Southern Illinois University
Center for Environmental Health & Safety
Carbondale, Illinois
Nsikak Umo
Southern Illinois University, Carbondale
The Center for Environmental Health and Safety (CEHS) at the SIU, Carbondale
(SIUC) campus, coordinates all activities associated with environmental
regulatory compliance at the university. CEHS is comprised of four sections
that include Environmental Compliance, Laboratory and Hazardous Waste, Occupational
Health and Safety, and Radiological Safety. Environmental Compliance addresses
the permitting requirements related to the central steam plant, waste incinerator,
and wastewater systems.
Laboratory and Hazardous Waste manages the disposal of all of the biological
and chemical materials used in teaching, research and service activities. The intern investigated the operation of the waste incinerator to determine
the most efficient method for minimization and disposal of materials generated
as biowaste, animal carcasses, sharps, petri plates, human tissue, and general
bags waste.
Results:
Researching the process and generation points of waste led the intern
to recommend source reduction of waste at each department and elimination
of the incinerator. Alternatively, the intern proposed six recommendations
that can save the university over $80,000 per year including:
- Minimizing waste generated at each department to minimize
the need for waste management systems.
- Segregating wastes from each department to enable beneficial
reuse of the appropriate materials.
- Utilizing tissue digestion for the animal carcasses and human
tissues generated on campus.
- Composting animal bedding for beneficial reuse.
- Autoclaving petri plates, sharps, and red bag waste using
the existing campus-wide steam system.
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