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A Suggested Guide for Generating Your UMD Chemical Hygiene Program
Download Chemical Hygiene Plan (CHP) template from the ESSR website.
Prepare an inventory of hazardous chemicals in your labs. Identify which are particularly hazardous (teratogenic, mutagenic, carcinogenic, acutely toxic). A Web resource is available to help you identify the toxicity characteristics. (Look under the Chemical Hygiene Plan Information section. All listed carcinogens are defined as particularly hazardous, but it is up to the researcher to identify chemicals that fall into the other classifications. Lists of materials that should be considered are contained on this web page.)
Place the inventory of hazardous materials in Appendix IV of your Chemical Hygiene Plan. You may elect to use a shorthand notation to identify which chemicals in your inventory are carcinogenic, teratogenic, etc.
Evaluate activities in lab, determine which type or types of SOPs will be most effective and get them written. Chemical Hygiene Plan SOPs are intended to address appropriate health and safety precautions to avoid illness and injury associated with hazardous chemical use. Designate areas in the lab where particularly hazardous chemicals will be used (e.g., fume hood, "west lab bench", "along south wall", etc.).
General SOPs are acceptable for establishing baseline safety procedures in the lab, but these may need to be supplemented by other SOPs that are specific to process or chemical class (e.g., distillation of hexane, use of transilluminator, injection of chemicals into animals, handling of carcinogens, etc.). Examples of SOPs are available.
SOPs should specify the appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) necessary to perform work. This PPE must be provided to lab workers, and they must be trained in its use. If the SOPs do not address the necessary protective equipment, the lab manager must conduct and certify a written hazard analysis per the requirements of the UMD PPE Program.
When completed, place SOPs in the CHP as Appendix III.
Be familiar with the institutional Prior Approval criteria contained in pages 16-17 of the CHP. If you determine that additional criteria should be established for your lab, specify the circumstances in Appendix II. If you determine that additional approvals are unnecessary, write "none" in the first blank line of Appendix II.
Ensure that safety reference data (e.g., Safety Data Sheets) are available to all employees for all hazardous materials in the lab. Any hardcopy SDSs you receive should be placed in Appendix IV. If SDSs are available online, and all lab employees have access to them, identify the websites and URLs in Appendix IV. Laboratories will need to supplement online SDS resources with hard copies if digital versions are unavailable on the Internet.
ESSR maintains several SDS resources and links that may be helpful.
Another good SDS resource is the National SDS Repository.
Also identify an emergency source for SDSs in the event of an emergency. You can identify the Department of Environmental Safety, Sustainability and Risk (301.405.3960) as this source of you choose.
ESSR can also help locate hard-to-find SDSs if assistance is needed.
Identify the laboratory location on the CHP title page, and insert emergency contact phone numbers on page 4. The written plan is now complete. Forward copies to ESSR and the departmental Compliance Officer.
Ensure all employees (including PIs) are trained. ESSR provides basic Chemical Hygiene training online.
Lab managers must provide specific training that addresses specific safety procedures in the lab. ESSR has provided a checklist that can be used to ensure all required levels of information are provided to employees.
Employees can retrieve their own training records online as proof of training.
If chemical exposure is suspected, coordinate exposure monitoring through ESSR by calling 301.405.3980. There is no charge for any monitoring conducted to assess chemical exposure in the laboratory.
If employees are injured due to chemical exposure or suspect they have received a significant exposure, ensure a medical evaluation is conducted. The Urgent Care area of the Health Center can conduct this evaluation for non life-threatening injuries. The campus 911 system should be used for significant injuries or illnesses resulting from chemical exposure.
Injured employees and their supervisors must ensure that First Reports of Injury are filed with the Workers Compensation Office within 24 hours of the injury or treatment. The forms and procedures are available online.
Revise SOPs/Inventory as work practices/conditions change.
A checklist to evaluate all safety and environmental requirements in your laboratory is available.