1. Eye protection must be worn. Chemical splash goggles must meet ANSIZ87.1 Standard. Wear face shields when dealing with corrosive liquids (i.e.: full strength acids and bases).
2. Wear gloves which offer protection for all hazards you may find in the lab. Test for holes every time you wear your gloves.
3. Always wear a full length lab coat or a chemical-resistant apron.
4. Wear low healed shoes. Do not wear open-toed shoes or sandals of any kind. Always wear socks in the laboratory.
5. Wear a respirator with the appropriate cartridge if you feel you might exceed permissible exposure limits as specified in the MSDS.
6. Never block access to emergency exits or equipment.
7. Clean up all spills properly and promptly.
8. Do not wear shorts--wear long pants
9. Do not wear loose or balloon sleeves.
10. Tie back long hair.
11. Do not wear contact lenses--goggles fit over eyeglasses.
12. Do not wear hanging jewelry.
13. Do not wear a long or loose necktie.
14. Do not wear an absorbent watch strap.
15. Inspect all protective safety equipment before use. If defective, do not use.

1. Keep chemicals in the chemical prep and storage area. If chemicals are moved to the classroom from the lab, they must be returned to their proper storage location at the end of the day's laboratory periods.
2. Waste materials require proper containers and labels.
3. Do not store items in the fume hood. The storage of items in the fume hood is a fire hazard and decreases the efficiency of the fume hood.
4. Label all chemicals with names and hazards, even solutions.
5. Never block access to exits or emergency equipment.
6. Clean up all spills properly and promptly.
7. Work and floor surfaces should be cleaned regularly and kept free of clutter.

1. Notify--Call for help. Evacuate--Get everyone to a safe location. Assemble--Organize the students and all workers. Report--Fill out a detailed accident report after the emergency is over.
2. Clean up spills immediately and thoroughly. Follow approved spill clean up procedures. Spills should only be cleaned up by approved personnel.
3. A bucket of dry sand should be available as a Class D fire extinguisher and to aid in providing traction on a slippery floor.
4. Neutralizer for both acid and base spills should be available in the event of a chemical spill.
5. Never attempt to clean up a spill unless you have been trained to do so, and have all the appropriate equipment and materials.
6. Document any spills to be cleaned up. Contact the Safety Officer at 797-7054.

1. Keep an updated inventory of all chemicals, their amounts and location. Stored chemicals should be examined annually for replacement, deterioration and chemical integrity. Your entire Chemical Hygiene Plan is based on the proper updated inventory always being available.
2. Label all chemical solutions you make with the identity of the contents, date, concentration, hazard information and your name.
3. Label all chemicals with the purchase date. This will allow anyone to determine the age of a substance.
4. Establish a separate and secure storage area for chemicals.
5. Do not allow incoming shipments of chemicals to be opened and transported by school personnel other than qualified science teachers. The special and expensive shipping containers used are frequently discarded and would prove valuable for chemical storage.
6. All chemicals should be stored in chemically compatible families (see Flinn Chemical Catalog Reference Manual for details).
7. Store the minimum amount of chemicals needed.
8. Store corrosives in appropriate corrosives cabinets.
9. Non flammable materials should be stored outside an approved flammables storage cabinet unless in safety cans.
10. Do not store chemicals under a fume hood.
11. If possible, keep certain items in the original shipping package (e.g.: acids and bases in the special

and expensive styrofoam cubes).

12. Avoid storing chemicals on shelves above eye level.
13. The storage area and cabinets should be labeled as to identify the hazardous nature of the products being stored. This will allow fire department officials to quickly see a potentially hazardous area.
14. Shelving above any work area, such as a sink, should be free of chemicals or other loose miscellany.
15. Shelving sections should be secured to walls or floor to prevent tipping of entire sections.
16. Shelves should be equipped with lips to prevent containers from rolling off.
17. Chemicals should not be stored on the floor except in approved shipping containers.
18. Storage area should be ventilated by at least four changes of air per hour. Isolate the chemical storage exhaust from the general building ventilation system.
19. Never store food in a laboratory refrigerator.
20. Store chemicals in a separate, locked, dedicated storeroom.
21. Store all poisons in a locked cabinet.
22. Only authorized personnel are allowed in the chemical storage area. Students should never be allowed in this area.
23. Chemical exposure to heat or direct sunlight should be avoided.

1. Compressed gases should be handled as high energy sources and, therefore, as potential explosives.
2. Always protect the cylinder valve stem.
3. Avoid exposure of cylinders to heat. Do not store gas cylinders in direct sunlight.
4. Never lubricate, modify, force or tamper with a cylinder valve.
5. Cylinders of toxic, flammable or reactive gases should be used only under a fume hood.

