The EH&S Division is organized into departments and groups to align closely with Laboratory organizational structure. There are two departments, each representing a major functional area: Environment, Health, and Safety. Reporting to these two departments are seven groups.
Reporting to the division director, each department head has leadership responsibility for a major functional unit, usually including two or more subordinate group leaders, plus professionals and technical staff, varying in number from 30 to 50 individuals. Each department head is responsible for management of the department, including planning, staffing, and budgeting, and for the development and implementation of Laboratory policies and procedures in their functional area. Each department head represents the department in contacts with internal and external organizations and individuals on matters of major significance to the success of Laboratory programs and activities. The department head directs the work of subordinate managers in the groups within the department.
Reporting to the division director or a department head, each group leader has supervisory responsibility for an EH&S technical or professional section, project, or function. An EH&S group comprises several professionals and/or technical experts (typically 10 to 25 people), organized to achieve goals in a specific, focused EH&S specialty area.
David Mc Graw is the LBNL EH&S division director. He is responsible for developing forward looking policies that support the Lab's Vision 2000 statement and for the day to day operations that articulate Lab policies on protection of the public, and the environment, and elimination of potential compliance exposures to the lab. The EH&S divisional Charter provides a roadmap for the rest of the division and is found in the Division Function Notebook.
The two departments are the Field Support Department and the Services Department. The Field Support Department is responsible for provding a complete suite of seamless EH&S services and support to all other Lab programs. This department is the interface between the Lab programs provding organizational breadth while the Services Department provides depth and support. Radiation assessment and protection is a function whose accountability is distributed throughout the lab as described in PUB 3000. Radiation assessment and protection technical support is provided by the Bio / Energy Sciences Group and the General Sciences and Operations Group. These groups are managed by Jack Salazar and Don Bell respectively. Technical lead is provided by Roger Kloepping. The radiological control manager provides oversight of the radiological control program at LBNL, this function is performed by Jim Floyd.
At the Berkeley Laboratory the following documents establish the policy and provide the implementation guidance that makes line management is effectively accountable for protection of workers, the public and the environment:
Operations Assurance Plan (OAP) - 1996
Self Assessment Manual - 1992
Supplement - 1996
Publication 3000 - Environment Health and Safety Manual - 1995
Chemical Hygiene and Safety Plan - 1992
Waste Generator Guidelines - 1996
Employee Performance/Progress Review (Section III) - 1996
2) Clear Roles and Responsibilities.
Each Division making up the Berkeley Laboratory has clearly defined lines of responsibility down to the working level. Each division designates a research investigator to represent its views and concerns on the Laboratory Safety Review Committee and a full time employee to act as the ES & H Coordinator. This Coordinator acts as the interface between ES & H concerns and compliance in the workplace and the EH & S technical professionals. The organizational information is updated every 60 days and is retained in the Functional/Facility Notebooks as appropriate (see OAP).
3) Competence Commensurate with Responsibilities.
Job assignments, including hires, are reviewed by line management and by the compensation group within Human Resources to ensure that the requirements and responsibilities of a job are matched by the experience, knowledge and skills of individuals selected for assignment. A performance expectation for managers and supervisors in the Division of Environment, Health and Safety is how well the talents, knowledge and skills of staff are matched to work assignments and responsibilities
The Laboratory's training program ensures that each staff member, including participating guests, is adequately trained to do participate safely in Laboratory activities. Staff, with supervisor participation, fill out the Jobs Hazards Questionnaire (JHQ) describing the hazards associated with their job assignment and work area. Evaluation of the responses by the Training Coordinator and the cognizant supervisor determines the training regimen needed to carry out work in a manner that protects the employee, co-workers, the public and the environment.
4) Balanced Priorities.
All environment, safety and health activities in the Laboratory are described in technical terms with budgetary information included. Each year this information is updated, reviewed and prioritized on the basis of risk to workers, public, and the environment by a Laboratory wide committee selected to represent programmatic line management and ES & H professionals. This document is utilized by Laboratory Senior Management in strategically planning the immediate focus and long term goals of the environment, safety and health program at the Laboratory.
5) Hazard Controls Tailored to Work Being Performed.
Chapter 6 of the Environment, Health and Safety Manual clearly defines the steps for each line manager to develop the appropriate engineering and administrative controls to mitigate hazards in the workplace. The Laboratory's Self Assessment Program, including Functional Appraisals by ES & H professionals, and the UC/DOE Contract 98 Performance Measures provide assurance that implementation of hazards control is adequate to protection the worker, the public and the environment.
6) Identification of Safety Standards and Requirements.
The Laboratory is dedicated to following the Necessary and Sufficient Closure Process (DOE 450.3) on an iterative basis at all levels of activities in the Laboratory to ensure the Safety Standards are adequate to provide protection to workers, the public and the environment. This process is completed by to commencement of work in those situations where current work is significantly modified, new work is proposed or substantial facility modifications are being made (Chapter 6, Environment Health and Safety Manual).
7) Operations Authorization.
Conditions and requirements for facilities determined to be of higher risk based on the Preliminary Hazards Analysis are contained in a Safety Analysis Document. Activity Hazard Documents are the basis for meeting this requirement for specific operations and activities falling into the higher risk category at the Berkeley Laboratory. Internal Agreements describing the performance expectations by each party are used for operations between two functional areas where the quality of performance might adversely impact the Laboratory's ability to meet its responsibility to protect workers, the public and the environment.
The policy covers all aspects associated with use of, or exposure to, ionizing radiation. It applies to:
Radiation assessment personnel provide services onsite and offsite at all locations where there may be direct and indirect radiation and other hazards present. They may encounter any of the list of hazards found in the attached work sheet providing emergency response.
Currently the radioactive stock in B70-147A is being inventoried. The low LOC chemical hazards in this area are potential exposure to Non flammable, non toxic cryogen (LN2), Corrosives, ractives, and reproductive toxins. All radioactive chemicals in 70-147A are present in very small quantities. There is a low LOC potential hazard from exposure to radioactive materials in this area although all radioactive materials are stored in type B or equivalent containers and are opened under controlled conditions (glove box). The area air exhaust is constantly sampled for radionuclides.
All radioactive material is received and non waste is shipped from B75-123. There is the potential for radioactive contamination or release of material. There is a small RMA in this room to hold incomming and outgoing packages for monitoring. The balance of this area is devoted to office or administative use; the hazards associated with this area are consistent with a normal office environment. A small truck is used to transport radioactive material onsite. There is a low LOC concerning the use of this vehicle and safety.
B71 cave H is the holding area for radioacitve material and equipment that is to be characterized and released as waste or is being held to decay. Items held for decay are logged, held for 10 half lives and are released back to an RMA for use. All material is stored in a designated hilding area and logged on an inventory sheet. This area is covered by a Class I RWA. While radiation levels are not to exceed 5mR/hr there is an exposure and radiation contamination hazard potential. This is a low LOC.