In January, videos featuring a pile of hand sanitizer bottles in front of the new Macon Amphitheater in Macon–Bibb County (Georgia) attracted a lot of attention. Stories about hand sanitizer bottles dumped in Trinity River also made it in the headlines.
“Hand sanitizer expired, how to dispose of the liquid? Where to dispose of hand sanitizer containers? How do you dispose of expired hand sanitizer?” These three queries were raised by several users on Q&A platforms and search engines.
Why Did Healthcare Facilities, Malls, Mom-and-Pop Stores, and Businesses Buy Disinfectants in Bulk?
The CDC promoted the use of hand sanitizers since the beginning of the pandemic. Thus, from healthcare facilities, to businesses, everyone stocked them in bulk quantities. And now, several organizations have huge amounts of expired hand sanitizer. These liquids consist of 60% or more of ethanol or isopropyl alcohol. Due to the high flammability of these substances, sanitizer waste bottles are tagged as hazardous as per Federal disposal guidelines. So, administrators at small and large corporations wish to know how to dispose of hand sanitizer in bulk?
Procedures to Dispose of Expired or Empty Hand-Sanitizer Bottles
Expired hand sanitizer disposal is one of the most common challenges faced by maintenance staff, facilities or operations managers. Let’s take a look at some steps that can ensure liquid waste gets correctly disposed of.
1. Check the local government standards, and guidelines
Non-adherence to local regulations for disposing of hazardous materials can lead to penalties or fines. Thus, as step one, check if your municipality has rules or dedicated waste collection services for hazardous materials.
2. Send empty bottles to a recycled facility
How to dispose expired hand sanitizer bottles that are empty? Most sanitizer bottles made from recycled plastic are often marked as HDPE or PET. So, if bottles are empty, you can send them to a recycling facility.
3. Let professionals transport and dispose of large quantities
How to dispose of hand sanitizer in bulk? Disposing of hand sanitizer, especially in large quantities, requires professional intervention. Work with a licensed hazardous waste disposal service provider like San Diego Medical Waste. The agency handles hazardous stuff as per federal, state, as well as local disposal requirements.
4. Ensure disposal happens in compliant containers
Waste disposal experts use specially designed containers. This helps in securely transporting it to their hazardous waste disposal facility. Agency professionals use appropriate RCRA hazardous waste labels. They also take care of registration, manifesting, and report it as per Class 3 Flammable Liquids protocols.
5. Analyze your requirements before approaching a medical waste collection service provider for quote
As someone associated with operations, you do know how many bottles, containers of disinfectant have crossed expiry date or are about to. So, choose a service frequency accordingly. You can select from weekly, bi-weekly, monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly options. Then, choose a container size required for disposal. Lastly, register your facility with the waste collection agency's website, and schedule the first visit.
6. Expired hand sanitizer disposal for households
Can you throw away hand sanitizer plastic bottles in household garbage? Of course not. Households can place empty containers in a curbside recycling bin. However, if the unit contains a considerable amount of sanitizer, it has to be deposited at a hazardous waste drop-off location as per the U.S Environmental Protection Agency.
FAQs About Expired Hand Sanitizer Disposal
1. Are expired hand sanitizer bottles really dangerous?
You might wonder, what to do with expired hand sanitizer? How to dispose of hand sanitizer in bulk? Should I throw away expired hand sanitizer in the garbage? Or flush it down the drain? Well, certainly not! Dumping large amounts of alcohol based hand sanitizer down the drain can ruin aquatic life. Further, even a few gallons of such waste liquid can trigger an explosion in a sewer.
2. What should I do with hand sanitizer bottles that do not have an expiry date?
FDA guidelines make it mandatory for hand sanitizers to ensure they have an end-date on the label. But, units produced under temporary guidance, back in 2020 may not have the concerned date. The item manufacturer can help you with the expiration date for the liquid based on the lot/batch code. In most cases, such products have three years of shelf life. Therefore, if you have purchased the product in 2020-21, your company is holding a stock that is not usable.
3. Are expired hand sanitizers less effective?
Active ingredients in a hand disinfectant can work effectively only until their use-by or best-before date. They become less effective with each passing day.
4. What can you do with expired hand sanitizer in big glass bottles used for household purposes?
First, you can dilute it by adding water. Then, deposit it at one of the nearest hazardous waste collection sites. And it goes without saying that if the bottle is empty, you can rinse it with water and donate the same at community centers that collect waste glass.
The endnote: (Conclusion)
Play your part in reducing environmental harm
This may sound unbelievable. But, expired hand sanitizer bottles are causing plastic and chemical pollution, air pollution, and landfill overflow. They are also triggering disruption in aquatic environments. But why? Well, people simply don’t know how to dispose of expired hand sanitizer units. Your organization certainly does not wish to harm Mother Nature, and wants to ensure compliance with environmental regulations. Thus, it is vital to work with agencies like San Diego Medical Waste. The firm is a full-service regulated medical waste management company, owned by Veteran. Whether you are a small or large hazardous waste generator, SD MedWaste has service frequency and container sizes that fit your needs.
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