Introduction
Welcome to the tenth annual report of the UNC Department of Environment, Health, and Safety and Risk Management. This report is our mechanism for communicating the activities of the EHS and Risk Management Departments and our support of a safe campus. We continue to generate a culture that is both performance-oriented and one where information is sought. As a service organization, we value communication, collaboration and customer service, which drive the safety culture and support the mission of the University.
Our departments are excited about the launch of The Blueprint for Next, Carolina’s strategic framework to guide the university during the next decade. As a team we can contribute greatly to this, and our equation for Safety Culture supports this mission.
Accountability is critical to having a proactive safety culture and matches nicely with the new mindset of foresight, courage and accountability. Our University safety committees are instrumental in this endeavor, and their activities and accomplishments can be seen under the committee tab.
The Blueprint for Next’s Pillar of “Innovation Made Fundamental” reflects our commitment to continuous improvement. Our Plan-Do-Check-Act (PDCA) management system provides a framework of policies, processes and procedures. It helps provide the structure of how the people, the information and the technology are integrated, and it provides our students with a unique learning experience.
This year, we launched the “Safety Begins with You” campaign, since providing a safe work environment is the main driver of our work. Without collaboration and communication with all the members of our campus community, it would not be possible. Throughout this report you will see specific examples that demonstrate the diversity of our operations.
I continue to invite every individual to utilize the process of hazard evaluation in all your activities, whether personal or work-related. Approaching every task with self-awareness, deliberation and caution are elements of accident prevention that can provide all of us with safer and healthier lives. Hopefully we will all become Hazard Heroes.
Please take the time to review this report and learn something new. This report would not be possible without the dedication to excellence and collaboration the staff strives for daily. As a team, we take great pride in our accomplishments and in contributing to the health and safety of one of the world’s leading academic and research institutions and the oldest public university.
We also recognize and commend our fellow Tar Heels. It is their commitment to health and safety, their collaborative spirit, and their pride in being part of a great University that makes UNC-Chapel Hill a safe and healthy place to teach, learn and serve.
Mary Beth Koza, Executive Director
Environment, Health and Safety and Risk Management
Administration
- Mary Beth Koza
- Executive Director, Environment, Health and Safety and Risk Management
- Amy Butler
- Dosimetry Technician
- Nelda Hamlett
- Administrative Assistant
Biological Safety
- Garry Coulson, Ph.D.
- Biological Safety Officer/Manager
- Zach Blanchard
- Biological Safety Specialist
- Erika England
- Biological Safety Specialist
- Chad Pleasants
- Biological Safety Specialist
- Jessica Poole, M.S.
- Associate Biological Safety Officer
Chemical Safety
- Catherine Brennan
- Chemical Hygiene Officer
- Nick Caligari
- Chemical Safety Specialist
- Jim Potts
- Associate Chemical Hygiene Officer
Environmental Affairs
- Ray Bond
- Senior Hazardous Materials Specialist
- Michael Burton
- Radioactive Materials Specialist
- Janet Clarke
- Environmental Specialist
- Larry Daw
- Environmental Compliance Officer
- Sharon Myers
- Environmental/Stormwater Compliance Officer
- Mike Novitzky
- Hazardous/Radioactive Materials Specialist
- Steve Parker
- Hazardous Materials Manager
- Kyle Wilson
- Hazardous Materials Specialist
- Travis Wilson
- Hazardous Materials Specialist
Fire Safety and Emergency Response
- David Guynn
- Fire Safety and Emergency Response Manager
- Kitty Lynn
- Fire Safety Professional
- Emily Powell
- Fire Safety Professional
- Adam Swift
- Fire Safety Inspector
Occupational and Environmental Hygiene
- David Catalano
- Occupational/Environmental Field Hygienist
- Kim Haley
- Industrial Hygienist
Radiation Safety
- Roger Sit PhD, CHP
- Radiation Safety Officer
- Mark Brueckner
- Associate Radiation Safety Officer
- Montego Fearrington
- Health Physics Technician
- Stephen Guarino
- Cyclotron Health Physicist
- Aaron Gunsalus
- Lead Health Physics Technologist
- Jonathan Moore, M.S.
