Blog
The Covid-19 pandemic generated an unprecedented volume of pharmaceutical and medical waste – and in its aftermath, the pharmaceutical sector has been looking at how technology can help manage that legacy more sustainably.
Few events have had as sudden an impact on waste streams as the Covid-19 pandemic. Single-use masks, gloves, testing kits and vaccine packaging all surged in volume within a matter of months – much of it falling into waste categories that existing recycling infrastructure wasn't designed to handle at that scale.
The pandemic's environmental footprint went well beyond the obvious images of discarded masks. Vaccine rollout alone generated huge volumes of glass vials, plastic syringes and specialised packaging, much of it produced and consumed in a compressed timeframe that left little opportunity to plan for end-of-life management. Combined with a general increase in single-use plastics – from PPE to takeaway packaging during lockdowns – the result was a measurable spike in waste volumes across several material categories.
Pharmaceutical waste presents particular challenges for recycling: glass vials may be contaminated with pharmaceutical residues, plastic packaging often combines multiple materials for tamper-evidence and sterility, and medical waste in general is subject to stricter handling and decontamination requirements than household waste. Where recycling is possible, it typically requires sorting processes that can separate these materials after appropriate decontamination – glass vials from caps and seals, different plastic components from blister packs, and so on.
In the years since the height of the pandemic, the pharmaceutical sector has been looking more systematically at how packaging is designed and recovered – both to manage the legacy of pandemic-era waste and to reduce the footprint of routine pharmaceutical packaging going forward. Sorting technology that can handle the specific materials involved in pharmaceutical packaging – including glass, given how widely it's used for vials and ampoules – is part of what makes that recovery possible. PICVISA's ECOGLASS systems, designed to sort glass by colour and remove contaminants, are relevant to this picture, helping ensure that glass from pharmaceutical packaging can be recovered for recycling rather than ending up in general waste.
Discover ECOGLASS for glass sortingGet in touch with our team to discover how PICVISA's optical sorting and robotics solutions can fit your recycling operation.