The Campus Environmental Audit: Hazardous Waste
Introduction
Hazardous wastes are produced from a wide variety of research, commercial
& industrial activities. At the University of Pennsylvania, hazardous
waste are generated by science research laboratories, undergraduate and
graduate science laboratories, medical teaching and research laboratories,
and facilities operations and planning. Hazardous wastes have potential
to severely affect the environment and human health and can be reduced
through waste minimization practices.
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Hazardous
Waste Management at the University of Pennsylvania
Hazardous waste management at the University of Pennsylvania is organized
through the University of Pennsylvaninia's Environmental Health and Safety
department. Located in Blockley Hall, the department has three primary
objectives:
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Relevant Environmental Concepts
Hazardous wastes have potential to affect the environmental quality of
all subsets of our environment and are heavily regulated. Hazardous wastes
are defined by Congress as wastes which as result of concentration, quantity,
or physical, chemical, or infectious characteristics may:
In order to further clarify what constitutes a hazardous waste, EPA has
selected four characteristics that can be used to determine if a waste
is hazardous. These characteristics are Ignitability, Corrosivity, Reactivity,
and Toxicity(Table 14).
In order to reduce or minimize hazardous, there are several key approaches
including:
A conceptual design of a waste management model and processes in minimization
can be seen in figures 14 and 15.
Figure 14: Conceptual Design of a Waste Management Model
Source: Charles Wentz, Hazardous Waste Management, McGraw-Hill
Inc., 1989
Figure 15: Selection Processes in Hazardous Waste Minimization
Source: Charles Wentz, Hazardous Waste Management, McGraw-Hill
Inc., 1989
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The Audit
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The Results
Hazardous chemical usage and disposal are subject to four primary federal
laws. The Toxic Substances Control Act requires identification and monitoring
of toxic chemical hazards. The Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation,
and Liabilities Act(CERCLA) establishes and increases liability for contamination
and cleanup. Hazardous and Solid Wastes Amendments to the Resource Conservation
and Recovery Act regulates disposal requirements and has increased associated
costs. Finally, the Emergency Planning and Community Right to Know Act
gives citizens access to information on chemical usage, storage, and release
in their local communities.(3)
Penn generates a wide variety of hazardous wastes from
research and laboratory related activities. Approximately 46% of the Waste
comes the School of Arts and Sciences(SAS) while about 42% of the Waste
comes from the School of Medicine. Within SAS, hazardous waste is primarily
generated by the Chemistry Department.
The total amount of hazardous waste generated in 1995
was 112,400 lbs. The level of hazardous waste has been basically constant
over the last five years. Waste is disposed in four different fashions.
Flammable liquids, which represent about 45% of our waste, are blended
with other fuels and then recovered for energy use. Acids and bases are
disposed by water treatment processes. Mercury containing are recycled
while the remaining hazardous wastes are incinerated. Recycling constitutes
5% of our waste and acid/base treatment and incineration represent a combined
45% of our waste.
Disposal cost has escalated by about 20% since 1990. The
annual disposal cost is $320,000. Associated personnel costs are $137,466,
bringing total costs to $457,466. Waste disposal costs are based on the
size of the container used for disposal. In order to minimize the costs,
the waste is collected from decentralized campus sources and then combined
into as few containers as possible before disposal.
The composition of our hazardous waste types can be seen
in Figure 16. The majority of our wastes are flammable liquids, poison
B(an EPA term that refers to acutely toxic chemicals that have potential
to cause illness or death), corrosive materials, flammable solids and combustible
liquids. Under the Superfund Amendments and Reauthorization Act, Penn must
report our emergency and hazardous chemical inventory. The University is
required to report extremely hazardous substances in quantities less than
Threshold Planning Quantities and/or hazardous chemicals regulated by the
federal Occupation Safety and Health Administration Hazard Communication
Standard which is present above 10,000 pounds at any one time during a
calendar(Table 15). Of the chemicals reported in 1995 for the 1994 calendar
year:
Chemicals reported ranged in average daily quantities from
0 - 99,999 lbs. and maximum daily quantities of 100 - 999,999 lbs. Risks
arose in 1995 when 2 chillers in the basement of Stemler Hall and the Class
of 1923 Ice Rink broke.
Penn aims to reduce the quantity of waste used and generated
by encouraging research facilities and laboratories to buy chemicals in
smaller quantities. The chemistry department has moved from away from macro
level chemical usage for research and laboratories since the 1970s. This
change is primarily due to environmental effects of chemicals and waste
disposal costs. However, only one of the 33 professors in the Chemistry
Department uses microscale laboratory techniques. Chemistry 245, the first
level experimental organic chemistry laboratory uses micro techniques based
on the preference of that professor.
