Biohazardous Waste

Laboratory personnel and principal investigators (PIs) are responsible for identifying, packaging and properly decontaminating biohazardous waste, including all recombinant or synthetic DNA/RNA waste, before disposal. Procedures to identify, package, transport and decontaminate biohazardous waste are detailed below. For site-specific information, see Biohazardous Waste Flow Charts.

What is biohazardous waste?

The following materials are defined as biohazardous or biomedical waste:

Sharps waste
Human and nonhuman primate blood, tissue, body fluids and cell lines
Cultures or stocks of pathogenic agents, including bacteria, rickettsia, fungi, viruses, protozoa, parasites, prions and select agents
Recombinant or synthetic nucleic acids (recDNA), including waste products from procedures involving plasmids, viral vectors, E.coli, yeasts and naked nucleic acids
Laboratory waste items (i.e., used PPE, culture dishes, tubes) that have come into contact with a biohazard
Animal waste, carcasses and body parts that have been exposed to recDNA or any biohazard
Human pathological waste
Plant waste, including all transgenic plants, seeds, spores, plant debris and soil materials, and any plants exposed to plant pathogens

Package Biohazardous Waste

Transport Biohazardous Waste

Decontaminate Biohazardous Waste

If you have access to an autoclave, you can treat and dispose of biohazardous waste yourself. Steam sterilization with an autoclave effectively inactivates most infectious agents. Seattle-King County regulations apply to autoclaves that treat biohazardous waste. All autoclave operators must be trained on safety information and site-specific procedures. Watch Arizona State University's excellent autoclave training video. Then use the autoclave tools developed by EH&S to keep you safe and compliant:

The only chemical integrators approved for use by the Seattle-King County Health Department are listed below and are available for purchase from Fisher Scientific or other lab supply vendors.

3M Comply Thermalog or Thermalog-S
Steriscan
3M Attest Steam Integrator 1243A
3M Attest Steam Integrator 1243B
Steris VERIFY™ STEAM Integrating Indicator
Crosstex STEAMPlus™ Class 5 Sterilization Integrator
3M Comply SteriGage (no longer manufactured but existing integrators can be used prior to expiration)

Depending on your location, you can pay an autoclave cost center to treat and dispose of biohazardous waste. Autoclave cost centers charge a fee for autoclaving and disposal of waste. Each center has its own rules and procedures. Contact them directly for more information. Autoclave cost centers include:

Laboratory Services at Magnuson Health Sciences Center
Laboratory Services at South Lake Union (UW NetID log-in required)

If you do not have access to an on-site autoclave or an autoclave cost center, biohazardous waste can be collected by a UW waste contractor for off-site treatment and disposal. EH&S Shipping Regulated Medical Waste Training is required for all personnel who will package and ship waste, and you can contact EH&S Biological Safety for questions about practices for shipping waste. You can set up an account with a UW waste contractor via the Laboratory Services in Health Sciences Academic Services and Facilities website as they manage the UW accounts.

Shipping for off-site treatment and disposal is required for some types of waste, such as trace chemo waste, certain pathological waste, and biosafety level 3 (BSL-3) animal carcasses, tissues and bedding. These wastes require incineration prior to disposal.

Liquid biohazardous waste must be treated before disposal via sanitary sewer and cannot be disposed of as solid waste. Use the following protocol to treat any free-flowing liquid biohazardous waste:

Collect in leak-proof, rigid containers labeled with a biohazard symbol.
If transporting, close and seal containers, and place in a leak-proof secondary container.
Add chlorine bleach to equal a final concentration of 10 percent bleach.
Let the solution sit for at least 30 minutes before disposing via the sewer.

If liquid waste volumes equal or exceed 10 liters, contact EH&S at 206-221-7770.

Incineration or cremation is required for human pathological waste and nonhuman primate carcasses and body parts. Make disposal arrangements before obtaining human or nonhuman primate pathological samples. Do not dispose of pathological waste with other biohazardous wastes. The UW Medicine Willed Body Program can provide guidance on items that may require interment or cremation.

For human pathological waste, arrange for off-site incineration. Refer to "Off-site sterilization" above.
For extracted teeth, arrange for off-site incineration. Refer to "Off-site sterilization" above. If extracted teeth contain amalgam, contact EH&S at 206-616-5835 to arrange for off-site treatment.
For nonhuman primate pathological waste, contact the Washington National Primate Research Center (WaNPRC) at 206-543-8686.

Site-specific information

Refer to Biohazardous Waste Flow Charts for site-specific information.

What you can do to stay safe

Be familiar with the different types of biohazardous waste and their packaging and disposal methods.
Plan for disposal before generating biohazardous waste.
Follow all of the autoclave safety and monitoring requirements and provide training to all autoclave operators.
Follow the biohazard transport policy when transporting biohazardous waste.

Services available

EH&S biosafety officers can assist with training, consultation and help with any biosafety questions. If you plan to generate mixed waste (i.e., biohazardous and radioactive), please contact EH&S first.