A question from a past Onsite Training customer (4.20.15):

Daniel,

I have a question. We need to ship out a sample approximately a quart of transformer oil which contains 550 ppm PCBs. If the material is below the RQ value (see enclosed letter), what type of labeling is required, or does it since it’s below the RQ value?

My reply that same day:

I will take a look at it and get back to you.

Turns out he didn’t need the information after all (4.20.15):

No problem, I found out that my lab can do the testing, so I don’t have to ship the material out.

Did that stop me?  No!  (April 22, 2015):

Not sure if you require this information any more, but here goes:

A PCB oil is only a hazardous materials subject to USDOT regulations in transportation if there is 1 lb or greater of PCBs in a single packaging. 1 quart at 550 ppm would be well below 1 lb of PCBs, therefore it is not a HazMat when transported.

A PCB oil of this concentration would be subject to TSCA regulations of which I am not very familiar.

I hope this helps.

Dan

Wait, how did you know that?

First of all, let’s look at the entry for PCBs in the Hazardous Materials Table (49 CFR 172.101):

So, you’d think that PCBs are a hazardous material when offered for transportation and that my response to my customer was wrong.  But…you’d say that before looking up the meaning of Special Provision 140 in column 7, which reads:

This material is regulated only when it meets the defining criteria for a hazardous substance or a marine pollutant…

So, is it a marine pollutant?

PCBs are identified on the marine pollutant list at Appendix B to 49 CFR 172.101, but to be regulated as a marine pollutant it must also offered for transportation by vessel or transported in a bulk packaging, neither of which is the case here.

Is it a hazardous substance?

No, because a Reportable Quantity of PCBs is 1 pound, as I described in my email of 4.22.15, the volume of oil and concentration of PCBs put it well below this amount.

There you have it.  While the amount and concentration of PCB oil considered for transportation was not a hazardous material, a different packaging and volume might be.  Be sure to carefully research the Hazardous Material Regulations of the PHMSA/USDOT before you send that sample to the lab.

Or, contact me to answer your questions or to provide HazMat Employee training.

In a Final Rule published January 13, 2015 in the Federal Register, USEPA amended the definition of solid waste it had enacted in 2008 (2008 DSW).  The Federal regulations of the 2015 DSW become effective July 13, 2015.  States with an authorized hazardous waste program are required to adopt the Federal Rule or create their own more strict regulations; how and when they do this is up to each state.

• Read A Brief Summary of the 2015 Definition of Solid Waste Rule
• Read State Authorization and the Definition of Solid Waste Rule
• What is Speculative Accumulation?

The purpose of this article is to explain the changes made to the speculative accumulation provision by the 2015 DSW. (more…)

If you travel by air as much as I do (that’s what Onsite Training requires), you’ve seen the signs forbidding the transportation of hazardous materials aboard passenger aircraft, either in checked baggage or carry-on.  The purpose of this article is to identify the source of those signs, summarize the requirements of the regulations, and provide additional sources of information for the harried traveler. (more…)

Not every question I receive comes from an industrial facility embedded on the outskirts of some major city or from a busy transportation hub in the nation’s heartland.  Some, like this one on March 14th, 2015, come from exotic locations I can only hope to visit some day.

Hi Daniel,

You can tell I was impressed (3.14.15):

Here’s what I sent to him later that day.  (Yeah, I work Saturdays.):

Note from Dan:  The domestic transportation of a hazardous material is always subject to the Hazardous Material Regulations of the the PHMSA/USDOT.  A domestic shipper of HazMat by air will likely also have to comply with the Dangerous Goods Regulations of IATA; this depends on your air carrier since most - but not all - require compliance with the IATA DGR.  The international transportation of a HazMat (called dangerous goods) by air must comply with the IATA DGR.  The direct transportation of a HazMat from San Diego, CA to Hawaii is not international transportation and therefore is only required to comply with the HMR unless the carrier requires compliance with the IATA DGR as well.  Got it?

