Transportation of Dangerous Goods

IT'S YOUR JOB TO KNOW THIS STUFF

By William Glenn

Think of the TDG regulations as a sort of WHMIS on wheels; it’s the regulatory regime that covers dangerous goods while they are in transit

A hefty copy of the 1985 Transportation of Dangerous Goods Regulations lands on your desk with a resounding thud. As the dust swirls and loose work orders flutter to the floor, you pull back the cover and begin to flip through chapter after chapter of fine print, bewildering acronyms and complex schedules.

Where to begin? A single sentence drones on and on for more than five pages. Another, spliced together with sections, subsections, and sub-subsections contains a total of 16 cross-references. There are dozens of amendments scrawled into the margins and taped over whole pages.

Don't despair. To make an irreverent comparison, the TDG regs are much like the Bible (or any other thick holy book for that matter). Once you've grasped the gist of the plot and learned which chapters are germane to your day-to-day existence, it doesn't take too long to master a general appreciation of the 10 commandments.

Here's the key. No matter how daunting that big binder looks, it's just another safety manual -- bigger than most and more poorly written than any you've seen before -- but a safety manual all the same. Anyone who transports dangerous goods by road, rail, ship or air, anywhere through, over or across Canada, must meet certain minimum safety standards designed to protect the environment and human health (including the health of those folks doing the shipping). Oh, and these aren't just suggestions or recommendations. The standards are mandatory and legally enforceable by your provincial ministry or department of transport, by the federal people from Transport Canada and, occasionally, by the police.

You cannot transport dangerous goods anywhere in Canada unless you do so in compliance with the TDG Act and its regulations. Since January 17, 1985 -- the day the TDG regulations were promulgated under the federal Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act -- they've been adopted, in turn, by every province and territory in Canada. The federal version covers international and interprovincial shipments, while the provinces and territories oversee whatever dangerous shipments travel within their borders. Other than jurisdiction (and perhaps some additional requirements related to the transport of hazardous wastes), the regulatory packages are virtually identical.

That means that wherever you work in Canada, compliance is a three-step process:

* First you must become familiar with the basic layout and requirements of the TDG Act and its massive regulations;

* next, you use those regulations to determine whether any of the products you bring in or ship out are considered "dangerous goods" according to the detailed regulatory definitions, criteria or schedules; and finally,
* if you decide a shipment falls under its regulatory purview, you must comply with the relevant packaging, labeling and paperwork provisions.

Do the regs apply to me?

The short answer is probably yes. Compliance is not just the concern of truck drivers and carrier companies. The TDG Act, which sets out the broad requirements, and the TDG regulations, which fill in the practical details, take a very liberal view of what constitutes "transportation".

There are "handling" standards that cover the packing and loading (or unpacking and unloading) of dangerous goods into (or out of) shipping containers, storage warehouses, transport trucks, boxcars, the holds of freighters or any other means of transport. And there are "offering for transport" standards that regulate the front-end preparation of transport documents by consignors, the safety marking of goods, and the relaying of instructions to carriers.

The consignor is the sender, the person who either imports the dangerous goods into Canada or allows a carrier to take them someplace else. The carrier is the person who, whether for hire or not, has possession of dangerous goods while they are in transport. A manufacturer who trucks his own dangerous goods to market can be both consignor and carrier. And while a consignor can sign over (in writing) to a third party all his or her duties and responsibilities for a shipment, that does not reduce consignor's liability under the act. If things go wrong, you are still on the hook.

In addition, every manufacturer or importer of bulk dangerous goods or of dangerous quantities that exceed 500 kilograms must register with the TDG Directorate (the branch of Transport Canada responsible for the TDG Act and its regulations) in accordance with Part 9 of the 1985 regulations.

(There are a few very limited exemptions (in Part 2 of the 1985 regulations or Part 1 of the proposed new regs) to the application of the TDG Act. For instance, farmers trucking up to 1,500 kilograms of dangerous goods (with certain exceptions) on a licensed farm vehicle for agricultural use are exempt. There are also exemptions related to the Department of National Defence, transport solely within a manufacturing or processing facility or between two properties (owned by the same person) within three kilometres of each other, emergency clean-up or response, limited marine quantities and, under rigid conditions, the transport of some Class 3 flammable liquids, Class 6.2 infectious substances, and Class 7 radioactive materials. There are also partial or complete exemptions for certain dangerous goods spelled out in Schedule 3 of the regulations. You'll have to refer to the regulatory text for the full details.)

