Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) is an administrative unit that assists University units in meeting their responsibility to protect the environment and to provide a safe and healthful place for employment and learning.
EH&S employs about 100 people who are spread across the UW Seattle campus in multiple locations.
We have six sections organized around the services we provide. Read the descriptions below and view our organization chart.
The EH&S Annual Report FY21 summarizes the work and accomplishments of the Environmental Health & Safety Department during fiscal year 2021.
UW personnel commonly order liquid nitrogen (LN2) from suppliers such as Airgas Inc. and Praxair (aka Linde Welding Gas and Equipment Center) for cryogenic storage used to preserve biological samples.
Airgas recently notified the University that as of January 1, 2022, Airgas staff will no longer perform the following services:
The Environmental Health & Safety Department (EH&S) developed a new online training course called Five Whys Root Cause Analysis. This training is recommended for University supervisors and other personnel responsible for incident investigations and documenting root cause(s) and corrective actions.
The Public Health Flowchart for COVID-19 and Respiratory Virus Symptoms (PDF) provides instructions for University personnel and students if you feel sick, test positive, or are exposed, and know when to report illness.
A text version of the flowchart appears on the COVID-19 Illness and Exposure Guidance page.
EH&S published an updated UW Confined Space Program Manual that reflects revisions to the Washington State Department of Labor & Industries confined space regulations (2018 update) and aligns with standards established by federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).
The Prevent Stormwater Pollution Focus Sheet asks the UW campus community to protect our waterways by keeping pollutants out of stormwater drains and reporting spills to EH&S.
