Governments across the world should consider a potential “reduction of the collection of recyclables” during the Covid-19 pandemic, a report by the United Nations claims. It states that scientific insights such as the viability of the virus on different materials should be paid attention to for adjustment of existing waste management. According to the report, the virus can live for up to 72 hours on plastics, 48 hours on stainless steel, 24 hours on cardboard and four hours on copper.
Among other recommendations, the UN report says that during a pandemic an existing waste management system for healthcare waste should be maintained to avoid other health risks due to the service interruptions of waste collection and treatment.
The report says the lives and livelihoods of formal and informal sector workers involved in waste management system should be protected. And, the report recommends that temporary licensing, long-term storage, inter-municipality collaboration, and transboundary arrangement should be permitted for proper waste management in a timely manner.
Source: Let’s Recycle
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