Waste Practices Research Articles

Improved water, sanitation, hygiene and waste services in health-care facilities, Ukraine.

Water, sanitation and waste infrastructure and services in Ukrainian health-care facilities often fail to meet global and national standards, hindering the provision of safe, quality care. The war has worsened existing problems. To incrementally improve water, sanitation, hand hygiene, environmental cleaning and health-care waste practices, the World Health Organization (WHO) is working with the health ministry, the Ukrainian Public Health Centre and regional United States Centers for Disease Prevention and Control (CDC) to implement the Water and Sanitation for Health Facility Improvement Tool (WASH FIT). In December 2022, WHO trained staff from the regional CDC, Ukrainian Public Health Centre and nine priority health-care facilities. Facility teams assessed services, and developed and implemented improvement plans in January 2023. Follow-up assessments were conducted after six months. About 4300 health-care facilities operate in Ukraine. Funding for new water and sanitation infrastructure, as well as operating and maintaining existing services, is likely inadequate. After implementation, the average WASH FIT score increased from 66 out of a maximum of 100 (range: 57-73) to 83 (range: 69-93). Facilities more effectively managed water-related risks, replaced broken taps, improved waste management practices and installed backup water supply and storage sources. WASH FIT can be used to identify gaps in water, sanitation, hygiene and waste services and track progress towards addressing these gaps. Engaged local leaders, health-based national water, sanitation, hygiene standards, regular on-site training and mentoring drive these improvements. Strengthening public health entities is critical to institutionalize the process.

Green Waste Practices as Climate Adaptation and Mitigation Actions: Grassroots Initiatives in Russia

Responding to global climate challenges, states are pursuing mitigation and climate adaptation policies, which requires involvement of all actors ranging from global institutions to the public. This article aims to evaluate green waste practices of nongovernmental organizations in terms of the possibility of incorporating these practices into climate mitigation and adaptation policies. The study focuses on two nongovernmental organizations that have been involved in waste management for more than 10 years and has examined the online posts of these organizations to determine the prevalence of nine green waste practices, as well as subscribers’ interest in them. The posts are classified using modern machine learning methods. To train a machine learning classifier, we used a dataset for detecting mentions of green practices in social media posts. The study demonstrated that environmental nongovernmental organizations engage hundreds of people in green practices aiming to reduce anthropogenic climate impacts or adapt to climate change. The often-mentioned practices (separate waste collection, recycling, and other adaptation activities such as promoting responsible consumption or refusing purchases) can be included in governmental policy. Subscribers are aware of ways to reduce consumption and manage wastes responsibly and they can share their experience with the communities gaining the support of the government. The proposed recommendations are related to broad engagement of grassroots initiatives in climate policy implementation.

Water utilization practices and wastage at household level: A case study of Lahore City

AbstractThe current research places its emphasis on addressing the issue of water shortage, which, if left unaddressed, could hinder sustainable development in the broader Punjab region, with a particular focus on the city of Lahore. In pursuit of our research objectives, we conducted a comprehensive survey that involved 600 households within Lahore. Our research methodology included the usage of both quantitative and qualitative analysis which included interviews and snowball sampling. Our findings indicate a clear and direct correlation between water shortage and patterns of water utilization and wastage. The absence of sustainable strategies to ensure adequate water supply, efficient resource management, and universal sanitation poses a substantial threat to our future. To address water shortages, it is crucial to encourage the use of water‐saving appliances and fixtures like toilets, low‐flow faucets, and showerheads. The purpose of these measures is to conserve water and align it with sustainable development goals by encouraging resource utilization that is efficient, minimizing environmental impact. By implementing these solutions, both households and border areas can benefit from significant water‐saving practices. Consequently, we recommend that the government implement targeted programs aimed at raising awareness among individuals about responsible water usage and reducing wasteful practices within households.

