Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources Reopening Plan: New Mexico Tech

Essential Personnel

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

One essential person designated to be in the Bureau each day. Schedule is noted on Bureau Google calendar. Check-in and out with Connie Apache required. Social distancing and mask wearing required everywhere except in personal offices or other personal spaces. The guidelines listed below for “all other employees” also apply to essential personal.

PHASE 2 - July – August

Same as Phase 1.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

With reoccupation of the building, no essential personnel will be needed. With reoccupation of the building, no essential personnel will be needed.

All Other Employees

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

Mostly work at home. Access to building is granted on an as-needed basis. Pre-scheduling and checking in and out with Connie Apache required. Social distancing and mask wearing required everywhere except in personal offices and spaces. Building occupancy no greater than 25% of staff. Additional guidelines:

Staff members would be asked to self-monitor for symptoms associated with the COVID-19 illness. Staff members will be asked to stay home if they are symptomatic and seek out healthcare options depending on the severity of the symptoms. Any employee who has had persistent symptoms such as those outlined above will need to be tested negative for COVID-19 prior to returning to our building.
Staggered building occupation schedules would be implemented.
Check-in/check-out procedures (which have been implemented for limited building occupancy during the stay-home time) would continue.
Offices will have solo occupancy.
Handwashing and overall good hygiene continues to be emphasized.
Cleaning products and hand cleaner would be widely available.
The large conference room would be set up to accommodate socially distanced meetings, allowing attendees to stay 6’ apart while meeting.
Where possible and practical, use emails, phone calls and text messages for communication.
Using electronic forms, wherever possible.
Minimizing campus errands.
If, upon reoccupation of the building, we recognize that social distancing protocols are not working well, we will reevaluate protocols to improve efficacy.

If a staff member who has been in the building tests positive for COVID-19, the Bureau will immediately return to work at home protocols for a duration of 2 weeks

PHASE 2 - July – August

Access to building is granted on an as-needed basis, and additional employees return to full-time building occupancy, although some will continue to work at home. Checking in and out with Connie Apache required. Social distancing and mask wearing required everywhere except in personal offices and spaces. Building occupancy no greater than 50% of staff. Building occupancy guidelines from Phase 1 apply. High risk employees continue to work from home.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

All staff may return to building. Continued social distancing and mask wearing required, along with selected guidelines listed in “Phase 1” column. Check-in and check-out no longer required.

Students

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

We are following guidelines developed by Academic Affairs. All check-in and check-out for Bureau spaces done through Connie Apache rather than departmental administrators.

PHASE 2 - July – August

We will continue to follow guidelines developed by Academic Affairs. All check-in and check-out for Bureau spaces done through Connie Apache rather than departmental administrators.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

We will continue to follow guidelines developed by Academic Affairs. Check-in and out will no longer be required. We will work towards bringing our student employment levels back to normal levels.

Visitors

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

Few visitors permitted. Exceptions include contractors visiting for required repair work in laboratories or building infrastructure (following Purchasing Department guidelines) and occasional visitors to the core buildings, where visitors can work on cores with little contact with Bureau personnel.

If outside visitors need to collect physical materials from us, or need to drop anything off, we would plan to do this via postal service, or to set up a curbside pickup in the parking lot east of our building, using appropriate protective equipment. We have developed an internal protocol to be able to pack and ship materials safely, and have recently begun to fill orders that have been coming into our bookstore electronically. We will also strive to promptly provide our stakeholders with electronic resources, wherever possible

PHASE 2 - July – August

Visitors permitted in Bureau building and core buildings on case-by-case basis, but building will remain locked and visitors must be let into building by designated host. Social distancing and mask wearing protocol, following guidelines from the governor.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

Visitors will be given unrestricted access to Bureau building and core buildings. Social distancing and mask wearing protocol, following guidelines from the governor.

Field Work

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

Permitted for time-critical projects. See Appendix 1 for guidelines for Phase 1 field work.

