The proper disposal of waste chemicals at the Institute is of serious concern, and every effort should be made to do it safely and efficiently. The responsibility for the identification and handling of waste chemicals within the Institute necessarily rests with the individuals who have created the waste.
Protection of the environment makes the disposal of large quantities of chemical and solid wastes a difficult problem. It is in everyone's best interest to keep quantities of waste to a minimum. The following suggestions may help:
Make sure all samples and products to be disposed of are properly identified, labeled with their chemical names, and containerized. You must clean up before you transfer within or leave MIT. You must sumit a Departure Compliance Form to the Chemical Hygiene Officer before you transfer within or leave MIT. For more information on identifying waste, see the subsequent sections on "Identification," "Unknown Waste," and "Paperwork."
Organic solvents must not be put down the drain. Regulations that apply to MIT's sewer system prohibit the discharge of organic solvents to the sewer system. This applies to all organic solvents whether flammable or nonflammable, miscible or non miscible with water. Organic solvents should be placed in suitable containers where there is no danger that vapors or the liquid will escape. Containers shall be capped tightly, labeled prominently, and given to the MIT Safety Office .
Mixtures of organic solvents that are compatible and combined in one container must be identified with an estimated proportion in fractions or percentages of each solvent in the mixture indicated.
Concentrated acids and caustics, acids and alkaline solutions should be put into proper containers tightly capped, labeled, and given to the Safety Office.
Inorganic and organic solids in their original containers that are contaminated, old, or of questionable purity may be given to the Safety Office.
Mercury must be removed from lab apparatus and put into jars or bottles before sending it to the Safety Office . Broken mercury thermometers must be put into a jar or secondary container. Clean- up materials from a mercury spill may be containerized, labeled, and sent to the Safety Office. Any laboratory or department that is interested in sending mercury waste to be distilled and to receive a credit for the mercury must take the responsibility of getting the mercury waste to the proper vendor.
Cyanide compounds, arsenic, lead, and heavy metal wastes should be placed in bottles and containers, sealed tightly, labeled, and given to the Safety Office.
Alkali metals such as sodium and potassium should be placed in a suitable container, covered with Nujol (mineral oil), labeled properly, sealed so that there is no possibility of their coming into contact with water, and given to the Safety Office.
Pyrophoric metals such as magnesium, strontium, thorium, and zirconium, and other pyrophoric chips and fine powders should be placed in a metal container, sealed tightly, labeled, and given to the Safety Office.
Waste oil in quantities of less than 5 gallons may be given to the Safety Office. Large quantities of waste chemicals to be removed from a laboratory may be more than a normal amount for the Safety Office to pick-up, and the department will be financially responsible for the disposal. Some examples are the wastes collected in drum lots from a research project, the clean-out of a laboratory of old reagents and chemicals which would be packed into drums, and the waste chemicals to be pumped out of a collection or storage tank.
Transformer oil which may contain PCB's should be tested for PCB content. The responsibility of having the transformer oil tested and for the actual disposal rests with the department involved.
Capacitors which contain PCB's are likewise the responsibility of the department involved. Information on possible disposal contractors can be obtained by calling the Safety Office (X3- 4736).
Controlled drugs to be disposed of as waste must not be sent to the waste chemical storage area. The handling, recording, and disposal of controlled drugs are the responsibility of the department involved operating within the Bureau of Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs (BNDD) Regulations.
Biological waste that may contain live viruses must not be sent to the waste chemical storage area. The disposal of biological wastes is handled in accordance with procedures for deactivation that have been established by the department involved and the Environmental Medical Service.
All gas cylinders are to be returned to the Office of Laboratory Supplies, which has the responsibility to return the cylinders to the proper vendor. Some small lecture bottles are the non-returnable type which become a disposal problem when empty or near empty with a residual amount of gas. Any non-returnable cylinders should also be returned to the Office of Laboratory Supplies. When ordering gases in lecture bottle size, be sure to order the gases in a returnable cylinder.
The Environmental Medical Service (X3-2596) may be consulted if there is any question concerning the toxicity or packaging of any toxic wastes.
Trade Name Company Name Aroclor Monsanto Asbestos American Corporation Askarel Monsanto Chorextol Allis Chalmers Diaclor Sangamo Electric Dykanol Cornell Dubilier Elemex McGraw Edison Hyvol Aerovox Inerteen Westinghouse No-Flamol Wagner Pyranol General Electric Saf-T-Juhl Kuhlman Clophen Bayer (Germany) DK Caffaro (Italy) Fenclor Caffaro (Italy) Kennechlor Mitsubishi (Japan) Phenoclor Prodelec (France) Pyralene Prodelec (France) Santotherm Mitsubishi (Japan)
PCB Trade Names can be found on transformer or equipment nameplates, examples:
We urge that all PCB-containing equipment be replaced and disposed of as soon as possible. Retrofitting with Non-PCB materials may be a viable alternative in some situations.
Equipment containing PCBs should not be accepted in transfer from other institutions or from other departments within MIT. There are several reasons for this advice. If you accept PCB-containing equipment, you also accept a very large toxic waste disposal bill that only escalates with the passage of time.
More important, any leak or fire will be treated by regulatory authorities as a toxic emergency. A typical, small PCB-transformer leak or fire often results in the effective loss of an entire building for several years and a multimillion dollar clean-up bill.
Federal and state agencies react this way because of the health effect of PCBs and their break-down products. Although toxicologists disagree about the degree of risk from PCBs and break-down products (dibenzo-dioxins and dibenzofurans), there is no reason why Institute personnel should experience any risk from fires or leaks. Medical information about PCBs can be obtained from Robert Mc Cunney, M.D., at X3-5360.
At present, the departments bear the cost of PCB identification and disposal. You can obtain help in this area by calling Mr. Donald Batson at the Safety Office, X3-3436, or Mr. William MacLachlan at Lincoln Laboratory, X2382.