General Guidelines

1.  Do not store excessive quantities of chemicals in research laboratory. Purchase the minimum amount required and dispose of unneeded chemicals in a timely fashion.

2.  Date bottles of chemicals when they are opened. Peroxidizable chemicals such as isopropyl ether should be tested periodically or discarded according to the time limits. Discard any chemical of dubious purity (by the usual waste disposal procedures) if it cannot be purified safely.

JANUARY, 2000 

The following has been modified from precautionary measures, guidelines and standard methods established by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC); the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA); and the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).
 
Purpose: Living microorganisms have the potential of producing human disease.  Therefore, the safety of each investigator in the laboratory depends on whether the following rules are observed.

Why should we concern ourselves with lab safety?  Many experienced scientists who have not experienced lab incidents that involved injury or death are reluctant to adopt "modern" lab safety techniques since their own experience of not adhering to current guidelines and recommendations has not (yet) caused a problem.  However, there are many stories of lab accidents that could have been averted, or the damage minimized or reduced, but following current lab safety rules.  The link above categorizes many of these incidents.

For apparently non-serious injuries or exposures:

contact lab supervisor, and Dr. Finster (Chemistry, 6441)

For any injury or exposure which may seem serious or life-threatening,

first: call 9-911 immediately with detailed information on the location of patient(s)

next: call 6363 to notify University Security

next: contact Dr. Finster (Chemistry)

next: locate hard copy of relevant MSDS(s)