PHASE 2 - July – August

All field work permitted. Phase 1 field work guidelines will be updated to permit dining in restaurants and staying in hotels, where needed.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

All field work permitted. Phase 2 field work guidelines will be updated to reflect changing state-wide guidelines issued by the governor.

Museum

PHASE 1 - May 15 - June

Not open.

PHASE 2 - July – August

When the governor reopens museums, state-wide, our museum and bookstore will reopen, following guidelines currently being developed (see Appendix 2). A key element of these guidelines is that our building will remain locked, and visitors will need to be let into the building by staff members, once we are assured that proper PPE is in place, and that the visitors understand the guidelines for entry to the Museum and Bookstore.

PHASE 3 - August – Unknown

Guidelines for museum and bookstore access and use will be modified based on state-wide guidelines

Appendix 1

New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources

General Field Protocols

Phase 1 Reopening

Revised June 4, 2020

In response to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources (NMBG) has established protocols to safely carry out field work, which is a fundamental part of our mission. These field work protocols are designed to offer protection for our staff and members of the public who we may encounter during the course of our duties, and would be built on top of our usual field safety protocols. These guidelines will remain in place and will be periodically reviewed and revised as conditions change and new guidance is provided by state or New Mexico Tech leadership.

Governor’s Phase 1 – Reopening of New Mexico- Overview

Field work is permitted upon approval from your supervisor or Program Manager.
Overnight travel will be permitted if staff can camp and maintain a 6-foot social distance from other staff or campers.
Social distance or masking will apply during vehicular travel.
Access private land only if land owners can be notified in advance and provide permission for access.
Evaluate field data collection needs and focus on highest priority field work during “Phase 1” conditions.
Usual travel documentation procedures must be followed.

Guidelines

Working independently and maintain social distance:

Wherever possible, staff will carry out field work independently, or with a household member. If this is not possible, limit contact and maintain a minimum of a 6-foot social distance.
If camping overnight, observe social-distancing protocols, and wear masks whenever possible.
During field activities that require 2 or more people to work in close proximity, masks will be worn.
Interactions with the public should be avoided whenever possible. In field work which requires interaction with the public, masks also must be worn for the safety of all involved.

Transportation:

Schedule field vehicles through the Google Vehicle Reservation Sheet (note that only Bureau staff members can modify this sheet, although anyone at NMT can view. I would like for Bureau staff members to make student reservations).
If you’re using an open (unassigned) vehicle, leave a 48-hour window between the last use by another person, and your reservation.
Field personnel will take separate vehicles to the project site, unless field work can be done in a vehicle large enough to maintain a 6 foot spacing between personnel (i.e. the Durangos or the van). In the latter case, masks will be required in the vehicle. (Members of the same household may share a field vehicle without masks or social distancing.)
For now, please plan to pick up your vehicle at Brian’s shop up the hill. Because of social distancing protocols, it’s complicated for Brian and Albert to deliver vehicles to the main Bureau building. You can feel free to leave your personal vehicle at Brian’s shop while you’re in the field.
Wipe down the vehicle with disinfectant prior to and after use. Disinfectant spray consists of a 2% bleach solution (as recommended by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)). Brian will equip your vehicle with disinfectant and paper towel. Please keep the bottles in the ziplock bags provided, so that they don’t leak on the vehicle upholstery.
If possible, have all refueling done on the NMT campus. If field personnel must refuel vehicles during field work, wear appropriate PPE when at a gas station and disinfect hands and vehicle as needed. If possible, avoid gas station convenience stores and bathrooms.

Overnight stays and food:

Overnight stays are not permitted during the period of “Phase 1” conditions unless camping is possible.
Where possible, bring food and drink from home to avoid having to visit grocery stores during field operations.

Field equipment:

Avoid sharing field equipment. If equipment is shared, disinfect between uses and when finished using a disinfectant spray consisting of a 2% bleach solution.

