Brilliant Bins The Sanitary Bin Guide For Commercial, Community and Leisure in Scotland

Sanitary bin regulations Brilliant Bins disposable sanitary bins

Answering the big questions.
There is a lot of confusion about the controls and regulations that apply to sanitary bins. This guide contains the answers to the questions that we get asked. Some of the information may surprise you, but this guide will provide you with in depth understanding of the regulations concerning disposal of sanitary waste. For example, most web information would like you to believe that sanitary waste is clinical waste, but this is rarely the case. This guide deals with regulations and guidance covering Scotland. A guide for England is currently available, and guides for Wales and Northern Ireland are being prepared, but please contact us if you would like to discuss the situation in the other regions. The result is pretty similar, but from different sources. If you would like further information or a no-obligation discussion about your own disposal arrangements, please do contact me.

Is it a legal requirement to provide sanitary waste bins? Is feminine hygiene waste classed as clinical or hazardous waste? How easy is it for the cleaning staff to manage your disposable sanitary bins? I have been told our sanitary bin waste is controlled or offensive waste and must be collected by a specialist service. Is this correct?

Is Brilliant Bins registered with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) How can I check the registration of my waste collector? How environmentally friendly is a disposable bin? Im concerned about odour. Why dont you have chemical fragrance powder in the bin? What is Cellogreen Eco-Print laminate? Id like to provide bags for items to go into before going in the bin. Do you sell these? Do you provide guidance on Duty of Care Transfer Notes? Waste

Brilliant Bins is a trading name of Seiquelle Innovation Ltd, 103 High Street, Hungerford, Berkshire RG16 0NB www.BrilliantBins.co.uk sales@BrilliantBins.co.uk Tel: 01488 684850 Edition 8 Scotland Mar 2013 Seiquelle Innovation Ltd

Is it a legal requirement to provide sanitary waste bins?

The applicable law is the Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulations 1992 paragraphs 20 and 21. The Regulations do not specifically mention bins for sanitary waste, but do have an overriding condition that sanitary conveniences (ie washroom facilities) should be suitable and sufficient. The Health and Safety Executive, however, in the Approved Code of Practice related to the above Regulations, issue their interpretation of suitable and sufficient which includes: In the case of water closets used by women, suitable means should be provided for the disposal of sanitary dressings. In practise this could be a covered pedal bin, although this would mean revealing the contents to users and cleaners. Our bin is aimed at providing a better option than the pedal bin, without having the costs and inconvenience of service collection contracts.

Is Feminine Hygiene Waste clinical or hazardous or special waste?

The Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (SEPA) is the main environmental regulator in Scotland. In 2007 they, along with Environment and Heritage Service in Northern Ireland (EHSNI) and the Scotland and Northern Ireland Forum for Environmental Research (SNIFFER) commissioned a report called the Best Practice Guidance for the Management of Hygiene Waste for key Producers in Northern Ireland and Scotland. Designed to assist healthcare and non-healthcare producers of hygiene waste, it covers very clearly the requirements for items used for feminine hygiene purposes. These include sanitary towels and tampons, feminine wipes, incontinence products and nappies. It states that hygiene waste should not be classified an infectious waste and is NOT subject to the strict hazardous (special) waste controls. Non-healthcare hygiene waste should be classified as municipal waste and codes from the European Waste catalogue should be used and reference to Table 4 shows that the code 20-03-01 should be used where segregation of this waste is not practicable (if for example the amount of waste is relatively low). We recommended reading this in full as it is clearly written and shows that nonhealthcare hygiene waste can be included in black bag municipal waste when generated in relatively small quantities. The report can be downloaded from the SEPA website by clicking here or use the following TinyUrl link. http://tinyurl.com/snifferhygiene Examples of non-healthcare hygiene waste producers include Schools, Nurseries, Day Centres, Care Homes, Public toilets (including those within hospitals and other healthcare premises), shopping centres and service stations. Non-healthcare would also include shops, offices, factories, community and leisure premises. Figure 6 on page 11 shows a simple diagram which shows the key stages of assessing whether disposal within municipal waste is a suitable option for a particular site.

Brilliant Bins is a trading name of Seiquelle Innovation Ltd, 103 High Street, Hungerford, Berkshire RG16 0NB www.BrilliantBins.co.uk sales@BrilliantBins.co.uk Tel: 01488 684850 Edition 8 Scotland Mar 2013 Seiquelle Innovation Ltd

How easy is it for the cleaning staff to manage disposable bins?

Very easy, very quick, no fuss, and nothing unpleasant to deal with. Each Brilliant Bin has a plastic sleeve, on the reverse, containing a black bin bag, ready for the whole bin to be put into for disposal. It is easy for the cleaning staff to check whether the bin needs changing by just picking it up theres no need to look inside. When its time to change the bin, the whole bin is placed in the black bin bag and then, securely double wrapped, it is disposed of within the general waste collection.

I have been told our sanitary bin waste is controlled or offensive waste and must be collected by a specialist service. Is this correct?
All household, commercial and industrial waste is controlled waste as defined in the Environmental Protection Act 1990. Therefore sanitary waste is indeed controlled waste. However, you dont need a specialist to collect feminine hygiene waste. Controlled waste may only be transferred to a waste carrier registered with the SEPA or Environment Agency, and the waste management company collecting your commercial waste will be registered as a waste carrier in exactly the same way as any sanitary bin service contract collector. This means that it is perfectly acceptable for your main waste to have a proportion of hygiene waste included.

