and mercury).* 

 In Ohio:

• healthcare facilities generate over 73,000 tons of medical waste each year; *
• 150,000 children live within two miles of a permitted medical waste incinerator; *
• 17% of the minority population lives within two miles of a permitted incinerator, compared to 4% of white residents; *
• 12% of those below the poverty line live within two miles of a medical waste incinerator; *
• 26 medical waste incinerators are permitted to operate;
• four hospitals in NE Ohio are licensed to burn medical waste on-site, including the Cleveland Clinic Foundation, Parma Community Hospital, St. Luke’s Hospital, and St. Vincent Charity Hospital.