| Overall Rating | Bronze - expired |
|---|---|
| Overall Score | 42.59 |
| Liaison | Catherine Lockhart |
| Submission Date | June 30, 2017 |
| Executive Letter | Download |
Lawrence University
OP-25: Hazardous Waste Management
| Status | Score | Responsible Party |
|---|---|---|
|
1.00 / 1.00 |
Jeff
Clark Professor Geology |
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:
Yearly, departments are contacted via Sara Gorton to send their list of items for disposal. After the list is compiled and sent to the hazardous waste disposal company, a date to package all items is set. The yearly disposal is targeted for December but occurred at the beginning of January for the last fiscal year.
A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:
Hazardous waste is collected by the campus Safety Officer and disposed of by an outside contractor. Light bulbs are collected twice per year and picked up by the recycler once per year. Batteries are collected across campus and recycled by our battery supplier.
In chemistry, professors and research students are rarely told they cannot order/use certain reagents. Some reactions require the use of particularly hazardous chemicals. One chemical I will not order is Perchloric Acid due to not having a wash-down hood and special ventilation for usage. No other chemical currently is on our list of “DO NOT USE” but such a list may be expanded in the future. Guidelines relating to disposal considerations:
1. Separation/segregation of different used chemicals and byproducts
2. Simple neutralizations and drain disposal as allowed
3. Volume minimization via evaporation or filtration as appropriate
4. Reuse of spent reagents for demonstrations (KNO3 in smoke plume emitters as an example)
A brief description of any significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years, including volume, impact and response/remediation:
None
A brief description of any inventory system employed by the institution to facilitate the reuse or redistribution of laboratory chemicals:
Chemistry and Biology currently use Vertere for the inventory of Chemicals/Reagents. I know that Physics, Anthropology, Art, and Geology all have chemicals of various sorts in their departments but they do not use the Vertere inventory system. People in different departments can easily search each other’s inventories on Vertere if an odd reagent is needed. Plus, we do share ordering and quotation discounts whenever we can to save on money.
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):
Materials are recycled through 5R Processors, which has R2 and ISO 14001 certifications. As they note on their website, "R2 and ISO 14001 certifications officially recognize 5R Processors as a responsible, environmentally conscious electronics-waste recycler in which all methods of recycling are in conformance with strict R2 and ISO 14001 guidelines."
Lawrence uses Responsible Electronics Recycling-R3NEW. R3NEW has its R2 (Responsible Recycling)Certification which verifies responsible, safe, and transparent management of used and end-of-life equipment. R3NEW is also certified with ISO:14001 (Environmental) and OHSAS:18001 (Employee Health & Safety).
A brief description of steps taken to ensure that e-waste is recycled responsibly, workers’ basic safety is protected, and environmental standards are met:
Technology Services recycles end-of-life computer hardware through a reputable, full-service materials processing and electronic recycling service provider.
Empty toner cartridges are returned to the manufacturer for recycling.
Staff-issued cell phones which are no longer functioning properly are returned to the provider for recycling.
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:
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.