Chemical Purchasing & Waste Management

Electronic waste or e-waste are electronics that are near the end of their life span. This would include items such as laptops, computer monitors, keyboards, printers, etc. because e-waste often contains heavy metals here at EOU we recycle these products. If you have electronic waste that you would like to have pick-up please submit an IT help ticket by e-mailing IT at IT Helpdesk Ticket. Make sure to provide a description of the item, its location, and any additional information that may be relevant. Please be aware that EOU can only recycle e-waste which is the property of EOU.

Universal waste is hazardous waste that is common among businesses and non-households. The Universal waste rules allow this waste to be managed in a more streamlined system than other hazardous waste, encouraging the process of collection and recycling. Please be aware that EOU can only recycle universal waste which is the property of EOU. 

• Wastes included in Universal wastes are
  • Batteries- these can be placed in the various collection buckets around the campus, often found in office lobbies. If your department requires a battery bucket please contact the EH&S III Professional to request one. 
  • Fluorescent bulbs/lamps/tubes
  • Mercury containing equipment, if you believe you are in possession of a mercury-containing item that you would like recycled please contact the EH&S III Professional.  
  • Pesticides

Hazardous waste is a substance that poses the ability to harm human health or the environment when it is improperly managed. Many chemical wastes here on campus are considered hazardous. A chemical waste is hazardous if it is listed on either the state or federal regulations list or it possesses one or more of the following characteristics. Flammable, Corrosive, Reactive, or Toxic. 

Biological or Biomedical waste is also considered hazardous waste. This waste encompasses blood and blood products, pathological wastes, cultures, any infectious agent and associated biologicals, lab specimens, sharps, and biotechnology by-product effluents such as recombinant DNA.

Disposing of Chemical Waste:

All chemical waste campus-wide must be processed by our EH&S III Professional. Chemical waste is generally created either in a laboratory setting or due to expired product. Follow the steps below to properly handle the chemical waste in your space.

When chemical waste is created in a laboratory or class setting it is collected into properly labeled waste containers and processed by the EH&S III professional. It is extremely important that all waste is collected, EOU does not put any chemicals, even non-hazardous, down the drain because our water goes to wildlife habitat. Wildlife could be negatively affected by improper disposal down drains. If you are expecting to have a chemical waste stream in your laboratory or classroom please complete the following.

1. Contact the EH&S III professional at least one week prior to the expected activity.
2. Provide the protocol of the experiment or activity that will be creating the waste stream. Any new protocol must be reviewed by EH&S III and Chemical Hygiene Officer to evaluate the hazards associated with the protocol in order to minimizing risk to EOU employees and students. 
3. Outline the different waste streams you are expecting to create and the approximate volumes.
4. Once the EH&S III professional has reviewed the protocol and created the waste containers according to the hazardous class of the waste stream, they will contact you when waste containers are ready.
5. When the activity has concluded return waste containers to the EH&S III professional for proper disposal according to RCRA and EPA regulations.  

If chemical waste is created by a product becoming expired and needs disposal, leave it in its original container with all of the manufacturing information and contact the EH&S III professional to arrange a pick-up time. This will be added to the hazardous waste collection that occurs with a third party for permanent disposal or permanent storage. 

Should a spill occur of a hazardous material contact EOU security at 541-962-3911 and the EH&S III professional at 541-962-3348 immediately for instructions and clean-up assistance.

Biological and Biomedical Waste:

Biological waste generated in a laboratory setting that consists of specimens, cultures, recombinant DNA ect. are collected in biohazard containers and disposed of properly by the EH&S III professional. If you need a biohazard container for your laboratory or class please follow the steps outlined in disposing of chemical waste to request biological waste containers. 

Biomedical waste such as diabetic needles, or other medical sharps are collected in designated sharps containers and collected by custodial from around campus for biomedical disposal. If you have questions or concerns about biomedical waste pick-up please contact Lisa Bridge in custodial at lbridge@eou.edu. 

All hazardous products such as cleaning supplies, building adhesives, laboratory products, paint, art supplies, gas cylinders, fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, etc. must have their SDS on file according to Oregon OSHA and we request that it is inputted into the campus wide inventory system as well. This process allows us to submit accurate Tier II reports of hazardous materials to the Oregon Health Authority and the State Fire Marshal. Inaccurate reports may result in fines to the university. Because of these guidelines we ask that the following steps are followed when any chemical based product is ordered.

1. Open up EOU’s safety data sheet program and search for the product of interest. 
2. If the SDS sheet is already on file then the product has been approved to be on campus.
3. If the SDS sheet is not on file download the SDS sheet from the website you are wanting to order from and email this to the EH&S III professional at eoustores@eou.edu for review.
   1. Please include the purpose of the product and the expected quantity in this email, as well as the individual responsible for the product.
   2. If approved the EH&S III professional will add this product to the inventory system and notify the responsible party of their new inventoried item. 
4. Once the product is approved for campus purchase only the required amount, often overstock is never used and then the university must pay for hazardous disposal. 
5. Upon arrival confirm with the responsible party that the item will be documented into the inventory system.