Pakistan, July 22 -- The discovery of used syringes, blood-stained test tubes, laboratory vials and broken medical material along the Swat River in Charsadda is yet another sign that a potentially infectious waste stream has escaped the controls meant to follow it from the laboratory bench to safe treatment and disposal. The site is reportedly frequented by families and children.

Residents also fear that rain or flooding could carry the refuse into the river. These concerns demand urgent investigation, though water contamination and the responsibility of any particular laboratory have yet to be established.

The public-health risk cannot be minimised. WHO estimates that while roughly 85 per cent of healthcare waste is non-hazardous, the ...