Overall Rating Bronze - expired
Overall Score 31.93
Liaison Irena Lambrou
Submission Date Nov. 3, 2017
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.1

Whatcom Community College
OP-21: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 0.50 / 1.00 Blanche Bybee
Science Lab Supervisor
Science
"---" 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:
The producers on this institution of hazardous waste are the Science department, Art department, and the Maintenance department. In the Science department efforts have been made to minimize waste by using minimum-ware practices in our Organic chemistry labs and choosing Inorganic chemistry labs that use chemicals that do not produce hazardous waste whenever possible.

A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
All waste produced on campus is carefully logged and stored in appropriate containers in the Science Department facility for annual pick up by a Waste Disposal company (Clean Harbors).

A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
Last year we had a fork lift operator who was driving a fork lift across campus when all of a sudden it stopped running. Upon inspection, the driver realized that he had accidentally ran something over and as a result the fork lift began to leak transmission fluid. He quickly phoned some coworkers for assistance and once they arrived they began to lay down absorbent socks in order to dam up the spill and stop the spread of fluid. Once the spill was contained, the crew began applying absorbents to the rest of the spill. Finally, the absorbents were picked up and disposed of by a whatcom county hazardous waste disposal team.

A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Since we have only one science laboratory on this campus, such a system is not applicable.

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?:
No

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:
IT sells all usable computers to the community through the bookstore; all other computers/server equipment is used by the CIS program to teach students computer and network repair; or is donated to local non-profit charities. All other IT equipment is either donated to local non-profit charities or is sent to facilities for recycling. All toner cartridges are routed through IT and are sent back to the manufacturer (Xerox or HP) for recycling, we also recycle staff and student inkjet or laser toners that are dropped off to us.

Is the institution’s electronic waste recycler certified under the e-Stewards and/or Responsible Recycling (R2) standards?:
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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:
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The website URL where information about the programs or initiatives is available:
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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.