Penn has no formal system to track and inventory
chemicals bought and used. Penn frequently checks the laboratories for
safety requirements. All Penn employees that work in labs are required
to go to hygiene training arranged by the Environmental Health & Safety
department. The University is currently designing a tracking system to
be in place by August 1, 1999.
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Hazardous
Waste Management at Other Universities
University of Washington
The University of Washington has developed a computer based
chemical inventory and Material Safety Data Sheet(MSDS) program called
the Lab Safety System(LSS). The system facilitates comprehensive programs
to share, recycle, and substitute hazardous materials and chemicals. It
is organized in a decentralized fashion and has more than 600 users on-line,
2000 chemical inventories reported, 170,000 MSDSs available, and another
14,500 MSDSs indexed that can be distributed in hard copy. Users can access
all information and maintain and edit their own chemical inventory. The
EHS department uses the system for reporting of chemicals, under SARA Tier
II for example.
The EHS department also aggressively focuses on waste
minimization efforts with two full time staff, one of whom specializes
in source reduction. The University runs a chemical exchange and distillation
redistribution program. Distilled chemicals are distributed to labs, reducing
both disposal and purchase costs.(4)
Bowdoin College
Bowdoin College has been at the forefront of efforts to reduce
usage of hazardous chemicals by instituting microscale laboratory experiments.
The College has extensively researched and created their own experiments.
The head of the effort, Professor Dana Mayo has written a textbook, Microscale
Organic Laboratory, now in its third edition, that includes more than 90
common experiments. The books outlines how to perform experiments that
for example will reduce solvents per student from 300 to 400 ml to only
100 ml for all students. As a result, Bowdoin faculty has observed students
to be more focused in the lab. Few students are able to sit around because
microscale experiments move quicker than traditional experiments. In addition,
"students learned the techniques much more quickly... they learned the
right way to handle stuff, and they were much more concentrated on what
they were doing."(5) Administrators were even more pleased than professors
and students Annual cost to run organic laboratories were reduced from
$8000 per lab to less than $1000 per lab due to decreased amount of chemicals
purchased and reduced disposal fees.(6)
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Recommendations
and Conclusions
Structural
Environmental Health and Safety has a good infrastructure
to handle hazardous waste safety, disposal, and reduction concerns.
Greening
1. Problem: The University has no formal approach
or policy to hazardous waste reduction and minimization
Solution: The University can develop a policy
statement. Dartmouth College has a Hazardous Waste Policy that outlines
parameters for the management of hazardous waste and sets standards for
waste disposal. The policy is an important step to set a framework to reduce
adverse environmental impacts. A reproduced handout that can be used to
minimize environmental effects can be seen in Table 16.
2. Problem: The University has no formal programs
to reduce costs through hazardous waste reduction and minimization.
Solution 1: Similar to University of Washington,
the University can appoint a representative from Environmental Health &
Safety to manage source reduction and waste minimization. The manager would
support groups that want to reduce or eliminate toxics through substitution,
process redesign, improved operations, recycling, and waste exchange.
Solution 2: Similar to University of Washington,
the University can create, before 1999, a chemical inventory tracking system
to facilitate reduction of surplus inventory, elimination of duplicate
ordering, sharing of information, distribution of material safety data
sheets, and reporting of chemical usage.
3. Problem: The University has not taken
advantage of opportunities to microscale chemical laboratory experiments
and research.
Solution 1: The University can order and
use Professor Mayo's book Microscale Organic Laboratory. In addition, Penn
can send a representative to Bowdoin/s summer institute on microscale chemistry
techniques.
Solution 2: The Chemistry department can
encourage its professors to develop and institute microscale procedures.
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Group Homepage
1Roger Findley and Daniel Farber, Environmental Law, West
Publishing Co., St. Paul, Minnesota, 1995, p. 483. 2Nimish Desai, Cleaning
Up the Mess, December 22, 1995. Independent Study, Systems Engineering
Department. 3Jullian Kerry, Ecodemia, National Wildlife Foundation, Washington,
DC, 1995, pg.159. 4Jullian Kerry, Ecodemia, National Wildlife Foundation,
Washington, DC, 1995, pg.166-170. 5April Smith, Campus Ecology, Living
Planet Press, Venice California, 1990, 162 6 Jullian Kerry, Ecodemia, National
Wildlife Foundation, Washington, DC, 1995, pg. 160-66