Kenyan Inventor Solves the Issue of Disposing of PPE Waste

An entrepreneur in Kenya is helping solve the personal protective equipment waste disposal problem by using incinerators. Catherine Wanjoya has re-designed incinerators intended for disposing of sanitary pads into ones that can safely dispose of used PPE on-site. The incinerators are portable and are meant for small scale health centres. Wanjoya said the organisation did not have to start from scratch with its innovation as it has always been in the waste management business. Wanjoya and her team, which includes engineers, have designed two types of incinerators; domestic and industrial. The domestic incinerator can be used at home or quarantine centres, where the bulk is not too heavy. The machines can burn up to 80 masks in a day while the industrial option can handle up to 20kg of waste. Wanjoya says once incinerated, the waste is reduced to sterile ash, which she says is harmless to the environment. One pad, for instance, can be reduced to about 1gm of sterile ash.

SOURCE: BBC