Little Rock, AR Public Health Rules: Syringe Disposal (2026)

Solid waste rules draw a hard line first: Sec. 28-16(l) states flatly that "no medical waste, infectious waste, sharps, needles or lancets will be collected by the city," so anyone generating that waste, from a household diabetic to a clinic, has to route it somewhere other than the weekly supercart. Where sharps and other medical waste actually go is governed by the "Hazardous and Medical Waste Disposal Facility Zoning Ordinance," Chapter 36, Article XI. Sec. 36-574 defines medical waste to expressly include "sharps and nonsharps," isolation waste, infectious agents and contaminated bedding.

Sec. 36-575 requires a conditional use permit before anyone can "engage in the operation of a hazardous or medical waste disposal facility," and sets hard spacing floors measured from the property line: a hazardous waste facility cannot sit within one-half mile of an occupied structure or residential district, and a medical waste facility cannot sit within 1,000 feet. Both facility types are confined to districts zoned I-2 or I-3. An applicant must mail certified notice to every property owner within the buffer at least 30 days before filing (Sec.

36-576, Sec. 36-579), then go through a public hearing where support and opposition are recorded and forwarded to the Arkansas Department of Pollution Control and Ecology (Sec. 36-577, Sec. 36-580). The Little Rock Planning Commission decides the permit and cannot vary the spacing rules, though it retains discretion over whether the use fits the area's development pattern (Sec. 36-578, Sec. 36-581); a denied applicant can appeal to the Board of Directors (Sec. 36-582). Waste transport to or from an approved facility must use an arterial roadway chosen to minimize travel through residential areas (Sec. 36-583).