Under the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA), USEPA will allow a state to operate its own hazardous waste program as long as it is at least as stringent and as broad as the Federal regulations.  A state with a hazardous waste program that meets these requirements is known as “Authorized”.  This means that states with an authorized hazardous waste program may not immediately – or at all – adopt regulations created by the USEPA unless new Federal regulations are more stringent and/or broad than those existing.  In the case of more strict Federal regulations, states must adopt them, but may do so on their own schedule.  Not surprisingly, this flexibility can create a patchwork of differing Federal and state RCRA regulations spreading across the U.S. like a quilt.

The purpose of this article is to explain how state authorization will impact implementation of the Federal regulations created by the 2015 Definition of Solid Waste Rule (2015 DSW). (more…)

In response to recent accidents involving crude oil shipments by rail in the U.S. and Canada, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx has issued a “Call to Action,” calling on rail company executives, associations, shippers, and others to discuss how stakeholders can prevent or mitigate the consequences of rail accidents that involve flammable liquids.

The following companies have voluntarily submitted testing data to the US Department of Transportation in response. The information shared consists of data gathered from samples of petroleum crude oil from the Bakken region of North Dakota. We will continue to post updates as more companies respond to the Department’s industry-wide effort aimed at enhancing the safe transport of flammable liquids by rail.

Notes:

• H₂S = Hydrogen Sulfide; BP = Boiling Point
• FP = Flash Point
• RVP = Reid Vapor Pressure
• API = American Petroleum Institute
• TVP = True Vapor Pressure

On its website the US Government Printing Office makes a wealth of Federal publications available for review and download; one of these is the Federal Register.

Published by the Office of the Federal Register, National Archives and Records Administration (NARA), the Federal Register is the official daily publication for rules, proposed rules, and notices of Federal agencies and organizations, as well as executive orders and other presidential documents.

See below for a brief summary of announcements in the Federal Register by the US EPA on the subject of Hazardous Waste and the Pipeline & Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), Federal Railroad Administration (FRA), and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) of the US DOT on the subject of Transportation of Hazardous Materials.

The Federal Register is a great way to look down the road and see potential changes to the regulations long before they are put into effect (sometimes The Rulemaking Process takes years before a final rule is issued, if ever).  Knowledge of these potential changes provides you with several advantages:

• Additional time to modify your business operations to comply.
• Awareness of on what topics the regulatory agencies intend to focus their efforts.
• The ability to register your concerns, complaints, suggestions, etc. in order to modify the proposed rule before a final rule is issued.  It can be done, really!
• Make changes to your training program to account for changes that become effective before the next training cycle.
• Alert you to the need to re-train your employees prior to their next scheduled training cycle, if necessary.
• Keep you abreast of changes to the regulations that affect your business and/or your industry group.

Please note that this is my best effort to identify the relevant announcements in the Federal Register that may be of interest to generators of hazardous waste and shippers of hazardous materials.  I encourage you to review the list of Federal Register publications yourself to ensure regulatory compliance.

 May 1, 2015 through May 31, 2015

USEPA – US Environmental Protection Agency:

Publications not related to the management of hazardous waste, solid waste, universal waste, or used oil are not included here.

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FAA – Federal Aviation Administration:

Publications not related to the transportation of hazardous materials are not included here.

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FMCSA – Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration:

Publications not related to the transportation of hazardous materials are not included here.

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FRA – Federal Railroad Administration:

Publications not related to the transportation of hazardous materials are not included here.

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

Railroad Safety Advisory Committee; Notice of Meeting Pages 26988 – 26988 [FR DOC # 2015-11269] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request Pages 30109 – 30110 [FR DOC # 2015-12579] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request Pages 30110 – 30112 [FR DOC # 2015-12584] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request Pages 30112 – 30113 [FR DOC # 2015-12578] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Agency Information Collection Activities; Comment Request Pages 30113 – 30114 [FR DOC # 2015-12580] PDF | Text | More

PHMSA – Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration:

Publications not related to the transportation of hazardous materials are not included here.

