WasteRec Services and its vital Waste Industry Customers as “Essential Critical Infrastructure” Industry Employer
 
 
WasteRec Services provides essential labor and services its vital Waste Industry Customer’s needs who handle manufacture, technical, material collections, and field service of their businesses that supports the waste removal industry, deemed a critical infrastructure industry as defined by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security Memorandum on Identification of Essential Critical Infrastructure Workers During COVID-19 Response memo, dated March 19, 2020, which states, “If you work in a critical infrastructure industry, as defined by the Department of Homeland Security,…you have a special responsibility to maintain your normal work schedule.”

Specifically, WasteRec Services maintains a full time employee labor staff of over 200 W-2 full time employees in our pool of labor services staged and working at various locations throughout the country. At any time, there are between twelve to twenty active projects/contracts running continuously throughout the United States.  This vital support to our customers throughout the Waste Industry is crucial to the on-going waste and recycling materials removal, product manufacturers, industry support, and technical services.
 
The relevant section of the memo identifying WasteRec Services and its customers as “essential” include:  
Support to ensure the effective removal, storage, and disposal of residential and commercial solid waste and hazardous waste. 
As an essential contractor to our critical industry, WasteRec Services will be operating under the full courtesies afforded under the guidance of the referenced U.S. Department of Homeland Security memo. 

Executive Summary
 
COVID-19 has been declared a Pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO) and a Public Health Emergency (PHE) by the U.S. Government. A pandemic, as defined by the WHO, is a worldwide spread of a new disease; occurring over a wide geographic area and affecting an exceptionally high proportion of the population. Current evidence shows that the virus infects others at a higher rate than influenza and has higher rates of hospitalization and death when compared to influenza. U.S. citizens, including Veterans and healthcare personnel are at risk for COVID-19 infection. 
The primary goal of the operations plan is to protect WasteRec staff from acquiring COVID-19 infection. 
Situation
Background
A pneumonia of unknown cause detected in Wuhan, China was first reported to the World Health Organization (WHO) Country Office in China on 31 December 2019. The virus was later named “SARS-CoV-2” and the disease it causes named “coronavirus disease 2019” (abbreviated “COVID-19”). 
On January 30, 2020, the International Health Regulations Emergency Committee of the WHO declared the outbreak a “Public Health Emergency of International Concern (PHEIC). On January 31, 2020, HHS Secretary Alex M. Azar II declared a PHE for the United States to aid the U.S. healthcare community in responding to COVID-19. On March 11, 2020 WHO publicly characterized COVID-19 as a pandemic. 
Planning Assumptions 
The focus of WasteRec’s preparedness model has been to maintain an “all hazards” core response capability throughout its service areas.
The following generalized assumptions specific to COVID-19 include: 

• Efficient and sustained person-to-person transmission that is documented by authoritative U.S. and international scientists and that occurs anywhere in the world will indicate an imminent pandemic. 
• Susceptibility to the virus may be universal. 
• Illness rates may be highest among the elderly (65 years of age and older). 
• Some persons will become infected but may not develop clinically significant symptoms, i.e., they will not be aware that they have been infected with the COVID- 19 virus for 14 days. 
• As would symptomatic individuals, persons who have COVID-19 with little to no symptoms may be capable of transmitting infection. 
• Most estimates of the incubation period for COVID-19 range from 1-14 days. Recent work reports the median incubation period to first symptoms to be 5.1 days.

​COVID 19
 Maintain PPE & Follow all Guidelines
 
WasteRec Services, is always concerned about the health and safety of our customers, community, and our employees. With the current threat of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), we are taking the precautionary steps in response to the latest information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) and Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration (FMCSA).
 
Proper sanitation guidelines and respiratory etiquette has been reviewed with staff, along with access to hand sanitizer and gloves, and deemed PPE items. Our technicians follow a thorough cleaning regime for equipment on site and we will continue to stay fluid and flexible to adapt to any future Federal recommendations.
 
We are to practice social distancing for all delivery, pickup, and servicing.  We are to limit social interactions with our other technicians, residents and customers.  Regular COVID-19 PPE supplies will be shipped to the field, as needed.  All employees are also empowered to purchase, obtain, and stock as needed.  Immediate reimbursement will apply for anything purchased with personal means.  This continues to be encouraged due to supply shortfalls, availability and back orders.
 
We will continue to monitor this daily for any additional recommendations or changes from the CDC and other Federal and State Health Authorities.


Trucks/Drivers/Techs
Best Practices / Guidance – CDC, and Physicians Recommendations
 
The COVID-19 Pandemic - Physicians everywhere are warning people that a key battle against COVID-19 is won by washing your hands, not touching your face, and sanitizing surfaces you’re in contact with. At WasteRec we spend a good amount of time in our trucks, it is essential they keep yourselves safe
 
The first step to keeping yourself safe is to get into the habit of washing or sanitizing your hands on a regular basis. The goal is to turn this into a normal routine/habit so you reduce your risk without a second thought. Additionally, refraining from touching your eyes and mouth (even if with clean hands) will help you avoid infection. While there is no guarantee of prevention, it limits your risk. 
 
