Emergency Situation?

If you need emergency help for a personal injury or a chemical spill that threatens personal safety, contact these departments in this order:

  1. EHS - 970-382-6926 or email ehs@fortlewis.edu 
  2. 911 emergency

Your call will notify FLC Police Department and Durango Fire Protection District. Emergency medical personnel and/or HazMat personnel will respond as appropriate.

What should I do with spilled chemicals?

If someone is injured or could be injured contact EHS at 970-382-6926 or email ehs@fortlewis.edu. Then call 911.

If it is 1 or more gallons of flammable liquids or you feel the situation is dangerous, call 911 from a campus phone.

If the chemical might be harmful and no one is in danger, and you are trained in how to safely clean up the chemical, you can proceed and clean up the chemical. Put the chemical and all used clean up supplies in a trash bag or bucket and call the Environmental Health & Safety (EH&S) office at 6926 for pickup and disposal.

EH&S can provide your workplace or lab with a Spill Cleanup Kit containing cleanup supplies for spills and up to 2 gallons of liquid. The kit contains gloves, adsorbents, disposal bags and instructions.

How can the EH&S office assist me with chemical safety?

EH&S can assist FLC employees and students with the safe use of chemical materials, advising on which materials to use and avoid, helping design safe practices, providing containers and labels, removing unwanted materials from the workplace and labs, and spill kits.

Where do I find a Safety Data Sheet (SDS) for a material?

Consult the SDS Database.

How do I know if a chemical is hazardous to use?

Contact EHS for consultation. 

What wastes are hazardous?

The following materials meet the definition of hazardous wastes in Colorado:

  • Any unidentified material that seems out of place or unusual in appearance.
  • Any material that lists the contents as being dangerous or hazardous.
  • Any material with a label indicating it not be disposed of in the trash
  • Any material listed as being an explosive or reactive.
  • Any material listed as a carcinogen, mutagen or teratogen.
  • Any material regulated by the Federal Insecticide, Fungicide and Rodenticide Act (FIFRA).
  • Pesticides of any sort.
  • Any material (solid or liquid) containing cyanide, sulfide or fluoride.
  • Any materials containing the following metals: lead, chromium, mercury, barium, silver, cadmium, arsenic or selenium.
  • Any material emitting a gas – such as bubbling, demonstrating rapid evaporation or has a strong odor.
  • Materials that are highly acidic or basic – any material with a pH <5 or >9.
  • Flammable liquids, such as mineral spirits, lacquer thinner, acetone, xylene, toluene, fuels, oil-based paints and organic solvents. If it smells similar to gasoline, or an oil or solvent-based paint you should treat it as a hazardous waste.

What chemicals can I pour down the drain or throw into the dumpster?

Contact EHS for consultation.

Does Fort Lewis College dispose of its hazardous wastes safely?

Yes. Each employee has the legal responsibility to dispose of their hazardous waste in accordance with federal and state law. EH&S coordinates the annual hazardous waste cleanout centered on the materials stored in the Chemical Storage Building. A licensed hazardous waste hauling company is contracted to remove the waste from the College and dispose of it in accordance with federal and state laws.

What is the process for recycling dead batteries?

Not all batteries can be recycled on campus, such as alkaline batteries. Batteries that can be recycled include nickel-cadmium (NiCad), nickel metal hydride and lithium ion batteries that are owned by the College. These batteries can be deposited in the recycling container located in the Physical Plant Storage yard.

Dead lead-acid batteries can be recycled in the Auto Shop located in the Physical Plant. Contact the Physical Plant Service Center for details (7000).

Personal batteries cannot be recycled at this time, but may be recycled at various businesses in town.

Batteries collection at the EC, PPS, and we do the sorting event and disposal at HHW event in Durango every 2 years.

Can hazardous waste belonging to students, College employees or the general public be disposed of on campus?

No. This waste is not the responsibility of the college and it is up to the individual to dispose of in a proper manner.