Fact Sheets

Biological Waste collections are made once each week, on Tuesdays. Regulated Waste is liquid or semi-liquid blood or other potentially infectious materials; contaminated items that would release blood or other potentially infectious materials in a liquid or semi-liquid state if compressed; items that are caked with dried blood or other potentially infectious materials that are capable of releasing these materials during handling; contaminated sharps; and pathological and microbiological wastes containing blood or other potentially infectious materials. Biological waste may also be treated to remove the biological hazard by individual departments.

If you are unsure if your waste is considered regulated, please contact the Laboratory and Hazardous Waste Section of the Center for Environmental Health and Safety at biological@cehs.siu.edu or 618-453-7180.

To request a biological waste collection, please complete the Biological Pickup Request Form.

Call the Center for Environmental Health and Safety (CEHS) at 618-453-7180 to request a collection. Waste will be collected in less than five working days from the date we receive notification.

**Source: June 21, 1994 OSHA Standards Interpretation and Compliance Letters entitled "Applicability of 1910.1030 to establish human cell lines."**

As you know, the Bloodborne Pathogens standard (BPS) provides protection to employees who have occupational exposure to human blood or other potentially infectious materials (OPIM). Established human cell lines* which are characterized** to be free of contamination from human hepatitis viruses, human immunodeficiency viruses, and other recognized bloodborne pathogens, are not considered to be OPIM and are not covered by BPS. Established human or other animal cell lines which are known to be or likely infected/contaminated with human microbes or agents classed as bloodborne pathogens, especially hepatitis viruses and human immunodeficiency viruses are covered by the BPS. The final judgement for making the determination that human or other animal cell lines in culture are free of bloodborne pathogens must be made by a Bio-safety Professional or other qualified scientist with the background and experience to review such potential contamination and risk, in accordance with the requirements of the BPS. Documentation that such cell lines are not OPIM should be a matter of written record and on file with the employer for OSHA review.

All primary human cell explants from tissues and subsequent in vitro passages of human tissue explant cultures (human cell "strains" ***) must be regarded as containing potential bloodborne pathogens and should be handled in accordance with the BPS. Non-transformed, human cell "strains", characterized by documented, reasonable laboratory testing as described in the attachment, to be free of human immunodeficiency virus, hepatitis viruses, or other bloodborne pathogens may be exempted from the standard's requirements. However, if such tissue explants or subsequent cultures are derived from human subjects known to carry bloodborne pathogens, such as hepatitis viruses or human immunodeficiency viruses or are deliberately infected with bloodborne pathogens, they must be handled in accordance with the precautions noted in the BPS. Likewise, animal tissues, explants or cell cultures known to be contaminated by deliberate infection with human immunodeficiency virus or Hepatitis B virus are also subject to the BPS.

All laboratory work with primary human tissues or body fluids is covered by the BPS.

Definitions:

Human Cell Line*

A Human Cell Line is defined as in vitro or animal passaged (e.g., nude mouse) cultures or human cells that fulfill traditional requirements of a cell line designation. That is, the cells are immortalized cells, transformed by spontaneous mutation or natural or laboratory infection with an immortalizating agent such as Epstein-Barr virus (EBV). EBV is a bloodborne pathogen. It should be noted that human cervical carcinoma cells or other transformed human cell lines like HeLa cells are sometimes adulterated with laboratory pathogens accidentally introduced by cultivation with other cell cultures, or physically contaminated by other cell cultures handled in the same lab. In order to handle human HeLa cells, without having to comply with the requirements of the bloodborne pathogens standard (BPS), human HeLa cells should be documented to be pure HeLa cells and shown to be free of bloodborne pathogens by testing.

Characterization of Human Cells**

Characterization of human cells, for inclusion or exclusion from compliance with the BPS, would include screening of the cells lines or "strains" for viruses characterized as bloodborne pathogens by the Standard, including human immunodeficiency viruses, hepatitis viruses or EBV, if the cells are capable of propagating such viruses. Most cell lines are screened for human mycoplasmas and are free of bacterial and mycotic contaminants. Testing may include antigenic screening for viral or agent markers, co-cultivation with various indicator cells that allow contaminants to grow, or using molecular technology (polymerase chain reaction or nucleic acid hybridization) to identify latent viruses capable of infecting humans such as Herpesviruses(e.g., EBV), or papilloma members of the Papovavirus group, etc. Cell lines that are procured from commercial vendors or other sources with documented testing to be free of human bloodborne pathogens and which have been protected by the employer from environmental contamination may be excluded from the BPS.

