In an effort to clarify confusions surrounding the 2021-2022 International Air Transport Association’s Dangerous Goods Regulations (IATA DGR) Technical Instructions (TI) and International Maritime Dangerous Goods Code (IMDG Code) Amendment 40-20, The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administrations (PHMSA) released the following statement on October 1, 2020:
IATA Significant Changes and Amendments to the 62 Edition (2021)
2020 wouldn’t be complete without yet another change before the end of the year. If you had a Sharknado, fire from the sky, or the rise of Atlantis on your 2020 bingo card you’re thankfully wrong. However, if you guessed the 62nd Edition of The International Air Transport Association’s (IATA) new edition of its Dangerous Goods Regulations (DGR), then you can use your dabber to mark that 2020 bingo card.
You may or may not have heard from a coworker, friend, or even inspector that the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) was no longer taking enforcement actions against hazmat employers who were unable to provide recurrent training consistent with Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) training requirements due to Covid-19. While this may be true, it was only true for a certain period, more specifically 90 days from the date of issuance.
Just a heads-up, for all of you who conduct ignitibility testing of certain wastes, or use SW-846 air sampling and stack emissions Methods 0010, 0011, 0020, 0023A, or 005 for determining ignitibility characteristics. September 8, 2020 will be a day to mark on your calendar, as the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) final rule will go into effect (RIN 2050-AG93). Some other potentially affected groups are as follows:
As many of us are likely aware of by now, the recent explosion in Beirut which injured thousands and killed over 135 people and counting, should act as reminder of the importance of proper storage of hazardous materials. The blast that was felt over 9KM away, was magnified by the improper storage of 2,750 metric tons of ammonium nitrate and other “highly explosive materials which had been confiscated years earlier and stored in the warehouse near where the ammonium nitrate was left,” according to Prime Minister Hassan Diab.
For those of you who have been following this rule since the beginning, the long-awaited arrival is complete. On July 24, 2020, the Department of Transportation (DOT) Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) in accordance with the Federal Railroad Administration (FRA) announced the Final Rule to allow for the bulk transportation of “Methane, refrigerated liquid” often referred to as liquefied natural gas (LNG), in rail tank cars.
For those of you who aren’t quite sure what ANPRM stands for, it represents an Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking. In January 2017, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA), of the Department of Transportation (DOT), considered revising the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR) to make transportation of unrefined petroleum-based products (and potentially all Class 3 flammable liquids) by any mode of transportation safer through vapor pressure standards.
