Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 72.63
Liaison Karen Oberer
Submission Date Aug. 22, 2016
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

McGill University
OP-21: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Christian Bouchard
Manager, Waste Management Program
University Services
"---" indicates that no data was submitted for this field

Part 1 

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:
Environmental Health and Safety conducts training sessions for researchers in regards to waste handling in addition to standard WHMIS, biosafety, and radiation courses. All laboratories are inspected annually (since 2006) to identify conformity to University safety standards. EHS also works with the Green Chemistry research group.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Waste disposal requirements: 1. All waste material must be adequately, completely and legibly labelled. 2. Only containers provided or specified by the WMP will be accepted for disposal. 3. Overfilled and/or leaking containers cannot be accepted for transport. 4. Collection is arranged by calling 398-5066, by faxing 398-4633, or by using the online waste pick-up request form. 5. An initial supply of empty containers may be arranged for by calling 5066. 6. Charges will not be made against individual users within the University for wastes which is generated as part of normal teaching and research operations for which established disposal guidelines are followed. 7. Unknown material of any kind cannot be accepted for disposal. 8. Explosive chemicals must be stabilized prior to transport. All hazardous material will be sent to a hazardous waste transfer center. They will mix the waste according to chemical compatibility and send it out for final disposal. Final disposal will be landfill, neutralization or incineration.

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
---

A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Chemical and radiation tracking: EHS and IT have implemented HMMS, a comprehensive tracking system that provides EHS and the McGill research community with the tools to manage and monitor the acquisition, use and disposal of hazardous materials. The radiation module of the software is now live and Phase II, the chemical tracking module is expected to be completed by the end of the year. In progress: chemical tracking system. When one professor takes advantage of a bulk discount, any surplus can be identified and transferred to other labs on campus, as opposed to each professor ordering in isolation.

Part 2 

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:
Proper disposal of IT equipment at McGill Procurement Services is responsible through the IT Asset Management Regulation Directive, for the disposal and/or reuse of unwanted IT equipment purchased with operating funds at McGill University. If the IT Asset and IT Technical Stewards determine that the computer does not meet minimum standards for repurpose at McGill, the IT Technical Steward creates a Hazardous Waste Management Work Order to arrange pickup for the computer(s). Hazardous Waste Management then determines whether the asset can be refurbished for use outside of McGill, or recycled. Before such disposal, all personal and University data on the computer's hard drive must be erased. See: http://www.mcgill.ca/hwm/recycling - McGill's Waste Management Program picks up shipments on both campuses http://kb.mcgill.ca/#tab:homeTab:crumb:8:artId:5654:src:article http://kb.mcgill.ca/#tab:homeTab:crumb:8:artId:1311:src:article

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

Optional Fields 

Electronic waste recycled or otherwise diverted from the landfill or incinerator during the most recent year for which data is available during the previous three years:
3.55 Metric tons

The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
http://www.mcgill.ca/hwm/guidelines

Additional documentation to support the submission:
---

Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
"Electronic waste recycled or otherwise diverted from the landfill or incinerator during the most recent year for which data is available during the previous three years": Figures from electronics donated to Insertech

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.