 

6. Do not extinguish a flame involving a combustible gas until the gas is shut off--otherwise it can re-ignite, possibly causing an explosion.
7. Gas cylinders must be secured in place. They must be protected to prevent valve damage which may be caused by falling.
8. Shut off all master shut-off valves whenever leaving the classroom.

1. Store all flammables in a dedicated flammables cabinet.
2. Keep cool, between 55F and 80F, at all times.
3. Store away from all sources of ignition.
4. Store away from all oxidizers.
5. Never store flammables in refrigerators unless the refrigerator is explosion proof.
6. Avoid storing any chemicals especially flammable materials in direct sunlight.

1. Store corrosives in appropriate corrosives cabinets.
2. If possible, keep certain items in the original shipping package (e.g., acids and bases in the special and expensive Styrofoam cubes).
3. Working with corrosive materials requires special eyewear. Wear a chemical splash face shield when handling corrosive materials.
4. At least every three months inspect all shelf clips in your acid cabinet to check for possible corrosion. These shelf clips are the only thing between you and a collapsed shelf. They require special attention.

1. Use a fume hood when the permissible exposure limit for a chemical is less than 50 PPM as indicated on the chemical MSDS.
2. Do not use carcinogens, mutagens, teratogens and allergens in High School or Middle School Science Labs.
3. Handle toxic, corrosive, flammable and noxious chemicals under a fume hood.
4. Do not expose flammable liquids to open flame, sparks, heat or any source of ignition.
5. Do not use flammable solids (sodium, potassium, lithium, etc.) in High School or Middle School Science Labs.

 

6. Water-reactive solids (sodium metal, potassium metal, etc.) should not be stored in High School or Middle School Science Labs.
7. Use extreme caution when handling finely divided (dust-like) material. Finely divided materials may form explosive mixtures with air.
8. Open cans of ether (ethyl ether) should not be stored or used in High School or Middle School Science Labs.

There may be some procedures which require prior approval before an instructor attempts to perform them. These procedures must be determined by cooperation and communication between the Science Department and the Chemical Hygiene Officer.

There are many safety items necessary for compliance to the Laboratory Standard. They include but are not limited to:

1. Eyewashes.
2. Fire extinguishers.
3. Goggles.
4. Respirators.

One of the most important sections of the Laboratory Standard states that all safety equipment in the facility must always be in good operating condition. While the Laboratory Standard requires some safety equipment and highly recommends other equipment, the standard is very clear on the point that if you have a piece of safety equipment, it must be functional at all times. This statement applies to all safety equipment, required or recommended.

1. Goggles must always be clean and functional.
2. Laboratory ventilation must meet the standard of eight air changes per hour and must be tested quarterly.
3. A respirator must be fit tested and the appropriate cartridges must be available.
4. Fire extinguishers must be of the right type, Triclass ABC, and they must always be properly inspected.
5. Eyewashes must be functional and flushed at least once a month.
6. Fume hoods must be operational at the level of 70-100 linear feet per minute as measured by a velometer.

All of the above items and all safety equipment must be inspected every three months at the minimum. Any safety equipment failing this quarterly inspection or reported to be out of order at any time must be repaired immediately. Any safety equipment found to be out of order is a serious violation of the Laboratory Standard.

The Hernando County School Board provides ongoing training sessions for our employees. Our training includes:

1. Content and location of this Chemical Hygiene Plan and The Laboratory Standard.
2. Potential hazards involved in using chemicals.
3. Signs and symptoms of overexposure to chemicals. How to detect potentially harmful exposures before they are harmful.
4. Location and availability of chemical Material Safety Data Sheets (MSDS).
5. Understanding of the permissible exposure limits (PELs) used in the school.
6. The proper use and location of all safety equipment.

It is the communicated policy of the Hernando County School Board to investigate all suspected overexposures to chemicals in a prompt and timely fashion.

In the event of an overexposure, after the immediate event, we must document all chemicals and circumstances involved in the overexposure. This information should be used to change safety practices to further improve lab safety. It is our obligation to maintain these files and make them accessible to the employees.

Signs of overexposure are numerous. They include:

1. Accidental breakage of a hazardous material container.
2. A skin rash or irritation occurring because of contact with a chemical.
3. Caustic splash to eyes, face or body.
4. Symptoms such as nausea, dizziness and others.

If monitoring of the air is determined to be necessary, the results of the monitoring must be made available to the employees within 2 weeks.

