Université de Sherbrooke
OP-21: Hazardous Waste Management

The use of chemical products is widespread in the various teaching and research laboratories of a university. This fact being known, both training and the adoption of good practices are essential to better manage these wastes and maintain a healthy and safe environment. To that regard, the Environmental Health and Safety Division focuses on prevention and education and provides information on how to better manage chemical wastes in the absence of being able to eliminate them completely. The Division's website includes a section on chemical products and on how to manage these types of waste, may they be liquid residual materials, solid residual materials or of other types (i.e. glass fragments (pipettes or broken glassware), non-contaminated needles, etc.). Ultimately, it is incumbent on the producer of hazardous waste to dispose of them and therefore, cannot carry out an operation unless the aspect of hazardous waste disposal has been studied and an appropriate solution has been proposed and accepted. Finally, as these residual materials cannot be completely eliminated, it is through a more responsible management of them that their impacts can be minimized, and this is the approach that the Université de Shebrooke has adopted at this time. https://www.usherbrooke.ca/immeubles/sante-et-securite/produits-chimiques/matieres-residuelles/ https://www.usherbrooke.ca/immeubles/sante-et-securite/produits-chimiques/matieres-residuelles/responsabilite-du-producteur/

In addition to a system for the collection, storage and disposal of chemical residual materials (through weekly collection of hazardous residual materials in laboratories, the presence of temporary storage and final disposal as required by government requirements), which represent the largest share of hazardous materials treated, with nearly 60,000 kg recovered per year, the Environmental Health and Safety Division provides information on how to safely dispose of hazardous waste. The Division's website includes a section on shipment of hazardous materials, may these be biological materials, chemical materials and radioactive materials, and the procedure to follow. The Division also offers a "turnkey" shipping service to all members of the university community. Its staff is trained and certified to classify, package and document all dangerous materials, in compliance with current regulatory requirements. https://www.usherbrooke.ca/immeubles/sante-et-securite/envoi-de-produits-dangereux/

There were no significant hazardous material release incidents during the previous three years.

Chemical Products Inventory: The Occupational Health and Safety Act requires that a list of hazardous materials be made available in the workplace, as well as the descriptive sheets or related safety data sheets. To meet these requirements, the Université de Sherbrooke has adopted the Higher Education Cooperative for Hazardous Material and Equipment Tracking system (HECHMET) developed for Canadian universities. The inventory is available via the website (authenticated) and gives direct access to Chemwatch's (international company specializing in chemicals safety) safety data sheets. The Environmental Health and Safety Division team is available to provide access to the site, create locations containing hazardous materials and produce the inventory of existing chemicals. Thereafter, each research team benefits from keeping the inventory up to date, to easily find its products or avoid unnecessary orders.

Used batteries: In order to always promote environmental protection, the Université de Sherbrooke implemented a waste battery collection system in 2009. With more than 20 collection points on the three campuses, this program redirects approximately 830 kg of waste away from landfills annually (2017 data). All types of batteries are accepted. Used batteries are recovered using small orange bins strategically distributed on university campuses. They can also be found in the University's various faculties (i.e. Engineering, Science, Medicine). Cellular phones: The Université de Sherbrooke implemented a personal telecommunications device recovery program in 2008. Thus, in partnership with Bell Mobility and its Gobeil et fille Inc. branch, the University collects from the university community cellular phones, personal assistants, pagers, used wireless phones and related accessories. Members of the university community may dispose of this material responsibly at the University by internal mail or in person, or use bins provided for this purpose. Computer equipment: The University also collects all devices from information and communication technologies. The Information Technology Department is responsible for the internal reuse of remaining usable computer equipment. For a complete list of electronic waste products, a recycling system guide is accessible on the sustainable development website. https://www.usherbrooke.ca/developpement-durable/fileadmin/sites/developpement-durable/documents/Sur_nos_campus/Dispositifs_de_recuperation.pdf