State officials visit your office and fine you $50,000 for failing to train your personnel to handle and sign Hazardous Waste Manifests. Surprised? You shouldn't be. The United States (US) Department of Transportation (DOT) is charged with oversight of our public roads and highways. Each of our country's states also maintains its own 'state' Department of Transportation in order to more efficiently enforce federal mandates. The federal DOT gives authority to each state's DOT to regulate the transport of our hazardous chemicals on both Interstate and Intrastrate highways, as well as enforce regulations.
The Interstate is that portion of highway that crosses state lines, whereas Intrastate is that portion of highway that is within the state lines.
Federal DOT regulations govern all states, however an individual state DOT can, and occasionally does, impose harsher regulations than the federal government. DOT is responsible for many things, some of which include maintenance and inspection of the bridges and ramps, snowplowing, obstructions and fallen trees, condition of commercial vehicles and the professionalism of the commercial drivers.
State DOT sometimes operates hundreds of trucks and wheeled equipment to carry personnel to work sites, repair other trucks, plow, and oversee the conditions of each mile of road. Even its trucks and drivers have to ascribe to regulations that private carriers must meet when hauling.
Usually DOT trucks do not haul large quantities of hazardous material (hazmat). However, DOT and commercial vehicles in the performance of normal work may carry a limited amount of hazmat in order to perform personal work in the course of a normal day's work. These items might include propane gas, fuel for engines, degreasing liquid, spare batteries, etc. This type of hazmat is considered ORM, or Other Regulated Material.
Commercial trucks that haul chemicals are required to placard their vehicles and units with the type of hazardous chemical that they contain, such that emergency crews can respond appropriately in the event of a chemical release or spill.
We know that a tractor trailer is hauling Exposives when we visually see a placard on one of each of the four sides of the hauling unit. Hazard Class One (1) covers those items that are Explosive as per the United States (US) Department of Transportation (DOT). This class is further broken down into subclasses. Subclasses such as 1.1, 1.2, or 1.3, define different types of explosives ranging from very reactive explosives to blasting caps and "strike anywhere" matches. US DOT instituted the Hazardous Materials (Hazmat) Guidebook to help drivers, public safety officials, and emergency responders know what type of hazards our commercial tractor trailers were hauling over our raods. The book is broken up into 9 classes plus one category for ORM (Other Regulated Material).
The sign, or placard, for the Explosive hazard class is an Orange one and is marked with a picture of a bomb detonation. It also has the numbers 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, etc. attached at the bottom of the 4 sided diamond shape. This placard must be attached to be clearly seen on all four sides of the unit carrying the material. It must also be attached when there is any amount stowed in the unit.
The DOT Hazmat book lists hundreds of specific and general chemicals and hazardous materials. If one knows the type of chemical to be shipped, one could look it up in the DOT book for an understanding as to which hazard class it may be. While the DOT has done a good job with classifying many chemicals and explosives, the book is not totally thorough. DOT has laid out general guidelines that allow the generator of the hazardous material to classify it as best they can for the safety of the operator, unit, and public.
The Hazmat book also states how the actual material should be packed inside the hauling unit. In the book, DOT defines types of packaging such as drums, pallets, totes, boxes, tanks, pails, and cylinders. These containers must be certified by the manufacturer to withstand certain types of pressure tests without rupturing or spilling the contents. Some substances can not be packed in certain containers, and in no case may a container be visually damaged or leaky, or used in such a fashion as to degrade its safety. Each container must be marked with the same type of Explosive sticker that is also a 4 inch by 4 inch, 4 sided diamond. A miniture placard of sorts.
Many training companies offer DOT Hazmat Training for the shipper, driver and receiving facility. Compliance with federal regulations is mandatory and training records must show that personnel have been trained to handle hazardous chemicals correctly.
MLI Environmental specializes in workplace and online hazardous materials training, Commercial Drivers License (CDL) preparation, and worker safety.
Also, we perform lab chemical packing and removal, and transportation anywhere in the world.
Our capabilities include, but are not limited to: chemotherapy, pharmaceuticals, DEA regulated, radioactive, electronics, toxics, universal, PCB's, corrosives, poison gas, cylinders, gold, reactives, and all specialty wastes.
We are not aligned with any one specific disposal facility, so we are able to get the best pricing and give the highest quality consultations to our clients. We have a money back guarantee on all of our services.
We are required by the federal government and states to have all related permits, licenses, and insurances for the work we perform.
J. Carpenter has over 30 years of experience with industry and science. He currently helps manage environmental services companies from New England to Texas
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