Biological Waste Packaging Guidelines

Bio-Waste

Biological waste is waste contaminated with biological agents and all sharps. This includes: 

  • Microbiological cultures
  • Human cell cultures
  • Human blood, blood products, and other potentially infectious materials
  • All contaminated disposable labware (culture dishes, pipet tips, tubes)
  • All needles and syringes, whether contaminated or not
Stack of boxes and red bins containing biologicals waste awaiting pickup and disposal

Packaging Guidelines

Expand FAQ List

  • A red translucent box with a clear lid that is halfway full with needles and other types of sharps.
    1. Place intact “sharps", whether contaminated or not, in a puncture resistant "sharps" container. 
    2. Do not recap, bend, remove, or clip needles. 
    3. Do NOT overfill container. Fill ¾ full and snap the lid closed. Overfilling or forced filling may result in puncture wounds. 
    4. EHSREM sends weekly notifications for bio-waste removal. You may also request a bio-waste pickup by submitting the Bio-Waste Pickup Request Form.

     

    1. Collect non-sharp solid biological waste in autoclavable bags. It is preferable that autoclave bags be white or clear (not red or orange) and without the word "biohazardous" or the universal symbol for biohazardous material.
    2. Place filled bags into the autoclave pan for transport from the laboratory to the autoclave.
    3. Add 250 mL of water to the bag and close loosely to allow the steam to escape and air to enter.
    4. Attach a strip of autoclave tape on the bag.
    5. The pan and bag must be autoclaved at a temperature of at least 121°C for at least 30 minutes and at a pressure of at least 15 psi.
    6. Allow the pan and autoclaved material to cool; the autoclaved material can be placed in the building dumpster.
    7. Alternatively, autoclaved bags of waste may be collected into trash cans lined with heavyweight, opaque plastic bags, that are then transported to the building dumpster.
    8. If however, a red bag is used to autoclave the waste, a label indicating that the waste has been treated in accordance to 25 Texas Administrative Code (TAC) 1.136 shall be attached to the bag. The bag is then placed in a black trash bag and sealed. The black bag can be placed in the building dumpster.
    Two pink gloved hands twist a handle on an autoclave machine to open the door. The machine is rectangular with a white door and blue knobs on the right.

  • Contaminated glass may be treated by one of the following methods:

    1. Decontaminate the glass by autoclaving, or by soaking in 10% bleach for 30 minutes, then place in a sturdy cardboard box, tape closed, and put the box in the building dumpster; or, 
    2. Contaminated glass may be discarded into a sharps container and handled according to the instructions for "Sharps."

    1. As a general rule, add household bleach to a final concentration of 10%, wait 30 minutes, then rinse down the sink with copious amounts of water.
    2. Alternatively, a disinfectant that is known to be effective against the organism may be added to an appropriate concentration, wait 30 minutes, then rinse down the sink with copious amounts of water.

  • Place animal carcasses/tissues into a thick plastic bag.

    1. Double bag all carcasses when zoonotic agents are present.
    2. If the carcass is preserved in a chemical preservative, DO NOT place in a red biohazardous bag.