Procedures for Preparing Hazardous Waste
for Disposal
Ithaca Campus
NOTE: In order to speed disposal procedures, EH&S will gladly look at any waste inventory list
BEFORE adhesive labels are placed on containers. Call Ed Kowalski or Andy Down at 255-8200 to
request this service, or send a copy of the inventory to the EH&S Service Building, 201 Palm Road,
with a request that the inventory list be reviewed.
- Call Environmental Health and Safety (EH&S), 255-8200, to request the new, numbered two-part
(stick on) disposal stickers (5"x4").
- Complete the adhesive label; make sure all spaces are completely filled in (i.e. building & room,
date, name, telephone number) and write the exact chemical ingredients for each container in the
right-hand space under "Chemical Name" (trade names are not acceptable). In the left-hand
space check off the appropriate type of chemical. Fill out the date the same day that you send the
top copies to EH&S via campus mail.
- Make sure the green adhesive label is placed on each separate container of hazardous waste which
is ready for disposal. Use only screw-top chemical glassware or plasticware for disposal. Do not
use soda, milk, or glass-stoppered containers. Any waste bottle/container that emits a noxious smell
or is cracked or damaged in any way must be placed in an overpack container or transferred to a
new bottle/container.
- Place all waste containers in a Department of Transportation (DOT)-approved cardboard box.
Cardboard or styrofoam must be placed between the bottles to prevent breakage during
transportation. Each box must be able to be safely carried by one person. Place only compatible
chemicals in each box (i.e. flammables in one box, corrosives in another box, etc.).
- Send the top copies of the request form via campus mail to EH&S Service Building, 201 Palm
Road. Please do not make routine pickup requests by telephone.
How to Complete the Headings on the Chemical Disposal Request form:
- Building and Room
Indicates the area where the hazardous waste is generated, and directs EH&S personnel to the
pickup.
- Date
Both federal and state legislation stipulate 90 days as the length of time EH&S may possess the
hazardous waste, subsequent to removing it from the individual laboratories and prior to final
shipment to an approved disposal facility. Therefore, anyone completing the form should fill in
the date on which EH&S was notified to pick up the chemicals, not the date on which the adhesive
labels were placed on the individual bottles.
- Requested By and Telephone Number
Identifies the individual faculty or staff member generating the hazardous waste and assuming
responsibility for its description. This information is important if questions about the material
subsequently arise.
- Check Type
Identifies the general characteristics of the hazardous waste chemicals, and indicates which classes
of waste should not be mixed together, in order to facilitate disposal procedures.
- Chemical Name
Precisely identify the exact composition of the hazardous waste in each container. NOTE: For
pesticides, the pesticide trade name and formulation is sufficient. Both federal and state legislation
preclude the use of code numbers, trade names and initials in the transportation and disposal of
hazardous waste. Hazardous waste consisting of multiple elements or compounds requires the
identification of each constituent, and the percentage by volume it occupies in the container.
- Quantity
Total number of boxes or bottles. This identifies the need for carts, carriers, etc. for large clean-
outs.
