THE TORONTO HOSPITAL TO CLOSE ITS INCINERATOR
(Toronto, June 18, 1996)--The Toronto Hospital is decommissioning its incinerator
for the disposal of biomedical waste, effective March 31, 1997. The decision
comes following numerous consultations with community representatives living
near the incinerator, the successful completion of a demonstration project
to test alternative technology to incineration and a careful review of the
financial costs of continuing to incinerate at the Hospital. "I am
delighted about our decision to close the incinerator," says Dr. Alan
R. Hudson, President and CEO of The Toronto Hospital. "The use of the
incinerator has been an ongoing concern for the residents in the Kensington
neighbourhood. We have heard their concerns and we have worked closely with
the community to look for solutions. The decision to close the incinerator
is a victory for both the community and the Hospital."
The Toronto Hospital's incinerator was commissioned by the province in 1976
as a licensed facility for the disposal of biomedical waste, including pathological
(anatomical) and cytotoxic (pharmaceutical) waste. It is located at The
Toronto Hospital Western Division at Bathurst and Dundas Streets. The decision
to decommission the incinerator has been approved by the Working Group on
Hospital Incineration, a joint hospital and community group; the Community
Advisory Committee, a committee of community representatives; and the Board
of Trustees. The closing of the incinerator is effective at the end of the
Hospital's fiscal year, March 31, 1997. In the meantime, the Hospital will
seek an outside carrier for the disposal of its biomedical waste and notify
its current customers of its decision to cease incinerating biomedical waste.
For more information, contact
Josey Panetta, Senior Media Relations Officer
The Toronto Hospital (416)-340-3303
BACKGROUNDER THE TORONTO HOSPITAL INCINERATOR AND BIOMEDICAL WASTE TREATMENT
The Toronto Hospital incinerator was installed in 1976. A license to operate
it as a biomedical waste processing device was part of the original certificate
to operate the total plant, including the boilers for heating the Hospital.
The Toronto Hospital incinerator is an approved biomedical waste incinerator
and meets standards applicable to existing hospital incinerators set by
the Ministry of Environment and Energy (MOEE).
The MOEE monitors the operation of the incinerator through regular inspections
and has also placed air monitoring devices in the neighbourhood surrounding
the Hospital. In the early days, the incinerator processed virtually all
waste generated at the Hospital. In the late 1980s, general waste was diverted
to landfill because of renewed interest in waste management and waste separation.
At the same time, the Hospital began to receive biomedical waste from other
hospitals, physician offices and clinics. In total, it brought in biomedical
waste from approximately 100 other facilities across Ontario.
The Toronto Hospital First to Demonstrate Alternative Technology for
the Treatment of Biomedical Waste.
The Toronto Hospital became the first hospital in Canada in October, 1994
to test alternative technology to incineration by agreeing to demonstrate
microwave technology. As a result of this project, the amount of biomedical
waste incinerated at the Hospital decreased by 75 per cent. During the 18-month
test period, the microwave was located at the Western Division and processed
all biomedical waste, with the exception of pathological (anatomical) and
cytotoxic (pharmaceutical) waste generated by The Toronto Hospital and Sick
Children's Hospital. During the microwave process, the waste is shredded
into tiny pieces, disinfected, microwaved and is then transferred to landfill
site. Infectious biomedical waste, such as anatomical and cytotoxic, continued
to be incinerated.
The microwave project was qualified a resounding success by all participants.
As of March 31, 1996, the microwave was moved offsite and the Hospital began
to export its biomedical waste, excluding anatomical and cytotoxic waste,
to be processed by microwaving. During the microwave demonstration project,
the Hospital worked in co-operation with the ministries of Health and Environment
and Energy, Ontario Hydro Technologies, the Canadian Electrical Association,
ABB Sanitec Inc. (the manufacturer of the technology) and Microwave Treatment
Services Inc. (the distributor and a member company of MEDispose Inc.).
The community group also co-operated fully with the project. The projected
volume of incinerated waste, which includes only pathological and cytotoxic
waste, for the year starting on April 1, 1996 and ending March 31, 1997
is 70,000 kilograms. This is a decrease of 75 per cent from a year ago when
284,000 kilograms of waste was incinerated and a reduction of 85 per cent
from two years ago when just over 600,000 kilograms of waste was incinerated.
The decision to close the incinerator represents a financial loss of approximately
$50,000 to the Hospital. This includes the loss of revenue from the importation
of biomedical waste from the Hospital's current contracts and the cost to
export its own biomedical waste.
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