Life cycle assessment of the healthcare plastic waste management in Finland, a case study: HUS Meilahti hospital area

Healthcare plastic waste (HCPW) presents significant environmental and public health challenges, due to rising plastic consumption in medical facilities and regulatory demands for sustainable management. This study investigates recycling optimization within Finnish hospital waste systems, focusing on environmental impacts of mechanical and chemical recycling, and thermal energy recovery through incineration, to identify sustainable HCPW management strategies. A life cycle assessment (LCA) was conducted to examine the management of 390 tons of healthcare plastic waste generated in 2024 at the Meilahti unit of Helsinki University Hospital (HUS). Five scenarios were compared: baseline practice, advanced waste separation and mechanical recycling (ASMR) with either autoclave or chemical disinfection scenarios, and these enhanced systems combined with pyrolysis of rejected material (PRM) scenarios. Environmental impacts assessed included global warming potential (GWP), acidification potential (AP), eutrophication potential (EP), and abiotic resource depletion (ADP). Baseline GWP (1.95 t CO 2 -eq/t) was reduced by 42% under the ASMR scenarios (1.13 t CO 2 -eq/t), and by 77% with PRM scenarios (0.43 t CO 2 -eq/t). For AP and EP PRM with Chemical disinfection was the best scenario. While ASMR and PRM reduced some ADP benefits from energy recovery. Chemical disinfection had about 70% lower GWP and ADP compared to autoclaving. In Finland, the most sustainable approach for managing HCPW involves ASMR Chemical disinfection, supplemented by chemical recycling of the rejected mixed plastics. This integrated strategy significantly reduces GWP, AP and EP and supports the EU’s circular economy goals, offering improved healthcare waste system.