General Lab Safety
Abandoned Laboratories
What is an abandoned laboratory?
Research conducted in laboratories on campus can involve the use of hazardous biological, chemical and radiological materials, and radiation sources. When faculty members leave the university, they sometimes fail to provide for the final disposition of these hazardous materials. Laboratories that contain hazardous materials without a responsible faculty member in charge are referred to as ?abandoned? laboratories.
What are the issues with abandoned laboratories?
The campus unit that an abandoned laboratory belongs to is responsible for dealing with any hazardous materials in the space. Disposal of the materials is difficult and expensive because no one remaining on campus has knowledge of the process by which the materials were generated. Determining the composition of unknown materials is expensive and labor-intensive. Furthermore abandoned Drug Enforcement Agency controlled substances, Select Agents and radioactive materials are violations of Federal and State regulations. If the faculty and staff members who have worked in the laboratory were to prepare the materials for disposal, regulatory violations would be eliminated and costs could be reduced dramatically.
How can abandoned laboratories be prevented?
Unit Head Responsibilities: Unit heads should establish and enforce a unit policy requiring laboratories to be cleared, decontaminated and cleaned before a faculty member leaves the campus. Unit heads should also inform the Division of Research Safety (DRS) of the resignation, retirement, or other departure (sabbatical) of any faculty member who use hazardous materials in their research.
Faculty Responsibilities: Faculty members should dispose all their hazardous materials, and decontaminate and clean the laboratory before they leave the university (see Procedures for Vacating a Laboratory - Fact Sheet for additional information). Also, faculty members who depart campus for periods of 90 days or longer should place their hazardous materials in proper long-term storage or make arrangements for adequate supervision over their laboratories in their absence.
What are the resources available to help?
DRS is ready and willing to assist campus units in dealing with hazardous materials, but faculty members or unit heads must initiate a request for this assistance. DRS can provide advice and guidance on preparing hazardous materials for disposal, and can also pick up biological, chemical and radioactive wastes for final disposal. Please also remember that DRS staff members must survey laboratories using radioactive materials before they can be released for unrestricted use.
Questions?
Contact the Division of Research Safety (333-2755 or via e-mail) or visit our web site: http://www.drs.uiuc.edu.
Other General Laboratory Safety Fact Sheets are available from the Division of Research Safety on our web site at http://www.drs.uiuc.edu/factsheets/.
