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Dubai Municipality and ETA Group sign agreement to build UAE's largest incinerator for medical waste.

 
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12 Sep 2007

Dubai Municipality and Zenath Group, the recycling and waste management arm of ETA Star Group, have signed an agreement to build UAE's largest and first vertical medical incinerator plant for safe treatment of medical waste.

Hussain Nasser Lootah, Acting Director General of Dubai Municipality, said the management of medical wastes is one of the challenging tasks that accompany the growth and development of a progressive metropolis.

"Dubai is no exception as it is experiencing a steady increase in the quantity of medical waste due to population growth and the subsequent increase in the number of medical and healthcare facilities, not only in the urban areas but in rural areas as well. These wastes require proper treatment, destruction and disposal," he said.

Mr. Lootah noted that the civic body handled 1188 tons of medical waste in 2006 compared to 579 tons in 2002. By 2017, this quantity is estimated to reach 4,030 tons, especially with the full-scale functioning of facilities like the Dubai Health Care City which will have 9 hospitals with about 1,100 beds, in addition to some 300 health care operators by 2008.

Example of a waste incinerator with modern architecture built on the Isle of Man.
Example of a waste incinerator with modern architecture built on the Isle of Man.

At present, all medical wastes generated in Dubai are treated and disposed of at the Jebel Ali Medical Waste Treatment Facility. Since 2001, the facility has been using a medical waste incinerator with a throughput capacity of 500 kg/hr.

'The main objective of this project is to ensure a clean and healthy environment in the Emirate by providing appropriate and state-of-the-art facilities for the treatment and disposal of medical wastes. At Dubai Municipality, it has always been our policy to join hands with the private sector in serving the society better. We are pleased that the ETA Star Group has come forward to set up this facility,"vsaid Mr. Lootah.

Elaborating on the significance of the agreement to environmental safety and public health in UAE, Syed M. Salahuddin, Chairman, ETA Star Group, said: 'As a UAE-based corporate group, ETA Star has always been in the forefront of efforts to raise the level of environmental consciousness in the country. Therefore, it is matter of great pleasure for us to have been awarded this contract. This is the first vertical incinerator being installed in the region and will go a long way in further improving hygienic and public health standards in Dubai. This will be of tremendous advantage to the healthcare industry in particular and the public in general.'

J.S.A. Bukhari, Executive Director, Zenath Group, pointed out that the contract was awarded after the group successfully met all the stringent quality standards laid down by the Dubai Municipality. 'Our parent company, ETA star, has tied up with Mitsubishi Corporation and Plantec Corporation of Japan to obtain the vertical incineration technology, which has a reputation for superior efficiency and effective treatment of infectious waste,' he added.

Medical waste is hard to treat since they contain infectious microbes and vary in calorific value. Plantec Corporation devised the technology for treating such material through the use of vertical incinerators, which remained the best method of treatment for medical waste. This technology was first incorporated in Japan and has been successfully used over the last 15 years.

ETA is expecting more demand for similar incinerators from other emirates and is keen to promote this technology for the entire GCC.

Dubai Municipality had signed in March this year a similar agreement with Al Rostamani Group to set up a Dhs65 million facility dedicated to the recycling and recovery of the city's construction and demolition (C&D) waste, under the name Emirate Recycling LLC.



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