Session Description: This eSession will outline some of the many design considerations made at the Bow Lake Recycling and Transfer Station, in King County, Washington, to minimize risk to both the facility and the people within. These include considerations for the general site and structures, accidents and injures associated with typical facility use, and environmental exposures.

It is well known that solid waste handling is one of the more hazardous industries. A transfer station is an essential part of the solid waste handling process and is a unique situation in which commercial and public haulers are mixed with operators and visitors in a high activity, confined facility with many physical and environmental hazards. While designed health and safety measures cannot fully replace the personal decision making of operations staff, public, and others, they can minimize the potential of hazards. It is critical that health and safety be a primary consideration in design while maintaining a transfer station’s functionality.