BCU: Facilities

Biocontainment Unit Tour

Waste Processing Services

The University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston provides medical waste processing services for the Galveston, League City, Clear Lake, and Angleton Danbury campuses, as well as off-site ambulatory clinics owned and operated by UTMB. UTMB is the owner of a Type V Medical Waste Incinerator and Autoclave Facility and employs contract municipal solid waste operators. All hospital, medical, and infectious (HMI) waste generated at UTMB is processed on-site.

UTMB is authorized by Municipal Solid Waste Permit No. 2232A from the State of Texas. Permitted medical waste processing includes the use of an incinerator and an autoclave with shredder to render waste non-infectious prior to final disposal at an approved municipal solid waste landfill. The incinerator system provided for this facility is designed to process mixed medical waste at a rate of 525 lb/hr. The autoclave used for sterilization of red bag waste can process at a rate of 1,200 lb/hr.

Medical waste facility totals from April 2021 to April 2022 for incinerated and autoclaved waste was 299,621 pounds and 397,380 pounds, respectively.


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