| Overall Rating | Silver - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 63.40 |
| Liaison | Olivia Herron |
| Submission Date | March 2, 2016 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Miami University
OP-25: Hazardous Waste Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Dan
Fetrow Environmental Programs Manager Environmental Health and Safety |
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?:
A brief description of steps taken to reduce hazardous, special (e.g. coal ash), universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Miami's Environmental Health and Safety Office (EHSO) operates the hazardous, universal & special waste programs on campus. EHSO promotes inventory control & works with chemical storeroom(s) to reduce the amount of over-ordering of chemicals and thus reduces the amount of surplus/unused chemicals. When coal ash analysis shows pollutant levels below the threshold levels outlined in the beneficial use regulations, the ash can be used as road/trail base on university properties. This reduces the quantity of waste being sent to landfills.
Miami University has adopted air permit changes that have reduced the amount of coal we are permitted to burn to approximately 1/3 of previous annual averages, with an end goal of completely eliminating coal burning by 2025.
Miami's undergraduate science laboratories have micro-scaled many bulk experiments as well as implementing a 'teaming' system, where teams of two or more students perform experiments that had previously been conducted by individuals. These measures have reduced the waste from these bulk experiments to less than half of 2012 quantities.
A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Miami contracts with licensed hazardous & universal waste handlers to properly recycle/dispose of all campus regulated wastes.
A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
No significant hazardous materials releases have occurred within the past three years. Several small laboratory incidents (i.e. mercury thermometers, acids/bases, solvents, etc.), all 4 liters or less, have been handled in-house by qualified researchers and environmental personnel.
A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Miami science departments, when appropriate, offer holding periods for unused/surplus chemicals and allow researchers from other laboratories & departments to acquire the chemicals at no additional cost.
Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish all electronic waste generated by the institution?:
Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish electronic waste generated by students?:
A brief description of the electronic waste recycling program(s):
The Miami University book store accepts used computers for recycling. They store these computers within the book store and reuse the acceptable parts. The book store will use the parts to fix and service new computers belonging to students, faculty, and staff. After a period of time, the collected computers will be picked up through IT Services. They have partnered with Cohen Recycling to ensure environmentally safe disposal of institution-generated solid computer waste. Cohen not only ensures that the computer equipment is re-purposed and/or safely broken down into raw materials, they also properly dispose of any data contained on the devices by following the National Institute of Standards and Technology. Cohen makes regular visits to campus buildings to remove the computer waste.
The book store has partnered with e-Cycle to recycle old cell phones from students, faculty, and staff. The book store collects the phones until they have enough to send to e-Cycle. e-Cycle provides a multi leveled data protection service including a wide variety of data security screenings. e-Cycle is also e-Stewards certified.
A brief description of steps taken to ensure that e-waste is recycled responsibly, workers’ basic safety is protected, and environmental standards are met:
Miami's Environmental Health and Safety Office (EHSO) has performed contractor audits (including site visits) for Miami’s e-waste recycling handlers. We review the compliance history, safety history & recycling methods for the contractor(s) that receive and process all of Miami’s e-waste.
The website URL where information about the institution’s hazardous and electronic-waste recycling programs is available:
Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
For more information about e-Cycle program visit http://www.e-cycle.com/how-it-works/data-security/#sthash.UY28sDMx.dpuf
For more information about Cohen data security please visit http://cohenusa.com/electronics-recycling/data-security-policy
For more information about e-Cycle program visit http://www.e-cycle.com/how-it-works/data-security/#sthash.UY28sDMx.dpuf
For more information about Cohen data security please visit http://cohenusa.com/electronics-recycling/data-security-policy
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.