Outdated, unknown, or unneeded amounts of dangerous or inappropriate chemicals are often found in schools across Nebraska as well as the nation, potentially putting students and staff at risk. Dangerous chemicals represent one of the critical environmental health and safety issues schools must address. This situation also causes concern for emergency responders when they respond for emergency actions in case of fire, natural disaster, or the threat of a terrorism incident.
Over the last ten years, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has been promoting the development of a national program called Schools Chemical Cleanout Campaign (SC3). In May 2006, Keep Nebraska Beautiful and representatives from the Nebraska Department of Education hosted a meeting to assess the need for such a program and to identify key agencies and senior officials who would comprise the a leadership and management team. In the fall of 2007, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency awarded a grant to Keep Nebraska Beautiful to build the infrastructure for a sustainable program in Nebraska.
Vision: The goals of the Nebraska SC3 initiative are to raise the awareness of chemical hazards, provide tools to prevent chemical exposures, remove unnecessary chemicals from schools and encourage responsible chemical management and safety practices. The twofold scope of the Nebraska SC3 effort is education and training for both pre-service student teachers and in-service training for the proper and safe management of chemicals in schools as well as to develop a comprehensive system for the removal of and proper disposal of unneeded and outdated chemicals. There are numerous partnerships involving both public and private agencies and organizations which will greatly enhance the state program.
Major Program Elements:
1. On-site technical assistance and school chemical audits
-Chemical Inventory
-Regulations/Guidelines: state or local regulations or guidelines that are relevant to hazardous chemicals in schools.
-Compliance/Technical Assistance: a program that offers resources to schools to assist in implementation of program components during the life of the SC3 program and beyond
2. Teacher and administrator education and awareness building
-Training: a program that includes a training component for relevant school staff on aspects of conducting a chemical inventory, cleanout, and responsible chemical management
3. Hazardous chemical disposal
Waste disposal - a program that includes chemical removal and disposal of unwanted, excess, dangerous or inappropriate chemicals. Educational Service Units will submit grants, with assistance from KNB, to help with chemical disposal costs for schools in their respective district.
4. Additional commitments from school to maintain proper chemical management (beyond compliance)
-Responsible Chemical Management: a program including development and implementation of practices to sustain long-term chemical management (purchasing policies, chemical hygiene plan, etc)
-Additional Tools/Resources: a program that provides a variety of resources to assist with program implementation such as Web sites, templates, manuals, or experts to call for assistance.