Chapter 34: Biohazards

Overview (1)

Biohazardous materials include infectious agents and hazardous biological materials as described in this chapter and by the United States Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control (CDC) for infections agents (BMBL Section III – Laboratory Safety Level Criteria) and by the National Institutes of Health (NIH) for recombinant DNA molecules (Guidelines for Research Involving Recombinant DNA Molecules).

The Stanford University Administrative Panel on Biosafety (APB) reviews all applications involving biohazardous materials that pose a risk greater than that specified in the Stanford University Biohazards Manual [pdf]and by the CDC (BMBL Section III – Laboratory Safety Level Criteria), and all approved research must follow requirements and procedures in the Stanford manual. At the time of this publication, all such research conducted at SLAC is performed at the Stanford Synchrotron Radiation Laboratory (SSRL), and their requirements and procedures with regard to transportation, handling, and disposal are described in this chapter. Should any biohazardous work be undertaken by another SLAC operation, SSRL's procedures will be used until, and if, this chapter is modified.

Hazards/Impacts (1.1)

Biohazardous materials present a potential risk to human and animal health and the environment. Of particular concern are infectious agents, as they are capable of replicating, and as the release of even a small number can give rise to large populations of organisms in the uncontrolled environment.

Exemptions (1.2)

There are no exemptions to the requirements of this chapter.

Scope (2)

The requirements of this chapter apply to all persons at SLAC who work with biohazardous materials or who may come in contact with them, including SLAC personnel, subcontractors, visitors, and users.

This chapter specifies work authorization procedures for biohazardous materials for biosafety levels 1 and 2 and required procedures once the experiment has been approved.

Note: Due to the levels of engineering and administrative controls needed for biosafety level 3 and 4 hazards and select agents, use of these agents are currently not permitted at SLAC.

For more information on personal protective equipment and procedures for handling blood-borne pathogens, see Chapter 46, "Blood-borne Pathogens". For information about policy and reimbursement for personal protective equipment, see Chapter 19, "Personal Protective Equipment".

For general work authorization policy, see Chapter 2, "Work Authorization". For risk assessment guidelines, see Chapter 5, "Industrial Hygiene".

Implementation (8)

The requirements of this chapter are either already in place or effective immediately, as set forth in Biohazards: Implementation Plan [pdf].

continue to Standards (3)

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