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Environmental Health and Safety (EHS)

Chemical Safety and Hazardous Waste

The chemical safety and hazardous waste program partners with researchers to ensure that chemicals are used in ways that reduce risk and exposure as well as in compliance with the requirements of the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA/TOSHA), the Department of Transportation (DOT/TDOT), the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) and the Environmental Protection Agency. ​

The chemical safety and hazardous waste team:

  • Assists with initial laboratory design, set-ups, moves and closings​
  • Assists with chemical inventory management​
  • Provides chemical and physical lab safety and hazardous waste training online and in-person​
  • Provides safety guidance or policies such as the Chemical Hygiene Plan​
  • Assists with development of lab standard operating procedures​
  • Conducts safety and compliance inspections/audits​
  • Conducts injury, exposure, industrial hygiene, and indoor air quality evaluations in research areas​
  • Collects and disposes of chemical and pharmaceutical waste from research areas​
  • Responds to emergencies or spills involving chemicals in research areas​
  • Coordinates and supports the activities of the Chemical Safety Committee (CSC)

 

Dichloromethane (DCM)/Methylene Chloride (MC) Use in VU Labs  

Please visit the following page and complete the survey by January 10, 2025, to help the Environmental Health, Safety, and Sustainability department plan for the implementation of the Environmental Protection Agency’s new rule regulating the use of dichloromethane/methylene chloride (DCM/MC). This information will not be provided to anyone outside the university and is solely for internal planning purposes. The new regulation does not ban the use of DCM/MC in research, nor does Vanderbilt have any intention to ban its use, but it does significantly increase the regulatory requirements for its use. Once we receive your information, our office will provide more specific support to the labs who will need to continue to use DCM/MC to help you come into compliance before the initial regulatory deadline. 

Trichloroethylene (TCE) and Perchloroethylene/Tetrachloroethylene (PCE) Use in VU Labs 

On Monday 12/9/24, EPA also released new rules on trichloroethylene (TCE) and perchloroethylene/tetrachloroethylene (PCE). Applicability to Vanderbilt is unclear at this time so we will engage directly with EPA over the next several weeks to clarify. If Vanderbilt must comply with the new TCE and PCE rules, then we will engage directly with the VU researchers having either chemical in their inventory or waste disposal records.