- Associate Radiation Safety Officer
- Mike Soles
- Health Physics Technologist
- Bradford Taylor, M.S.
- Associate Radiation Safety Officer
UEOHC
- James Hill, M.D., M.P.H.
- Medical Director
- Rashad Carlson
- Administrative Support Associate
- Suzanne Carr
- Nurse Practitioner
- Sherice Love
- Administrative Support Associate
- Pam Miner
- Occupational Health Nurse
Workplace Safety
- Mary Crabtree
- Manager
- Debra Bergman
- Workers’ Compensation/Clinical Hygienist
- Cory Kirkland
- Facilities Services Safety Officer
- Tommy Simmons
- Workplace Safety Field Specialist
- Neah Tucker, M.S.
- Occupational Field Hygienist
Risk Management
- Janet Hoernke
- Insurance & Risk Manager
- Robin Bennington
- Insurance & Risk Manager
- Drew Nicholson
- Risk Management Specialist
Biological Safety
Biological Safety provides guidance, assistance, and surveillance over research activities involving biohazardous agents, recombinant DNA, bloodborne pathogens, and biohazardous waste management. Biological Safety monitors and reviews the performance and maintenance of laboratory containment systems and provides technical support to EHS incident responders.
Chemical Safety
The main function of the Chemical Safety section is to manage the process of improving safety through education, compliance, and the constant task of identifying and evaluating potential safety hazards in order to reach the destination of a safe research laboratory environment. Because the breadth and depth of UNC research is always expanding, the process of safety improvement is ongoing and ever-changing, providing daily challenges to support the research process.
Environmental Affairs
The Environmental Affairs section proactively manages the environmental permitting of the campus and ensures compliance with the increasing number of permits required by state and federal agencies. The section has responsibility for oversight of underground/above ground storage tank management, air quality permits (Title V), water quality (NPDES) permits, surface water quality, storm water management, wetland issues, environmental assessments at inactive waste sites, collection of radioactive and hazardous materials/wastes from campus, and operation of the Hazardous Materials Facility (a fully permitted Treatment-Storage-Disposal facility), and the storage-for-decay program for short-lived radioactive wastes.
Fire Safety & Emergency Response
Fire safety management includes six functions: inspections, enforcement, education, engineering, fire investigation, and response. With 438 buildings on campus and a wide range of potential fire safety risks, EHS personnel are constantly checking fire related equipment, running test alarms, and assessing egress risks. The section provides student and employee fire education so that safety becomes a collaborative effort and a fire safety culture becomes the norm.
Occupational & Environmental Hygiene (OEH)
OEH ensures that indoor campus environments are conducive to good health and wellbeing by recognizing evaluating and controlling health and safety hazards, using knowledge and experience in industrial hygiene, asbestos management, air and water quality and safety engineering. OEH assesses potential safety hazards, possible instances of exposure and suitability of protective equipment. Working with facilities engineering and facilities services personnel to keep historical buildings functional, while protecting employee health, and working with planning, construction and startup of new and renovated buildings to anticipate building health issues.
Radiation Safety
Radiation Safety integrates education, oversight, compliance, service and consultation to protect students, staff, the general public and the environment from the effects of both ionizing and non-ionizing radiation. Implicit in all aspects of radiation safety is security. Safety and security are accomplished through training, inspection, licensing, registration and controlled access to certain materials.
University Employee Occupational Health Clinic (UEOHC)
The University Employee Occupational Health Clinic provides occupational health care services to all part-time, full-time, and temporary employees of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. The UEOHC directs medical care for all workplace injuries/illnesses. The Clinic provides pre-employment screening, annual immunization reviews, and medical surveillance for healthcare and non-healthcare workers.
Workplace Safety
Workplace Safety provides services in the areas of ergonomics, respiratory protection, safety training, industrial maintenance and construction safety, clinical safety, medical surveillance, Workers’ Compensation, and the Safety Management Information System. The diversity of services provided by the Workplace Safety section supports the University’s overall mission of teaching and research for both academic and non-academic divisions.
Risk Management
Risk Management Services is responsible for overseeing the majority of the University’s insurance programs, from purchasing the appropriate coverage to adjusting insurance claims. Some of these programs are state-administered, requiring us to serve as the liaison between the University and the State of North Carolina.