Sample Collection:

Samples collected should be stored in staff offices, not in common rock lab areas. Only move samples to common use laboratory spaces lab when they are ready for processing.

Deviating from the above protocol

Deviating from the above protocol requires approval from your supervisor and NMBG Director. Submit in writing any alternative plans for field work.

Personnel health:

Per CDC guidelines, NMBG personnel with any symptoms associated with COVID-19 must not come to work nor come into contact with fellow NBMG personnel or the public. Anyone who has traveled internationally should self-quarantine for 14 days. Follow CDC guidelines for self-quarantine and/or self-monitoring if you have been exposed to an individual with coronavirus.
All NMBG personnel are instructed to follow the advice from the CDC and guidance of their healthcare provider if they are feeling ill.

Current Geographic Restrictions:

Any known COVID hotspot areas should also be avoided. Case numbers by county or zipcode can be found at the New Mexico Department of Health Dashboard.

Appendix 2

Guidelines for Reopening the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources Mineral Museum and Bookstore

June 12, 2020

New Mexico Governor Lujan Grisham announced, during a recent press conference, that the next phase of reopening of New Mexico will include museums. Although we don’t yet know when this phase will be, we are developing protocols in order to be ready when reopening happens. The protocols outlined below are designed to keep employees of the Mineral Museum and Bookstore safe, as well as supporting the safety of visitors.

Although we will reopen our Mineral Museum and Bookstore when permitted to do so by the governor, access will be controlled by continuing to leave the main doors to our building locked. Visitors will be provided with a number to call in order to be let into the museum and/or bookstore, which will be staffed from 8 am to 5 pm. The staff member who comes to the front door to let the visitors in will ensure that the visitors are wearing facemasks, as required by state order. Any visitors without facemasks will not be granted entry to the building. In the case that visitors without appropriate PPE become insistent on being granted entry, campus security can be alerted. Doors that lead from the atrium to the rest of the Bureau building will remain locked.
When visitors, wearing appropriate PPE, are given access to the building, the staff member who lets them in will give them a short description of the social distancing protocols that will be expected during their visit. This can be done in the Bureau atrium, which is spacious. Staff will point out sanitizer stations and request all visitors wash their hands. Staff will issue gloves to all visitors. All visitors will be expected to maintain a distance of 6’ from all staff members, and any other visitors. Visitors within the same group will not need to maintain 6’ social distance from each other. Visitors will be asked to avoid touching surfaces, wherever possible.
Visitors will need to provide contact information for 1 person in the group, in case contact tracing becomes necessary. An entry into the log book will be required prior to accessing the facility.
The museum and bookstore will be permitted to operate at up to 25% capacity. However, having that many people in the museum and/or bookstore at one time would be difficult to manage, and arriving groups of visitors may be asked to wait until another group has left, at the discretion of the supervising staff member. Groups of less than ten (once permitted by the state) can access the museum and a limit of 3 will be allowed in the bookstore. Larger groups, up to 25 for the museum, can only be accommodated by appointment (after permitted by the state).
Two NMBG&MR staff members will be present on any given day, one to staff the Mineral Museum and one to staff the bookstore. The names of the staff members will be pre-posted on the Bureau calendar. A schedule will be developed between museum and bookstore staff, and will be posted, along with phone numbers (either office or cell- at the discretion of the staff member) on the front door of the Bureau building. The staff members present will be responsible for overseeing, and carrying out sales, for both the bookstore and museum.
NMT custodial staff will be asked to periodically disinfect surfaces in the bookstore, museum and restrooms. Bureau staff members will also be provided with disinfectant and paper towels, in case visitors arrive outside the custodial staff working hours or immediate clean-up is desired. A log book of times that the facility has been disinfected will be kept by custodial and NMBGMR staff.
We will encourage all rock and mineral identification to continue via distance access (email and photos). In-person identification will require an appointment with an appropriate individual.