Our Commitment to Environmental Sustainability

Stericycle is committed to protecting the health and well-being of the people and places around us safely, responsibly, and sustainably.

Stericycle Global Environmental Sustainability Highlights

At Stericycle, we deliver solutions and drive innovations that protect the environment, people, and public health. We do business the right way, not just the easy way. This includes working to create a more sustainable, shared future. Our innovative solutions make a difference in people’s lives, communities, and our planet by protecting their health and well-being. Learn more in our Corporate Social Responsibility Overview.

We deliver essential sustainability services that protect the public from harmful waste, and help the healthcare industry make progress towards sustainability and climate goals. Our services include diverting medical waste from landfills, and alternative use opportunities that lead to greater security and well-being around the world. We recognize that sustainability is a continuous pursuit. No matter how much we achieve, there is always more that can be done tomorrow. Our challenge and our responsibility every day is to make a difference by protecting what matters.

Responsibly disposed of 1.5 billion pounds of medical waste, protecting the public from potentially infectious material.

Safely disposed of more than 40 million pounds of pharmaceutical waste, ensuring they do not end up in waterways.

Shredded and recycled 1.1 billion pounds of paper—safeguarding both confidential information and the environment. 

Diverted more than 104 million pounds of plastics from landfills with reusable sharps and pharmaceutical containers.

 Source: Stericycle data, 2020

Sustainability with Shred-it® Services

Our Shred-it Secure Information Destruction Service supports a circular economy. We are proud to provide a valuable source of paper for recycling into high-demand products while also purchasing products made from recycled content. Recent highlights in Shred-it services:

  • In 2020, Shred-it securely collected approximately 1.1 billion pounds of shredded sorted office paper. Shred-it’s recycled content avoided the need to harvest 9.3 million trees.
  • The material used to manufacture our sturdy and secure Shred-it document collection consoles features 100% recovered and recycled fibers.
  • The document destruction transport bins used in transporting secure information for destruction during collection are molded from 100% recycled HDPE plastic.

Eco-Conscious, Safe, and Convenient Sharps Waste Disposal

In 2020, Stericycle and our client-partners diverted 104 million pounds of plastic from entering landfills through the use of reusable sharps containers. Stericycle was a pioneer in sustainable medical waste disposal and continues to this day to innovate safe, compliant, and eco-conscious solutions that protect the team members, patients, and communities of healthcare organizations around the world.

Supporting The NHS’ Efforts to Reduce Plastic Waste

England’s National Health Service (NHS), the largest single healthcare network in the world, has committed to be a net zero carbon footprint health system by 2040. As part of that commitment, NHS has pledged to reduce the environmental damage caused by plastic waste.

Stericycle’s Sharps Management Service, also known as Bio Systems Sharps Management Solution in the U.K., provides hospitals with sharps containers that can be reused up to 600 times as an alternative to single-use, disposable sharps containers.

Between November 2012 and December 2020, NHS facilities across England have diverted 7,715 metric tonnes of single-use plastic from incineration by using reusable sharps containers.