Biohazard Waste
The disposal of biohazard waste generated by Moravian University is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The Environmental Health and Safety Department is responsible for the pickup and disposal of such waste listed below. When waste is ready to be picked up, please complete the Biohazard Waste Pickup Form.
A member of the EHS Department will collect the waste once the form is submitted.
Used Sharps:
Medical equipment or contaminated tools sharp enough to puncture skin and cause a potential infection.
- Needles & Lancelets
- Scalpels & Razor Blades
- Glass slides
- Glass Pasteurs Pipettes
- Broken glass contaminated with biology specimens
- Sharps-associated medical devices such as syringe
Storage:
Used sharps must be placed in designated sharps containers immediately after use. Used cardboard boxes or other types of containers are not an acceptable form of sharps containers. Sharps containers are specifically designed to restrict access to the contents inside, therefore eliminating the risk of a hand injury.
Disposal
When a sharps container is 3/4th full, secure the lid (may vary between manufacturers) and place in the designated hazardous waste collection site for disposal.
Liquid Biohazard Waste:
Medical equipment or contaminated tools sharp enough to puncture skin and cause a potential infection.
- Needles & Lancelets
- Scalpels & Razor Blades
- Glass slides
- Glass Pasteurs Pipettes
- Broken glass contaminated with biology specimens
- Sharps-associated medical devices such as syringe
Storage:
Used sharps must be placed in designated sharps containers immediately after use. Used cardboard boxes or other types of containers are not an acceptable form of sharps containers. Sharps containers are specifically designed to restrict access to the contents inside, therefore eliminating the risk of a hand injury.
Disposal
When a sharps container is 3/4th full, secure the lid (may vary between manufacturers) and place in the designated hazardous waste collection site for disposal.
Used Sharps:
Medical equipment or contaminated tools sharp enough to puncture skin and cause a potential infection.
- Needles & Lancelets
- Scalpels & Razor Blades
- Glass slides
- Glass Pasteurs Pipettes
- Broken glass contaminated with biology specimens
- Sharps-associated medical devices such as syringe
Storage:
Used sharps must be placed in designated sharps containers immediately after use. Used cardboard boxes or other types of containers are not an acceptable form of sharps containers. Sharps containers are specifically designed to restrict access to the contents inside, therefore eliminating the risk of a hand injury.
Disposal
When a sharps container is 3/4th full, secure the lid (may vary between manufacturers) and place in the designated hazardous waste collection site for deposal.
Solid, Non-Sharp and Organic Biohazard Waste:
This includes lab consumables that have come in contact with viable biological materials that contain recombinant or synthetic nucleic acids, clinical specimens in a lab setting, and any lab materials that are regarded as potentially infectious.
- Contaminated Gloves
- Disposable laboratory plastic or glassware including but not limited to culture flasks, serological pipettes, pipette tips and well plates,
- Contaminated items with blood or other bodily fluids that pose an exposure risk.
- Laboratory specimens such as tissues, organs, and bones are considered a biohazard waste and should be treated as such. The only exception to this is food waste.
Storage:
These biohazard waste must be secured in a leakproof biohazard bag with a biohazard symbol approved for autocave usage. Pipettes or other equipment that pose a puncture risk may be place in a sharps container. However, they will have to be contained in an approved biohazard bag afterwards.
Disposal
Biohazard bags are to be transferred to the biohazard collection point in either the Collier or Sally buildings to be stored until ready for deposal. Heavy bags or those prone to leakage are to be double bagged and placed in a secondary containment container while being transferred to incase of a biohazard spill. Authorized persons should always be wearing PPE during this process.
Note: Bags containing organic biohazard waste must be separated from the solid, non-sharp waste and stored in the appropriate freezer while waiting for disposal.
When biohazard waste is ready to be picked up, please complete the Biohazard Waste Pickup Form.
A member of EHS will collect the waste once the form is submitted.