The new improved TDG Regs

Since the day the TDG regs were promulgated 15 years ago, the feds (and their provincial/territorial partners) have been tinkering with them. There have been some 24 packages of amendments published to date, and the regs still don't reflect many of the international conventions adopted to facilitate the safe shipment of dangerous materials. It became obvious to everyone involved in the transport business that it was time for a complete re-write.

While the resulting new "clear language" TDG regulations preserve the basic tenets of the former version, the feds have pruned back much of the legalese, reorganized the contents and made the text more accessible to the average reader. The new regs will also accommodate evolving safety and containment standards, reflect technological improvements (such as electronic record keeping, filing and reporting), and promote global TDG harmonization.

After years of discussion, the penultimate version of the proposed text finally appeared in Part I of the Canada Gazette on August 7, 1999. (That’s a sort of "fair-warning" stage just before a bill becomes law, at which time it is published in Part II, usually with a effective date attached.) A limited number of free copies were distributed by the TDG directorate; you can still purchase a copy of the Canada Gazette from any agent of the Queen's Printer or download a free copy off the Internet at <www.tc.gc.ca/tdg/consult/cgl/note_e.html>.

By the time the deadline for "final" comments expired in early November, 1999, the TDG Directorate had amassed about 100 recommendations and suggestions for further changes. These have been evaluated and some last minute fine-tuning may be attempted, with any amendments to be published on the directorate's web site. And yet again, there will be an opportunity for you to comment.

Eventually, the endless consultation will stagger to an end and the final regulations will be published in the Canada Gazette Part II. You'll then be given six months grace during which you can comply with either the old or new requirements. At the end of the phase-in period, the new regulations become mandatory and you can finally recycle that ragged old TDG manual.

Finding your way around the regs

The TDG regs are not as complicated as they look. They are organized by subject in a fairly rational manner (more rational in the proposed clear language version than in the older copy you've probably got on your desk right now). The 1985 regs are subdivided into 13 Parts (with one revoked) and the new version into 16. Both are augmented by a number of technical appendices (called Schedules) which, for the most part, are used to classify dangerous goods and ascertain their specific handling requirements. (See "What's in the Regulations?", page XX for a comparison of the old and new versions.) You'll find the chapter headings (especially in the new version) fairly indicative of what each Part covers, and each Part now has a table of contents and an introduction that explains its purpose.

The 16 Parts comprising the new version of the regs are grouped together into five groups:

* Group A covers "General Matters", like when the various provisions come into force, the definitions used in the text, the outside standards adopted, and general provisions, exceptions and special cases that may apply to certain activities;

* Group B covers the "Core Requirements", namely the classification of dangerous goods, the required shipping documents and safety marks, and the standards and requirements related to the various means of containment or packaging that is required for shipping;

* Group C addresses employee training requirements, the emergency response assistance plan (ERAP), and the reporting of accidental or imminent environmental releases (that's spill reporting to the rest of us);

* Group D expands on additional modal requirements for road, rail, marine and air transport; and, finally,

* Group E sets out the administrative requirements, including protective directions, equivalent level of safety permits, court orders and inspectors.

What are dangerous goods?

A lot of regulatory ink is devoted to defining just what is and what isn't a "dangerous good". A load of anything -- feathers, flowers or fungo bats -- hurtling down the highway at 100 kilometres an hour poses a danger to anybody who gets in its way. However, the regulations classify goods as dangerous based, primarily, on their inherently hazardous properties while stationary and, secondarily, on the size of the load.

Unlike some other pieces of oh&s or environmental legislation, don't expect to find a lot of loopholes, at least not loopholes large enough to drive through in a transport truck.

pull quote "Unlike some other pieces of oh&s or environmental legislation, don't expect to find a lot of loopholes, at least not loopholes large enough to drive through in a transport truck."

