An important part of SWM in humanitarian settings is health care waste management (HCWM). This refers to the safe handling and disposal of any medical waste (such as syringes and dressings) generated within health structures such as hospitals, nutritional feeding centres and temporary vaccination sites. 

The management of solid waste needs to be regulated by the government. The separation of waste streams at the household level is necessary to achieve high levels of recycling and re-use. The collection and disposal of solid waste is usually a municipal responsibility, although usually - where it exists - this service is restricted to the removal of un-separated solid waste to a local landfill. Uncollected solid waste can accumulate in streets or other public spaces and become a source of pollution and a breeding ground for vectors. Residents sometimes set it on fire, creating a fire hazard and the release of toxic chemicals into the environment, polluting air, earth and groundwater. Poor SWM services can create severe health risks and environmental pollution. Waste management in humanitarian contexts requires close collaboration with the community, municipal and health authorities. Municipal humanitarian SWM interventions should prioritise community-based sustainable outcomes using a circular economy approach, reducing waste and pollution and increasing recycling. Waste that must be transported for final disposal or storage should be minimised and disposed of in a sanitary landfill that prevents groundwater pollution and access to vectors. Organic waste makes up a considerable amount of the total solid waste; it can be separated, collected and recycled into value products (e.g. compost), used as an energy or food source for insect larvae, which can then be used as fish or poultry food. The balance of waste consists of plastics, paper, metals and textiles. Recycling possibilities for these dry waste streams exist but are context-specific. Cost recovery aspects of SWM should be considered to ensure sustainability. 

HCWM is critical to prevent the spreading of diseases, for example, from contaminated waste during epidemics such as Ebola, cholera and COVID-19. During epidemics, personal protective equipment (PPE) must to be provided for staff working in HCWM; however, as a result the volume of single-use PPE may substantially increase. Contaminated waste must be correctly treated to prevent a threat to the health and sanitation personnel in health facilities and the public in neighbouring or local communities. Health care waste should be separated at source, collected, treated and safely destroyed in centralised specialised incinerators. Regulations on HCWM are set nationally and vary from country to 

country, e.g. in some countries, low tech, high-temperature, decentralised medical waste incinerators are permitted, but in others not. National regulations will also cover the separation of waste at the point of production.  

Sanitation workers rarely get recognition for their work, are often badly paid and, as a result, may be unmotivated. To motivate staff it can be useful, with the agreement of the authorities or hospital/clinic department in charge of cleaning, to set up a ‘WASH’ department within health care facilities and provide training in various WASH and infection prevention and control disciplines for health care sanitation staff. 

Vector control is any method to limit or eradicate the mammals, birds, insects or other arthropods which transmit disease pathogens. Vectors are disease-carrying living organisms that transport a disease from human to human or from animal to human. Vectors account for more than 17% of all infectious diseases globally, causing more than 700,000 deaths annually. The most common types of vector are different blood-sucking insects that transmit the disease by transporting the disease-carrying microorganism from one host to another. The most common vector-borne diseases are malaria (spread through Anopheline mosquitoes), dengue (spread through Aedes mosquitoes) and leishmaniasis (spread through sandflies). Pools of standing water, due to poor drainage of grey and rainwater, are breeding grounds for mosquitoes. There is a strong link between liquid and solid wastes and diseases spread by vectors. Open defecation or poor excreta management increases the transmission of faeco-oral diseases such as cholera due to the presence of flies contaminating food. Inadequate SWM leads to the proliferation of disease-carrying vectors such as rats and sand flies. Solid waste such as plastic bags can also block drainage and lead to stagnant pools of water. Hygiene messaging and information sharing should make residents aware of possible vector-borne diseases. The humanitarian response must ensure that individuals, communities and local governments have the correct tools and resources to determine sources and reduce or eliminate possible infections.  

Sphere provides a list of standards and indicators for SWM, HCWM and vector control.