Environmental Health and Safety Policy

The University of Massachusetts is committed to protecting the safety of faculty, staff, students, and visitors; providing a safe and healthy place to work, study, live, or visit; and to protecting the natural environment. This commitment includes reasonable protections for human health and the environment, mitigating risks of illness or injury, preventing, and responding to environmental hazards, preserving university resources and assets, minimizing property losses or damage, and helping to support compliance with federal, state, and local regulatory requirements. The university promotes a compassionate culture regarding the shared responsibility of safety. In an enriched culture of safety, all individuals have a responsibility to help maintain a healthy and safe campus environment for themselves and those around them.

The university is committed to complying with all applicable environmental health and safety laws and regulations. The Department of Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) is charged by the University for monitoring the implementation of health and safety programs and environmental standards. The department is responsible for managing investigations of incidents and evaluating deviations from this policy to ensure safe practices in education and research. The Department of Environmental Health and Safety shall develop and issue guidelines for campus members to follow in implementing this policy. For questions or concerns, please contact the EH&S main office 413-545-2682 or askehs@umass.edu.

Environmental Health and Safety Programs and Procedures

The Departmental of Environmental Health and Safety Policy is implemented through a series of programs, procedures, and other documents appropriate to university operations. The documents have been developed by the department in response to regulatory requirements and/or committee decisions and ensure compliance with the university’s policy regarding health and safety. Department programs, procedures and documents can be found on the EH&S website. Programs, procedures and documents include, but are not limited to, confined space, electrical safety, food safety, hazardous or bio waste, lab safety, chemical hygiene, lab coat program, personal protection equipment (PPE), respiratory protection program, pet policy and lab clean out.

Compliance with Federal, State and Local Regulatory Requirements

This university policy supports compliance with federal, state, and local regulatory requirements, including but not limited to those issued by the Environmental Protection Agency, Department of Transportation, Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the National Institutes of Health, The Department of Public Health, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration, and the Office of the State Fire Marshal. Massachusetts operates an OSHA-approved State Plan covering only state and local government workers. Private sector employers and their workers are covered by federal OSHA.