During the LHESP activity “Environmental protection policy awareness and “One Health” dialogue “, held in Urumqi, Xinjiang in March 2010 (please link to related news letter) there was a general consensus that he current Urumqi veterinary medical waste disposal system was virtually nonexistent in the rural areas, and in the urban areas the veterinary medical waste disposal, coming from 50 small animal clinics, was very unsafe. During that event, it was concluded there was an urgent need to create awareness and develop a plan to look for more support to meet the current provincial biomedical waste disposal needs. It did not take long time to for the Xinjiang veterinary public health institutions to satisfy this need with the right program. Animal biomedical waste generated by fifty animal clinics began to be collected by specially trained staff on May, 12, 2010. This measure will promote zoonotic disease prevention in Urumqi. Urumqi is the first city to operate a veterinary biomedical waste disposal system in Xinjiang.

To ensure the sustainability of this system, fifty veterinary clinic owners attended the official launching ceremony for the animal biomedical waste disposal system in Urumqi. Mr. Wang Xiaomin, Section Chief of the Veterinary Bureau, Xinjiang Animal Husbandry Department, expressed that, Urumqi is the first city to operate this project in Xinjiang.“Currently, there are more than 30,000 pets and 50 animal clinics in Urumqi. Single-use syringe, syringe needles, disposal absorbent cotton, gauze and death animal bodies had been thrown away in household garbage bins for a long time, which became an important risk factor related to zoonotic diseases incidence. Now, we feel relieved that this animal biomedical waste can be managed in a proper way.” Kabil Erginbay, deputy Director of Urumqi Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau, said.

Liu Fyuan, Section Chief of Veterinary Medicine, Urumqi Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau informed that, once the disposal system started to operate, every veterinary clinic will pay 1000 to 3000 RMB per year, depending on the clinic size. Veterinary medical waste will be sorted out by veterinary clinic staff every day, and it will be collected by a waste disposal company within 48 hours. The collected biomedical waste will be delivered to the Da Pugou waste processing plant, incinerated and buried. According to the project plan, by June, 15, 2010, animal biomedical waste disposal will be integrated in 100 % of the of 50 veterinary clinics in Urumqi. Urumqi Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau will monitor this project and they will deliver fines or even confiscate business licenses if any animal clinic doesn’t comply with the newly established regulations.

Urumqi Agriculture and Animal Husbandry Bureau will further promote the implementation of animal biomedical waste disposal systems in other urban and rural areas.
 

Official launching ceremony for  the animal biomedical waste disposal system in Urumqi, Xinjiang	Veterinarians’ discussing medical waste disposal regulations	Veterinary Medical Waste Disposal in an Animal Hospital in Urumuqi, Xinjiang