2025 年 16 巻 2 号 p. 41-46
Single-use ice packs are indispensable in research laboratories for maintaining temperature control while transporting and storing biological samples and reagents, ensuring sample integrity and experimental reliability. The scale of their usage and the lack of specific disposal regulations remain underexplored, contributing to environmental concerns. This pilot study highlights the overlooked scale of single-use ice pack usage in the Department of Physiology, National University of Singapore, over three years, encompassing the COVID-19 pandemic and post-pandemic resumption of full-scale operations, revealing the absence of specific disposal regulations as a critical gap in waste management. Initial findings indicate that usage was significantly low during the pandemic, coinciding with reduced laboratory activities. However, as operations returned to full capacity post-pandemic, single-use ice pack usage soared, raising environmental concerns due to the lack of standardised disposal protocols and the high volume of unlabelled packs with potentially hazardous contents. In response, targeted negotiations with suppliers introduced alternative cooling strategies, effectively curbing single-use ice pack usage to levels on par with the pandemic period, even though the department’s laboratories were fully active. This outcome underscores the pivotal role of industry-academic collaboration in advancing sustainability initiatives. To mitigate the environmental impact of single-use ice packs, we recommend adopting safer, sustainable temperature-control methods, clearer disposal protocols, and standardised labelling systems. These measures will help ensure that research facilities uphold both scientific standards and environmental stewardship.