PAKANI: SUSTAINABLE OF BLUE ECONOMY MELALUI ISLAMIC DIGITAL PLATFORM DALAM UPAYA MEMBERDAYAKAN PETANI IKAN DI JAWA TIMUR

This study examines digital innovation through the PAKANI platform as a solution to support the implementation of a sustainable blue economy concept and empower fish farmers in East Java. PAKANI is designed as a technology-based application that provides comprehensive access to sharia financing, affordable and quality fish feed distribution, and broader marketing access for small-scale fish farmers. Challenges faced by fish farmers in East Java include limited resource access, high production costs, and inefficient distribution. This study employs a qualitative approach with descriptive analysis based on literature from journals, books, scientific reports, and articles to analyze East Java’s geographical potential for inland aquaculture in underutilized lands. The findings show that PAKANI can act as a catalyst in enhancing productivity and sustainability in small-scale aquaculture, particularly through integrating digital technology and sharia-compliant financing that is accessible for fish farmers. The blue economy concept applied in this platform leverages technology to reduce resource waste and support sustainable aquaculture practices aligned with circular economy principles. These findings are expected to make a significant contribution to the academic literature on digitalization in the aquaculture sector and the inclusive development of sharia-based economies, particularly in Indonesia. This platform is anticipated to improve fish farmers’ welfare and increase the fisheries sector’s contribution to sustainable economic growth in Indonesia.

Insights from a National Survey on Controlled Substance Diversion Practices in U.S. Hospital Pharmacies: Opportunities for Enhanced Surveillance and Compliance.

This study explored controlled substance (CS) diversion surveillance practices within hospital pharmacies across the United States. A survey with questions based on published CS diversion risk points was conducted in May 2024. A total of 66 participants from 31 states responded, with 54.5% from single facilities and the remaining from health systems. Most respondents were pharmacy directors, managers, or those in dedicated drug diversion roles. Over 70% have dedicated surveillance teams and use drug diversion software. Results highlight variation in practices, with larger institutions generally showing better compliance. Compliance in procurement and receiving was high for access measures; however, auditing of processes was lower. The lowest procurement compliance was in monitoring periodic automatic replacement (PAR) levels and validating orders with wholesalers. Storage practices showed high compliance in deploying cameras, but low compliance in monitoring them. Dispensing practices had high compliance for restricting CS in automated dispensing cabinets, but low incidence of witness verification during stocking. Waste and disposal practices were well-followed, but training on detecting potential signs of medication tampering was less common. The survey highlights that while strategies to prevent CS diversion exist, their implementation varies. Enhancing monitoring, auditing, and training is essential to strengthen diversion prevention efforts in hospital pharmacies.

Improving household waste management in Indonesia: a mixed-methods approach for waste Sorting

This study explores effective interventions that improve household waste sorting and tests how labels, captions, and intervention campaigns enhance waste-sorting knowledge and improve waste-sorting practices. This study used a mixed–method approach using data collected from 29 households. The results from the survey were tested using a t-test comparison, the data obtained from the observation during the lab experiment were described, and the information from the interview was interpreted. The results show that the two interventions used in the study improved knowledge about waste and sorting practices. The results show significant differences between the groups before and after intervention exposure. Moreover, the findings highlighted that labels and captions do not help to reduce household waste generation. However, an intervention campaign was crucial in reducing the amount of waste produced by households.

Motivated leadership and mutual learning: a case study of promoting sustainable food consumption in an early childhood education centre in Aotearoa New Zealand

ABSTRACT Food system transformation is urgently needed; although dominant food and sustainability discourses tend to focus on powerful stakeholders like governments and industries. We sought to understand how localised, community-based initiatives promote food system change, and how this is experienced by the people they are meant to involve or benefit. We conducted a reflexive qualitative case study with a community-oriented early childhood centre in Aotearoa New Zealand that developed an increasingly sustainable programme. This included providing plant-based food, a garden-to-table and nature-oriented pedagogical focus, and well-embedded low waste practices. We engaged with the community of school leaders, staff, and whānau to explore their processes, their experiences of changes made, and their challenges. Our case study methodology involved semi-structured interviews, group discussions, document analysis, and a reflexive thematic analysis. We identified two main themes, including (1) the importance of leadership for initiating and sustaining change; (2) experiences of changes were linked to relationships and shared learning. These findings contribute to understanding the complexities involved in shifting to sustainable food practices at a local, community-focused level; these might benefit other communities or the stakeholders working to better support them.

The Royal College of Ophthalmologists' National Ophthalmology Database study of cataract surgery: report 19, a comparative study of the cost and carbon footprint of local anaesthesia techniques for cataract surgery.

