By Healthcare Facilities Today

Utah hospitals send tons of medical waste to Stericycle each year for incineration.

But as community activists fight to shut down the North Salt Lake incinerator for alleged emissions violations, one hospital group is rethinking the practice, according to an article in The Salt Lake Tribune.

"Originally, nationwide they were a leader in the industry," said University of Utah Health Sciences, spokeswoman Kathy Wilets. "However, in light of concerns raised from the community about air-quality issues related to the company, we are in the process of evaluating our contract."

According to the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, 90 percent of this potentially infectious material is sent to incinerators, which emit greenhouse gasses, dioxins and other toxic substances.

But hospitals, recognizing the links between environmental harms and disease, are eyeing newer, greener waste-management technologies, the article said.

One option being weighed by the University of Utah is on-site machines to sterilize waste and render it nonhazardous for disposal in lined landfills.

"[Stericycle] is not the only game in town. There are lots of different systems," said Michele Johnson, director of Environmental Health and Safety at the uniuversity.

Read the article.