According to the TDG Act, "dangerous goods" means a product, substance or organism (included by its nature or by the regulations) in any of the nine classes of materials listed in a schedule to the act, namely:

Class 1, explosives (as defined by the federal Explosives Act);

Class 2, gases, either compressed, deeply refrigerated, liquefied or dissolved under pressure;

Class 3, flammable and combustible liquids;

Class 4, flammable solids, which are those susceptible to spontaneous combustion or liable to emit flammable gases on contact with water;

Class 5, oxidizing substances, such as organic peroxides;

Class 6, poisonous, toxic and infectious substances;

Class 7, radioactive materials (as defined by the Nuclear Safety and Control Act);

Class 8, corrosives; and

Class 9, various and miscellaneous products, substances or organisms considered to be dangerous to life, health, property or the environment when transported.

Simply put, if a product is combustible, explosive, reactive, corrosive, poisonous or radioactive, then it's likely subject to the requirements of the act. As a first step, flip to Schedule 2 and look for the shipping name of the particular substance among the nearly 3,000 dangerous goods listed there -- unless it's an explosive, in which case it will be listed in Schedule 1. (See "How to Read Schedule 2", page XX for some tips for quickly navigating this seemingly endless list and accessing the data buried within.)

If you can't find the material listed in either of the two schedules, then turn back to Part 3 (or Part 2 in the new regs) for the detailed classification criteria and diagnostic tests used to determine each of the nine classes of dangerous goods. Here you'll be immersed in the world of lethal doses, flash points and lower explosive limits.

Based on these physical and chemical criteria, you should also be able to determine the specific packing group the material falls into. The packing group reflects the inherent danger posed by the dangerous goods: Group I indicates great danger, Group II denotes medium danger and Group III shows a minor danger. Of course, you'll probably have to sit down with you chemical supplier, engineer or lab technician to confirm the regulatory diagnosis.

The danger posed by a shipment is also affected by the amount of the material being transported. The 1985 regs employ a series of special designations -- such as "consumer commodities", "limited quantities", "products for retail sale", and so on -- to exempt small quantity shipments packaged in an acceptable containment system from the full weight of the act.

The new version would adopt a concept known as Low Threat Consignments (LTCs) to exempt shipments that fall below a certain gross mass (which includes the weight of the container) threshold. The LTCs vary according to the dangerous material being shipped and have not been set at all for some particularly hazardous materials. LTCs are listed in column 7 of Schedules 1 and 2.

This move is expected to exempt dangerous goods purchased at retail outlets for personal use. It should also provide some regulatory relief for anyone shipping dangerous goods for medical use, equipment repair, demonstration purposes, or analysis and testing.

The LTC provisions don't offer a blanket exemption. The means of containment must still meet certain minimum standards and be suitably marked. And when an accumulation of low threat consignments exceeds 500 kilograms (gross mass) and are packaged by one consignor to one destination, the shipment must be accompanied by the prescribed documentation.

Leaving a paper trail

Speaking of documentation, Part 4 of the 1985 regulations covers the shipping documents that must accompany each and every shipment of dangerous goods prescribed under the act. The documentation is prepared by the consignor before a carrier takes possession of the dangerous goods, and must be kept in specific locations while the goods are en route.

While no specific form is required, a sample shipping document has been prepared by the TDG Directorate for collecting the basic information required under the regulations. This includes the following:

* the date;

* the name and full address of the consignor;

* a description of each of the dangerous goods, including the shipping name, class, subclass, packing group and UN number;

* the quantity of each of the dangerous goods;

* the number of labeled containers;

* additional information related to any Class 4.1 flammable solids, Class 5.2 organic peroxides, or Class 7 radioactive materials; and

* a 24-hour emergency information number and the reference to the ERAP (if one is required).

Additional information may be required for foreign shipments, the transport of Class 6.2 infectious substances or Class 7 radioactive materials, multiple deliveries and collections, and rail shipments. There are also two situations that require a specific form be used: a waste manifest (available from the provincial Ministry of the Environment) for shipments of hazardous wastes, and a "Shipper's Declaration for Dangerous Goods" (available from the International Air Transport Association) for air shipments.

All these requirements remain largely intact in Part 3 of the proposed new regs. However, some mandatory requirements have been made optional and there have been amendments to accommodate the use of electronic data interchange.

