| Overall Rating | Silver |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 56.01 |
| Liaison | Suzanne Wood |
| Submission Date | Aug. 16, 2023 |
UMass Chan Medical School
OP-20: Hazardous Waste Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
0.50 / 1.00 |
Kortni
Wroten Sustainability and Energy Manager Facilities |
"---"
indicates that no data was submitted for this field
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:
The Environmental Health and Safety Department makes several efforts to help reduce hazardous, universal and non-regulated waste. The Hazardous Waste Minimization Guideline is found in the Umass Chan Medical School Safety Manual. This Guideline emphasizes purchasing and using smaller quantities, substituting for less hazardous chemicals, encouraging laboratories to give unopened chemicals that are no longer needed to labs that can use them. EH&S also maintains a chemical inventory system which include an area for surplus chemical to encourage reuse instead of disposal. Another step the university takes is to exchange mercury thermometers with alcohol thermometers to reduce the number of mercury thermometer in the labs.
A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Umass Chan Medical School's Disposal of Chemical Waste Procedure covers the disposal of chemical waste in the laboratories. The hazardous waste is removed from Satellite Accumulation Areas by EH&S personnel and moved to a Central Accumulation Area. The waste is transported by a vendor to designated treatment, storage and disposal facilities. The waste is tracked cradle to grave using Hazardous Waste Manifests and Bill of Ladings.
A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
(June 26, 2021) Power Plant high pressure line inside gas compressor room on south side of power plant releasing Enerflex LuLube 250 oil inside and outside the building. The high pressure line sprayed approximately 30-40 gallons of lube oil onto concrete pad and several gallons was released through the louver wall and flowed outside the building onto the gravel at the base of the foundation. An outside contractor (NEDT) was called in to scrub the pad, vacuum the conduit areas and remove contaminated soils. An Licensed Site Professional (LSP) was onsite to review the mitigation and cleanup.
(June 21, 2022) West Boylston Warehouse (Hospital Program) – An extremely corrosive container of Rapicide PA Part A was punctured, released on the floor of the warehouse and began to smolder. The leaking container compromised several other containers on the pallet. Although the total volume released was 2-3 gallons the spill was significant due to the potential hazard created if other full containers were compromised and released their contents. The West Boylston Fire Department responded and relocated the debris to the outside of the building for pickup.
(June 21, 2022) West Boylston Warehouse (Hospital Program) – An extremely corrosive container of Rapicide PA Part A was punctured, released on the floor of the warehouse and began to smolder. The leaking container compromised several other containers on the pallet. Although the total volume released was 2-3 gallons the spill was significant due to the potential hazard created if other full containers were compromised and released their contents. The West Boylston Fire Department responded and relocated the debris to the outside of the building for pickup.
A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
The University has implemented a Chemical Environmental Management System. A component of this Management System is a feature where labs can post unused chemicals they no longer need for reuse by other laboratories.
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
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:
University assets/electronic waste from anyone in the campus community is collected at the loading dock for recycling through Northeast Materials Management. UMass Chan hosts at least one home electronics recycling event per year.
Is the institution’s electronic waste recycler certified under the e-Stewards and/or Responsible Recycling (R2) standards?:
No
Website URL where information about the institution’s hazardous waste program is available:
Additional documentation to support the submission:
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Data source(s) and notes about the submission:
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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.