1. LABORATORY DECOMMISSIONING
Neal Langerman
Advanced Chemical Safety
San Diego, CA
American Chemical Society National Meeting
March, 2012

2. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Decommissioning is a process to ensure a facility and its
associated infrastructure meet environmental health and
safety requirements for its next use.
• Risk-based identifications of hazards must guide the
decommissioning planning and implementation
• Laboratories are generally “safe” locations
• Extraordinary decommissioning activity is only warranted
for the highest risk locations
• Rock (drill cores) permeation lab (extreme measures
to insure detection and removal of Hg)
• Semiconductor development lab (normal measures to
detect heavy metals)Decommissioning
Lab 2

3. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Purpose
• Become familiar with the ANSI Building
Decommissioning standard and some of it’s key
implementation features
• Illustrate with actual decommissioning situations
• Gain a realistic understanding of how to approach a
decommissioning project
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4. ANSI Standard
ANSI/AIHA Z9.11-2008
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5. Laboratory Decommissioning
Initiate Project
Identify Current
Define new use
Use
What is included
How clean does in scope? Is a regulatory
owner demand? Offices, Labs? report required?
Production?
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6. Laboratory Decommissioning
Define
Hazards
Samples Cost &
Needed Time
Who does
Media Number
work?
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7. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Sampling
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8. Laboratory Decommissioning
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9. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Planning
• Assemble the RIGHT team
• Facility Manager
• Lab Supervisor
• EH&S Supervisor
• Decommissioning Project Manager
• Written Plan
• Add updates as needed
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10. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Planning
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11. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Implementation
• Plan each day’s activity
• Tool Box meeting daily
• Include & document safety
• Document changes to Work Plan
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12. Laboratory Decommissioning
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13. Laboratory Decommissioning
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19. Laboratory Decommissioning
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21. Laboratory Decommissioning
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22. Laboratory Decommissioning
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23. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Final Report
• Document all work done
• Liberal use of photographs
• Include all lab reports
• Chain-of-Custodies
• Include the work plan and amendments
• Is “certification” needed?
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24. Laboratory Decommissioning
• Certification
• As of the date of this report, all of the equipment listed
on the inventory was in a condition for removal. No
hazardous materials were present on or in this
equipment.
• The various areas identified have been cleaned and are
free of hazardous materials and certificates have been
posted in those areas.
• The Site Name, located at Address has been rendered
clear of hazardous research, production and process
chemicals and their residues as of date.
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25. Laboratory Decommissioning
With a decommissioned site, now is
the time for …
QUESTIONS?
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