Human Cell Strains***

Human cell strains are defined as cells propagated in vitro from primary explants of human tissue or body fluids which have finite lifetime (non-transformed) in tissue culture for 20-70 passages. Human cell "strains" must be handled as potential biohazards unless characterized by testing to be free of bloodborne pathogens (i.e., WI-38 cells are often so documented).

What is Potentially Infectious Medical Waste (PIMW)?

• Human blood and blood products (includes liquid human blood, products of blood, items saturated with blood, and items that were saturated with blood and are now caked with blood.)

• Cultures and stocks of agents infectious to humans, and associated biologicals; cultures from medical or pathological laboratories; cultures and stocks of infectious agents from research and industrial laboratories; wastes from the production of biologicals; discarded live or attenuated vaccines; or culture dishes and devices used to transfer, inoculate or mix cultures.

  • Animal waste including carcasses, body parts and bedding of animals that were known to have been exposed to infectious agents  during research.

• Items contaminated with blood from animals that were known to have been exposed to infectious agents  during research.

Who determines the PIMW definition?

The Illinois Environmental Protection Agency (IEPA) specifically regulates the packaging and disposal of PIMW waste and defines such waste through the Illinois Pollution Control Board. Specifically, PIMW rules are found in:

Title 35: Environmental Protection
Subtitle M: Biological Materials
Chapter I: Pollution Control Board
Subchapter Potentially Infectious Medical Waste

How does this apply to me as a biological waste generator?

As a generator, it is necessary to understand what items are and are not PIMW for two reasons.

First, it is necessary to segregate PIMW items and non-PIMW items for disposal through CEHS. The IEPA specifically regulates the packaging and disposal of PIMW waste and requires CEHS to report the amount of PIMW generated by the campus annually. Employees of CEHS are not able to identify PIMW waste by looking at it, so if generators do not segregate their waste, CEHS can not provide the IEPA with an accurate assessment of the amount of PIMW generated at SIUC.

Second, identifying what items are PIMW increases the level of safety for generators and CEHS employees who collect the waste, by giving them the ability to know what precautions to take in handling the waste and also giving them the ability to respond appropriately to a spill if such an incident should happen.

**Definition of an infectious agent: Any organism (such as a virus or bacteria) that is capable of being communicated by invasion and multiplication in body tissues and capable of causing disease or adverse health impacts in humans.**

CEHS is no longer offering the sharps exchange program to provide replacement sharps containers. However, we will still pick up your full sharps containers and properly dispose of them. Once a sharps container becomes full, a request for collection should be made using the CEHS Biological Pickup Request Form.

To request a biological waste collection, please complete the Biological Pickup Request Form.

The following items are classified as sharps and must be disposed of in a biohazard sharps puncture proof containers:

• Hypodermic, intravenous or other medical needles

• Hypodermic or intravenous syringes (with or without needles)

• Pasteur pipettes

• Scalpel and razor blades

• Blood vials (glass and plastic)

• Microscope slides and coverslips that have been in contact with infectious agents

• Other glassware contaminated with infectious agents

**Definition of an infectious agent: Any organism (such as a virus or bacteria) that is capable of being communicated by invasion and multiplication in body tissues and capable of causing disease or adverse health impacts in humans.**

The following items are not to be disposed of in biohazard sharps containers:

• Broken glass that has not been contaminated with infectious agents

• Petri plates (except glass petri plates contaminated with infectious agents)

• Glass or plastic non-pasteur pipettes (not contaminated with human tissue culture)

• Other miscellaneous biohazardous waste

Broken glass not contaminated with infectious agents can be disposed of in broken glass cardboard disposal containers. When those containers are full, close the top and seal with tape. Set the box out for custodians to collect, or dispose directly in a dumpster.