Too many masks: WHO cites glut of waste from COVID response

By JAMEY KEATEN
Associated Press

GENEVA (AP) — The World Health Organization says overuse of gloves and “moon suits” and the use of billions of masks and vaccination syringes to help prevent the spread of the coronavirus have spurred a huge glut of health care waste worldwide. The U.N. health agency reports that tens of thousands of tons of extra medical waste has strained waste management systems and is threatening both health and the environment. The agency pointed to a “dire need” to improve those systems and get a response from both governments and people.