Current through Register 1536, December 6, 2024
Section 480.200 - Disposal(A)Blood and Blood Products. (1) If the waste generator is connected to a municipal sewerage system or septic system, free draining blood and blood products, except blood saturated materials, may be disposed of directly into these systems unless such disposal is otherwise restricted by the authorized approving agency.(2) If the waste generator is prohibited by the authorized approving agency from disposing of blood and blood products into the municipal sewerage system or septic system, blood and blood products shall be rendered noninfectious in accordance with 105 CMR 480.150 prior to disposal in a sanitary landfill approved by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection or in case of out-of-state disposal, approved by the appropriate regulatory agency responsible for landfill approval.(B)Pathological Waste. Pathological wastes shall be disposed of at an approved incineration facility or by interment provided however that unprocessed liquid pathological waste may also be disposed of in accordance with 105 CMR 480.200(A).(C)Blood Saturated Materials, Cultures and Stocks of Infectious Agents and their Associated Biologicals, Dialysis Waste and Laboratory Waste. Blood saturated materials, cultures and stocks of infectious agents and their associated biologicals, dialysis waste and laboratory wastes shall be: (1) Rendered noninfectious onsite in accordance with 105 CMR 480.150 and disposed of in a sanitary landfill approved by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection or in the case of out-of-state disposal, approved by the appropriate regulatory agency responsible for landfill approval; or(2) Placed in a secondary container pursuant to 105 CMR 480.300(B) and stored in accordance with 105 CMR 480.100 prior to transport to an approved off-site facility to be rendered noninfectious in accordance with 105 CMR 480.150.(D)Contaminated Animal Waste. Contaminated animal wastes shall be disposed of at an approved incineration facility, by proper burial, by interment or by an alternative method approved in writing by the Department. Unprocessed liquid pathological waste may also be disposed of in accordance with 105 CMR 480.200(A) and tissue may also be disposed of in accordance with 105 CMR 480.200(C).(E)Sharps. Containers of sharps shall either be: (1) Disposed of by incineration at an approved incineration facility; or(2) Rendered noninfectious as set forth in 105 CMR 480.150 and processed by grinding or other effective method to eliminate the physical hazard of the sharps and disposed of in a sanitary landfill approved by the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection or in the case of out-of-state disposal, approved by the appropriate regulatory agency responsible for landfill approval within that jurisdiction.(F)Biotechnology By-product Effluents. Biotechnology by-product effluents that contain RG3 or RG4 agents or are from BSL3 and BSL4 facilities shall not be removed from the site of the waste generator unless all viable microorganisms, whether containing recombinant DNA or not, have been rendered non-infectious in accordance with 105 CMR 480.150. All other biotechnology by-product effluents shall not be removed from the site of the waste generator unless the viable microorganisms including those that might contain recombinant DNA molecules have been rendered noninfectious in accordance with 105 CMR 480.150 however, BSL1 or BSL2 facilities may allow biotechnology by-product effluents that contain RG1 or RG2 agents to be removed from the site prior to treatment if the facility meets the below listed requirements and maintains compliance with the Massachusetts Uniform State Plumbing Code (248 CMR) and the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection regulations 314 CMR 7.00 (industrial wastewater permit): (1) The facility has organized and implemented an Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) which is specifically comprised of: (a) no fewer than five members who collectively have experience and expertise in recombinant DNA technology and/or RG1 and RG2 agents as appropriate, as well as the capability to assess the safety of the biological research; and to identify any potential risk to public health or the environment posed by the biotechnology by-product effluent; and(b) at least two members, not affiliated with the institution, apart from membership on the IBC, who shall represent the interests of the surrounding community with respect to health and environmental protection (such members may be officials of state or local public health or environmental protection agencies, members of other local governmental bodies, or persons in the community active in medicine, occupational health, or environmental science).(2) The Institutional Biosafety Committee (IBC) shall meet, at a minimum, once a year to evaluate the public health and environmental risks associated with all biotechnology-byproduct effluents generated by the facility and to determine the applicability of conditions, including appropriate effluent treatment requirements, for disposal of these wastes according to provisions of the Uniform State Plumbing Code (248 CMR);(3) The IBC shall make recommendations to management regarding the appropriate effluent treatment requirements for facility waste at least once a year and document those recommendations in the required record-keeping log;(4) IBC meetings may be open to the public; and(5) Minutes of all IBC meetings shall be retained as an appendix to the required record-keeping log, as specified in 105 CMR 480.500(G).