Menu
 

Biosafety

Biological Safety Procedure
UNSW has developed the Biological Safety Procedure to ensure a structured system for protecting the health and safety of people and protecting the environment from risks posed by Biological Hazards.
 
All UNSW research and teaching that involve biological hazards must comply with specific requirements in the Biological Safety Procedure. Staff and students must consult the procedure for additional information. Staff and students must consult the procedure for additional information. 
 
If the research and/or teaching involve dealings with genetically modified organisms (GMOs), they must also comply with specific requirements in the UNSW Gene Technology Procedure.
 
Bio Security
Security Sensitive Biological Agents (SSBA) Newsletter
Council of Australian Governments (COAG) Review of Biological Agents website
 
 

Table 1: List of Security Sensitive Biological Organisms

Tier 1
Tier 2
Abrin
African swine fever
Bacillus anthracis
Capripox virus
Botulinum toxin
Classical swine fever virus
Ebolavirus
Clostridium botulinum
Foot and mouth disease virus
Francisella tularensis
Highly pathogenic Influenza A virus, infecting humans (including Avian Influenza H5N1)
Lumpy skin disease virus
Marburgvirus
Peste des petits ruminants virus
Ricin
Salmonella Typhi
Rinderpest
Vibrio cholerae (O1 and O139)
SARS coronavirus
Yellow fever virus
Variola virus
 
Yersinia pestis
 

Advice and Assistance
Advice and assistance relating to biological safety and gene technology procedures and GMO dealings is available from:
 
OHS Coordinator (Biosafety) OHS Unit, Human Resources [Kate Noble, ph: 9385 2911, fx: 9385 2365]
 

Table 2: Relationship between biological hazard, approval and containment requirements

Biological Hazard
 
Risk Group
 
Application Form
Approving Body
Process and Timeframe
 
Containment Requirement
 
or
 
Supervisor and
Head of School
Do Not forward to the OHS and WC Unit or UNSW IBC
Physical Containment Level 1 (PC1) as per Australian Standard AS2243.3 (refer to the UNSW Biosafety Procedure)
or
 
Supervisor and
Head of School
Do Not forward to the OHS and WC Unit or UNSW IBC
Physical Containment Level 2 (PC2) as per Australian Standard AS2243.3 (refer to the UNSW Biosafety Procedure)
and
UNSW IBC
 
Forward to the OHS and WC Unit.
Reviewed at a quarterly meeting of UNSW IBC.
Physical Containment Level 3 (PC3) as per Australian Standard AS2243.3 (refer to the UNSW Biosafety Procedure)
and
 
UNSW IBC
 
Forward to the OHS and WC Unit.
Reviewed at a quarterly meeting of UNSW IBC.
 
Physical Containment Level 4 (PC4) as per Australian Standard AS2243.3 (refer to the UNSW Biosafety Procedure).

Tools and Resources


Survey Monkey Image