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Mask Eco-Disposal: How to Dispose of Antiviral Wear

Eco-Friendly Antiviral Mask

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Discarded face masks and gloves littering streets, beaches, parks and parking lots are a sad sight of the times, creating eyesores and more importantly, major contamination risks to pick up and discard. With 88 percent of the world’s population living in countries that have required or advised use of face coverings, disposable face masks number in the billions, especially the commonplace, single-use polypropylene variety. Along with disposable gloves and sanitary wipes, they are clogging sewers and waterways worldwide and showing up in fish bellies and on ocean floors.


What Not to Recycle


Recycling, the go-to strategy for environmentally conscious citizens, is unfortunately not a good option. Even in ordinary times, local recyclers won’t accept surgical masks and latex gloves because they jam machinery. Some dedicated providers box up used face masks and gloves and send them to TerraCycle, where they are sorted manually and sustainably recycled. The cost for a small box is a hefty $148; mindbodygreen suggests asking grocery stores or retailers to stock some for the community to use.

Instead of recycling, the World Health Organization recommends throwing single-use masks, gloves and wipes into a covered trash can or bin immediately after use so they are handled as regular trash. Ideally, they should be put in a resealable plastic bag first in consideration of frontline sanitation workers that can become ill from handling virus-infected materials. No mask, glove or wipe should be flushed down a toilet.

Homemade Solutions

For masks, the eco-solution that harbors the lowest carbon dioxide footprint is one made of cloth that is machine-washed and dried after each use at a high temperature or washed by hand in a bleach solution (five tablespoons per gallon of water). University of Chicago researchers found certain fabrics filter out viral aerosol particles almost as effectively as the medical N-95 mask: a layer of a tightly woven cotton sheet combined with two layers of polyester-spandex chiffon, natural silk or flannel, or simply a cotton quilt with cotton-polyester batting. See the Centers for Disease Control and Preventions's (CDC) instructions for using sew and no-sew masks, and many DIY videos can be found on YouTube using T-shirts, socks and napkins.

Another good eco-strategy is to buy sustainable face masks made from recycled or organic materials. In lieu of recycling to help the planet, a donation can be made to an eco-organization that deals with plastic waste, such as Plastic Pollution Coalition or Ocean Conservancy.
Tick Talk

Spring officially sprung on March 21. We have turned our clocks ahead. We are looking forward to warm winds, sunny skies and the smell of fresh cut grass. The daffodils and tulips have recently bloomed and we are just starting with the yard work that comes with the warmer weather.  Sadly, another season has started ramping up.  Tick season.

•             The best form of protection is prevention. Educating oneself about tick activity and how our behaviors overlap with tick habitats is the first step.

•             According to the NJ DOH, in 2022 Hunterdon County led the state with a Lyme disease incidence rate of 426 cases per 100,000 people. The fact is ticks spend approximately 90% of their lives not on a host but aggressively searching for one, molting to their next stage or over-wintering. This is why a tick remediation program should be implemented on school grounds where NJ DOH deems high risk for tick exposure and subsequent attachment to human hosts.

•             Governor Murphy has signed a bill that mandates tick education in NJ public schools. See this for the details.  Tick education must now be incorporated into K-12 school curriculum. See link:

https://www.nj.gov/education/broadcasts/2023/sept/27/TicksandTick-BorneIllnessEducation.pdf

•             May is a great month to remind the public that tick activity is in full swing. In New Jersey, there are many tickborne diseases that affect residents, including Anaplasmosis, Babesiosis, Ehrlichiosis, Lyme disease, Powassan, and Spotted Fever Group Rickettsiosis.

•             For years, the focus has mainly been about protecting ourselves from Lyme disease. But other tick-borne diseases are on the rise in Central Jersey. An increase of incidence of Babesia and Anaplasma are sidelining people too. These two pathogens are scary because they effect our blood cells. Babesia affects the red blood cells and Anaplasma effects the white blood cells.

•             Ticks can be infected with more than one pathogen. When you contract Lyme it is possible to contract more than just that one disease. This is called a co-infection. It is super important to pay attention to your symptoms. See link.

https://twp.freehold.nj.us/480/Disease-Co-Infection

A good resource from the State:

https://www.nj.gov/health/cd/topics/tickborne.shtml

 

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