Understanding the financial and environmental impact of clinical pathways is important for designing sustainable services. This study aimed to compare the cost and carbon footprint of sub-Tenon's and topical anaesthesia for cataract surgery, benchmark minimum topical anaesthesia utilisation rates, and quantify the benefits of increased topical anaesthesia usage in the United Kingdom National Health Service (NHS). The cost and carbon footprint of products and staffing for topical and sub-Tenon's anaesthesia for cataract surgery were calculated and applied to National Ophthalmology Database audit data. A mainly process-based approach was used to estimate the carbon dioxide equivalent (CO2e) of product production, usage, and waste disposal. The typical CO2e per case was 0.71 kg for topical anaesthesia and 1.19 kg for sub-Tenon's anaesthesia. Around a third of CO2e was generated by usage of unneccesary equiptment and wasteful practices. The typical cost per case was £14.60-£17.14 for topical anaesthesia, £27.74 for sub-Tenon's anaesthesia performed by an operating department practitioner and £56.15 for sub-Tenon's anaesthesia performed by a consultant anaesthetist. It is estimated that around 25,000 NHS cataract cases could annually be converted from sub-Tenon's to topical anaesthesia, which would reduce the CO2e emissions of services by 12,000 kg while saving £265,000 on product usage and between £63,500 and £773,750 on staffing. Topical anaesthesia is a cheaper and more environmentally sustainable alternative to sub-Tenon's anaesthesia for cataract surgery. Increased topical anaesthesia usage in cataract services could contribute towards the NHS aspiration of becoming "net zero" by 2040.

Benchmarking computer vision models for automated construction waste sorting

Waste sorting is a critical process in construction waste management system. Computer vision (CV) offers waste sorting automation potential by recognizing waste composition and instructing robots or other mechanical devices accordingly. However, how the plethora of CV models developed perform relative to each other remains underexplored, making model selection challenging for researchers and practitioners. This study aims to benchmark existing CV models towards automated construction waste segregation. Seventeen models were selected and trained with unified configuration, and then their performance was evaluated on the aspect of accuracy, efficiency, and robustness, respectively. In experimental results, BEiT attained top accuracy (58.31 % MIoU) while FastFCN had the best efficiency (12.87 ms). SAN displayed the least standard deviation (4.41 %) for robustness evaluation. This research contributes a reliable reference for CV model selection, advancing automated construction waste sorting research and practices, and ultimately promoting efficient recycling while reducing the environmental impact of construction and demolition waste.

Considering the development levels of countries, contributions of mineral recovery from mining tailings and urban mining wastes to sustainability criteria – A review

The need for a sustainable mining waste management/legislation and mineral recovery from tailings is increasing day by day in the world. There is a need to draw a perspective for mining companies and public authorities & Sustainable Development Organizations (SDOs) on the sustainable recovery of mine waste from both mining operations and urban mining. Although there are many publications in the literature on mineral recovery from mine wastes, there is a lack of a study that will respond to the information needs of public authorities & SDOs in terms of both mining enterprises and urban mining sector on sustainable mineral recovery by covering the latest developments in the world and making the distinction between waste and tailing. Considering this deficiency in the literature, this study firstly emphasizes the on-site mitigation of mine wastes and their environmental impacts, and briefly discusses mine wastes & tailings dams in the mining process. Then, the mitigation of negative environmental impacts in landfills and the feasibility of mineral recovery from mining tailings and urban mining wastes are evaluated. Finally, the objective of mineral recovery in the context of sustainable development and legislative efforts are discussed. The results of the study are as follows: The wastes generated as a result of mining operations have increased worldwide. These mine wastes are used to recycle mines. The necessity and nature of the recovery of minerals from wastes necessitates the efficient management of these wastes. At this point, there is a need for effective and up-to-date mining waste legislation, incentives and practices to ensure an sustainable mining waste management and optimum mineral recovery from mining tailings. The categories of "mineral recovery from mining tailings" and "mineral recycling from urban mining waste" were compared by assigning an estimated score out of ten, considering the level of development of the countries and the characteristics of the categories. In this comparison, the contribution/relationships of the activities in these categories to different sustainability criteria are shown and in-text citations are considered in the scoring. By considering these contribution levels or lack thereof, countries with different levels of development in different geographies around the world can develop their mineral waste management and mineral recovery policies in much more detail, considering their mineral requirements and waste inventories. This study may contribute to less mineral waste generation and cleaner, more efficient, and sustainable mineral recovery in mining operations, thanks to the awareness it will create for mining companies and public authorities & SDOs. This study serves as a guide for SDOs and countries’ policymakers & mining sector on mineral recovery from waste in countries.

