Environmental Health, and Safety

Caltech is committed to conducting activities in a manner that promotes the safety and health of faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, students, and visitors; applies sound practices in environmental stewardship; and minimizes risk to Caltech property. Activities at Caltech are to be conducted in accordance with the following guiding principles:

• The responsibility for implementing and maintaining a safe environment rests on all faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, students, and visitors at Caltech.
• Faculty, supervisors, and managers are responsible for establishing good environmental health and safety practices in their laboratories, classrooms, and workplaces and for providing safe equipment and facilities for faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, students, and visitors.
• All faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, students, and visitors are expected to keep themselves informed of conditions affecting their health and safety, participate in safety training, follow proper environmental, health and safety policies and procedures, and report accidents, near misses and potentially unsafe or illegal conditions or practices promptly to their supervisor or manager or other appropriate office.
• Caltech activities must comply with all applicable federal, state, and local environmental, health and safety laws and regulations.

Caltech has the responsibility to establish environmental, health and safety policies and procedures, and provide resources to ensure compliance with environmental and safety laws.

All managers and supervisors, both academic and administrative, at campus and JPL, are responsible for conducting operations in accordance with all applicable laws and regulations and Caltech policies, practices, and programs.

Caltech performs these functions through the following committees and administrative and management structure:

Caltech's Institute Environmental Health and Safety Committee ("IEHSC") is responsible for recommending campus wide environmental health, and safety policies.

The IEHSC is responsible for making recommendations regarding the allocation of Institute resources so as to maintain environmental (e.g., air emissions, soil contamination, water discharges, hazardous waste management) and workplace health and safety compliance. In addition, the committee monitors developments through the campus Environmental Health and Safety Office to ensure that Institute policies are observed, remain current, and are consistent with the anticipated changes in regulatory requirements.

The Environmental Health, and Safety Office ("EH&S"), reporting to the Associate Vice President for Facilities, oversees campus-wide environmental health and safety programs. EH&S provides technical expertise, regulatory guidance, and advisory support to all members of the campus community.

In collaboration with academic divisions and administrative departments including off-site facilities under the management of Caltech, EH&S develops and implements safety programs that are practical, legally compliant, and appropriate to the operational needs of laboratories, shops, housing facilities, and other work environments. These programs include guidance and training in laboratory safety, incident and emergency response, occupational health, and compliance with Institute environmental health, and safety policies and procedures. EH&S also conducts site evaluations to identify potential hazards, recommend effective risk mitigation controls, and ensure safe conditions. EH&S coordinates hazardous waste training and manages hazardous waste collection, storage, and disposal in accordance with regulatory requirements.

In collaboration with the Office of the General Counsel, EH&S reviews relevant legislation, recommends policies, provides required data and reports to regulatory agencies, and investigates and reports environmental health, and safety incidents.

The Caltech campus consists of divisions conducting research and educational activities and administrative departments that support Institute operations, including activities at off-site facilities and field locations under their management. It is the responsibility of each division chair and department head to ensure that all such operations, regardless of location, comply with applicable laws and regulations and implement Caltech's environmental health, and safety policies and procedures. Division chairs and department heads maintain responsibility for day-to-day management and implementation of their environmental health, and safety programs across all locations under their authority.

Division chairs and department heads may designate an individual with the authority to implement, manage, and enforce environmental health, and safety compliance programs within the division or administrative office. With guidance and assistance from EH&S, the responsible individual (i.e., the division chair, department head or their designee) shall manage the environmental health, and safety activities within the division or department.

The Office of Safety and Mission Success at JPL ("JPL OSMS") establishes and leads the Environmental Health, and Safety and Mission Assurance Programs for projects, programs and major tasks. JPL OSMS appropriately manages risks and enhances the probability of mission safety and success. In this capacity, JPL OSMS is an independent organization, reporting directly to the JPL director. JPL OSMS continually assesses risk and provides infrastructure to ensure that JPL maintains compliance with the JPL Prime Contract and applicable federal, state, and local environmental health, and safety requirements. JPL OSMS applies knowledge, innovation, and independence to achieve successful missions that inspire the world while safeguarding JPL's people, assets, and reputation.

