County powerless to regulate medical waste

Art Nadler

Friday, March 27, 1998 | 10:06 a.m.

Even though the Clark County Board of Health doesn't have jurisdiction over approving permits for businesses that recycle medical waste, members strongly urged investigators Thursday to closely monitor these companies.

"The state Environmental Commission is suppose to be addressing recyclers," Dr. Otto Ravenholt, Clark County chief health officer, said. "There are 40 to 50 recycling stations in the community, and we don't issue them permits."

Ravenholt assured board members, several of whom seemed frustrated at being powerless, that once the state Environmental Commission sets guidelines for the newly emerging medical-waste recycling industry, that the board would be able to expand its enforcement powers.

Concerns arose this week over the removal of improperly buried medical waste in a 15,625-square-foot yard behind US EnviroMedical Corp. (US Med), 3890 Walnut St., in North Las Vegas. The company blamed the buried medical waste on a disgruntled employee and said it planned to remove the waste.

However, North Las Vegas Police served the company with four search warrants and seized the yard before US Med could finish excavation.

Late Thursday afternoon, attorneys for US Med filed a motion to unseal the affidavit and for the suppression of all matters seized pursuant to the search warrants issued on March 19.

A hearing has been scheduled for 8 a.m. Monday in Justice Court.

Ravenholt reiterated at the board meeting, as he did in news reports all week, that medical waste can legally be buried in Nevada without being treated.

Environmental Technologies of Nevada, a subsidiary of Silver State Disposal Service Inc., is a competitor with US Med for medical waste collection in Clark County. In spite of the conflict, police called in Environmental Technologies to do the excavation at US Med.

Silver State and US Med are currently suing and counter suing each other over alleged trash turf encroachments.

Environmental Technologies has refused to accept solid medical waste from US Med for deposit into its Apex landfill. The company contends that US Med doesn't treat the waste as required under federal regulations.

Ravenholt told board members that they could only become involved in recycling issues if stored medical waste is a nuisance, a public hazard or illegally dumped.

Because US Med buried the waste on its own property, Ravenholt said it is only guilty of improper dumping and would probably be fined.