Waste Management in the Laboratory

Segregating harmful waste from regular waste is an extremely important practice in a laboratory environment. By placing waste in its proper place, it can be treated and disposed of appropriately to minimize any potential risks to you, your labmates, the University and even the community of London.

There are five types of 'harmful' waste that you will be dealing with throughout this course. How to identify these wastes and dispose of them properly is outlined below.

Type 1: HAZARDOUS WASTE

What gets placed here? Dangerous chemicals that cannot be disposed of through the regular garbage.

Examples: Phenol, chloroform, Trizol, DNAzol and any tips, tubes, gloves, etc. that have been contaminated by these materials.

Where do they go in the lab? During any lab period where you will be working with these substances there will be labeled "hazardous waste" containers on your lab bench. If you don't see them, ask.

What happens to it after you leave? The hazardous waste is packaged, properly labeled and is picked up weekly at the University by a company who knows how to properly dispose of all the waste in a safe manner.

Type 2: BIOHAZARDOUS WASTE

What gets placed here? Living organisms.

Examples: Bacteria, yeast and anything that has been contaminated with them.

Where do they go? During any lab period where you will be working with bacteria or yeast there will be labeled "biohazardous waste" containers on your lab bench. If you don't see them, ask. There is also a large biohazard waste container located at the front of the room.

What happens to it after you leave? The biohazardous waste is autoclaved for 90 minutes in order to kill all of the living organisms. After it passes the quality control test to ensure that the sterilization procedure was successful, the waste is labeled as treated and can be disposed of in the regular garbage.

*Important note: You CANNOT place chemicals into this garbage since dangerous fumes would be produced through the autoclaving process!

Type 3: ETHIDIUM BROMIDE WASTE

What gets placed here? Anything that has been contaminated with Ethidium Bromide.

Examples: Gels, gloves

Where do they go in the lab? There is a large ethidium bromide waste bin located beneath the GelDoc system where you will take all of your gel pictures. Make sure not to contaminate other areas of the lab when you have been working here.

What happens to it after you leave? The garbage and liquid waste is collected, labelled and picked up along with the "hazardous waste" material (see above).

Type 4: SHARPS WASTE

What gets placed here? Used sharp material.

Examples: Razor blades, syringes, needles, pins

Where do they go in the lab? There is a red sharps container located on the bench near the GelDoc system.

What happens to it after you leave? When the bucket is full, it is submitted to hazardous waste collection for incineration.

Type 5: GLASS WASTE

What gets placed here? Any type of clear broken/disposable glass.

Examples: Broken gel plates, pasteur pipettes, broken bottle

Where do they go in the lab? There is a large glass waste box located by the door to the lab. All glassware must be rinsed and/or disinfected from any harmful residues before placing in the waste box.

What happens to it after you leave? When full, it is sealed and collected by our caretaking staff.

If you are not sure of where the waste should be placed, don't be afraid to ask your TA, that's what they are there for!