Posted on Thu, Apr 29, 2010 @ 10:06 AM
By Greg Rosinski, Chemist II
In a society saturated with ideas of waste minimization, it is important to take a moment to reflect on what is best for the environment and those around us. Chemicals are being depleted at a rate faster than can be manufactured. An example of this seen throughout manufacturing industries is Acetonitrile. A major reason for the shortage is the relatively low boiling point, and its use ubiquitous properties in solutions. An extreme shortage of this particular chemical started in 2008 when the Chinese government decided to shut down one of the biggest manufacturers of this chemical during the Olympics in Beijing.
To help save the supplies of chemicals, it is necessary to find alternatives to disposal that are better for the environment and anyone involved with the process. A good place to start is to determine if the chemical needing disposal has reached its expiration date. Manufacturers of chemicals, like the food industry, place an expiration use date on each bottle of chemical designating when the chemical no longer will perform as intended. If a site has chemicals ready for disposal due to site mandated expiration dates than a program should be instituted to find a way to reuse the chemicals or donate them to a site in need of those chemicals. Chemical reuse between laboratories helps to use as much of the chemical as was purchased, and will help to reduce disposal fees. By emptying a bottle of chemicals the bottle can be triple rinsed, and then recycled saving on disposal costs.
It is important to make sure that there is an environmental specialist involved with this process so that chemicals that are harmful to the person or environment are properly handled. It also ensures safety and compliance is up held in recycling containers.
Posted on Wed, May 27, 2009 @ 09:22 AM
by Andy Joy, Life Sciences Account Manager
Most seasoned EH&S professionals in the Life Sciences community have set professional goals for their career, be they short-term goals (monthly, quarterly, yearly) or longer-term goals (3-year, 5-year, 10-year). However, many new or mid-career EH&S personnel need guidance in properly planning how to grow their EH&S careers. Below are some example goals which these professionals could use as a template:
1. Develop safety efforts - Safety is the number one EH&S concern; not only for you, but for everyone involved -be the leader in promoting and developing safety efforts.
2. Get researcher / chemist "buy-in" - These are the people generating waste - instill in them how much you need their help in managing waste at the point of generation. Remember - without their help, the workload is almost doubled.
3. Liaise with Senior Managers - You need to be in front of your senior managers as much as possible to raise the profile of EH&S. You also need to share your concerns, find out how they can help, and what their goals are (publicity, etc).
4. Develop program efficiencies - work smarter, not harder!!!
5. Build the people around you - the best way to build the people around you is to educate and train them in everything you do.
6. Be an expert in the field - you can also help yourself through education and training; take advantage of the benefits your company offers.
7. Networking - get to know other people in the industry - people love to talk about what they do, and they might give you some ideas that you could implement at your company.
8. Grow your waste minimization efforts - with the world going "green" (and the reason we are Environmentalists), strive to minimize the amount of waste produced at your company.
9. Be the go-to-guy/gal at your company - be the person that when an issue or problem arises, the first person the leaders of your company turn to for a solution or an idea is you (see "be an expert" above).
10. Advancement - if you want to succeed and advance within the profession- see all of the above!
Am I missing any steps? Comment below or
let me know!