IoT- enabled crop waste mulching machine for sustainable farming: perspective of circular economy

Abstract A large amount of crop waste is generated after crop harvesting. A substantial quantity of waste on the farm is burnt to clear the field, contributing to environmental harm and global warming. The study aims to develop a technological solution for crop waste management (CWM) by designing and developing an IoT-enabled crop waste mulching machine. This initiative addresses the environmental and health issues caused by burning crop waste on farms. The research involves designing and developing an IoT-enabled mulching machine that can be attached to the back side of a tractor. The machine consists of power-transmitting elements, supports, and mechanisms to distribute mulching material evenly onto the plant bed. It incorporates advanced IoT load cell sensors, soil moisture sensors, and proximity sensors to optimize the mulching process based on soil moisture content and to prevent machinery blockages. The IoT-enabled mulching machine effectively manages crop waste by utilizing it in mulch, thus preventing the harmful practice of burning waste. This machine ensures a more efficient, safer, and environmentally friendly approach to mulching, offering significant improvements over traditional manual mulching methods. The novelty of this research lies in integrating IoT technologies within mulching machine. The mulching machine uses sensors to automate and optimize the mulching process, representing a significant technological advancement over conventional methods. The study offers practical benefits by reducing labour requirements, minimizing the risk of injuries, and ensuring a more uniform mulch application. This technology facilitates more sustainable farming practices, aligning with global sustainability goals. The study can potentially revolutionize the agricultural equipment manufacturing industry (AEMI) by shifting the focus toward environmental sustainability. It promotes replacing plastic film mulching machines with more eco-friendly crop waste mulching solutions. This technology has the potential to reduce air pollution, carbon emissions, and mitigate climate. It also enhances soil health through better mulching practices.

Rhythms of recycling: reconfiguring apartment waste practices in London and Melbourne

ABSTRACT Taking the example of recycling in apartments, this paper argues that paying heed to the rhythms of urban waste can provide insights into how the waste burden can be more justly distributed. Housing in London and Melbourne, our two case study sites, is an essential locus for the domestic waste regime, and apartments are anomalies that disrupt it. Overall, recycling rates are lower in apartments, and comingled stream contamination rates where they exist are relatively higher. Rather than assuming this is a product of household behavior, we take the starting point that socio-material dynamics are at play that make apartments and apartment living incompatible with dominant waste regimes. We construct and apply a practice-based spatio-temporal rhythmic framework, in which recycling is analyzed as a social practice and apartments as the site of the social, leading to two main insights. First, the spatio-temporal dimensions of more than material and more than waste relationships add to the insights that practice theory can provide on the importance of mundane urban domestic processes of waste management by pointing to unevenness. Second, spatio-temporal rhythms analysis also assists in identifying possibilities for purposive attempts to intervene at various scales of waste governance.

Leveraging public awareness and behavioural change for entrepreneurial waste management

This article takes us into the world of municipal solid waste entrepreneurs, revealing how public awareness campaigns and behavioural change efforts intertwine with entrepreneurial endeavours. Through conversations with 11 key participants—entrepreneurs from four geopolitical zones of Nigeria and a senior management figure from the Lagos State Waste Management Authority—I hear firsthand accounts of the challenges they face and their strategies to transform waste into opportunity. Guided by the theory of planned behaviour, this study sheds light on how these entrepreneurs perceive the role of public awareness in shaping waste management behaviour and driving business innovation. From their stories, a common theme emerges: the need to educate the public about responsible waste practices while developing creative business models that engage communities. Concepts like “freemium-to-premium” offerings are explored as ways to break through psychological barriers and inspire wider participation in waste management initiatives. These voices illustrate how awareness campaigns are not only about fostering environmental responsibility, but also about creating pathways for entrepreneurial growth, ultimately contributing to a more sustainable and circular economy. This study contends that public awareness extends beyond mere knowledge; it acts as a form of infrastructure in its own right. Rather than being just an end goal, awareness becomes a vital foundation in the pursuit of improved waste management practices, serving as a key driver for meaningful environmental action.