The JPL Occupational Safety Program Office, the JPL System Safety Program Office, and the JPL Environmental Affairs Program Office are chartered with establishing and leading programs related to occupational safety, systems safety, and environmental compliance, respectively, and are tasked with appropriately sharing in the management of risks and enhancing the probability of mission safety and success. These JPL program offices, working closely with the Office of the General Counsel, review legislation, regulations and contracts, recommend policies, provide regulatory agencies with required data and reports, and investigate and report environmental health, and safety incidents. Each of the environmental health, and safety program management offices also implement and monitor compliance with JPL Rules! and applicable regulations.

Managers are responsible for providing sufficient resources to support environmental, health, and safety programs, practices, and equipment in all areas under their authority. They must also ensure that these areas under their management are in compliance with Caltech's environmental health, and safety policies, practices, and programs.

Supervisors, including principal investigators ("PIs"), and any other persons who direct the activities of others, with guidance and assistance from the environmental health, and safety offices listed above, are responsible for implementing environmental health, and safety policies, practices, and programs. This includes maintaining safe and well-functioning workplaces, including laboratories and equipment, training and informing employees, students, and visitors about workplace-specific hazards and safety procedures, providing and ensuring proper use of personal protective equipment correcting violations, investigating incidents, near misses and complaints, overseeing the proper storage and disposal of hazardous materials, enforcing policies (appropriate discipline for violations), and documenting safety-related training, activities, and processes.

Faculty are responsible for the safety of work conducted in their laboratories. Faculty members may designate a qualified individual, known as a Safety Coordinator, and empower that individual to assist in the day-to-day safety activities within their research groups however faculty remain fully responsible for ensuring that work in their laboratories is conducted safely.

All faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and students at campus, offsite locations - and JPL share responsibility for following environmental, health, and safety requirements and for promoting a safe and healthy environment in all Institute operations, including:

• Keeping themselves informed of conditions affecting their health and safety,
• Participating in safety training programs as required by the governing organization's policy and their supervisors,
• Performing work in a safe and prudent manner,
• Adhering to health and safety practices in their workplaces, classrooms, and laboratories, and,
• Advising of or reporting potentially unsafe practices, illegal activities, or serious hazards in the workplace, classroom or laboratory, and cooperatively participating in the investigation and/or remediation of any incidents.

The success of Caltech's environmental, health, and safety management efforts depend on everyone actively participating in training, compliance with established environmental, health, and safety procedures, and reporting hazards or potential violations.

It is the responsibility of all faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and students at Caltech to disclose fully any activity that may result in a violation of environmental health, or safety laws or regulations, and to cooperatively participate in the investigation and remediation of any incidents.

Visitors and those who do business with Caltech, such as contractors, consultants, and vendors, either at Campus, JPL, or locations under their authority, are responsible for performing their work in a manner that protects Caltech from environmental health, and safety risks, and complies with all applicable federal, state, and local laws and regulations, contractual requirements, and all applicable environmental health, and safety policies, practices, and programs.

In matters involving actual or potential regulatory enforcement action, investigations, or employee complaints, the appropriate environmental health, and safety office will work closely with the Office of the General Counsel to coordinate Caltech's response to external regulatory agencies responsible for workplace health, safety, and environmental compliance.

Any questions or concerns regarding compliance should be brought to the attention of the appropriate manager or supervisor, or to the appropriate environmental health, and safety office. Alternatively, concerns can be raised with the appropriate division chair or vice president at campus, or the OSMS director at JPL. In addition, concerns regarding Campus raised anonymously through the Campus Hotline (626) 395-8787 or (888) 395-8787 or online at Caltech Hotline or, for JPL, through the JPL OSPO 24-hour Immediate Mishap and Close Call Reporting line (IMACC) (818) 354-2141,or the Occupational Safety Program Office (OSPO).

All faculty, staff, postdoctoral scholars, and students must be vigilant in complying with all environmental health, and safety requirements, and to properly conduct their activities at Caltech.

Local, state, and federal laws and regulations establish civil and criminal penalties for violations of environmental health, and safety laws and regulations, including substantial fines and possible imprisonment.

Caltech views compliance with all laws, regulations, and Institute guidelines as conditions of continued employment. Individuals who violate this policy may be subject to disciplinary action up to and including termination of employment, student expulsion, or being permanently excluded from Caltech-controlled premises.