Is Brilliant Bins registered with the Environment Agency?

Brilliant Bins is registered with the Environment Agency in England as both a Waste Carrier and Waste Broker under our company name Seiquelle Innovation Ltd ref CB/HN5010CZ, a permit which covers the whole of Great Britain.

How can I check the registration of my waste collector?

You can easily check online that your waste collector is registered at the Environment Agency http://www2.environment-agency.gov.uk/epr/search.asp (if the main place of business is in England and Wales) and if the main place of business is in Scotland a check can be made by contacting SEPA at www.sepa.org.uk.

How environmentally friendly is a disposable bin?

Using the Brilliant Bin system reduces the vehicle mileage required to dispose of the waste and eliminates the need for water and chemicals to wash out exchange units. Please request our guide the Environmental and Operational Case for Disposable Bins. The Brilliant Bin is inexpensive and so affordable by every business. It therefore helps to ensure that sanitary waste is not flushed down the loo. It is estimated that 2 billion sanitary items are flushed down the loo each year. More on this from the "Bag it and Bin it Don't Flush it" campaign. The Brilliant Bin enables you to buy 6 months or a years supply of bins and store them compactly in your cleaners cupboard. One delivery replaces multiple trips to your site to deliver exchange units reducing vehicle mileage. Sanitary waste in the Brilliant Bin is collected along with your other commercial waste and so no additional vehicle miles are required.

Brilliant Bins is a trading name of Seiquelle Innovation Ltd, 103 High Street, Hungerford, Berkshire RG16 0NB www.BrilliantBins.co.uk sales@BrilliantBins.co.uk Tel: 01488 684850 Edition 8 Scotland Mar 2013 Seiquelle Innovation Ltd

The Brilliant Bin is printed and constructed in the UK, so no shipping from the Far East is involved. FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) http://www.fsc.org/about-fsc.html certified box board is the principal material making up the bin. The original pulp is bleached using an elemental chlorine free process, and the board produced at an EMAS accredited mill. It can be disposed of by incineration for energy recovery or is bio-degradeable. Not suitable for recycling due to the content of the bin The glossy laminates major raw material, Cellulose, comes predominantly from managed forestry in North America. The pulp suppliers have active replanting programmes and plant more trees than they harvest each year. Thus this film is distinguished from most other thermoplastic films in that it comes from a sustainable source and is not derived from fossil fuels. The secondary raw material is acetic anhydride, a simple derivative of the everyday tabletop chemical acetic acid (vinegar).

Im concerned about odour. Why is there no chemical fragrance in the Brilliant Bin?
The Brilliant Bin is designed to minimise environmental impact, therefore we do not use chemical powders and fragrance inside the bin. Our research shows that the addition of scented chemicals inside a bin does not make a significant difference to odour outside the bin whether on an exchange bin or for the Brilliant Bin. The majority of our customers leave each bin in place for between two and three months, with some sites for even longer. Our many customers confirm that they do not have problems with odours from the bins. The lid of our bin is secured with a magnetic closure. Very occasionally there is an issue which would only be dealt with by changing the bin. You can change a Brilliant Bin immediately. With an exchange bin you may need to wait weeks for the next exchange date. You can also provide small disposal bags for sanitary items to be put in before placing the item in the Brilliant Bin. These are available, along with an optional dispenser, on our product page.

Id like to provide small bags for items to go into before going in the bin. Do you sell these?
Yes, we supply printed paper disposal bags and also a clear Perspex holder if needed. See our website product pages.

What is Cellogreen eco-print laminate?

The glossy laminate inside and outside the Brilliant Bin is not made from fossil-fuel based plastics. The primary raw material used in the production of the cellulose acetate laminate is sourced from refined wood pulp from Sustainable Forest Initiative managed forestry.

Brilliant Bins is a trading name of Seiquelle Innovation Ltd, 103 High Street, Hungerford, Berkshire RG16 0NB www.BrilliantBins.co.uk sales@BrilliantBins.co.uk Tel: 01488 684850 Edition 8 Scotland Mar 2013 Seiquelle Innovation Ltd

Do you provide guidance on Duty of Care - Waste Transfer Notes?

With the Brilliant Bin system, you do not need a specific waste transfer note for your sanitary bins. The completion of a 12 month waste transfer note is carried out annually with your main waste management company. You should let your waste management company know that you have a small amount of hygiene waste in your collection. Please request our Waste Transfer Note Information Sheet. It included suggested descriptions, waste code and details to add to your existing waste transfer note content. Should your waste collection company have any questions, we will be very happy to assist. We have positive agreement from major waste collection companies for our system. We hope this has assisted you to understand that you can handle your own disposal of hygiene waste as an alternative to using service contract exchange-bin providers. Please do call us if you would like to discuss any of this information further. Susan Hofgartner BSc (Hons) ARCS ACMA
All information is provided in good faith, but we do not accept any liability if you use this advice which is summarised and not tailored to any specific situation.

Brilliant Bins is a trading name of Seiquelle Innovation Ltd, 103 High Street, Hungerford, Berkshire RG16 0NB www.BrilliantBins.co.uk sales@BrilliantBins.co.uk Tel: 01488 684850 Edition 8 Scotland Mar 2013 Seiquelle Innovation Ltd