The Wayne State University Chemical Safety Committee (CSC) contributes expertise, experience, knowledge and support to the WSU Office of Environmental Health and Safety (OEHS) chemical hygiene program to create and nurture a laboratory chemical safety culture at WSU and, in turn, the safety of the WSU community. To achieve this, the CSC will:

1. Serve as a resource for OEHS to develop, review, and approve:
   1. Laboratory chemical safety procedures, guidelines, and policies.
   2. Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) for use of hazardous chemicals designated by the WSU-OEHS as requiring institutional oversight.

2. Recommend necessary consultation and educational (training) activities to assist the WSU research/teaching laboratories in the performance of safe chemical handling techniques and procedures while assuring their awareness to OEHS chemical safety requirements.

3. Review and act upon potential chemical safety incidents, violations or non-compliance issues identified by the WSU Chemical Hygiene Officer (CHO).

4. Provide recommendations to the Associate Vice President for Research (AVPR) based upon the review outcomes of the potential chemical safety incidents, violations, or non-compliance issues.

Charter, Policies, and Other Relevant Documents

WSU Chemical Safety Committee (CSC) Charter

WSU-CSC Laboratory Safety Compliance Procedure

Summary of WSU-CSC Laboratory Safety Compliance Procedure

WSU Guide to Identify Particularly Hazardous Substances (PHS) and High-Risk Chemicals

WSU Step by Step Guide on SOPs and AHAF II Requirement for Chemicals Used in Research

Standard Operating Procedure (SOP) templates and general SOP’s for specific high-risk chemicals can be found at the Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs) for Hazardous Chemicals page. Additional resources can be found at Chemical Safety Fact Sheets.

Chemical Safety Protocol Submission

WSU CSC oversees the use of Specific High-Risk Chemicals (SHRCs), chemicals which require prior approval by the Wayne State Chemical Safety Committee (WSU CSC) to be used in a procedure either in the form of a reactant or a product.

WSU CSC must approve the use of the following SHRCs:

• Globally Harmonized System (GHS) category 1 acute toxins (dermal and/or inhalation)
• Other high-risk chemicals referred to WSU-CSC by Chemical Hygiene Officer

WSU labs/facilities intending to use SHRCs, must submit a Chemical Safety Protocol (CSP) package to the CSC for review prior to initiating work.

CSP must be submitted to the Chemical Hygiene Officer by the 1st of each month (unless otherwise noted) for inclusion in the next scheduled CSC meeting.

The CSC meets as needed on the third Thursday of each month from noon-1:30 p.m.. CSC meetings are held using the Zoom platform.

For information about the CSP submission process, contact: