Overall Rating Silver
Overall Score 52.37
Liaison Sergio Alza
Submission Date April 5, 2024

STARS v2.2

Brock University
OP-20: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Evan Rodenburg
Sustainability Data Analyst
Facilities Management
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1. Hazardous waste minimization and disposal

Does the institution have strategies in place to safely dispose of all hazardous, special (e.g. coal ash), universal, and non-regulated chemical waste and seek to minimize the presence of these materials on campus?:
Yes

A brief description of steps taken to reduce hazardous, special (e.g. coal ash), universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Brock has a Hazardous Waste Management System (HWMS), which is a joint initiative between Brock University’s Health, Safety & Wellness department and Science Stores. The HWMS provides instructions through Brock’s Chemical Hazardous Waste Generation, Collection and Disposal Procedures for researchers to collect excess solvent cans/unused clean metal containers from labs, which are then recycled. Researchers are provided labels to ensure that metal containers are safely disposed.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
The Hazardous Waste Management System (HWMS) consists of the proper separation, identification, and packaging of waste at the lab level; transport, facilitated by trained technicians and detailed record-keeping to meet regulatory guidelines.

Science Stores staff coordinate the chemical hazardous waste collection. An external contractor licensed to haul and dispose of hazardous waste, collects said waste from the labs in the company of Brock staff. Lab users that cause the generation of hazardous waste shall follow outlined procedures from Brock’s Chemical Hazardous Waste Generation, Collection and Disposal Procedures in alignment with the safety and environmental protection legislation that apply (Environmental Protection Act, O. Reg 437: General- Waste Management). In following these procedures, the handling and disposal of hazardous waste can be made safely.

Brock works with Greentec to remove fluorescent light bulb waste on a biweekly basis. Used light bulbs can be dropped off at one of three locations on campus.

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
No significant hazardous material release incidents have occurred at Brock University during the past three years.

A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Brock has an inventory system as apart of the platform Workday, that tracks all lab chemicals on campus. It is managed through the Brock Science Stores. The main purpose is to track the location and volumes of chemicals on campus. When chemicals arrive on campus they are labelled and entered into the lab location in Workday. When the container is emptied or removed as chemical waste, it is removed from the inventory system.

Part 2. Electronic waste diversion

Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish electronic waste generated by the institution?:
Yes

Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish electronic waste generated by students?:
Yes

If yes to either of the above, provide:

A brief description of the electronic waste recycling program(s), including information about how electronic waste generated by the institution and/or students is recycled:
E-waste Collection Program - E-waste on campus is collected and either redeployed, sold, or recycled, ultimately keeping electronics from landfill. 10.10 tons of electronic waste was recycled in the 2022 calendar year.

Battery Disposal Program - Brock provides drop-off centers for batteries to prevent toxic waste from ending up in landfills. Pails can be ordered for departments and picked up when full. This service makes it convenient for the Brock community to recycle batteries. 1.24 tons of batteries were recycled in the 2022 calendar year.

Is the institution’s electronic waste recycler certified under the e-Stewards and/or Responsible Recycling (R2) standards?:
Yes

Optional Fields 

Website URL where information about the institution’s hazardous waste program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
Chemical waste disposal record template: https://brocku.ca/mathematics-science/wp-content/uploads/sites/26/Chemical_Waste_Disposal_Record_updated-Nov.-12-2018.pdf

Hazardous Waste procedures: https://brocku.ca/mathematics-science/wp-content/uploads/sites/26/Laboratory-Chemical-Hazardous-Waste-Procedures.pdf

The information presented here is self-reported. While AASHE staff review portions of all STARS reports and institutions are welcome to seek additional forms of review, the data in STARS reports are not verified by AASHE. If you believe any of this information is erroneous or inconsistent with credit criteria, please review the process for inquiring about the information reported by an institution or simply email your inquiry to stars@aashe.org.