CHEMICAL HYGIENE PLAN

The Southeast Fishery Science Center (SEFSC) establishes this Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP) as required by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) standard titled Occupational Exposure to Hazardous Chemicals in Laboratories (29 CFR Part 1910.1450).  The CHP is intended to protect employees and students from potential health hazards associated with the handling, use, and storage of hazardous chemicals at facility laboratories.  Personnel exposure to hazardous chemicals in laboratory activities will be maintained at the lowest practical levels, using administrative and/or engineering controls, and at no times will the Permissible Exposure Limits established by OSHA (29 CFR §1910.1000 Subpart Z) be exceeded.

 

SCOPE

 

The safe storage, use and disposal of chemicals in the laboratory requires policies and procedures for the protection of employees, students, and the environment. Chemicals, which include reagent grade materials through trade name products and wastes, are the focus of increased regulatory actions by federal, state and local governments.

 

 

The purpose of this CHP is to provide the chemical user with basic safety information regarding the use of chemicals. This CHP forms the foundation for the safe use of chemicals in the laboratory and is an adjunct to the SEFSC Hazard Communication Program. The CHP is not intended as an encyclopedia of chemicals and their hazards; it will not contain listings of hundreds of chemicals that employees may encounter while working in research and development.  Although numerous chemicals may be mentioned for the most part they will serve as illustrations for broad categories of hazards, except in the case of chemical incompatibility charts or listings.

RESPONSIBILITIES

 

The SEFSC Environmental, Safety & Health Compliance Officer is responsible for recommending the minimum requirements of the CHP that laboratories must follow and will review the CHP annually.

The Chemical Hygiene Officer (CHO) has the overall responsibility for compliance with the CHP in his or her laboratory.  This responsibility may not be shifted to inexperienced or untrained personnel.  The CHO will ensure that:

 

Laboratory workers and others entering the laboratory understand and follow chemical hygiene rules;

Appropriate protective equipment provided is in working order and is used;

Appropriate training has been provided to all occupants of the laboratory;

Monitor the procurement, use, and disposal of chemicals in the laboratory.

Individual laboratory workers are responsible for:

 

Planning and conducting each operation in accordance with the standard operating procedures outlined in this CHP;

Wearing a lab coat and safety glasses as conditions warrant;

Developing good laboratory hygiene habits;

Reporting unsafe acts or conditions to the CHO.