To ask the Minister of Health whether his Department is implementing any measures to reduce general waste in buildings used by his Department or its arm's-length bodies.

The Department of Health, based in Castle Buildings, takes a number of measures to reduce general waste and increase recycling rates including:-

Provision of segregated and labelled plastic, aluminium cans, paper and general waste disposal bin stations to allow to allow the appropriate disposal of general waste and to encourage recycling;

The return of used ink toners to the manufacturer for recycling;

Awareness raising through posters, leaflets and audio-visual information on reducing personal waste produced in the office and reducing dependence on single-use plastics by highlighting reusable alternatives that minimise unnecessary waste and pollution; and

Use of the NICS contracted waste management contractor for collected waste to be repurposed through anaerobic digestion into fertilizer or biogas.

In response to the Climate Change Act (NI) 2022 the department has requested the Health and Social Care Sector to:-

review levels of recycling/residual waste and set targets for improvement; and

Raise awareness of excess consumption to reduce waste at source and explore opportunities for lower carbon methods of waste disposal.

The Health and Social Care (HSC) sector as waste producers must comply with relevant waste legislation. Guidance to support the HSC in complying with regulations is provided by Health Technical Memorandum (HTM) 07-01.

All the HSC Trusts have waste management policies to support the management of waste including regular training and environmental (waste) audits at ward / department level to ensure appropriate waste segregation leading to very high levels of reported recycling/waste recovery.

Further measures include all waste tenders, resulting in waste service contracts having Social Value Considerations. This requires the contractor to think about how wider social, economic, and environmental benefits can be incorporated within the services provided to the Trusts to minimise general waste.

To further improve recycling rates the Northern Trust are collaborating with a manufacturer of face masks to deliver a mask recycling pilot project.

At the UK level the department is working with the Department of Health and Social Care in support of its Design for Life Strategy for medical devices. This strategy is aimed at delivering circularity in medical device manufacture in a way that enables them to be reused, remanufactured or recycled, preserving their value for as long as possible.