C O M M O N W A S T E D O D O N ’ T

Mercury ContainingMaterials

• Place all mercury containing waste, in a wide-mouthed airtight container.

• Dispose of all mercury containing waste with a licensed service.

• Do not put mercury containing materials in the regular garbage, regulated medical waste “red bags” or in sharps containers for disposal.

• Do not flush amalgam waste down the drain or toilet.

• Do not mix with hazardous wastes.

X-Ray Waste• Fixer

• Lead Foil

• Aprons

• Developer*

• Use a hazardous waste hauler to dispose of your fixer, developer*, lead foils, shields and aprons.

• Label your used fixer container “Hazardous Waste – Used Fixer“ along with the date the fixer was first added to the container.

• Recycle used fixer through a reclamation facility, licensed to accept hazardous waste, or through a hazardous waste hauler.

• Do not mix fixer with the developer.*

• Do not dump developer* into a septic system, storm drain, dry well, or on the ground.

• Do not place in regular trash or regulated medical waste containers.

Regulated Medical Waste • Place all contaminated sharps waste in a puncture and leak resistant container that is labeled with the words“Sharps Waste” and the international biohazard symbol or the word “BIOHAZARD”.

• Label “red bag waste” with the words “BiohazardWaste” or the international BIOHAZARD symbol.

• Dispose of regulated medical waste using a licensed hauler for regulated medical waste.

• Do not place sharps directly into red bags.

• Do not overfill sharps containers.

• Do not place sharps containers or regulatedmedical waste in the regular garbage or

hazardous waste containers.

• Do not place regular trash or hazardous waste in regulated medical waste containers.

Pharmaceutical Waste• Expired Medication

• Empty Carpules

• Identify if you have pharmaceutical waste at your office.

• Inventory all pharmaceutical materials and determine if they are considered hazardous or non-hazardous (this is waste characterization).

• Dispose of all pharmaceutical waste properlybased on the waste characterization.

• Do not assume that all pharmaceuticals are non-hazardous.

• Dental Amalgam

• Extracted Teeth Containing DentalAmalgam

• Amalgam Capsules

• Dental Traps

• Thermometers

• Blood Pressure Cuffs

Stericycle, in conjunction

with the ADA, strongly

recommends recycling

as a best management

practice for dental offices.

• Sharps Waste

- needles

- syringes

- scalpels

- blades

• “Red-Bag Waste”

- gauze**

- bandages**

- gloves**

** Soaked with blood and/or other potentially infectious material.

* Follow local and state regulations for disposal of developer.