TIACA asks U.S. to modify lithium battery rule

TIACA asks U.S. to modify lithium battery rule    A U.S. Department of Transportation proposal to restrict lithium battery shipments to specialized containers and sections of the cargo hold of airplanes would impose undue financial hardship on the battered air cargo industry and reduce capacity for the popular power source, The International Air Cargo Association said.
   In comments filed with the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration, the industry group said a better approach is to align U.S. rules with the International Civil Aviation Organization's standards on the safe transport of dangerous goods by air. The agency published its notice of proposed rulemaking in January.
   Lithium batteries are commonly used in consumer electronics products, medical devices and hybrid and electric vehicles. The batteries have been linked to a number of fires onboard aircraft in recent years.
   The most harmful rule change, according to TIACA, would eliminate stowage exemptions for small lithium cells and batteries and force them to be stowed in a crew-accessible location except if they are shipped in a Federal Aviation Administration-approved container or a Class C cargo compartment.
   In its formal comments, TIACA said it is 'unaware of any FAA-approved container for the purposes of transporting lithium batteries, so that exception effectively offers no relief, at least for the foreseeable future. Additionally, on many passenger and cargo aircraft, there is limited cargo space that is crew accessible. Furthermore, while Class C cargo compartments are relatively common on passenger aircraft, that is not the case for many all-cargo freighters — and retrofitting aircraft for a Class C compartment would be a costly endeavor, particularly in an industry that is still suffering through a severe downturn from the current recession'.
   Other parts of the PHMSA proposal would require transport documentation to accompany a shipment of small lithium batteries that would notify the pilot of the presence of lithium batteries on board the plane, and subject packages of lithium batteries to better marking and labeling.
   Daniel Fernandez, secretary general of TIACA, said in a statement that 'TIACA strongly supports efforts to ensure the safety and security of the air cargo supply chain. We recognize that PHMSA is proposing this rule with the intention of enhancing safety, and commend it for that objective. However, TIACA believes that safety and security measures should be taken in a manner that sensibly addresses the realities of the threat and, to the extent possible, minimizes the disruption to commercial operations. TIACA believes aspects of this proposed rule fall short of that standard and should be revised.
   'Given the prevalence of lithium batteries in today's marketplace and the substantial changes to existing procedures that would be required, the proposed rule would have a widespread adverse economic impact. This fact is not sufficiently acknowledged in PHMSA's cost-benefit analysis, which underestimates the volume of lithium battery shipments, the scope and cost of new training requirements and the impact on shipping costs, and omits any consideration of impact on key sectors such as retailers and consumers.'
   TIACA also said it is concerned that there has been insufficient study of safety issues related to the transport of lithium batteries, particularly by air. It called for additional studies to more carefully evaluate the true risks of such shipments and that the PHMSA should defer the extensive rulemaking proposed until such a study has been completed and the risks are better understood.
   'The proposed new rule would have a significant adverse effect on air cargo operations, and it would be impossible to implement within a 75-day period, as proposed by PHMSA. It would require wholesale changes in air cargo operations and greatly limit the space available for lithium battery shipments. It would also require a complicated lading process under which operators would have to identify and limit any containers with lithium batteries and ensure that they are loaded only in approved locations. This would require a costly and difficult overhauling of cargo loading procedures, which are currently designed to maximize the number of containers that are loaded into available space,' Fernandez said.
   It is estimated that more than 3.3 billion lithium cells and batteries were transported worldwide in 2008. ' Eric Kulisch