The regulations of the PHMSA/USDOT at 49 CFR 173.134 contain the definitions and exceptions applicable to Division 6.2 Infectious Substances as they are regulated when in transportation or offered for transportation.  In an earlier article I attempted to explain how the transportation of a Regulated Medical Waste fits in this rather complicated regulation (read:  The Identification and Transportation of a Regulated Medical Waste).  In that article I referenced but did not identify the exceptions to regulation as a Division 6.2 Infectious Substance for certain materials and articles.  The purpose of this article is to identify and explain (if necessary) those materials that are not subject to the Hazardous Material Regulations as Division 6.2 Infectious Substances.

(more…)

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.

July 1 through July 31, 2014

PHMSA – Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

Hazardous Materials: Compatibility With the Regulations of the International Atomic Energy Agency (RRR) Pages 40589 – 40618 [FR DOC # 2014-15514]     PDF | Text | More

Shippers-General Requirements for Shipments and Packagings Pages 43266 – 43267 [FR DOC # 2014-17663]                PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

Hazardous Materials: Requirements for the Safe Transportation of Bulk Explosives (RRR) Pages 41185 – 41211 [FR DOC # 2014-16382]        PDF | Text | More

Notices:

Safety Advisory: Unauthorized Certification of Compressed Gas Cylinders Pages 38126 – 38126 [FR DOC # 2014-15601]                PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Applications for Modification of Special Permit Pages 43815 – 43815 [FR DOC # 2014-17508]       PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Application for Special Permits Pages 43815 – 43816 [FR DOC # 2014-17506]                PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Special Permits; Applications Pages 43816 – 43818 [FR DOC # 2014-17507]                PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety Special Permits; Applications Pages 43818 – 43819 [FR DOC # 2014-17509]                PDF | Text | More 

FRA – Federal Railroad Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

Signal Systems Reporting Requirements Pages 37664 – 37669 [FR DOC # 2014-15336] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FAA – Federal Aviation Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FMCSA – Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

Hours of Service for Commercial Motor Vehicle Drivers; Regulatory Guidance Concerning Records of Duty Status Generated by Logging Software Programs Pages 39342 – 39343 [FR DOC # 2014-15951] PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

National Hazardous Materials Route Registry Pages 40843 – 40913 [FR DOC # 2014-15861] PDF | Text | More

Enhancements to the Motor Carrier Safety Measurement System (SMS) Web Site Pages 43117 – 43122 [FR DOC # 2014-17489]                PDF | Text | More            

USEPA – US Environmental Protection Agency:

Rules and Regulations:

Oklahoma: Incorporation by Reference of Approved State Hazardous Waste Management Program Pages 37226 – 37230 [FR DOC # 2014-15267]          PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

Oklahoma: Incorporation by Reference of State Hazardous Waste Management Program Pages 37261 – 37262 [FR DOC # 2014-15268]        PDF | Text | More

Standards of Performance for Municipal Solid Waste Landfills Pages 41795 – 41843 [FR DOC # 2014-16405]                PDF | Text | More

Notices:

Proposed Determination to Restrict the Use of an Area as a Disposal Site; Pebble Deposit Area, Southwest Alaska Pages 42314 – 42318 [FR DOC # 2014-16920]      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 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 USEPA (and your state) and the PHMSA/USDOT.

Pursuant to the PHMSA/USDOT Hazardous Material Regulations (HMR) at 49 CFR 172.400, each person who offers for transportation or transports a hazardous material in any of the following packages or containment devices shall label them as specified in Column 6 of the hazardous materials table at §172.101:

• A non-bulk package.
• A bulk packaging, other than a cargo tank, portable tank, or tank car, with a volumetric capacity of less than 18 m3 (640 cubic feet), unless placarded in accordance with subpart F of this part.
• A portable tank of less than 3,785 L (1000 gallons) capacity, unless placarded in accordance with subpart F of this part.
• A DOT Specification 106 or 110 multi-unit tank car tank, unless placarded in accordance with subpart F of this part.
• An overpack, freight container or unit load device, of less than 18 m3 (640 cubic feet), which contains a package for which labels are required, unless placarded or marked in accordance with §172.512 of this part.

The purpose of this article is to reveal an interpretation of the HMR that allows for some variability in the placement and orientation of HazMat Labels on non-bulk packages. (more…)

Throughout the Hazardous Material Regulations (HMR) of the PHMSA/USDOT it is primarily the responsibility of the Shipper of a hazardous material to provide the information necessary to safely transport the HazMat and to communicate its potential hazards.  However, 49 CFR 172.606 contains requirements for the Carrier to provide contact information during certain situations of HazMat transportation.  The purpose of this article is to explain in detail the requirements of this regulation, summarized as follows:

1. A HazMat Carrier must instruct the operators of the vehicle to contact them in the event of an incident involving the HazMat pursuant to paragraph (a) of §172.606.
2. The HazMat Carrier must make information available with the hazardous material whenever it is parked during transportation and is separated from its motive power pursuant to paragraph (b) & (c) of §172.606.

(more…)

The extraction, transportation, and refining of what has come to be known as Bakken Crude has presented unique challenges to the regulated industry and concerned persons nationwide.  The purpose of this site is to be a source of information related to Bakken Crude Oil and specifically to the hazards it presents in transportation.