It is the policy of the Hernando County School Board to make medical consultation and examination available to our employees when:

1. Any sign or symptom of an overexposure to a chemical is present.
2. Monitoring has indicated an overexposure to a chemical has occurred.
3. There has been a spill or uncontrolled release of chemical fumes.

We will provide the physician with the names of the chemicals used, circumstances of the exposure and all signs and symptoms of the exposure.

The medical examinations dealing with the overexposure must be documented and other employees working under the same conditions must be notified. All documentation must be kept on file and accessible by other employees working in this area.

All medical examinations and consultations shall be performed by or under the direct supervision of a licensed physician and shall be provided without cost to the employee and without loss of pay.

Monitoring will be necessary for substances regulated by a standard only if there is reason to believe that exposure levels for that substance routinely exceed the PEL for that substance. If you have no cause to suspect a hazard or an exposure, no monitoring is necessary.

If monitoring is performed and this initial monitoring shows no evidence of exposure, the monitoring may be discontinued. If initial monitoring indicates an exposure, steps must be taken immediately to reduce the exposure to permissible limits. Monitoring must then be performed periodically to verify the steps to reduce the exposure have been effective. Monitoring may be terminated after complying with the applicable

standard for the hazardous material.

All monitoring results and activities shall be fully accessible and in full knowledge of the employee(s).

Establish a chain of communication. John tells Sally, Sally tells Bill, Bill notifies the office, the office notifies the fire department, etc. Remember, notify before proceeding to handle the incident. It is often better to notify someone else than to proceed in addressing the problem at hand by yourself. Evacuation may or may not be necessary depending on the incident. Once it has been determined evacuation is necessary, proceed in an orderly fashion as you would in a fire drill evacuation. Send everyone to a predesignated area and then count heads to make sure everyone is out of the building.

Proper evacuation procedures must be thoroughly planned, detailed in writing, and properly communicated in advance. In case of an emergency, you will not have time to determine "What do I do next?". This evacuation plan will be part of the Chemical Hygiene Plan.

(School Name) Emergency Evacuation Plan

For years you have wanted to clean up and organize your chemical storage area, but it's such a huge job, where do you begin? Our seven step plan will give the direction and guidance you need to get this job done safely, quickly and efficiently.

Before beginning, some ground rules need to be established:

1. Teachers cleaning up the chemical storage area should do so in teams. This work should never be done alone. Students should never be involved.
2. Teachers doing this work should be from the school where the work is being done. The best time to do this type of work is immediately after school gets out in the spring.

The most important step in cleaning up a chemical storage area is taking an accurate and complete inventory of every chemical in each chemical storage area, laboratory and classroom. Without a complete inventory you will not be able to proceed to step #2. Don't forget to check closets and drawers.

Critical information will be needed from your inventory. Most particularly, you will want to know: 1) the name of the chemical, 2) its shelf location, 3) the approximate amount of chemical estimated to be in each container. The shelf location of each chemical is important because it's likely the same chemical will be found in several locations. Shelf location information will help you track down and consolidate these chemicals.

It is fair to say that 40% of the chemicals you have in your chemical storage area have not been used in the last five years and probably won't be used in the next five years. Now is the time to decide which chemicals are really used. Once the inventory is completed, review your laboratory manuals, textbooks, demonstrations and science fair projects and decide which chemicals you don't use.

As you review your inventory, you may discover an excessive amount of some chemicals. Calculate what quantities of these chemicals you use every year and then decide to keep no more than a two to five year supply. Determining how much chemical to keep will be influenced by two factors: the chemical shelf life and the hazardous nature of the chemical. The poorer the shelf life or the more hazardous the chemical the less you will want to keep on hand. If the chemical is not hazardous and has an indefinite shelf life, keep a four to five year supply. However, if the chemical is hazardous and the shelf life is poor, keep only a one year supply on hand. Look carefully at each bottle, try to determine which bottle looks the freshest or has the best shelf life and only keep the amount you really think you need.

You now know which chemicals you use, which chemicals you want to keep, and which chemicals you would like to get rid of. Let's now physically move all of the chemicals in the chemical storage area out into the laboratory area onto the lab benches. (The laboratory next to the chemical storage area works best). The right side of the laboratory will become an area for those chemicals which you either no longer use, or have in excessive amounts and would like disposed.

The left side of the laboratory will be those chemicals you want to keep. It's important that only authorized people working on this project be allowed to enter this room. Administrators, maintenance people and others must not be allowed into this laboratory area unless they are accompanied by one of the teachers involved in the cleanup project. This laboratory should be locked when not in use.