Rules and Regulations:

Hazardous Materials: Enhanced Tank Car Standards and Operational Controls for High-Hazard Flammable Trains Pages 26643 – 26750 [FR DOC # 2015-10670]     PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

International Standards on the Transport of Dangerous Goods Pages 26617 – 26618 [FR DOC # 2015-11104] PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Information Collection Activities Pages 27844 – 27845 [FR DOC # 2015-11625] PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Notice of Application for Special Permits Pages 29156 – 29157 [FR DOC # 2015-11817] PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Notice of Application for Modification of Special Permit Pages 29157 – 29158 [FR DOC # 2015-11825] PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Delayed Applications Pages 29387 – 29388 [FR DOC # 2015-11815] PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Actions on Special Permit Applications Pages 29388 – 29389 [FR DOC # 2015-11827] PDF | Text | More

Information can be helpful but it’s useless if you are not able to make sense of it.  You must be able to determine how any changes to the rules and regulations (final or proposed) will affect your operations, and communicate the necessary information to your personnel.  I can help you to do that.

Please contact me for a free training consultation to determine your regulatory requirements and how training can help you to attain and maintain compliance with the regulations of the US Environmental Protection Agency (and your state) and the PHMSA, FAA, FRA, & FMCSA of the US Department of Transportation.

If you’ve ever considered registering for one of my HazMat Employee Training Webinars but decided against it because of past poor experiences, I encourage you to take just 3.5 minutes to view this short video clip I recorded from a HazMat Employee Training Webinar I conducted on May 11, 2015.

It’s nowhere near the full training, but this short segment will – I believe – demonstrate to you that my live, interactive (you can ask questions at any time) webinars will meet your regulatory training requirements in a fast (3 hours), efficient (scheduled 1/month right at your desk), and cost-effective (only $189/person) manner.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ypSLQBEaqkI

Interested in a HazMat Employee  – or Hazardous Waste Personnel – Training Webinar?  See my full schedule:  Daniels Training Services HazMat Employee & RCRA Training Webinars

FEBRUARY 26, 2015:  A QUESTION FROM A PREVIOUS ATTENDEE OF ONE OF MY TRAINING SEMINARS:

I had a question come up about transporting batteries to a recycle vendor. A 2000 lb lead acid battery that is on one of my trucks going to a scrapper. What is required. Are you going to need a placard on the truck and label on the battery as corrosive along with the paperwork or is it an ORM-D? How does DOT view this type of load?

MY REPLY ON MARCH 2ND (I WAS BUSY!):

Sorry for the delay in replying. I can get you an answer, but I need some more information: Please clarify what you mean by “on one of my trucks going to a scrapper.” Is this battery still connected to a vehicle? Is the vehicle gas-powered (gasoline)? How will it be transported? In a vehicle? On a vehicle? Towed by a vehicle?

Please advise on the above and I can get you an answer.

CUSTOMER REPLIED (3.3.15):

One of our trucks from our distribution center, a 53’ trailer semi, was transporting a bad forklift battery to a scrap vendor. The battery was skidded up and packed correctly according to DOT regs.  It was going via semi, over highway, to the scrap vendor.  Essentially its an ORM-D for recycle so you’re outside of RCRA.

MY QUICK REPLY ON MARCH 3RD:

You are correct on several counts and should be in compliance with DOT & EPA regulations overall.  Some clarification:

The Nevada Department of Environmental Regulation (NDEEP) adopted new regulations on October 24, 2014, revising its hazardous waste fees and authorizing new solid waste fees. Below are links to summary sheets outlining the revised and new fee structures each containing links to the adopted regulations:

 RCRA Hazardous Waste Fee Summary
 Solid Waste Fee Summary
 NDEP ePayment login page