(more…)

49 CFR 172.504 contains the HMR’s General Placarding Requirements.  It is here where the Placarding Tables 1 & 2 are found [§172.504(e)] and the explanation of the DANGEROUS placard option at §172.504(b).  Here also is the shocking exception from displaying a placard for a non-bulk packaging of a hazardous material from Placarding Table 2 if the aggregate gross weight of vehicle HazMat is <1,001 lbs.  But the purpose of this article is to explain and illustrate the exception from placarding for the NON-FLAMMABLE GAS placard on a transport vehicle pursuant to 49 CFR 172.504(f)(3). (more…)

In general, there are two ways in which a material may be classified as a Combustible Liquid (Hazard Class 3) pursuant to the regulations of the PHMSA/USDOT; they are:

• It does not meet the definition of any other hazard class and its flash point is above 60 °C (140 °F) and below 93 °C (200 °F).

Or…

• It meets the definition of a Flammable Liquid with a flash point of ≥100˚F and ≤140˚F and the shipper elects to classify it as a Combustible Liquid.

Read more about both of these options here:  The Classification of a Flammable Liquid and a Combustible Liquid

The transportation in commerce of a Combustible Liquid presents an interesting option when determining the placards to display on a motor vehicle or rail car. (more…)

June 2014 – Rules & Regulations, Proposed Rules, and Notices Regarding the Management of Hazardous Waste and the Transportation of Hazardous Materials

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 30, 2014 through June 30, 2014

EPA – Environmental Protection Agency:

Rules and Regulations:

Identification and Listing of Hazardous Waste

Pages 35290 – 35290 [FR DOC # 2014-14607]

PDF | Text | More

Revisions to the Export Provisions of the Cathode Ray Tube (CRT) Rule

Pages 36220 – 36231 [FR DOC # 2014-14996]

PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

Spring 2014 Regulatory Agenda

Pages 34115 – 34123 [FR DOC # 2014-13130]

PDF | Text | More

Definition of “Waters of the United States” Under the Clean Water Act; Extension of Comment Period

Pages 35712 – 35713 [FR DOC # 2014-14674]

PDF | Text | More

Notices:

None

FAA – Federal Aviation Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

FMCSA – Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

Qualification of Drivers; Exemption Applications; Epilepsy and Seizure Disorders

Pages 32014 – 32016 [FR DOC # 2014-12790]

PDF | Text | More

Hours of Service of Drivers: Application of Illumination Fireworks, LLC and ACE Pyro LLC, for Exemption From the 14-Hour Rule During Independence Day Celebrations

Pages 36579 – 36581 [FR DOC # 2014-15043]

PDF | Text | More

FRA – Federal Railroad Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

None

PHMSA – Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration:

Rules and Regulations:

None

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety

Pages 31178 – 31179 [FR DOC # 2014-12438]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Application for Special Permits

Pages 31179 – 31180 [FR DOC # 2014-12437]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; List of Applications Delayed More Than 180 Days

Pages 31405 – 31406 [FR DOC # 2014-12439]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Applications for Modification of Special Permit

Pages 31406 – 31406 [FR DOC # 2014-12436]

PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Notice of Availability of Draft Environmental Assessment and Request for Public Comment for a Special Permit Relating to the Transport of Precursor Chemicals From Syria in Port Arthur, Texas

Pages 33802 – 33803 [FR DOC # 2014-13685]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Applications for Modification of Special Permit

Pages 35406 – 35407 [FR DOC # 2014-14182]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety; Notice of Application for Special Permits

Pages 35407 – 35408 [FR DOC # 2014-14181]

PDF | Text | More

Office of Hazardous Materials Safety

Pages 35408 – 35410 [FR DOC # 2014-14129]

PDF | Text | More

Office Of Hazardous Materials Safety; List of Applications

Pages 35410 – 35411 [FR DOC # 2014-14183]

PDF | Text | More

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 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 USEPA (and your state) and the PHMSA/USDOT.

At its beginning (49 CFR 171.1) the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) of the USDOT/PHMSA limits its applicability to the following:

• Persons who transport hazardous materials in commerce.
• Persons who cause hazardous materials to be transported in commerce.
• Persons who manufacture or maintain a packaging to be used for the transportation of a HazMat in commerce.
• Anyone who indicates by marking or other means that a HazMat is present in a packaging or conveyance being transported in commerce when it is not.
• Anyone who tampers with a package or transport conveyance of a HazMat in transportation or the markings, labels, placards, or shipping description of a hazardous material being transported in commerce.

In sum, the HMR applies to any activity a person may engage in that involves the transportation in commerce of a hazardous material.

However, 49 CFR 171.1(d) identifies, “Functions not subject to the requirements of the HMR.”  The subject of this article is to look at one of the seven exempt functions:  The Government Employee Transportation Exemption of 49 CFR 171.1(d)(5). (more…)

One of the things I love about my business is being able to answer someone’s question about the transportation of hazardous materials or the management of hazardous waste.  Some questions have an easy answer, but a complicated explanation, and those are the ones I decided to address in this format:  An advice column.

Why “Mr. Daniels”?  Because many people mistakenly assume it to be my surname after visiting my website.

(more…)