Going Zero Waste Medicine Poulsbo, Kitsap County
/Here at NatureWorks Acupuncture and Chinese Medicine almost nothing goes to the landfill. As there is no way in modern Medicine to go without sterilized packaging, the carbon footprint of an Acupuncture Clinic is minimal. All Acupuncture supplies are produced and shipped in minimal efficient packaging with multiple components per package. All packaging for Acupuncture and Herbs is ultimately recyclable. Bottles for Herbal Prescriptions are sterilized and re-used many times. While used needles are considered a bio-hazard they could simply be melted down to become part of the metal recycling process in the future. The typical volume of needle waste of an average clinic is 1-2 Gal per year. An average Hospital produces 40 tons of medical waste a year (1). Although these statistics do not exist, Natureworks estimates that this equivalents to 4kg of waste per patient visit per year. This is compared to less than 1 gram of waste per patient visit per year at Natureworks.