• Sink Disposal/ Wastewater
• Oil Spills and SPCC Plan

Sink Disposal/ Wastewater

The wastewater from laboratory sinks, floor drains, and other areas within MIT buildings enters the public sanitary sewerage system, where it flows to the treatment system on Deer Island (in Boston Harbor) that is operated by the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA). There the wastewater receives primary and secondary treatment before being discharged to the Atlantic Ocean through a recently completed, 9.5-mile outfall tunnel.

To protect water quality and the biological treatment processes, the MWRA enforces strict limits on contaminants and pollutants in the water that is discharged to the sanitary sewers. MIT is legally bound by these discharge limits, and conducts regular testing of its effluent to document compliance, with the results submitted to MWRA. Any exceedance of the stipulated discharge limits could subject MIT to administrative, or even criminal, penalties.

All members of the MIT community are responsible for maintaining acceptable quality in our wastewater discharges. Laboratory personnel in particular must make special efforts to keep certain items out of the sinks and floor drains. Questions about these policies should be directed to the Environmental Management Program (452-EHSS or 452-3477). Described below are the substances that may be disposed of through drains and those materials that are prohibited from sink disposal.

Allowed discharges include:

• Soaps/detergents
• Bleach/Wescodyne™/Cidex™ /Quatricide® solutions
• Aqueous, soluble and dispersible radioactive isotopes into designated sinks or pipe openings within established limits (detailed lists posted at the designated sinks)
• Infectious/Biological materials that have been properly treated as described in each laboratory’s registration protocols
• Non-contaminated growth media
• Purified biological materials such as amino acids and proteins in aqueous or buffer solutions
• Sugars and sugar alcohols (polyols) such as glycerol, xylitol and sorbitol
• Buffer solutions
• Spent photo developer
• Inorganic salts for which both the cations and anions are listed in the following table:

All other materials must be collected and managed as hazardous waste.

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Oil Spills and SPCC Plan

The United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) Oil Pollution Prevention Regulations require that any facility that meets certain criteria have a Spill Prevention, Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) Plan. MIT has developed a campus-wide SPCC Plan to deal with oil spills that may reach the Charles River.

Effective August 2002, changes to federal Spill Prevention Control and Countermeasure (SPCC) regulation dictates that MIT provide annual compliance training for all personnel who participate in oil handling activities. The regulations require that MIT's SPCC address all oil storage containers of 55 gallons or more.

To report a spill or potential release, contact:

• Facilities Operations Center at Ext. 617 253 1500 or MIT Police at x100 from a campus phone.

Identifying Potential Spill Problem Areas
Most oil spills occur during transfer operations (such as loading/unloading or transport); or from equipment failures, such as leaks from valves or flanges; or from failure of storage devices, such as tanks or containers.

While it is impossible to predict exactly what will cause a leak or a spill, based on past experience, the most likely areas have been identified and listed in the SPCC Plan.

Spill Prevention
Our primary goal is to prevent spills. However, should a spill event occur, the best way to stop it from reaching the river is to contain the oil within the immediate area. To cover this, the following policies have been developed to minimize the possibility of spills, and to minimize the impact of spills that do occur.

Container Storage Areas
All containers of oil must be properly labeled and stored upright.

When oil-containing containers are stored in areas where a spill can reach the river (for instance, outside storage areas, loading docks, etc.), these containers must be either stored on secondary containment pallets or some other type of secondary container.

If there are open floor drains in the areas where oil is stored, the drains must be covered, capped or plugged, except when the drain is being used to remove water from the floor.

Sorbent materials must be placed at or near all oil storage areas. Similar materials are also available at or near electrical rooms in which oil-filled electrical equipment is located.

Tank Areas
All new tanks are equipped with secondary containment.

In rooms with existing storage tanks outside of secondary containment systems, open floor drains must be covered, capped or plugged, except when the drain is used to drain water from the floor.

Spill Reporting
In the event of an oil spill the following steps should be taken:

• If the spill is small and manageable, and if a spill kit is immediately available, contain the spill using the spill kit.
• Contact the Facilities Operations Center at Ext. 3-1500 and/or the MIT Police at extension 100 from a campus phone to initiate spill reporting and cleanup efforts.

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Indoor Air Quality
information on the EHS Air Program

Ambient Air Quality
information on the EHS Air Program

Wastewater SOP
for more detailed information

Storage Tank Permitting Procedure SOP

Spill Kits Request Form