This project was to provide a continuous guidance on how to source reduction of medical waste and to evaluate the trend of technological development in the treatment of medical waste. We investigated medical waste treatment organizations in Taiwan, including market share, business areas, costs of clearance and treatment, treatment technologies analysis, cooperation relationship, and unusual condition. Another important part of this project is that after we collected information about the mercury-free hospitals all over the world, we completed drafting a plan to encourage Taiwan’s hospitals to be completely mercury-free or to reduce mercury pollution in the treatment of medical waste, and held three consultations with experts among industry, government and academic. Besides, we also held on-site consultation in ten hospitals. Concerning new techniques for the treatment of infectious waste, we have collected international trends in infectious waste treatment technology, investigated the infectious waste treatment condition in regions of the world and analyzed the operation of treatment organizations and the application of treatment technologies. We have held an international conference on the treatment and utilization techniques of infectious waste. We have evaluated the sterilization efficacy for ten medical waste autoclaves and infectious waste autoclaves of two manufacturers, and have completed the guideline for evaluation of installing the new facilities of medical waste treatment technologies. In the influenza waste of emergency measures, we collected emergency measures, regulations and treatment experience in the world, and held a symposium on the procedure of treating waste caused by avian influenza and two exercises in such treatment in incinerators. We made multimedia for exercise process, wrote the performance reports and drafted the guideline of the influenza waste treatment emergency measures in Taiwan. This project also offered information by monthly updating the information of EPA’s medical waste management website, compiled 300 copies of a Chinese-English handbook and powerpoint version introducing medical waste management and policy achievements of Taiwan, held a symposium on the establishment of a nation-wide environment for reduction PVC medical waste and two meetings of medical waste regulations and policy, and collected opinions of the medical waste policy by experts among industry, government and academic and made related strategies.

medical waste management, mercury waste, sterilization