Chemical reaction

It may never be known whether the deaths from brain cancer of two University of Maine chemistry professors within three years is the result of a dangerous work environment or merely sad coincidence. The precautionary and investigative steps the university has taken — moving classes out of Aubert Hall, a review by environmental consultants, the hiring of an epidemiologist — are commendable.

What is known, and hardly commendable, is the list of 450 health and safety violations at the Orono campus tallied up by the Maine Department of Labor. Forty-two of those violations were serious enough to warrant a tab of more than $10,000 in fines. The biggest culprit was Aubert, with 20 violations worth $2,750 in fines, followed by other science buildings. The primary offense was the improper storage of chemicals and the lack of staff training in safety procedures.

Much the same as five years ago, when UMaine was fined $20,000 by the Department of Environmental Protection. And in 1986, when it was fined $17,000.

The average Mainer, even those not conversant with the periodic table, might sense a pattern emerging, might detect something fundamentally amiss. What, after all, is more basic to science, either teaching it or doing it, than the safe handling of explosive, toxic or corrosive materials? What good are safety prodecures and contingency plans if they are not learned and followed? What part of the previous $37,000 in fines did the university not understand?

Just as troubling is the official university response. The director of facilities thinks UMaine did “pretty well” in this last inspection. The public-relations spokeman focusses upon the niggling violations, like no soap in some bathrooms, and floats a trial balloon about the possible need for a new science building.

UMaine did not come close to doing pretty well. This isn’t about soap, or even paper towels, for that matter. At age 84 and despite some recent renovations, Aubert Hall may have outlived its usefulness as a chemistry building, but no new building can guarantee that chemicals will be properly stored or that staff will be properly trained.

This inattention to detail could not come at a worse time. A $20 million bond issue for research and development goes to the voters in November. Maine ranks dead last among the states in its commitment to R&D; a successful result at the polls could be an enormous boost to an economy that perpetually lags.

The largest share of the bond, $13.5 million, is slated for the university. Now, instead of proactively campaigning for something that could profoundly affect the state’s future, UMaine will have to defend itself to understandably skeptical voters. The tragic deaths of professors Brian Green and Paul Louis Goodfriend may be inexplicable. The sloppy housekeeping at UMaine is inexcusable.