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Making colleges heed safety regulations May 26, 2005 Last year, the EPA gave colleges opportunities to self-audit their campuses, attend free EPA seminars, and correct or disclose problems before the federal inspectors arrived. Carl Plossl of the EPA said both the State University of New York and City University of New York executed audit agreements, which allowed them to report deficiencies and make changes themselves. "Any school that has self-disclosed is given a lower inspection priority," said Leonard Voo of the EPA. "However, it does not preclude EPA from inspecting a facility in the future." "There's nothing like a government inspection to get colleges into compliance," said Dave Kotelchuck, health and safety co-chair for Professional Staff Congress at CUNY. Some of the CUNY colleges inspected were York , New York City Tech, Hunter and City College , which CUNY cooperated in cleaning up, Kotelchuck said. CUNY has now tripled its health and safety staff, hiring an environmental compliance manager and a health and safety manager, said Kotelchuck. PSC is monitoring the cleanup. With repacking, moving and storage of materials, Kotelchuck said, "We want to be sure we don't expose our members. For example, in some cases a college will uncover old chemicals with unclear identities, or that are highly toxic." At SUNY Alfred, a new position in the United University Professions bargaining unit has been created for an assistant physical plant director. "This is partly a response to the EPA's actions," said Robert Rees, Alfred chapter president for UUP. EPA's enforcement can include hefty fines; e.g. $797,000 at Columbia University . It also has an education quotient. Pratt Institute in New York City prepared a manual for artists and art teachers as part of its settlement. "The EPA has found that schools assume that many environmental regulations don't apply to them," said Voo, a 20-year veteran of the EPA. |
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