Making your mark

Those distinctive labels, placards, signs and other safety marks you see on the sides of transports zooming past you on the highway are covered in Part 5 of the 1985 regulations. So are the specifications and placement of the diamond-shaped labels on small containers, the placards on larger containers, the markings and product identification numbers on bulk shipments, and the safety marking requirements for rail cars and other modes of transport.

There are standards for the visibility, legibility, colour and retro-reflectivity of markings, the size and orientation of labels and placards, the ways to display a UN number, the removal of dangerous goods safety marks, and the display of elevated temperature signs, fumigation signs and marine pollutant marks.

Every effort has been made to retain the current safety marking practices in the Part 4 of the new regulations. There has been some simplification in the labeling of subsidiary classes of dangerous goods, and the placarding of dangerous loads has been tightened for shipments that require an emergency response assistance plan (ERAP).

Rules for proper packing

The selection of an appropriate form of containment and the proper packing of your dangerous goods into it is the subject of Part 7 of the 1985 regulations, "Safety Requirements for the handling of Offering for Transport of Dangerous Goods". While the original draft of the regs was largely silent on containment standards, these have been added and updated in a series of amendments over the intervening years.

There are now prescribed packaging standards for both small and large containers for most classes, divisions and packing groups of dangerous goods. Where no standard packaging is prescribed, the general requirement demands that the material be packaged in such a way that ensures no discharge, emission or escape of the contents could result in a danger to life, health, property or the environment. In addition, the minimum standards for the manufacture of certain containment systems is covered in Part 6, "Safety Standards."

The proposed new regulations will permit the use of U.S. or international packaging standards, where such exist, for domestic shipments. It will also fill in many of the gaps for non-bulk and intermediate bulk packaging systems by adopting UN specifications for dangerous Goods included in Classes 3, 4, 5, 6.1, 8 and 9, with some exceptions for low threat consignments.

pull quote "The proposed new regulations will permit the use of U.S. or international packaging standards, where such exist, for domestic shipments."

Do I really have to do all this stuff?

If you are looking for regulatory relief -- if you believe some provision of the TDG regulations is impractical, overly onerous or irrelevant -- you can ask for an exception to the rules. You simply apply for a permit following the information requirements laid out in Part 11 of the old TDG regulations (or Part 14 of the new ones). However, to be successful you must be able to show that whatever way you plan on packaging or transporting or documenting a shipment of dangerous goods will provide a level of safety equivalent to that achieved by complying with the letter of the regulations.

This happens more often than you might think. There are over 700 permits on file at Transport Canada and all of these are available for review through the department's web site, listed by permit number, permit holder and the issue and expiry dates. You might find a situation analogous to your own by going through the exemptions issued to date.

What about training?

It could be argued that, except for some relatively routine paperwork and pre-printed labels, the TDG regulations are really all about training. No one can handle, offer for transport or transport anything more than a couple of kilos of material designated as dangerous without completing the proper training (or working directly under someone who has been trained).

pull quote "The employer is solely responsible for ensuring that his or her employees have been properly trained."

The employer is solely responsible for ensuring that his or her employees have been properly trained. In addition to mastering some TDG fundamentals, such as recognition of the standard shipping labels, proper training usually relates to an employee's particular duties. For example, drivers have to be trained in spill response. Shippers have to know how to fill out the proper shipping documents. Fork lift operators have to understand the proper methods for storing dangerous goods. ( See Who Needs to Know What?" page XX, for more detail on the requirements.)

The regulations don't spell out how this training must be delivered. You could opt for formal classroom training, or on-the-job training, or use any other information available to determine whether an employee is competent. However, the TDG Directorate has prepared guidelines to clarify the bare bones training requirements contained in the TDG regs. The "Guidelines for Training Criteria (Dangerous Goods Advisory Notice TP 9554 E)" are not exhaustive, but should help employers decide just which employees need to be trained and what should be covered in the curriculum.

Every employee who has completed the requisite training should be issued a suitable training certificate, signed by the employer, as proof that they are properly certified. These certificates are valid for a period of 36 months (except for air transport certificates which would expire in 24 months under the new regs), but are not transferable from one workplace to another.

You can download a sample certificate, as well as the complete training guidelines, and a list of organizations that provide dangerous goods training, from the TDG Directorate's web site.

