Management of Chemical Waste at Chula

Chulalongkorn University began managing hazardous and chemical waste at the university under a 10-year management project that ran under the control of the Center of Excellence for the Management of Chemical and Hazardous Waste from 2006 until 2016. From 2016 until present, the task of managing chemical and hazardous waste is under the jurisdiction of the Center for Safety, Health and Environment of Chulalongkorn University (SHECU).

ChemTrack and WasteTrack are online databases designed by the Center of Excellence on Hazardous Substance Management to assist personnel with the management of chemical substances and disposal of lab waste. In managing chemical substances, ChemTrack affords four advantages:

1. The ability to monitor the types and quantities of chemical substances in stock
2. The ability to request chemical substances from other departments whenan urgent need arises
3. The ability to provide substances to other departments to promote resource management efficiency
4. The ability to initiate safety procedure to deal with specific substances

WasteTrack is an internal network system that allows registered personnel to request the safe disposal of hazardous waste free of charge. Prior to pick-up, the types and quantity of the chemical waste must be recorded in the system before the following steps can proceed. In short, WasteTrack provides the following benefits:

1. Environmental damage on campus and in surrounding communities is minimized as hazardous waste is disposed using high-intensity incineration to completely eliminate polutants  from discarded substances.
2. All CU personnel are protected from potential harm that could be caused by chemical waste.
3. Waste disposal discipline is promoted.

In the initial stage, a budget was allocated to the Center of Excellence for the Management of Chemical and Hazardous Waste to undertake waste management and to provide training courses on the management system for students and university personnel.

As well, the management system was applied to all laboratories to ensure systematic management of waste.

Chulalongkorn University was the first university in Thailand to practice systematic management of chemical and hazardous waste, and has been used as a role model for others.

The management system features data management aided by information technology. This makes it possible to keep track of the types and quantities of chemical wastes on university property, to make assessments of risks and to prepare appropriate measures in case any emergency situation arises.

Moreover, the management system helps with budget planning, estimating waste and facilitating exchanges of chemicals between state agencies. It also helps facilitate the collection of waste to be disposed of in a way that is effective, fast, convenient, least harmful to the environment and has the least impact from the accumulation of waste at laboratories.

The management of chemical and hazardous waste is constantly developing and evolving. Currently, the task of managing chemical and hazardous waste is under the jurisdiction of the Center for Safety, Health and Environment of Chulalongkorn University.

One of the responsibilities of the center is to collect hazardous waste from 23 units on the university campus to be disposed of. The laboratories in question generate an estimated 60 tonnes a year of hazardous waste, 90 percent of which is in liquid form, while the rest consists of solid material.

The collected hazardous waste is delivered to a disposal facility certified by the Department of Industrial Works. About 30 percent of the waste is recycled.

In the future, the university intends to introduce the 3R principle for use in reducing waste and in recycling oxygenated hazardous waste and petroleum product waste.

CU personnel can attend informative seminars organized one or twice a month. Online seminar registration  is available at https://www.shecu.chula.ac.th/home/train-table.asp?Lang=1.

For more information about ChemTrack & WasteTrack program and procedures, please visit https://www.shecu.chula.ac.th/home/content.asp?Cnt=134