DOT’s RSPA clarifies final rule for handling hazmat cargo

DOT’s RSPA clarifies final rule for handling hazmat cargo    The U.S. Department of Transportation’s Research and Special Programs Administration (RSPA) has issued an advisory for a final federal rule clarifying the applicability of hazardous materials regulations to cargo loading, unloading and storage operations.
   The RSPA said the scope of the final rule, effective Oct. 1, would be widened to apply to “pre-transportation functions” for freight forwarders and others that prepare hazmat materials before a carrier takes physical possession of them. The new rule will also apply to the storage of hazmat cargo “by any party between the time the carrier takes possession … until the package is delivered.”
   On the subject of making packages, “we recognize that many entities use DOT or UN specification packagings for temporary or permanent storage of hazardous materials.” However, “a packaging marked to certify that it conforms to (U.S.) hazardous material regulations (HMR) must be maintained in accordance with applicable specification requirements whether or not it is in transportation in commerce at any particular time,” the RSPA said.
   “A DOT or UN specification packaging that does not conform to the marked standard must be clearly identified by the manufacturer or distributor as not conforming to the marked standard,” the RSPA said.
   “Covers must be marked, or there must be a sufficient description in the notification for the user to readily distinguish between the conforming and non-conforming cover. In such cases, non-applicable standard markings should be covered, removed or obliterated. We realize this may not be practical, particularly for packagings with embossed markings. Provided sufficient information is provided to enable the user to identify packagings that do not meet all applicable regulatory requirements, the appearance of standard markings is not prohibited,” the RSPA said.
   In a prior notice of proposed rulemaking, the government’s “proposals applicable to the unloading of rail tank cars” represented “a change from current practice and interpretation. Despite commentors’ opposition, we continue to believe that the unloading of a rail tank car directly into a manufacturing process is more properly considered part of a manufacturing operation, not a transportation operation,” the RSPA said.
   “We agree that a transloading operation at an intermodal transfer facility — that is, the act of directly transferring hazardous materials from one bulk packaging to another — is a function that should be regulated by hazardous materials regulations,” the RSPA noted.
   When the final rule goes into effect, there will be a sharing of regulatory authority between hazmat rules and those that are part of the Occupational Safety and Health Act.
   For additional information, contact Susan Gorsky at (202) 366-8553, in the Office of Hazardous Materials Standards, or Donna O’Berry at (202) 366-4400, in the Office of the General Counsel.