Covid: Cornwall hospital recycles 'tonne' of masks and PPE each month

The hospital gets through about 10,000 masks a day

A hospital says it is recycling nearly a tonne of used surgical masks and PPE every month.

The waste from the Royal Cornwall Hospital in Truro is melted into plastic blocks which can be made into bins and other items.

The hospital trust gets through about 10,000 masks a day at its three sites.

Recycling machines are also being rolled out at St Michael's Hospital in Hayle and West Cornwall Hospital in Penzance.

The waste is melted into plastic blocks which can be made into bins, bottles and other items

The recycling machine was introduced at the Royal Cornwall Hospital last December by general manager Roz Davies.

"We hope this will be a real game-changer in the way we tackle single-use PPE, not only for us here in Cornwall but across the UK and beyond," she said.

"The use of masks has grown extraordinarily, but now we have the option to recycle them, as well as other items such as theatre wraps and gowns that would previously have been transported out of Cornwall for specialist incineration."

Bins are among the items produced from the blocks of plastic

The waste PPE and masks, without their ear loops, are turned into blocks of plastic by recycling machinery manufacturer, Thermal Compaction Group (TCG).

The blocks are sent to firms like Hull-based ReWorked to create new items, including bins and building materials.

The high temperature of the melting process sterilises the plastic waste, TCG said.

Ms Davies said she had been talking to the Environment Agency about expanding the scheme to other hospitals around the country.

"It's amazing, we can do it here in Cornwall and we really hope other hospitals see what we are doing and follow suit," she said.