AI Article Synopsis

  • - Amid the 4th wave of COVID-19, Vietnam's economy reopened, leading to challenges in managing COVID-19 waste, as waste characteristics changed and authorities faced greater responsibilities and higher infection risks.
  • - The study found issues like the rise in waste generation and improper disposal, recommending separate waste handling routes, collaboration in treatment, and utilizing vaccination pharmacy networks for better waste collection.
  • - Adopting the 4R initiatives (reduce, reuse, recycle, recovery) can ease the strain on Vietnam's waste management system and help support a circular economy, contributing to more effective waste management in both Vietnam and other developing nations.

Article Abstract

Unlabelled: Amid the 4th wave of COVID-19, Vietnam reopened its economy, which placed extra burdens on the COVID-19 waste management system. This study analyzed existing issues and recommended adaptations to secure appropriate management of COVID-19 waste under the 'new normal' pandemic period. Results showed changes in COVID-19 waste characteristics (e.g., rapid rise in waste generation, lower percentage of plastic) and multiple other issues (e.g., presence of COVID-19 waste in municipal waste, lack of temporary storage sites and local treatment capacity), along with greater waste-handling responsibilities placed on authorities and higher infection risks. To adapt to the 'new normal', introduction of separate handling routes and collaboration in waste treatment were recommended. Employing the network of pharmacies used for vaccination would require COVID-19 waste collection from scattered, small-scale sources as part of the waste management solution. Also, following the 4R initiatives (reduce, reuse, recycle, recovery) could help ease the burden on the country's waste system and provide additional opportunities to move towards a circular economy in the post-acute COVID-19 era. The findings should contribute to a safer co-existence with the virus through appropriate waste management in Vietnam and could be used to tackle waste problems in other developing countries.

Supplementary Information: The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s10163-022-01563-x.

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Source
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9734957PMC
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10163-022-01563-xDOI Listing

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