PHMSA adopts miscellaneous petitions

Posted November 25, 2020

On November 25, 2020, the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA) published final rule HM-219C, amending the Hazardous Materials Regulations in response to 24 petitions for rulemaking submitted by the regulated community between February 2015 and March 2018. HM-219C updates, clarifies, or provides relief from various regulatory requirements without adversely affecting safety.

Voluntary compliance for HM-219C will begin on December 28, 2020, with mandatory compliance beginning on November 26, 2021. In part, the updates to the hazardous materials regulations includes:

• Harmonizing availability of limited quantity shipping exceptions for more than 100 entries for corrosive materials in the Hazardous Materials Table.
• Revising § 172.302(b)(2) to allow a minimum height of 12 mm (0.47 inches) for a proper shipping name marked on a portable tank with a capacity of less than 3,785 L (1,000 gallons).
• Revising § 173.28(c)(1)(i) to allow for regulatory flexibility for cleaning metal drums for reuse and clarifying the existing cleaning standard.
• Revising § 173.5b to allow for the continued use of portable and mobile refrigerator systems placed into service prior to 1991 that are rated to a minimum service pressure of 250 pounds per square inch (psig). Incorporating by reference updated editions of multiple Compressed Gas Association (CGA) publications into § 171.7.
• Removing the reference to special provision 103 in § 172.101 from Column (7) for four HMT entries.
• Revising § 173.308(d)(3) to harmonize with the International Maritime Dangerous Goods (IMDG) Code by removing the requirement for a closed transport container to have the warning mark “WARNING – MAY CONTAIN EXPLOSIVE MIXTURES WITH AIR – KEEP IGNITION SOURCES AWAY WHEN OPENING” when transporting lighters.
• Revising § 173.31 to prohibit the use of certain rail tank cars for the transportation of PIH materials after December 31, 2027.
• Revising § 172.101(c) to clarify that the word “stabilized” must be included as part of the proper shipping name when stabilization is required for transportation.
• Incorporating by reference the January 1, 2018, edition of the American Pyrotechnics Association (APA) Standard 87-1 A, B, C, “Standard for Construction and Approval for Transportation of Fireworks, Novelties, and Theatrical Pyrotechnics,” replacing the December 1, 2001 edition into § 171.7.

This article was written by Michael Atkinson of J. J. Keller & Associates, Inc.