Interpretation Response #17-0064
Below is the interpretation response detail and a list of regulations sections applicable to this response.
Interpretation Response Details
Response Publish Date:
Company Name: Regulatory Resources, Inc.
Individual Name: Mr. Wade Winters
Location State: NM Country: US
View the Interpretation Document
Response text:
February 14, 2018
Wade Winters
President
Regulatory Resources, Inc.
379 Aragon Avenue
Los Alamos, NM 87547
Reference No. 17-0064
Dear Mr. Winters:
This letter is in response to your June 6, 2017, email and subsequent phone conversations requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to highway segregation requirements. Specifically, you provide scenarios in which different combinations of Class 3 and Division 5.1 materials are being offered for highway transportation in quantities that require labels./p>
We have paraphrased and answered your questions as follows:
Q1. You ask whether packages of two different hazardous materials (i.e., Class 3 and Division 5.1) may be loaded together without regard to the segregation requirements in § 177.848 if these materials do not react dangerously with each other.
A1. The answer is no. Stability of the materials when commingled does not allow a shipper to disregard the segregation requirements in § 177.848. The segregation requirements in § 177.848 must be followed for all applicable hazards stored, loaded, or transported with other packages of hazardous materials. The letter "O" appears in the entry on the Segregation Table for Class 3 and Division 5.1 materials, which indicates that these materials must be separated to prevent commingling if packages were to leak.
Q2. You ask whether "mixed contents" packages prepared in accordance with § 173.24a(c), containing inner receptacles of Class 3 and Division 5.1 materials, may be loaded together without regard to the segregation requirements in § 177.848 if these materials do not react dangerously with each other.
A2. The answer is no. Packages containing "mixed contents" cannot violate the segregation requirements established for the mode of transportation used. Therefore, Class 3 and Division 5.1 materials cannot be placed in the same outer package under the mixed contents requirements in § 173.24a(c), because § 177.848 requires separation for these materials.
Q3. You ask whether a Class 3 material with a subsidiary hazard of Division 5.1 may be packaged with other Class 3 materials in a "mixed contents" package if these materials do not react dangerously with each other.
A3. The answer is yes. Section 177.848(e)(6) waives the segregation requirements between the subsidiary "secondary" hazard and other materials in the same primary hazard class, provided these materials do not react dangerously with each other. A package containing a primary Class 3 material with a subsidiary hazard of Division 5.1 could be transported with other primary Class 3 materials, provided they were not capable of reacting dangerously.
Q4. You ask whether a Class 3 material with a subsidiary hazard of Division 5.1 may be packaged with other Division 5.1 materials in a "mixed contents" package if these materials do not react dangerously with each other.
A4. The answer is no. As mentioned in Answer A3, § 177.848(e)(6) waives the segregation requirements between the subsidiary "secondary" hazard and other materials in the same primary hazard class, provided these materials do not react dangerously with each other. However, the inner receptacles with primary hazard Division 5.1 materials are still subject to the separation requirements § 177.848 when transported with primary hazard Class 3 materials.
I hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.
Sincerely,
T. Glenn Foster
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
177.848, 173.24a(c), 177.848(e)(6)