Environmental Health and safety

The JSNN is committed to develop and promote a healthy and safe research environment and to create and maintain a safety culture for all faculty, staff, students, partners, and visitors to our facilities through the involvement of all individuals with regards to education, communication and safe work practices. The JSNN Safety Committee supports  the Director of the Research Operations and Environmental Health and Safety (ROEHS), to achieve the JSNN’s compliance with applicable Federal and State health and safety laws and regulations.

Our Environmental Health and Safety (EHS) team is dedicated to the protection of our faculty, staff, students, and partners. The dependable EHS experts are knowledgeable in a wide range of research safety and practice. Whether you’re an individual or a corporation, we have the experience and skills to support and manage research and facility safety.  

Chemical Safety

Hazardous chemicals used in research labs can pose both health and physical hazards. Researchers must review the SDS document before using a new chemical, perform risk and hazard evaluations, and develop Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for experiments they perform or hazardous equipment they use. SOPs must be reviewed by new researchers as part of their documented lab-specific training. PIs must document all safety information, including the chemical inventory, hazard evaluations, PPE assessments, and exposure prevention as part of their Lab Safety Plan or Chemical Hygiene Plan.

Ionizing Radiation safety

The Ionizing Radiation Safety Program at JSNN is developed to ensure that X-ray generating devices are installed and operated properly and uphold Federal and State regulatory agencies safety requirements. Users of the X-ray producing devices and those working around such equipment at JSNN are required to fulfill specific training and monitoring requirements. This program also offers a specific monitoring program for declared pregnant women.

Hazardous waste Management

Research operations generate hazardous biological, radiological, and chemical wastes. Unused and expired chemicals also are considered hazardous waste and are treated as such. State and federal regulatory agencies drive proper labeling, storage, and disposal requirements to which JSNN must adhere for both safety and compliance purposes. JSNN does not allow any drain disposal of the hazardous material.

Equipment Safety

Equipment using hazardous material, high voltage, high pressure, high temperatures, or any other sources of chemical or physical hazards require user specific training. A hazard review with ROEHS is required before purchasing such equipment.




Training

Faculty, staff, students, volunteers, interns, and partners working at JSNN research labs are required to fulfill the safety training requirements before they are granted access to research spaces. Additional safety training may be required based on the tasks being performed or material/equipment used.



Forms and Fact Sheets

View this page for a list of safety program compliance and application forms, safety training requests, and chemical and safety equipment quick fact sheets.

Nanomaterials Safety

Due to their size and enhanced surface area, nanomaterials may manifest chemical and physical properties different from their parent or bulk material. This could result in higher exposure risk and health and physical hazards. The procurement, generation, use, distribution, and disposal of nanomaterials at JSNN research labs require ROEHS review and approval.

Local Exhaust

Fume hoods and other local exhaust devices are the most important engineering control methods for minimizing or eliminating the exposure to airborne hazardous materials in research laboratories. All hazardous chemicals, including nanomaterials, must be transferred and used only in a tested and fully functional exhausted fume hood or other ROEHS-approved exhaust enclosures.

Biological Safety

Biohazardous agents, or "biohazards" are infectious agents or hazardous biological materials that present a risk or potential risk to the health of humans, animals, or the environment. Working with biological materials for research or teaching purposes requires specific registration, approval, documentation, procurement, disposal, and training procedures. Federal and state government regulations specify safety requirements for safe and compliant research involving biohazards.


Personal Protective Equipment

Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) is used for protection against exposure to hazardous materials and is required in conjunction with other control methods to mitigate the impact should an incident occur. A lab coat, protective eyewear, long pants/dress, and closed-toe shoes are the minimum PPE requirements for entering the JSNN research labs.

Cleanroom safety

Clean room is a critical environment from both safety and quality control stand points. Due to the types of the experiments, equipment, and materials used in clean rooms, it requires its own safety management program, including spill response, safety training, SOPs, and equipment-specific training. Demonstrated safety competence is a requirement for clean room access.

Respiratory Protection Program

Respiratory protection may be used only when engineering controls and safe work practices are not sufficient enough to prevent inhalation exposure to hazardous material. Using any respirator at work, including disposable N95, will require ROEHS review and pre-approval.

Emergency Procedures

Emergencies include fire, flooding, medical, exposure, hazardous material release or spill, violence, utility failure, severe weather, or any other situation posing an immediate risk to health, life, property, research, or the environment and requires immediate intervention. Advanced planning, training, and drills and exercises are crucial in mitigating the impacts of such occurrences.

SDS

Safety Data Sheets (SDSs) must be readily available and reviewed by researchers before placing an order, using a new chemical, or starting a new experiment with chemicals or mixture of chemicals.

Minors in Research Labs Policy

PIs must fulfill the JSNN approval process before bringing minors under the age of 18 to their research labs as volunteers. Parental/legal guardian agreement form must also be completed and signed in advance. See JSNN Policy for Minors as Volunteers (non-paid) and Visitors in Research Laboratories.

The Safety Committee serves as the principal representative body for JSNN health and safety-related issues. The committee has been established to ensure that research operations, practices, and protocols at JSNN are conducted in a safe manner and uphold Federal and State regulations.