4. |
RESPONSIBILITY OF THE PRODUCER IN THE MANAGEMENT OF INFECTIOUS MEDICAL WASTE
The responsibility of the producer is another sensitive issue related to the storage and treatment of infectious hospital waste.
Waste legislation is quite complex in many cases, but on this issue it is clear and specific: hospitals and healthcare facilities are to be considered waste producers, with specific obligations and duties.
The responsibility of the Institution or facility does not cease with the transfer to the disposal operator.
In Italy, various laws and rulings reaffirm the principle of the waste chain: “the accountability and cooperation of all parties involved, in whatever capacity, not only in the waste management cycle, but also of the goods from which waste originates”. The authority/facility can therefore also be held co-responsible for disposal after the transfer. (Legislative Decree no. 152/2006, Ruling of the Criminal Court of Cassation April 10, 2012, n. 13363).
The UK Environment Protection Act 1990 states that all waste producers have a Duty of Care to ensure the proper management of waste, “… the responsibility to take all reasonable steps to ensure that when transferring waste to another waste holder, the waste is properly managed throughout its entire journey to disposal or recovery”. Environment Agency Statutory Guidance. |