Guidelines for Safe Disposal of Unwanted Pharmaceuticals in and after Emergencies: 4. Recommended disposal methods by sorting category: 4.8 Aerosol canisters

Guidelines for Safe Disposal of Unwanted Pharmaceuticals in and after Emergencies
(1999; 36 pages) [French] [Spanish]

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements
1. Introduction
	1.1 Background
	1.2 Prevention of waste from pharmaceutical donations
		Appropriate donations
		Good donations may be wasted
	1.3 The cost of disposal of waste pharmaceuticals
		The cost of waste pharmaceutical high temperature incineration
		Quoted weights of pharmaceutical waste
	1.4 Purpose of the guidelines
		What the guidelines do not cover
	1.5 Who will find the guidelines useful?
	1.6 Administrative aspects of writing-off unwanted pharmaceuticals
	1.7 Steps to be taken
		Decision
		Approval
		Planning
		Forming work teams
		Health and safety of work teams
		Sorting
		Disposal
		Security
	1.8 Consequences of improper disposal or non-disposal
	1.9 Public information
2. Disposal methods
	2.1 Return to donor or manufacturer
		Cross-frontier transfer of pharmaceutical waste
	2.2 Landfill
		Open uncontrolled non-engineered dump
		Engineered landfill
		Highly engineered sanitary landfill
	2.3 Waste immobilization: encapsulation
	2.4 Waste immobilization: inertization
	2.5 Sewer
	2.6 Burning in open containers
	2.7 Medium temperature incineration
		Halogen content of pharmaceutical waste
	2.8 High temperature incineration using existing industrial plants
	2.9 Chemical decomposition
3. Sorting categories
	3.1 The objectives of sorting
		Practical advice on sorting
	3.2 Optimum conditions for sorting
	3.3 Sorting categories
	3.4 Pharmaceuticals and other materials which can still be used
	3.5 Expired or unwanted pharmaceuticals
	3.6 Hazardous or potentially hazardous non-pharmaceutical materials
	3.7 Recyclable material
4. Recommended disposal methods by sorting category
	4.1 Solids, semi-solids and powders
		Anti-infective drugs, controlled drugs and antineoplastics
		Other drugs
	4.2 Liquids
		Pharmaceuticals with no or low toxicity
		Other liquid pharmaceuticals (except controlled drugs, antineoplastics or anti-infective drugs)
	4.3 Ampoules
	4.4 Anti-infective drugs
	4.5 Controlled substances
	4.6 Antineoplastics
		Special treatment for antineoplastics
		Antineoplastic drug disposal
	4.7 Disinfectants
	4.8 Aerosol canisters
References
Further reading
Annex I: Disposal by incineration
Back cover

4.8 Aerosol canisters

Disposable aerosol canisters and inhalers should not be burnt or incinerated, as high temperatures may cause them to explode, possibly causing injury to operators and/or damage to the furnace or incinerator. Provided they do not contain poisonous substances they should be disposed of in a landfill, dispersed among municipal solid wastes.

Table 2: Summary of pharmaceutical categories and disposal methods in and after emergencies

Category	Disposal methods	Comments
Solids Semi-solids Powders	Landfill Waste encapsulation Waste inertization Medium and high temperature incineration (cement kiln incinerator)	No more than 1% of the daily municipal waste should be disposed of daily in an untreated form (non-immobilized) to a landfill.
Liquids	Sewer High temperature incineration (cement kiln incinerator)	Antineoplastics not to sewer.
Ampoules	Crush ampoules and flush diluted fluid to Sewer	Antineoplastics not to sewer.
Anti-infective drugs	Waste encapsulation Waste inertization Medium and high temperature incineration (cement kiln incinerator)	Liquid antibiotics may be diluted with water, left to stand for several weeks and discharged to a sewer.
Antineoplastics	Return to donor or manufacturer Waste encapsulation Waste inertization Medium and high temperature incineration (cement kiln incinerator) (chemical decomposition)	Not to landfill unless encapsulated. Not to sewer. No medium temperature incineration.
Controlled drugs	Waste encapsulation Waste inertization Medium and high temperature incineration (cement kiln incinerator)	Not to landfill unless encapsulated.
Aerosol canisters	Landfill Waste encapsulation	Not to be burnt: may explode.
Disinfectants	Use To sewer or fast-flowing watercourse: small quantities of diluted disinfectants (max. 50 litres per day under supervision)	No undiluted disinfectants to sewers or water courses. Maximum 50 litres per day diluted to sewer or fast-flowing watercourse. No disinfectants at all to slow moving or stagnant watercourses.
PVC plastic, glass	Landfill	Not for burning in open containers.
Paper, cardboard	Recycle, burn, landfill