Monument Health Medical Waste Treatment Case Study

Monument Health is an integrated healthcare system that generates approximately 2.2 million pounds of waste per year*.

Since their 2020 installment of Clean Waste Systems’ groundbreaking ozone medical waste treatment system, the OMW-1000, approximately 6.9 million pounds of medical waste has been treated using the system’s clean, safe, and sustainable ozone sterilization process.

Prior to implementing the OMW-1000, Monument contracted a third-party vendor to haul away and treat its medical waste. The third-party facility in question used an autoclave to treat medical waste and did not shred waste prior to processing. The healthcare system’s personnel would store, box, and load their waste into semi-trucks for shipment to their vendor’s facility in Frederick, Colorado, about 374 miles from where the waste originated in Rapid City, South Dakota. Each semi-truck held approximately 520 cardboard waste containers, each of which included an additional liner in order to meet DOT requirements. Monument shipped three semi-truck loads of waste containers per week to the third-party processor. 

* Monument also participates in a ‘recyclable sharps’ program; this waste was not included in calculations for this case study.

The Clean Waste team was instrumental in ensuring a smooth implementation.

"Before partnering with Clean Waste Systems, our organization faced significant challenges in managing regulated medical waste, often leading to conflicts with city authorities. Our OMW1000 system changed everything, allowing us to handle all kinds of waste efficiently and it reduced our waste volume by 90%. The Clean Waste team was instrumental in ensuring a smooth implementation, quickly addressing initial operational challenges to get us up and running effectively. This partnership not only enhanced our waste management but also played a crucial role in helping us to better achieve our sustainability goals, reducing greenhouse gas emissions substantially compared to our previous processes."

Dave Ellenbecker

VP, Facilities Management

Monument Health

Benefits of Ozone Waste Treatment: Monument Health Case Study 

Since January 2020, Monument has been processing and treating waste on-site, using Crothall to operate and maintain the OMW-1000. By implementing the OMW-1000 on-site, Monument has achieved the following operational benefits:

• Eliminated the costs, liability, and environmental impact of 150+ semi-trucks/year traveling across state lines to transport waste. 
• Eliminated the costs, including that of labor, and environmental impact of lining, filling and labeling 520 cardboard waste boxes/per semi-truck load.
• Reduced liability by processing waste in-house, eliminating multiple unnecessary instances of waste handling.
• The OMW-1000’s process includes thorough waste shredding, which further reduces liability and reduces the volume of waste deposited in landfills by up to 80%.
  

Facts & Figures: Monument Health Case Study 

• Since implementation of the OMW-1000 system in 2020, Monument has reduced their GHG emissions by approximately 15,502,173.1 kg of CO2e annually, or 48,620,451.64 kg over the last 3.5 years, delivering a 76% reduction in emissions.
  
• This includes miles traveled to a third-party processing facility, electrical and/or energy usage, and water consumption in contrast to their previous use of third-party autoclave processing.
  
• Monument eliminated approximately 81,120 boxes of extra cardboard waste deposited in landfills annually, or 283,920 cardboard boxes and liners over the last 3.5 years.
  
• Approximate weight of cardboard boxes and liners: 171,172 lbs. annually or 599,102 lbs. over the last 3.5 years.
  
• Monument reduced the cubic volume of waste deposited in landfills by up to 73% via waste shredding.
  
• Monument recycled approximately 405,600 lbs. of cardboard annually or 1,419,600 lbs. over the last 3.5 years.
  
• Average of 12 bales weighing 650 lbs/bale recycled per week.
  
• By implementing the OWM-1000, Monument is leveraging a natural method of medical waste treatment via ozone.
• Zero emissions, zero effluent, reduction in carbon footprint – a simple, safe, and sustainable process.
  

Estimated GHG Reduction Since OMW-1000 Implementation with Comparison - Detailed Breakdown

Estimated GHG Reduction Since OMW-1000 Implementation with Comparison

Visual Comparison - Autoclaved Waste Volume vs. OMW-1000 Waste Volume