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VOL. XVI NO. 1
www.healthcareenvironmentalsolutions.com
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ER 20 IS S’ /2 SU G 1 E UID E
WINTER 2020/21
Disposable Face Masks: Protection or Pollution?
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illions of single-use disposable face masks produced worldwide since the start of the coronavirus pandemic – the majority of which contain plastic and are non-biodegradable and for which there are scant recycling options — could create an environmental nightmare, experts warn. “Face mask pollution could lead to an environmental disaster,” summed up one headline. The World Health Organization, government officials and health experts worldwide and others have stressed the importance of wearing face masks to slow the spread of Covid-19. In some areas, use of a disposable or reusable cloth face covering is mandatory, as the virus continues to run rampant. According to various health organizations, more than 93 million cases and 2 million deaths have been reported worldwide as of mid-January 2021, just over one year after the virus was first detected in Wuhan, China. Some researchers, meantime, are warning of a worldwide “plastic pandemic” due to the use of personal protective equipment (PPE) as well as other plastic packaging materials. Environmental Science & Technology reported that mismanagement of PPE during the Covid-19 pandemic, with a monthly estimated
By P.J. Heller
use of 129 billion face masks and 65 billion gloves globally, is resulting in widespread environmental contamination. Streets, beaches, parks and oceans have been littered with Covid-19 waste including face masks, plastic hand-sanitizer bottles, gloves and plastic packaging. Questions have been raised about whether these plastics have gone from “protector of the public” to “polluter of the environment.” “If historical data is a reliable indicator, it can be expected that around 75 per cent of the used masks, as well as other pandemic-related waste, will end up in landfills, or floating in the seas,” according to a United Nations estimate.
“Plastic pollution was already one of the greatest threats to our planet before the coronavirus outbreak,” said Pamela CokeHamilton, director of international trade for the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development. “The sudden boom in the daily use of certain products to keep people safe and stop the disease is making things much worse.” Chief among the items in that boom are disposable face masks. The disposable face mask market in the United States is expected to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 60.8 percent from 2020 to 2027, according to Grand View Research, a market research and consulting company. In Canada, one company alone is ramping up to manufacture more than 22.5 million masks a month, running its production lines 24 hours a day, seven days a week. “Face masks play an important role in reducing virus transmission,” noted James Bokla, chief executive officer at Viva Healthcare Packaging in Toronto. “As municipalities are mandating the use of face masks in all public spaces, Viva is ramping up production of three-ply disposable face masks, in regular and children’s sizes, to over 22.5 million masks per month by early 2021. We are honored to apply our expertise in high volume manufacturing
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