Policy Statement: It is the policy of the Department of Land, Air, and Water Resources to protect the health and safety of all employees whether they are in an office, laboratory, or field research site. It is the responsibility of each employee and his/her field supervisor and major professor to guard against accidents and to be prepared to the fullest extent possible for “normal” work conditions and emergencies. The following guidelines and regulations are in addition to those promulgated by the campus and University administration. It is the responsibility of each employee and supervisor to read and comply with these guidelines and regulations.

Formulating a project specific field safety guide:

STEP 1 – READ the basic guidelines for field research in the CA&ES website

• The CA&ES has a very good introduction on field research safety. The introduction describes what field research is, who is involved, and basic guidelines. Read the introduction and then the links that describes the responsibilities of the principle investigator, the field supervisor (this would include graduate students who have undergraduates assisting them), and the field worker.

STEP 2 – WRITE SOPs for field research tasks and procedures

• Standard operating procedures are to be written for all aspects of the field research project. The principal investigator and field supervisor will determine the specific health and safety risks and the level of risk associated with each phase of the SOPs for the particular field project. Also available is a Site Safety Check list that should be filled out so that the potential safety and health hazards can be determined.

STEP 3 – LIST the potential safety and health hazards and the preventive work practices and personal protective equipment need.

• A list of some of the most common potential hazards are available for you to pick from that are pertinent to your field research project.
• Make sure you take into consideration environmental conditions such as heat, cold, high altitude, etc that will affect the health of the workers. Having too long of a work day can lead to accidents that normally would not happen in the absence of fatigue.

STEP 4 - INCLUDE a First Aid/Medical Emergency Provision in your field training packet to meet the requirements of CCR Title 8, Section 3400.

• A template is available for you to fill out with the specific information for a field site. (Template with emergency information – police phone numbers, etc – use a pick system, and then the checklist of what you need to bring. This form should be taken with the field research team on every trip. Each lab should have a first aid kit available for the travel vehicle. LAWR has several first aid kits available for checkout if more than one vehicle is required.

STEP 5 – INJURY NOTIFICATION

• If there are any incidents encountered during the field work that warrant first aid or medical care, notify the principal investigator as soon as possible and the principal investigator should complete an incident report. All injury claims that involve more than simple first aid should be filed within 24 hours in the business office. For serious injuries or death, the injuries must be reported to EH&S (530-752-1493) as soon as “practically possible but no longer than 8 hours after the employer knows or with diligent inquiry would have known of the death or serious injury or illness.”. See Safety Net #121 for more information. Try not to work alone. If this is not possible, inform other personnel of your planned location(s) and return time. Carry a cell phone in case of an emergency. If your project does not have a cell phone, there is one available for checkout in the PES admin office.

STEP 6 – NON UCD-employees, visitors, or volunteers

• If you have any guest(s) that is not a student or an UCD employee, have them sign the UCD Waiver, Release and Indemnity Agreement, noting the date and location of the field research. The faculty member is required to keep both of these forms on file for two years.
• For anyone who is volunteering to help with the research and is not on salary, have them sign the Volunteers without Salary form so that they are covered by Workers compensation if they are injured during the project. They also need to go through the whole safety training process.

STEP 7 – SPECIALIZED TRAINING

• If there are other specialized training required, this should be noted.

STEP 8 – SIGNATURES

• The principal investigator and the researcher (Staff, grad student, undergrad, etc) signs the training documentation and file the in the lab’s IIPP.

STEP 9 – VERBAL ORIENTATION

• Before going out to the field, a verbal orientation should be done, going over all the typical or potential hazards, expected behavior, and basic precautions that are appropriate for the physical area and particular type of research.

STEP 10 – EMERGENCY PLAN INFORMATION

• Make a copy of the emergency plan with all the emergency numbers and take it with you each time you go out to the field. Include maps so that you know where to go for medical care. Go over the checklist to make sure you have first aid kits, etc., in the car with you. Inform your Principal investigator or other lab personnel of your plans – where and when you are going and when you are back.

The types of field research that takes place in LAWR are very variable and the safety aspects are widely different. Each lab is encouraged to develop a field research training program that works best for them that incorporates all of the requirements needed for a comprehensive training program. Optional: Templates used to develop a field safety training program can be found
Template: Link, Template w/Hazards as appendix: Link