The Challenge of Serving Satellite Facilities

In this time of limited resources and shrinking budgets this presentation focuses on how The University of Texas (UT) at Austin has provided environmental, health, and safety services to its most remote location, McDonald Observatory.  McDonald Observatory is a 9 hour drive from Austin in a remote part of the Davis Mountains. The rugged terrain and isolated location presents unique challenges for example, the Observatory operates it’s own drinking water and waste water system.  A fire fighting brigade works very closely with surrounding communities in response to the growing threat of wild fires. 

McDonald Observatory has a national reputation for both research activities and as a visitor destination.   The Hobby-Eberly Telescope is one of the world’s largest optical telescopes with its 9.2 meter mirror. In addition to the seventy-four permanent staff, the facility hosts visiting researchers from around the world. At the base of the mountain a world class visitor’s center hosts more than 60,000 people each year.  The environmental, health, and safety professionals at UT are tasked with providing technical expertise and support to both the research staff on the mountain and the visitor’s center, while being located 450 miles away from McDonald.  EHS staff has employed a wide range of strategies to support McDonald including creating a new safety committee, instituting an EHS point-of-contact system, and regularly scheduling face-to-face visits and web connections.                             

While this presentation focuses on a US based facility, similar principles can be applied to facilities around the world.