Scaling the Food Mountain: Implications for Addressing the Determinants of Consumer Food Waste Practices

The growing food waste phenomenon is recognised as a global issue with significant social, economic, and environmental burdens. This is a major concern in developed nations, where consumers are the largest contributors to the total volume of food waste production. As a leading cause of food and water insecurity, economic inequality, and environmental degradation, preventing and minimising consumer food waste is a key objective for policymakers and practitioners. Due to the complex consumer behaviours and practices associated with food waste generation, current understandings of why food waste occurs remain scattered. The purpose of this review is therefore to map the history and development of consumer food waste research over time, highlighting key themes and inconsistencies within the existing literature. Adopting a narrative approach, the literature is organised into three distinct themes to explore and identify the various internal and external determinants of consumer food waste. Our analysis highlights consumer food waste as a complex and multi-faceted challenge which cannot be attributed to one single variable, but rather a combination of behaviours determined by various societal, individual, and behavioural factors. While previous research tends to frame food waste as mainly a consumer issue, this review identifies several collective actors who are central to the problem. These findings call for a holistic view across the food supply chain to help identify opportunities for multi-stakeholder actions that prevent and reduce food waste at the consumer level. Drawing upon these new insights, we provide practical recommendations to assist policymakers, retailers, and consumers in mitigating consumer-related food waste.

Freezing time, freezing in time: reconfiguring freezing practices for reducing meat waste and energy consumption

Considering that many fresh food items require domestic cold storage, understanding the role of appliances such as freezers is critical to reducing greenhouse gas emissions relating to domestic food waste and energy use. Using a social practices approach, this article reports on a study of cold storage and food waste practices, particularly freezing relating to meat, in 20 Australian households. Householders were interviewed twice, over winter and summer, 2022–2023. We studied intersecting practices of eating, shopping, cooking and cold storage, and their connection to larger social phenomena such as cold supply chains to gain insights into how and why meat was wasted. Although we set out to study household practices, we found that retailer practices of pricing specials and bulk buying must also be considered. Retailer practices combined with ambiguity in consumer understandings of date labels, shelf life and freezing times mean that domestic cold storage has become a normalised extension of the cold supply chain of food, especially for meat. We argue that understandings such as convenience and thriftiness, in conjunction with retailer expectations of domestic cold storage, may lead to the ratcheting up of household freezer use for food storage. We illustrate through our findings that this may potentially increase energy consumption and accelerate food waste, which becomes particularly problematic for carbon-intensive foods such as red meat. In innovatively reimagining domestic cold storage as an extension of industrial and retailer cold supply chains, we explore what kind of capabilities may be required for an equitable and low waste cold supply chain that reduces reliance on household freezers.

A thorough overview of the literature on waste recycling in the circular economy: current practices and future perspectives.

To develop a circular economy (CE) and protect the environment, waste recycling (WR) is crucial. This study examines WR research conducted over the past two decades to identify the most significant advancements and promising areas for future research. The following challenges were handled through text mining, content, and bibliometrics analysis: How has CE influenced the evolution of WR research? What are the CE's most important WR research trends and themes? What directions could future research on WR take regarding the CE transition? Using 1118 articles from the Scopus database journal, bibliometric networks were made and analyzed. Hence, five critical CE-related problems needing further research were recognized: waste recycling is the first cluster, followed by technology, the CE transformation, plastic waste, and waste management (WM). Examining WM and inclusive waste reduction practices and their distinct highlight patterns may impact future research fields and serve as a transitional tool to CE (which aims to minimize waste generation). Forthcoming research targets contain waste reduction and incorporation of WR into the CE framework.

Green strategies for the valorization of industrial medicinal residues of Serenoa repens small (saw palmetto) as source of bioactive compounds

Serenoa repens is a medicinal plant well-known for its therapeutic potential in treating various urological disorders and prevention of prostatic cancer. However, the extraction process in the pharmaceutical industry leads to the generation of plant residues, typically discarded, wasting valuable resources. In this study, we aimed to explore a series of green extraction strategies to effectively valorize the residues of Serenoa repens fruits. Initially, we employed supercritical CO2 (1.2% yield on dry biomass) on the discarded biomass to identify and quantify residual fatty acids and polyprenols (1.6% of the extract dry weight), a class of unsaturated isoprenoid alcohols with promising biomedical applications. Subsequently, subcritical water extraction was utilized on the exhausted biomass to extract polar compounds. An increase in the extraction yield was observed with the rise in processing temperature up to 180 °C (yields were found higher than 26%). Phenolic compounds and carbohydrate macromolecules profiles were affected by the increased hydrolytic conditions. Polar extracts exhibited robust bioactivities, demonstrating significant antioxidant activity and antimicrobial efficacy against Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria strains. Extracts obtained at 180 °C demonstrated the highest efficacy. Furthermore, in vitro assessment of mannans-rich fraction provided a new perspective of potential applications in the cosmeceuticals field. Results underscore the potential of the sustainable extraction biorefinery for the residue of this medicinal plant and demonstrate that, harnessing these bioactive compounds, new sustainable and eco-friendly approaches for its complete utilization can be offered, thereby promoting near-zero waste practices and contributing to a more sustainable future.

