Aborted Babies Banned from Waste to Energy Plant in Oregon

The Board of Commissioners in Marion County, Oregon has taken action to halt medical waste from being incinerated at a Covanta waste to energy facility following reports that the foetuses of aborted babies had been incinerated at the facility. The board said in a statement that in response to an April 21 article in The B.C Catholic, it took immediate action to temporarily halt the acceptance of boxed medical waste at the facility. “We provide an important service to the people of this state and it would be a travesty if this program is jeopardized due to this finding,” commented Commissioner Sam Brentano, chair of the board. “We thought our ordinance excluded this type of material at the waste to energy facility. “We will take immediate action to ensure a process is developed to prohibit human tissue from future deliveries,” he added. “We are outraged and disgusted that this material could be included in medical waste received at the facility,” said commissioner, Janet Carlson. Following the suspension to the processing of all medical waste at the facility, the Board of Commissioners met in an Emergency Session this week at which it directed revisions to the Marion County Solid Waste Ordinance to specially prohibit the acceptance of foetal tissue as medical waste. Commissioner Sam Brentano, chair, said, “While no law has been broken, an ethical standard has been violated and we cannot allow for the possibility of this practice to take place in the future.” In addition to revising county code, the commissioners also called for a certification and random inspection process that will require all contractors to certify that any medical waste brought to the facility does not include foetal tissue. Until the new procedures are in place, the commissioners said that they have suspended acceptance of all medical waste at the Marion County Waste to Energy Facility. The commissioners said that the county will seek formal contract amendments from all medical waste suppliers and will terminate contracts with suppliers that choose not to amend current agreements. In a report by Canada Free Press, Jill Stueck, vice president, marketing and communications, at Covanta said: “The medical waste program at the Marion County Resource Recovery Facility is County run and managed. Marion County contracts for and arranges the delivery of medical waste to the Marion County Resource Recovery Facility. Covanta is shocked by these allegations and is cooperating with the County’s suspension of its medical waste program pending further review.” Read More Swiss Firm aims at $10.8bn Medical Waste Market with High Pyromex has received a letter of intent to acquire the first of its nominal 5 tonne per day ultra high temperature Gasifiers for use in the disposal of medical waste. Medical Waste Managment Hotting Up in Malaysia Medical waste management is a healthy industry in Malaysia, with an outlook for strong growth over the coming years. Medical Waste Illegally Dumped in Kolkata, India The state pollution control board in Kolkata, India has lodged a First Information Report against a person who operated an illegal biomedical waste dump.