2.3 Environmental Programs Office and EHS Office

MIT's commitment to an effective EHS-MS is demonstrated through our documented policies and procedures that clearly define roles and responsibilities. (See Chart)

Environmental Programs Office (EPO) - is responsible for participating in the establishment of MIT's EHS vision and leadership, and coordinating collaborative EHS initiatives among all constituents of the MIT community. The EPO with support from EHS Office reviews DLC appointments of EHS Coordinators and reports on EHS matters to the Institute Council on EHS. EPO serves as MIT's senior administrative office for EHS affairs and has access to the senior management at MIT, including offices of the President, Provost, Chancellor, and Executive Vice-President on EHS issues. EPO is responsible to represent the administration of the EHS management system including the EHS Office to the Institute leadership for matters of policy, budget, organization, and major process and technology programs.

EHS Office - provides technical expertise and EHS advisory services to the MIT community that collaborate and support regulatory compliance and improved EHS performance at the DLC level. EHS Office is responsible for tactical and operational implementation of the EHS-MS. This includes providing interim support for DLC EHS-MS operations to those DLCs working with potential hazards or regulated activities that have an open position for the DLC EHS Coordinator. It also includes monitoring DLCs that do not have spaces identified in PI/Space Registration in order to add them to the system if they do begin to work with potential hazards or regulated activities. The EHS Office is responsible for implementing the programs identified in the overall vision and strategy set by the EPO, and to promote day-to-day good practices, compliance related activities, and initiatives that advance MIT’s commitment to environmental sustainability and health and safety excellence. These services are designed to fully support all aspects of the Institute’s EHS-MS and enable continuous improvement of the system. The EHS Office consists of five technical programs and eight functional areas, which are:

Programs

• Biosafety Program
• Environmental Management Program
• Industrial Hygiene Program
• Radiation Protection Program, and
• Safety Program

Service Teams

• Organization
• Inspection/Audit
• Training
• Emergency Response
• Laboratory-Facility Design
• Technology
• Communication
• Regulated Waste

In addition, ongoing EHS staff development is a key component of the system and is monitored by the Director of the EHS Office and the Deputy Directors of the five EHS Programs. EHS Office services are further described in Section 5.2, EHS Office Programs, Services and Service Teams. EHS-MS is implemented and maintained by the Director of the EHS Office

EHS Office Lead Contact - is a representative from within the EHS Office who provides EHS expertise to an assigned DLC. The EHS Office Lead Contact partners with the DLC EHS Coordinator to deliver programs that meet EHS requirements applicable to that particular DLC. The EHS Office Lead Contact is also a member of the DLC EHS Committee. The EHS Office Lead Contact is supported by a team of experts from the EHS Office's areas of technical and functional expertise.

EHS Team - is a group of EHS professionals representing each of the five EHS Office programs that provide expertise and consultation in EHS matters to their assigned DLC. The EHS Lead Contact is the primary contact on the EHS Team for the DLC.