Interpretation Response #00-0225 ([Dangerous Goods Program and Cargo Security] [William Wilkening])
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: Dangerous Goods Program and Cargo Security
Individual Name: William Wilkening
Location State: DC Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
Date: AUG 18, 2000 Reply to Attn. of: Ref. No. 00-0225
Subject: INFORMATION: Applicability the HMR to Confiscated Materials
From: Edward T. Mazzullo, Director
Office of Hazardous Materials Standards
To: William Wilkening, Manager
Dangerous Goods Program and Cargo Security
This is in response to your memorandum dated July 26, 2000, regarding the applicability of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) to a hazardous material confiscated by an airline. Your questions are listed below for ease of response:
Ql) If AMR (American Airlines) places hazardous materials inside a temporary: storage container after confiscating the material from a passenger, are the materials considered in transportation? Does this practice by AMR indirectly make them become a generator of hazardous waste?
A1) The HMR apply to the transportation, including incidental storage thereto, of a hazardous material in commerce. It is the opinion of this Office that a hazardous material that is placed inside a temporary storage container after being confiscated from a passenger is not subject to the HMR because it is neither in transportation or in temporary storage incidental to transportation. The act of confiscation by the airline removes the item from transportation, and thus the applicability of the HMR. Questions regarding the definition of a hazardous waste generator should be directed to the Environmental Protection Agency's Office of Solid Waste, Ariel Rios Building, 1200 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W., Washington, DC 20460.
Q2) If AMR transports these materials via surface, are the materials regulated under the HMR? If they are regulated, could AMR apply for an exemption to move these items? Does it matter whether or not these materials are contained inside the manufacturers original container?
A2) A hazardous material that has been confiscated by an airline and then subsequently transported by that airline is subject to the HMR, regardless of the mode of transportation.
If AMR offers these materials for transportation or transports them, it must conform to all applicable provisions of the HMR. AMR may want to consider employing qualified professionals to transport these materials, such as a hazardous waste transportation company.
The HMR do provide several exceptions from specific requirements for certain hazardous materials, e.g., small quantities, materials of trade, and consumer commodities. It is probable that most of the materials that AMR is confiscating meet the conditions for shipping as consumer commodities. You do not state why an exemption might be necessary. Any person can apply for an exemption from the HMR in accordance with the procedures outlined in 49 CFR 107.105. Generally, an application must demonstrate a level of safety ofleast equal to that required by regulation.
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171.1