The first HAZWOPER class I attended was in the early 1990’s when it first became a regulation.  I attended a class at the Tennessee Valley Authority.  It was a 40 hour class and included a whole bunch of information about which I knew little to nothing. 

When we as a society moved from mom and pop organizations to manufacturing facilities, there was a need for rules and regulations.  These were evident because of the numbers of people who were hurt or killed on the job.  The Occupational Health and Safety Administration (OSHA) was created in 1971 by the Occupational Safety and Health Act for the purpose of preventing occupational injuries, illnesses and deaths.  OSHA regulates manufacturing and construction.  The problem then became what the manufacturers did with their waste materials. The RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) was enacted by the federal government in 1976. It is an amendment to the 1965 Solid Waste Disposal Act, which oversees the disposal of solid waste and hazardous materials.  The goals of the RCRA include protecting the environment from the harmful effects of industrial waste, energy conservation, reduction of industrial waste, and effective disposal of waste material.  The HAZWOPER regulation became effective March 6, 1990.

So, what does HAZWOPER mean anyway?  It is an acronym meaning Hazardous Waste Operations and Emergency Response.  It is a policy enforced by OSHA and can be found in 29 CFR 1910.120.  The Hazardous Waste part of HAZWOPER includes inspectors, plant managers, equipment operators, geologists, hydrologists, truck drivers and scientists, among others.  The Emergency Response part of HAZWOPER includes fire men, police, national guard, hazardous materials responders, first responders to name a few.  It regulates the safety and health of the employees or employers who handle hazardous substances in five distinct situations:  cleanup operations required by a governmental body, voluntary cleanup operations at sites recognized by the government as uncontrolled hazardous waste sites, operations involving hazardous waste at sites covered by the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act of 1976, operations at sites regulated by Title 40 Code of Federal Regulations and all emergency response operations.

We intend to manage all chemical wastes at KSU according to the EPA rules and regulations set forth in 40CFR. If you have any questions about hazardous waste, please contact the Chemical Safety Manager, Vanessa Biggers, vbigger1@kennesaw.edu or 678-797-2415.