The Chair/Director shall appoint a Department Safety Officer who may be selected from the faculty or staff of that unit, who will coordinate and report on the status of the department’s compliance with the requirements of the Program. The Department Safety Officer under this Policy may also act as a safety officer in connection with other safety-related programs and policies as may be necessary. The duties of the Department Safety Officer will include, but need not be limited to:
- Touring periodically that department’s laboratories and, if requested, working with the relevant faculty and staff, help the relevant faculty and staff prepare an itemized list identifying the hazardous materials, equipment and processes to which students will be exposed;
- Working with the faculty and staff in charge of the Research Laboratories, Instructional Laboratories, to develop a program of safety instruction for the students who use those labs;
- Ensuring that Program documentation is available to Chair of the department, Director of Environmental Health and Safety and Lab Supervisor;
- Collecting accident reports concerning injuries that have occurred in each department’s laboratories; copies of these reports should be provided to the Director of Environmental Health and Safety;
- Working with Responsible Persons and Laboratory Safety Coordinator to create and maintain a written emergency response plan outlining the response to possible accidents in the laboratory space, including a list of offices and people to notify; a copy of this emergency response plan should be filed with the Director of Environmental Health and Safety;
- Providing assistance, upon request, to identify Hazards in that department’s Research Laboratories, Instructional Laboratories;
- Ensuring that a compiled written list of the identified Hazards in a format substantially similar to Appendix A has been completed by the Principal Investigator and/or Instructor, and posted with other safety documentation for the laboratory space;
- Encouraging Principal Investigator and researchers to post Standard Operating Procedures in conjunction with the department’s Chemical Hygiene Plan;
- Working with the faculty and staff in charge of the laboratory space to develop programs of safety instruction, and reporting to the Dean or Chair, and to the Director of Environmental Health and Safety, concerning specific matters involving the department’s implementation of and compliance with the Program;
- Reviewing the hazard assessment documents submitted by the Responsible Person for regulatory compliance and safety concerns that the Responsible Person may be unaware of, and providing feedback;
- Delivering a list of identified Hazards to the department’s Dean and Chair, the department’s instructors or Principal Investigators, the Director of Environmental Health and Safety and Faculty Laboratory Safety Coordinator.