Академический Документы
Профессиональный Документы
Культура Документы
Kyle Ritenour
health departments, especially in today’s age. The purpose of a Solid and Infectious Waste
Protection Program is to ensure that waste materials are disposed of properly utilizing means that
are safe for public health and the environment and that are in accordance with local, state, and
federal disposal regulations. Local Solid Infectious Waste Protection Programs typically focus on
and consistently inspect locations that regularly dump waste on site such as landfills, transfer
Having a plan solidified for solid and infectious waste protection is very beneficial and
important for security of the public’s health and safety. There are many materials that are
dangerous for public health and the environment and have to be closely monitored. Solid waste
entails many different waste materials. According to the United States Environmental Protection
Agency (EPA), “solid waste” refers to any garbage or waste, wastewater treatment plant, water
supply treatment plant, and air pollution control facility sludge, and any other discarded material
stemming from industrial, commercial, mining, and agricultural operations, and community
activities. Solid waste includes all materials which are discarded by being abandoned or thrown
away, being burned, or sham recycled, inherently waste-like, which are materials that are always
considered solid waste because it poses such a threat to human health and the environment,
material that is recycled in certain ways, and discarded military munitions (Criteria, 2019).
Infectious waste, also known as biohazardous waste includes disposal of any materials which
have been contaminated with infectious agents such as bacteria and viruses from blood.
variety of reasons. One reason that this program is essential to public health and the environment
is that helps to monitor the amount of trash being buried and the amount of land being used for
3
SOLID AND INFECTIOUS WASTE PROTECTION PROGRAM ASSIGNMENT
landfills and other disposal sites. Burying waste today is a much bigger deal than what it once
was. Communities used to bury their waste to prevent bugs and rodents from becoming a trouble,
but today burying solid waste is a much larger problem due to the rising population and amount
of solid waste that would need to be buried. Much of the waste that is discarded by the
population today is made up of plastics and other non-biodegradable materials. If these materials
are not monitored and recycled, more natural habitats may be occupied by landfills. These
landfills destroy the soil, groundwater, and surrounding habitat as well as occupy land space for
vegetation such as trees which are essential for supply the earth with oxygen and lowering levels
of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere. Another reason that this program is essential to public
health and the environment is that helps to mitigate high levels of water and air pollution
can rot and produce harmful gasses which are released in the air. These gasses can cause
respiratory issues and be harmful to health. Rotting garbage can also pollute groundwater by
releasing harmful viruses and bacteria into the water which can lead to diseases like cholera
(The). Implementing a Solid and Infectious Waste Protection Program can assist in preventing
There are ramifications for both implementing a Solid and Infectious Waste Protection
Program and not implementing the program. One ramification of implementing a local Solid and
Infectious Waste Protection Program is funding. Like many other local health programs,
competitive funding is needed for implementation. Although the program may not require a lot
of funding for materials and equipment like other programs may require, inspections for a Solid
and Infectious Waste Protection Program may be costly because of laboratory analysis of soil
samples. Another ramification of implementing this program is that it may require a lot of
4
SOLID AND INFECTIOUS WASTE PROTECTION PROGRAM ASSIGNMENT
planning and work. According to the EPA, “…sampling inspections are very resource-intensive
because they require planning for sampling scheme and laboratory analysis” (The).
Although there are few ramifications for implementing a Solid and Infectious Waste
Protection Program, there are many ramifications to not implementing the local health program.
One ramification of not implementing the program is that solid waste may not be monitored as
heavily, which may result in more non-biodegradable materials being thrown into landfills
requiring more land for disposal. Another ramification of not implementing a Solid and
Infectious Waste Protection Program is that populations near solid waste sites may be more
likely to experience respiratory issues from harmful gasses released from rotting trash and be
There are multiple elements that are essential and that should be considered in the
development of this program. One essential element that should be considered when developing
this program is the inspection process. The inspection process for this particular program is
important because the lack of monitoring of solid waste material can result in many health issues.
It is imperative that an inspector is able to identify deficiencies in the four main areas of
compliance which include hazard waste identification (HWID), hazard waste generators, hazard
waste transporters, and treatment, storage, and disposal (waste management) facilities. Accidents
or lack of compliance in any of these areas can present a threat to the public. For example, if
hazardous waste is discharged or spilled during transportation of the waste, the driver must know
how to react or the health those near the site of the accident may be impacted (Hazardous, 2019).
Another essential element that should considered in the development of a Solid and Infectious
Waste Protection Program is the registration. It is vital that the registration process is considered
in the development of this program is that there are often specific forms of verification that are
5
SOLID AND INFECTIOUS WASTE PROTECTION PROGRAM ASSIGNMENT
required to enable implementation of the program. The program location will also need to
acquire licenses and permits for the program in accordance with state laws.
When implementing a Solid and Infectious Waste Protection Program, there are many
statutory requirements that must be met. Many of the requirements that a solid waste program is
identified in the Ohio Revised Code (ORC) Chapter 3734: Solid and Hazardous Wastes. For
example, rules of inspection and licensing of solid waste facilities is discussed in section 2 of
Chapter 3734. This section outlines the authority given to the director of environmental
protection and many other rules regarding inspection and licensing. Chapter 3734.021 identifies
standards or generators and transporters of infectious waste s and owners and operators of
treatment facilities. It is imperative all of the personnel discussed in this section are aware of the
laws and regulations concerning solid wastes because they directly affiliated with the storage,
infiltration, exfiltration, and transportation of hazardous materials. In order to help ensure that
organizations stay in accordance with the Ohio EPA and Ohio Health Department have state
There are several educational components that may be required in the development of a
Solid and Infectious Waste Protection Program. One educational component that may be needed
in the development and implementation of this program may include biology and chemistry. The
reason that these educational components may be needed is because an inspector should be
aware of bacteria, viruses, and chemical agents and reactions that may be observed during
inspections of solid waste disposal sites or landfill. Inspectors and other workers that are a part of
a Solid and Infectious Waste Protection Program may also need to acquire some specialized
trainings to successfully complete their job tasks. One specialty skill that may be needed to be
required for staff is the ability to maintain records and prepare reports. Solid and Infectious
6
SOLID AND INFECTIOUS WASTE PROTECTION PROGRAM ASSIGNMENT
Waste Protection Program must be organized and track the status of all sites that they monitor
and inspect. Another specialty training that may be required by staff is interpersonal skills
training because staff may be responsible for educating the public on hazardous waste (Solid).
There may also be some perceived difficulties when implementing a Solid and Infectious
Waste Protection Program. One difficulty that a local solid waste program may be faced with is
obtaining program funding. Funding for health programs and other non-profit organizations may
be very limited. There may also be many other local public health programs competing for
funding from the same grants, making it difficult to maintain a successful program. I feel that my
local health jurisdiction is doing an adequate job administering this program. There is not much
information regarding this program on the Trumbull County Combined Health Districts’
(TCCHD) website, however, the website does provide a list of known qualified soil professionals
which may be qualified to inspect landfill and other solid and infectious waste sites (Health).
7
SOLID AND INFECTIOUS WASTE PROTECTION PROGRAM ASSIGNMENT
References
Criteria for the Definition of Solid Waste and Solid and Hazardous Waste Exclusions. (2019,
solid-and-hazardous-waste-exclusions#solidwaste
https://www.epa.gov/compliance/hazardous-waste-compliance-monitoring
https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/importance-waste-management-recycling-dee-
mohammed
us/Local-Health-Departments/
protection/solid-and-infectious-waste-disposal
cruz.ca.us/personnel/Specs/TN4spec.html