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) 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.

June 27 through July 31, 2013

PHMSA – Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR):

Rules and Regulations:

Safety Advisory Guidance: Heating Rail Tank Cars To Prepare Hazardous Material for Unloading or Transloading

Pages 41853 – 41856 [FR DOC # 2013-16672]       PDF | Text | More

Specifications for Packagings

Pages 44894 – 44894 [FR DOC # 2013-18012]     PDF | Text | More

Hazardous Materials: Approval and Communication Requirements for the Safe Transportation of Air Bag Inflators, Air Bag Modules, and Seat-Belt Pretensioners (RRR)

Pages 45880 – 45893 [FR DOC # 2013-18263]     PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

None

Notices:

Hazardous Materials: Revision to Fireworks Regulations (RRR)

Pages 42457 – 42478 [FR DOC # 2013-16986]     PDF | Text | More

Safety Advisory: Unauthorized Filling of Compressed Gas Cylinders

Pages 42817 – 42818 [FR DOC # 2013-17121]     PDF | Text | More

SafetyAlert: Safety Alert: Risks Associated With Liquid Petroleum (LP) Gas Odor Fade

Pages 42818 – 42819 [FR DOC # 2013-17120]     PDF | Text | More

Paperless Hazard Communications Pilot Program

Pages 43263 – 43268 [FR DOC # 2013-17363]     PDF | Text | More

Special Permit Applications

Pages 43268 – 43270 [FR DOC # 2013-17278]     PDF | Text | More

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

Pages 43270 – 43270 [FR DOC # 2013-17280]     PDF | Text | More

List of Applications Delayed

Pages 43270 – 43271 [FR DOC # 2013-17277]     PDF | Text | More

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

Pages 43271 – 43272 [FR DOC # 2013-17279]     PDF | Text | More

USEPA – Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA):

Rules and Regulations:

State of Kansas; Authorization of State Hazardous Waste Management Program

Pages 43810 – 43817 [FR DOC # 2013-17566]     PDF | Text | More

Conditional Exclusions From Solid Waste and Hazardous Waste for Solvent-Contaminated Wipes

Pages 46447 – 46485 [FR DOC # 2013-18285]     PDF | Text | More

Proposed Rules:

State of Kansas; Authorization of State Hazardous Waste Management Program

Pages 43842 – 43843 [FR DOC # 2013-17038]     PDF | Text | More

Notices:

None

Information can be helpful but it’s useless if you are not able to make sense of it, 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 do that.  Please contact me for a free consultation to determine your regulatory requirements and how training can help you to attain and maintain compliance.