You should take note that the Directorate has not examined or certified any of the courses offered, nor does it endorse any of these training organizations or their offerings in any official way. You are welcome to take advantage or their services (or those of any other training company), but ultimately it's your responsibility to ensure that your staff is properly trained. TDG training is just about like every other aspect of dangerous goods compliance -- it's your job and you are liable if anything goes wrong.

William Glenn is associate editor of hazardous materials for OHS Canada.

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What's in the Regulations?

The old version of the TDG Regulations consisted of 13 Parts and 14 Schedules, while the proposed new text has been redistributed into 16 Parts and 5 Schedules. While there have been some significant additions, most of the old version has been cleaned up, reorganized and preserved in the new.

New version Old version
of the TDG regs of the TDG regs

Part 1 General provisions Interpretation & definitions

Part 2 Classification Application & exemptions

Part 3 Shipping documents Classification

Part 4 Safety marks Documentation

Part 5 Means of containment Safety marks

Part 6 Training Manufacturing standards

Part 7 ERAP Handling requirements (containment)

Part 8 Accident reports Transport requirements

Part 9 Road requirements Training, registration & reporting

Part 10 Rail requirements Direction (public safety)

Part 11 Marine requirements Permits & exceptions

Part 12 Air requirements (revoked)

Part 13 Protective directions Inspectors

Part 14 Equivalent levels of Safety --

Part 15 Court Orders --

Part 16 Inspectors --

sidebar

Who Needs to Know What?

Training is the sole responsibility of the employer. All persons involved in the handling, offering for transport and/or transporting of dangerous goods must understand the following TDG fundamentals:

1. the definition of the nine classes of dangerous goods and their associated hazards;

2. the names, classes, product identification numbers and packing groups of the dangerous goods normally encountered on the job;

3. how to identify dangerous goods by safety marks and on a shipping document;

4. the retention and delivery of the shipping document;

5. the implications of mixed loads, and the need to segregate incompatible goods;

6. what to do if the shipping documents, placards, labels, other safety marks or packings seem inadequate or incorrect;

7. what to do if radioactive materials, explosives or infectious substances are lost, stolen or misplaced;

8. what constitutes a dangerous occurrence and what to do if one arises; and

9. appropriate safety equipment and procedures for the use of the equipment.

In addition, everyone involved in the handling of dangerous goods, such as dock workers, receivers, freight handlers, loaders, lift truck operators and warehousemen, must be trained in the following:

1. the types of placards, labels, signs, numbers and other safety marks, as well as their meaning, and when and where to use them;

2. the technical aspects, control and emergency features of all handling equipment used in the normal course of the job;

3. safe practices for loading and stowing dangerous goods; and

4. when to remove placards, product identification numbers and other safety marks.

Anyone involved in "offering" dangerous goods for transport, and that means dispatchers, shippers, billers, freight forwarders or any of the clerical personnel that prepare TDG documents, must understand the following:

1. special requirements for documentation;

2. special instructions and precautions for handling and/or transporting the specific dangerous goods encountered on the job;

3. the safety marks that must be displayed; and

4. the use of correct and appropriate packaging.

Finally, anyone involved in physically transporting dangerous goods from a consignor to a consignee by any means of transport (other than a pipeline) must be trained in the following:

1. the requirements respecting the safe handling, protection and segregation of incompatible dangerous goods;

2. the use of safety equipment, and the maintenance of transport units for dangerous goods;

3. the placards and other safety marks required, when and where they must be used, and the location and custody of shipping documents; and

4. conditions under which different documentation may be required;

5. all parking or load and vehicle inspection regulations which may apply.

box (early in the story)

The Ten Commandments (for Transporting Dangerous Goods)

I: You must know what you are doing before you handle, package, load or transport any dangerous goods.

II: You must train your employees to conduct their appointed tasks safely and in compliance with the regulations.

III: You must know which of your goods are dangerous, and the class, division and packing group of each.

IV: You must ensure your goods are packaged properly.

V: Your labels, placards and markings must be clear, visible and prepared in accordance with the law.

VI: You must have your paperwork in order and kept near to hand.

VII: You must not spill.

VIII: Even the most careful shipper or carrier must be prepared for the worst (and that means preparing an emergency response assistance plan).

IX: You must confess all your mistakes promptly and in writing.

X: You must place the protection of human health and the environment above all else.

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