Overall Rating Gold - expired
Overall Score 65.57
Liaison Derek Nichols
Submission Date Sept. 16, 2015
Executive Letter Download

STARS v2.0

University at Buffalo
OP-25: Hazardous Waste Management

Status Score Responsible Party
Complete 1.00 / 1.00 Tony Oswald
Hazardous Waste Manager
Environment Health & Safety
"---" 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:

Effective hazardous waste management requires not only safe, sound practices,
but also requires good efforts to reduce the volume and toxicity of hazardous wastes.
UB’s waste minimization efforts must also be reported annually to NYSDEC. Waste
minimization efforts reduce disposal, hazards, and environmental impact associated with
chemical wastes. The success in minimizing hazardous wastes depends on a
conscientious effort by each individual at the University. The following are some
common waste minimization strategies: source reduction, recycle, process modification.


A brief description of how the institution safely disposes of hazardous, universal, and non-regulated chemical waste:

All hazardous waste is labeled with a hazardous waste label as soon as it is added. All hazardous waste is stored separately by groups. When hazardous waste containers in laboratory satellite accumulation areas are no more than 90% full:
• Complete DATE WHEN FULL on hazardous waste label
• Complete the “Request For Hazardous Waste Disposal” form
• Full Containers exceeding 55 gallons of waste MUST Be Removed from Accumulation Areas within 3 Days
All hazardous waste is disposed of in accordance with local, state, and federal regulations, and all satellite accumulation areas are inspected weekly.


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:
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Does the institution have or participate in a program to responsibly recycle, reuse, and/or refurbish all 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):

A call can be placed to university facilities for pick ups of various electronic waste and then an outside company (Mavis) comes and picks up whatever waste the university has twice a week.


A brief description of steps taken to ensure that e-waste is recycled responsibly, workers’ basic safety is protected, and environmental standards are met:

UB's electronic waste recycling vendor is certied R2/RIOS, which ensures that workers' basic safety is protected, and environmental standards are met, amongst many other health, and environmental quality standards.


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:
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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.