IAB Safety Office
The IAB Safety Office is a resource for lab safety, field safety, and facilities use for IAB faculty, staff, students, and visiting researchers. We work closely with Environmental Health Safety and Risk Management and other groups to coordinate trainings, support the management of hazardous chemicals and waste, and help ensure compliance with relevant laws, regulations, and UAF policies. We serve as a link between personnel and the facilities and shared equipment at IAB by coordinating maintenance, developing space and equipment use agreements, and providing access to our facilities.
Email: UAF-IAB-Safety@alaska.edu
Daniel Uliassi
Operations Manager and Safety Coordinator
410A Irving 1
These Rights and Responsibilities for IAB Field Personnel were created with extensive input by faculty, staff, and students in IAB, and finalized by a working group consisting of representatives from each group. The final document was adopted in July of 2025 with the support of 93% of votes cast (n=88, consisting of 21 faculty, 30 staff, and 37 students). We anticipate periodically revising this doument based on the experience and feedback of the IAB community.
Rights and responsibilities for IAB field personnel
Field conditions are different from many other work environments. Fieldwork often involves unique physical and social challenges, discomfort, and the need to adapt to unpredictable situations while away from familiar environments and support mechanisms. IAB has established these rights and responsibilities to set expectations for fieldwork that recognize these differences, promote the safety and success of fieldwork, and support the varying backgrounds, experience, and concerns of field crew members. All crew members must:
1) participate in pre-trip meetings, led by the PI or project lead, that define roles and discuss how the field crew will work together to meet the rights and responsibilities established in this document.
2) be provided clear and timely information about field plans, conditions, and expectations.
3) have access to, and understand, the field safety plan and have relevant safety trainings and equipment.
4) have access to adequate rest, food, and shelter, and a reasonable level of privacy for personal needs.
5) have independent access to communication devices, be trained in their use, and be able to privately contact someone outside of the field without the knowledge of other team members, including the team leader.
6) be informed of campus support resources that can be accessed from the field, including the Office of Rights Compliance and Accountability on-call voice or text number (907-978-2906) and the UAF Police (907-474-7721).
7) familiarize themselves with, and adhere to, the field alcohol and field firearms policies.
8) share group maintenance tasks, such as cooking and cleaning, in an equitable manner.
9) have privacy, and reasonable accommodations, for bathroom use and personal hygiene.
10) evaluate their insurance coverages and assess the need for additional coverage, such as third-party medical and evacuation services.
11) behave in a manner that does not harm others or actively degrade the functioning of the field crew. These negative actions include, but are not limited to, unwelcome conduct that is severe, pervasive, and objectively offensive; physical or verbal abuse, coercion, retaliation, harassment, violation of UAF's Title IX policies; violation of ; ; hate speech, or intentionally denigrating another person’s beliefs, culture, gender, or traditions; repeated unwelcome romantic or sexual advances; dismissing safety concerns; or neglecting duties and responsibilities.
12) stop work if there are imminent concerns about safety and not resume work until these concerns have been satisfactorily addressed.
13) be empowered, without fear of reprisal, to express concerns about safety, comfort, or the violation of any other right or responsibility, and to have these concerns addressed in a timely manner.
Version 1, Adopted by IAB on July 1, 2025
Required Training Matrix
| Required Training | Employees & Affiliates | Volunteers | Students & Long-Term Visitors | Lab Workers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Title IX | ||||
| Emergency Action Plan for the building(s) where you work | ||||
| Combined Employee Safety Orientation | ||||
| Hazard Communication | ||||
| Protection of Minors | ||||
| Behavior Based Safety | ||||
| Workplace Harassment Prevention | ||||
| UAF Lab Safety | ||||
| UAF Chemical Hygiene Plan | ||||
| UAF Hazardous Waste Management or Annual Refresher | ||||
| As needed: function-specific training |
Use this form to request ethanol (200 proof USP grade) from IAB.
The IAB Safety Office will coordinate a time to meet with you to fill your order. You must provide your own containers. It is usually easiest to meet and have your containers filled, but empty containers can always be dropped off in Irving I, room 312A and we will let you know when they have been filled.
The current price is $17.84 per gallon ($4.71 per liter) and equals our cost from the supplier. A surcharge of 20% will be added when non-IAB account numbers are used for the purchase.
To purhcase ethanol you must have completed UAF Laboratory Safety, UAF Hazardous Waste Management, and UAF Chemical Hygiene Plan training.
Use this form to request liquid nitrogen from Murie (room 013) or Reichardt (room 100U2). Liquid nitrogen is not always immediately available. Please let us know your needs in advance so we can try to have liquid nitrogen available when you need it. We will coordinate a time for you to drop off and fill your dewar.
You must have appropriate liquid nitrogen safety training before we can fill your order. If you have not already done so, please complete the short liquid nitrogen safety training on myUA and send your training certificate to UAF-IAB-Safety@alaska.edu. We will provide in-person training if you do not have access to myUA. We are always happy to provide additional training and answer any questions you may have.
Liquid nitrogen presents a freezing and asphyxiation hazard. Liquid nitrogen is extremely cold (-196 degrees C) and rapidly expands to nearly 700 times its volume when it vaporizes. Always wear proper PPE. Vaporization will quickly displace oxygen and can cause asphyxiation and death. Do not transport liquid nitrogen, even small amounts, inside a vehicle (place it in the bed of a pickup or trailer etc.), do not work with liquid nitrogen in small unventilated spaces, and do not place liquid nitrogen in sealed vessels like a thermos or any container with a tight fitting lid. If liquid nitrogen spills, leave the area immediately.
Use this form to request key or Polar Express access to any IAB space, including labs and office areas.
Some examples of when this form may be used:
- New graduate students that need lab/building keys or Polar Express access to IAB spaces
- Staff members needing keys or Polar Express access to IAB spaces
- Volunteers/collaborators that need access and safety training
This form will NOT be used to request assignment of new lab or office space within IAB. To request new or additional lab/office space, please complete the request form at https://uaf.edu/iab/administration/space.php.
Submission of this form will send an email to the IAB Safety Office, the supervisor listed, and to the employee email address entered. This email will contain further instructions tailored to the specific group selected, and a list of safety training that may be required of the employee based on expected job functions.
Submit a before leaving for the field. This plan notifies IAB of intended field travel and should help you and emergency responders negotiate an emergency if one arises. The amount of detail required depends on the level of risk and remoteness of your trip.
Start this process early. Please submit this plan at least two weeks before departure, or four weeks before departure if your trip involves the use of firearms, ATV’s, snow machines, boats, or private aircraft, or if minors are particpating. The approval process for these situations can take several weeks to complete.
Please fill out and contact Dan Uliassi, x5455, after the list is complete
- Checklist for Vacating IAB Offices (pdf)
- Checklist for Vacating IAB Laboratories (pdf)
- Waste Disposal Flowchart (PowerPoint)
- Autoclave Use Flowchart (PowerPoint)
- General Lab Safety Checklist (Word)
- Laboratory Fire Safety Checklist (Word)
UAF Environmental Health, Safety, and Risk Management
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)
Training Opportunities