HOW COVID-19 IS SPREAD
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says the virus is mainly spread person-to-person via respiratory droplets from sneezing, coughing, and talking. This means the virus can be caught while being in close contact with other people. Because of this, the CDC recommends distancing yourself 6 feet away from people in public and avoiding going out in general.
 
It is also possible to catch COVID-19 via particles remaining on surfaces or objects that then come in contact with your nose, mouth, or eyes. This is why it is recommended to avoid face touching and to wash your hands often. While the CDC says catching the virus from a contaminated surface is possible, the main transmission of the virus is done by person-to-person infection. 
 
COVID-19 ON SURFACES
There is evidence that the viral particles do remain on certain surfaces for up to 3 days. According to some sources and medical professionals, the virus can survive on porous surfaces like cardboard for as long as 24 hours. Plastic, steel, and glass have numbers in the 48-72 hour range.
 
The facts are unconfirmed by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and there is also no way to be sure that surfaces have come in contact with the virus. The safest bet would be to act as if anything you touch could possibly be infected. This means you should wash your hands and wipe down truck surfaces anytime a new object has been introduced into your environment. Make sure to pay extra attention to things like your doorknob, phone screen, ATM keypads, or even the dash, steering wheel, etc.
 
WHAT TO CLEAN WITH
CDC recommends spray disinfectant, soap, and hand sanitizer, as we’ve supplied and/or as directed immediate purchase with reimbursement in place. When it comes to surfaces, bleach or alcohol substance will work best for wiping them down. If that is not available to you, you can use hot soapy water too.
It doesn’t hurt to be overly cautious. You may feel like you are being paranoid but it’s essential for our essential line of work. 
 
HOW TO CLEAN OUR TRUCKS
When you get into your truck, make sure you wipe down any and down all the surfaces you might touch with either spray disinfectant or soapy water. This means you want to give yourself extra time in your schedule to get this done. The extra 5-10 minutes is worth the effort. 
 
Areas you will want to focus on would be your door handles, steering wheel, your dash, any and all buttons in your truck, and your glass windows. Take extra care in cleaning if there are multiple people accessing the vehicle.
 
Additionally, any cloth material like clothes, jackets, etc. should be washed regularly. Make sure you wash your laundry bag along with your clothes as it comes in contact with dirty surfaces. Use hot water instead of cold while washing. 
 
The CDC also is advising against shaking any dirty linens or laundry as it may be possible to disperse the virus through the air this way. Furthermore, take extra care to throw way any plastics or garbage bags used to hold dirty clothes.
Keep your truck clean by throwing away any food containers, specifically paper fast food bags, as soon as you can. This could mean storing them in a separate plastic garbage bag away from you until you can reach a dumpster. 
 
ELECTRONIC CLEANING
Make sure you wipe down the surfaces of your phone, tablet, keyboard, or any electronic item you are in contact with often. To prevent damage, follow the manufactures instructions for cleaning. 
 
If you cannot find any information on the proper cleaning procedure, wipe the object down thoroughly with a disinfectant containing at least 70% alcohol. Avoid putting liquid directly onto your devices at risk of damage. This means you probably don’t want to dunk your iPhone into a bowl of soapy water to disinfect it.
Lastly, wash your hands thoroughly after you’re finished with everything.
 
FOR OUR TECHNICIANS
The CDC is unsure how long COVID-19 particles stay airborne. Despite that, there is reason to believe someone else’s items could possibly be a dangerous place to be around. Since the main transmission of the virus is through respiratory particles, it is important that techs keep themselves safe, as well. Leaving doors and windows open while working, driving, etc. with the truck is a good idea to limit your risk. 
 
To be safe, all techs should follow the same cleaning protocol advised in this outline. This means regular hand washing, not touching your face, wiping down surfaces you will be touching, and wearing protective gear if possible/available. They also should make sure to wash their hands after the job/day is complete, and immediately shower at our hotels. 
 
PUBLIC SPACES
The place where you are going to be at the most risk is in public spaces. You should assume all surfaces could possibly be contaminated with COVID-19. Limit contact with objects whenever possible and wash your hands once you are done. 
 
The best thing you can do to keep yourself healthy is to keep your distance from others. Be sure to maintain a 6-foot distance between yourself and others around you.
While these suggestions may seem overly cautious, it is in the interest of your health and the overall public’s health to take this very seriously. As long as you take the necessary precautions by washing your hands, not touching your face, and maintaining a safe distance from others, you’re putting in a great effort to keep yourself healthy.
 
Additionally, keep others safe by coughing or sneezing into your arm/covering your mouth. If you feel sick with a fever or cough, avoid contact with the public or wear a mask, if possible and/or you such desire. 
 
If we all do our part in practicing safe techniques, we can help limit a massive jump in new COVID-19 cases and save lives. Wash your hands, social distance, and stay safe out there.