Chemical waste

Chemical waste is any excess, unused, or unwanted chemical. Globally, there are about 350,000 officially registered chemicals. Of those, about 7,000 are designed to have biological activity: roughly 4,000 pesticides and 3,000 pharmaceuticals. Around 300,000 industrial chemicals are not designed for a biological activity, but may still have biological effects.

Chemical waste may be classified as hazardous waste, non-hazardous waste, universal waste, or household hazardous waste, each of which is regulated separately by national governments and the United Nations. Hazardous waste is material that displays one or more of the following four characteristics: ignitability, corrosivity, reactivity, and toxicity. This information, along with chemical disposal requirements, is typically available on a chemical's Safety Data Sheet (SDS). Radioactive and biohazardous wastes require additional or different methods of handling and disposal, and are often regulated differently than standard hazardous wastes.

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