Biological Spills

Although every precaution will be taken to minimise the risk of a spill happening, it is not always possible to prevent them. This page provides guidance on dealing with spills at UCL.

Planning for spills

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When working with biological hazards, work should be planned to help ensure containment of spills, both in the work area, such as the MSC, or in the containment laboratory or zone e.g. CL2 or CL3 zone. All laboratories should have a spill kit containing absorbent materials such as mats, socks, pillows to contain and absorb a spill. Some laboratories may have a commercial spill kit. Where commerical spill kits are used the manufacturers instructions should be followed for thier use. 

All laboratory users should be trained in how to respond to a credible spill in their area. Where commercial spill kits are in place, users must be trained on when and how to use these, following the manufacturer's instructions.   

Further information on how proactive controls affect the categories of the spill and how to deal with them can be found on the Spills in CL2 and CL3 page.

Training

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Another proactive measure for minimising the consequences of a spill is to train users to be competent at dealing with a credible spill within the area of their work, ensuring competence is adequate. This ensures that the correct action is taken in the event of a spill of a biological agent

> Guidance on spill training