Focus on Feminine Hygiene: Why sanitary waste disposal is far from being ‘trash’ talk

“Just chuck it in the bin” -how many times have you heard that phrase? It can range from food wrappers to foil, toys to tins, anything that is small enough, is normally thrown away either to be recycled or to go into landfill.

However, saying just ‘chuck it’ is not very PC now, is it? Especially seeing as certain items, such as feminine sanitary waste, needs to be disposed of under controlled UK legislation. You wouldn’t really want to throw a bloodied sanitary towel into normal or recycled waste, would you?  As innovators in our own range of feminine hygiene waste disposal products and a company that has carried out research on the topic, neither do Vectair Systems.

One word that’s important when talking about this is ‘discretion’ – The process of disposing of sanitary waste has got to be made as discreet as possible. A fair number of women will wrap their sanitary waste up if they go to a friend’s/partners/in-laws house because they don’t want to leave it in their bin, because of four key points;

a)      It will smell.

b)      If it unwraps (which it often does even if in tissue paper) they’ll see and be exposed to blood.

c)       Do you need to make it known to everyone that it is that time of the month again?

d)      To avoid embarrassment.

So, if you apply this to public premises too, you can see how and why it is important from a) the ladies perspective b) the cleaner’s perspective and c) the business owners perspective that it is disposed of, with:

a)      Minimal smell.

b)      Maximum discretion.

c)      Minimum exposure (no chance of people opening a bin lid to put something in).

d)      Maximum hygiene.

In the UK, sanitary waste is controlled and must be disposed of under stringent legislation. There is a duty for all businesses of all sizes and types of industry, to follow these legislations for the health, safety and benefit of their own employees, guests and customers. The legislation remains applicable even in the event of there being only one female present at the location.

Sanitary Disposal is governed by the following legislation:

• The Workplace (Health, Safety and Welfare) Regulation 1992, Regulation 21 – All companies are required to provide a suitable means for the disposal of sanitary dressings in ladies washrooms.
• Regulation 21 of the Workplace (Health, Safety & Welfare) Regulation 1992 – “In the case of water closets used by women, suitable means should be provided for the disposal of sanitary dressings”.
• The Water Industries Act 1991 – Before this law was passed, it was a popular trait to see sanitary waste flushed down the toilet. This is because disposal units were more commonly found in the shared washroom area – a trend that is hard to imagine in society today! – No sanitary dressings should be flushed that could have the potential to cause blockages within the sewer or drain or cause major plumbing problems. 
• The Duty of Care Regulations 1991 & The Environmental Protection Act 1990, Section 34 – Every piece of sanitary waste is managed to the point of disposal. It is a necessity that waste is carried by a licensed carrier with a valid carrier’s certificate and a complete audit trail of documentation must be available for viewing at all times. Failure to comply with these laws can lead to a large fine or imprisonment. 

These laws act as one way of ensuring that a suitable and hygienic method of sanitary waste disposal is available at all times to every female. In the UK and in more and more countries across Europe and Asia, the common practice for sanitary waste disposal provision is through a Sanitary Waste Disposal System and an antimicrobial liner or sanitising agent. (See our Femcare™ MVP Sanitary Disposal System & Femcare™ Antimicrobial Liners for more information). However, it remains an often awkward topic to discuss, especially between younger groups and in certain instances around the world, such as the USA, not all facilities cater for hygienic sanitary waste disposal methods.

In a study carried out in June 2013 of the USA’s approach and attitudes towards sanitary waste disposal, we found that the majority of women put their feminine waste in a waste bin somewhere in the restroom (In the U.S. our research found they either typically put feminine waste in a basic waste ‘receptacle’ – that’s often made from stainless steel – next to the toilet, in normal trash or simply flush it – we also found that at least 1% of the respondents would do something other than that!).

After a comparison was drawn between practices in the US and the UK and Europe, fewer women involved in the study were satisfied that their current method of waste disposal was the best, both in terms of the environment and hygiene. In fact, ALL of the women in this study who use waste units in the restroom said they would gladly use a sanitary disposal unit fitted with an odour control liner and placed next to the toilet (similar to those used in Europe).

Running parallel to these facts, interestingly, we found evidence in the study suggesting that although most women on the whole, were not embarrassed to discuss women’s health or hygiene, those that were, fell into a young adult age range. The research also found important information regarding women’s health – Most women would be more inclined to check themselves or arrange to see a doctor if they were reminded in a public restroom (In the UK, we have teamed up with The Eve Appeal Gynaecological Cancer Charity and on each Femcare™ sanitary disposal bin sold within the UK, we carry The Eve Appeal Logo – acting as a trigger to help raise awareness of the charity and quite possibly enhancing the likelihood of the female user of the bin looking out for the symptoms).

As you can see, the disposal of sanitary waste has far greater and much farther reaching consequences than simply just being there to contain feminine sanitary waste. Vectair Systems continually invest time and money into providing suitable methods of feminine waste disposal. The female visitor wants to dispose of her sanitary waste safely and subtly whilst it’s important for premises to provide them with a stylish means – Quite simply, a good looking and hygienic sanitary disposal unit can enhance a building or company’s reputation.

To you reading this blog it might sound like a waste of time, to us at Vectair Systems; we can assure you it’s certainly not just a load of rubbish and it matters to us!