The Code of Practice for Dental Operations is a regulation for managing waste materials generated by routine dental procedures. Dental offices operating in the City of Abbotsford are required to follow the Code of Practice.
Routine dental procedures can generate harmful waste materials such as dental amalgam, spent x-ray processing solutions, chemiclave solutions, disinfectants, cleaning agents, rinse solutions and pharmaceuticals. Although the volume of these materials discharged from individual dental offices may be small, the cumulative amount of waste from all dental offices within the Abbotsford/Mission service area has the potential to have a significant impact on the environment and solids waste recycling efforts.
Wastewater from dental offices may contain elevated concentrations of heavy metals such as mercury, silver, copper, tin and zinc. The sources of these metals include placement and removal of amalgam fillings (mercury, silver, copper, tin and zinc) and disposal of spent x-ray fixer solution (silver). Elevated levels of heavy metals discharged to the sanitary sewer system or to septic fields can pose a significant risk to the environment. If the heavy metals accumulate in the biosolids at the JAMES Treatment Plant, the options for reuse and recycling are limited. Heavy metals can also accumulate in septic fields and tanks resulting in restricting future land use and the landowner may be liable for clean-up costs.
By following the Code of Practice, dental offices will significantly reduce the amount of contaminants that end up at the JAMES Treatment Plant and eventually in the Fraser River.
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