Introduction To The Transport Of Dangerous GoodsOverview Of The Model RegulationsDownload As A PDFThe United Nations (UN) Recommendations and Model Regulations for the safe transport of dangerous goods, otherwise known as the UN Orange Book form the basis for modal (road, rail, sea, air and inland waterways) regulation governing the different modes of transport. Additional requirements specific to the mode of transport are incorporated within the modal regulations, which are updated every two years (except IATA) to reflect the work of the dangerous goods committees. The IATA (air) regulations are updated annually. Classification Of Dangerous Goods For Transport There are 9 dangerous goods classes, some of which have divisions:
The dangerous goods list, common to all modes of transport identify specific dangerous goods by a United Nations (UN) number, for example: “UN 1088, Acetal, Class 3”. However, some dangerous goods are listed as generic, not otherwise specified (“n.o.s”.) entries, for example: “UN 1992, Flammable liquid, toxic, n.o.s. Class 3, subsidiary hazard (class) 6.1”. Generic or n.o.s. entries normally require the dangerous goods description to be supplemented with the technical name of the goods contributing to the classification. The entries requiring the technical description are assigned special provision (SP) 274 or 318 in the dangerous goods list, for example: “UN1992, flammable liquid, toxic, n.o.s. (contains carbon disulphide)”. The classification of dangerous goods includes a packing group, where applicable. The packing group determines the degree of danger within the hazard class:
The class and packing group determine how dangerous goods should be packaged, marked and labelled for transport. Packaging Of Fully Regulated Dangerous Goods For Transport Packaging must be designed and constructed to UN specification standards and undergo testing to ensure that it is fit for purpose e.g. withstand conditions encountered during transport, such as stacking and vibration. UN approved packaging is marked with the prefix ‘UN’ and is coded with the specification for the packaging, to include the type of packaging, packing group for which the packaging has been tested, last two digits of the year of manufacture, state authorising the mark and certificate identification.
The mark will also include further information depending on the type of packaging and what it intended to contain. This information will follow the packing group specification. Limited And Excepted Quantities The model regulations include provision for ‘limited’ and ‘excepted’ quantities of dangerous goods, with reduced requirements to reflect lower risk. Consignments of limited and excepted quantities of dangerous goods must be contained within good quality packaging, which is not required to conform to UN specification standards. Other relaxations also apply to limited and excepted quantities of dangerous goods, depending on the mode of transport. Marking And Labelling Marking refers to UN number, the ‘proper shipping name’ (description of the dangerous goods), UN packaging specification mark, and other markings, such us orientation arrows (this way up):
Labelling mainly refers to the hazard class labels, which are required to identify primary and sub hazards.
Labelling mainly refers to the hazard class labels, which are required to identify primary and sub hazards. The proper shipping name associated with the UN number for the item classification is provided in the dangerous goods lists of the modal regulations. Documentation Dangerous goods must normally be accompanied by a transport document declaring the description and nature of the goods. Documentation must be in accordance with the specification set by the modal dangerous goods regulations. Additional information and documents may also be required, depending on the mode of transport. For further information:See www.gov.uk/brexit for more information and guidance covering other important exit scenario topics.
CHCS offers Modular Training Courses on the writing of Safety Data Sheets (SDSs), and related issues such as classification, labelling and other documentation. For more information see CHCS Training. In particular we offer the following two courses related to the transport of dangerous goods:
If you have any queries about our training, please Contact CHCS.
Chemicals Legislation Support From CHCSWe provide a range of pages on this website to give you an introduction to different aspects of chemicals legislation / regulation:
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