Dear All,

	I would like to have a closer look at this situation.  If you cannot
neutralise, who are you supposed to handle dangerous spills?
	Here in the land down under, there are (as far as I know) no such
restrictions.  There are several products on the market that neutralise
formalin to allow safe disposal.  These products are excellent for
neutralising spills, & reducing the risk to lab workers not just where the
spill is but for the facility as a whole.
	What do you do with an osmium spill?  Over the years I have moved from oil
soaked sawdust, to full cream milk powder for spills & nothing beats corn
oil for disposing of osmium waste from staining etc.  
	Cost is everything in the modern laboratory, simple techniques that reduce
hazards, must still hold pride of place surely.  Maybe this particular
safety director should look at the hazards associated with the storage of
laboratory waste.  We all have some understanding of the hazards of a histo
or EM facility, but do we always remember that formaldehyde is flammable
under appropriate circumstances, & that given sufficient low level exposure
we can be desensitised to its smell?
	By storing wastes, particularly in a un-neutralised/unmodified form does
the risk to staff safety dramatically increase?
	I have employed with great success new products & modifications to methods
to reduce the hazard that might ordinarily be present.  Having to store
untreated waste would send me rushing for safer alternatives.
	Anyway, don't you need a licence to store bulk quantities of noxious
chemicals?

	My 2 cents worth.

	Regards
	
	Rob W.

>At 09:42 AM 3/10/99 -0700, you wrote:
>>... Also, my safety director will not let us neutralize anything,
>>including formalin.  He states that our facility is not licensed to
>>neutralize.  All our waste is shipped out.....this can be quite
>expensive.  
>
>  Can this be true? Who issues the Licence to Neutralize,
>  and does it entitle the holder to a number like 007?
>  One is tempted to suspect that this dafety director also
>  owns the local waste disposal company ....


R. Wadley, B.App.Sc, M.L.S
Laboratory Manager
Cellular Analysis Facility
School of Microbiology & Immunology
UNSW, New South Wales, Australia, 2052
Ph (BH) 	+61 (2) 9385 3517
Ph (AH)	+61 (2) 9555 1239
Fax 	+61 (2) 9385 1591
E-mail	r.wadley@unsw.edu.au
www	http://www.unsw.edu.au/clients/microbiology/CAF.html
	(Under development)