Certified Hazardous Materials Manager Practice Exam 2025 – Comprehensive Test Prep

The chemical hygiene plan is designed to protect laboratory personnel from chemical hazards by implementing safe practices and protocols. Mouth pipetting is specifically prohibited because it poses a significant health risk. Using the mouth to pipette can lead to the ingestion of hazardous chemicals, exposure to toxins, or contamination of the samples. This practice can easily lead to accidental inhalation or ingestion of hazardous substances, which underscores the importance of using appropriate pipetting devices, such as mechanical pipettes or pipette bulbs, to minimize exposure to harmful chemicals.

Maintaining a safe laboratory environment also includes prohibitions against eating, drinking, or smoking in laboratory areas where chemicals are handled, but these actions are regulated under different aspects of laboratory safety protocols rather than being explicitly part of the chemical hygiene plan's most critical directives. The focus of the chemical hygiene plan is primarily on minimizing direct exposure to hazardous materials during manipulation and use, making mouth pipetting an obvious violation of safe laboratory practices.