Hazardous Waste

A systemwide task force has proposed that the university build two hazardous waste disposal facilities for the nine University of California campuses to avoid prolonged waste storage, which could be both illegal and unsafe.

The facilities should handle all low-level radioactive, hazardous, chemical and infectious waste generated by university labs and hospitals, the task force recommended in a report released Friday.

The task force report said the university should lead in demonstrating good hazardous waste treatment measures. The university has a moral and legal obligation to handle its own waste, the report said.

Thousands of cubic feet of waste are currently shipped to disposal sites far from the campuses, at costs exceed to exceed $1 million in the 1983-1984 year.

But until waste facilities are established, each campus should immediately develop interim plans for storing hazardous waste, the report said. "Any university-wide solution to the problem will inevitably take several years to implement."