In October 2024, the U.S Food and Drug Agency (FDA) recalled multiple brands of frozen toaster waffles, frozen Belgian waffles, and frozen pancakes due to potential for Listeria monocytogenes contamination.
In October 2024, the U.S. Department of Agriculture Food Safety and Inspection Service (USDA), U.S.
During National Fire Prevention Week, Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) will host events on the Seattle campus to remind personnel and students of steps they can take to prevent fires and the importance of responding quickly to a smoke alarm. The theme for this year’s National Fire Prevention Week is "Smoke alarms: Make them work for you!”
Stop by our table to learn more about fire prevention and smoke detectors.
Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) published a new focus sheet that provides information to support the safe and compliant use of small, unmanned aircraft systems (UAS), also referred to as drones. The focus sheet is a resource for units operating/utilizing UASs to comply with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Washington State Department of Transportation (DOT) requirements.
If your research includes operations out in the field, download the latest version of the UW Field Operations Safety Manual, which provides updated information on state regulations, UW policies, safe work practices, and document templates.
Field research conducted at the UW may include drone work, model rocket tests, water sample collection, boat trips, and wildlife observation, to name just a few examples.
October is National Biosafety Month, a time to strengthen and reevaluate biosafety practices in the lab.
Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) encourages you to set aside some time for laboratory “self-care” or a spa day! A clean and tidy lab helps ensure a safe and healthy work environment and maintain the quality of research samples.
Failure to keep good housekeeping practices in the lab can lead to time consuming and costly issues including:
Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) published the new UW Electrical Safety Manual that establishes the requirements and best practices for University personnel conducting work on electrical systems between 50 to 600 volts (V).
University personnel and students who:
The University of Washington recycles all types of batteries, which cannot be placed in the trash because they can be corrosive and contain toxic metals. Batteries and electronics are not allowed in the garbage in the City of Seattle.
University units have two options for recycling used batteries:
Does your laboratory have volatile organic chemicals that produce strong, pungent odors even when the cap and bottle are intact? Controlling these smells, often found in chemical storage areas, will help reduce your risk of exposure.
Volatile organic chemicals can escape their containers, which presents an exposure risk to everyone in the lab. Restricting the ability for the chemical to disperse into the air can lower that risk.