Planetary Health in Rehabilitation: A Call to Arms… and Legs, Gait Aids, and Other Equipment.

Sometimes out of necessity and sometimes out of convenience, medicine is wasteful. Resource stewardship is a critical and expanding field for reducing wasteful practices. Numerous international organizations are driving resource stewardship globally, including >20 countries worldwide participating in Choosing Wisely initiatives. However, opportunities for environmental stewardship have been long overlooked. Planetary health, climate action, and environmental stewardship in medicine consider opportunities which offer a co-benefit to the planet while improving or maintaining appropriate patient care across the healthcare continuum, including acute care, transitions in care, and postacute care, as well as in primary, secondary, and tertiary care settings. As rehabilitation is necessary across all healthcare settings, developing a culture among rehabilitation care providers that is conscientious about planetary health is imperative for sustainability of rehabilitation medicine and the health of our planet. We devised a recommendation for Choosing Wisely Canada's planetary health focus: don't dispose of adaptive equipment, mobility devices, orthoses, and prostheses that could be reused or recycled. This brief report discusses 1) why rehabilitation providers should engage with planetary health and climate action; 2) the rationale for the Choosing Wisely Canada Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation planetary health recommendation; and 3) existing avenues and novel opportunities for rehabilitation care providers worldwide to reduce waste in rehabilitation.

Regulated Medical Waste Reduction in the Dermatology Clinic.

The disposal of regulated medical waste (RMW) in the healthcare setting can be both costly and environmentally harmful. Prior studies have found large amounts of waste disposed of in RMW containers are inappropriately placed. Few studies to date have investigated the efficacy of waste reduction practices in the dermatology setting. This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of a practice-wide intervention in reducing RMW in the outpatient dermatology setting. By performing daily waste audits and two concurrent educational interventions, the amount of RMW produced and percent of appropriately placed RMW will be measured. Further analysis will occur by comparing pre-intervention values to post-intervention values. The percentage of waste properly placed in RMW containers prior to any intervention was 11%. Following both educational interventions, the percentage of waste properly placed in RMW containers increased by 56.1% (CI 43.7-68.5%) and the percentage of total waste produced that was identified and disposed of as RMW decreased by 6.0% (95% CI 1.2-10.8%). Our study provides practical data for dermatology providers to make small changes which can result in significant reductions of regulated medical waste, potentially providing benefits to the environment and cost-savings.

Comparative analysis of the bioaccumulation of bisphenol A in the blood serum and follicular fluid of women living in two areas with different environmental impacts.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a common contaminant widely used in many industrial sectors. Because of its wide use and dispersion, it can be accumulated in living human bodies through both oral assumption and nondietary routes. BPA exhibits hormone-like properties, falling under the class of endocrine disruptors; therefore, it can alter relevant physiological functions. In particular, in women, it can affect folliculogenesis and therefore reproduction, contributing not only to infertility, but also to endometriosis and premature puberty. We conducted a multicenter study on 91 women undergoing a first in vitro fertilization (IVF) treatment in the Campania region (Southern Italy). We investigated the presence and concentration of BPA in serum and follicular fluids to assess the effects of airborne BPA contamination. The analysis was conducted on 32 women living in a low environmental impact (LEI) area, from the Sele Valley River and Cilento region, and 59 women living in a high environmental impact (HEI) area, the so-called "Land of Fires", a highly contaminated territory widely exposed to illegal waste practices. A higher average BPA content in both blood serum and follicular fluid was revealed in the HEI group when compared with the LEI group. In addition, we revealed higher average BPA content in blood serum than in folliclular fluid in the HEI area, with opposite average content in the two fluids in the LEI zone. In addition, our results also showed a lack of correlation between BPA content in follicular and serum fluids both in the overall population and in the HEI and LEI groups, with peculiar trends in different subsets of women. From our results, we revealed a heterogeneity in the distribution of BPA content between serum and follicular fluid. Further studies are needed to unravel the bioaccumulation mechanisms of BPA in highly polluted and nonpolluted areas.