{"operation":"document","citation":"01-0170","title":"ADCOM Express, Inc. — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2001-08-13","effective_on":null,"summary":"01-0170 response to ADCOM Express, Inc. concerning 172.101.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0170.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0170.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-01-0170","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2001/010170.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\n•\n•\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nWashington, D.C. 20590\n400 Seventh St., S.W.\nResearch and\nSpecial Programs\nAdministration\nAUG 1 3 2001\nMr. Bradford A. Gagnon\nRef. No. 01-0170\nADCOM Express, Inc.\n2462-C South Santa Fe\nVista, CA 92084-8002\nDear Mr. Gagnon:\nThis is in response to your July 5, 2001 letter and subsequent phone conversations with Michael\nJohnsen of my staff regarding the determination of when a hazardous material is a hazardous\nsubstance under the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180).\nIn a conversation with Mr. Johnsen on July 31, 2001, many of the questions raised in your letter\nwere addressed, but your question regarding how to determine the reportable quantity (RQ) of a\nmixture that is identified by more than one EPA waste code still required a response.\nEnclosed is a February 26, 1998 letter from our office which provides that if you know the\nconstituent and exact concentration of a waste stream, then the RQ amount for that constituent shall\nbe used. If the constituent or concentration is not known, then the RQ for that waste must be used\nto determine the RQ. For a mixture that is identified by two or more EPA waste codes, the RO\namounts for each waste must be identified and determined by the amount of each waste code\ncontained in the mixture. In addition you would also need to meet the concentration limits found in\nthe definition of \"hazardous substance\" in § 171.8.\nI hope this satisfies your request.\nSincerely,\nTransportation Regulations Specialist\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\nEnclosure\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nof Transportation\nUS. Department\n400 Seventh Streel. S.W.\nResearch and\nWashington, D.C.\n20590\nspecial Program:\nAdministratiol\nFEB 26 1998\nMr. Kurt Swart\nHealth & Safety Manager\nROMIC Environmental Technologies Corp.\n2081 Bay Road\nEast Palo Alto, CA 94303-1316\nDear Mr. Swart:\nThis is in response to your letter dated December 22, 1997, regarding reportable quantities for\nResource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA) wastes under the Hazardous Materials\nRegulations (HMR; 49 CFR Paris 171-180). Specifically, you ask whether the RQ for the EPA\nwaste number supersedes the RQ for the individual constituent.\nThe appropriate RQ for a hazardous waste depends on the amount of information available on\nthe waste stream including the constituents of the waste stream and their respective\nconcentrations. If the constituent and its concentration in the waste stream are known, then the\nRQ for the constituent is appropriate. For example, Pyridine has an RQ of 1000 lbs (454 kg).\nIf Pyridine is the only constituent and its concentration in a mixture or solution is known, then\ntne ke for pyrdine is appropriate. However, if the waste's constituent or its respective\nconcentration is unknown, then the appropriate RQ is that which is assigned to the waste stream.\nFor example, the reportable quantity for a waste stream described under F00S, and which contains\nToluene in an unknown concentration, is 100 Ibs (45.4 kg).\nI hope this answers your inquiry. If we can be of further assistance, please do not hesitate to\ncontact us.\nSincerely,\nAhmet things,\nDelmer F. Billings\nChief, Standards Development\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\nJohn.som\n8172.101 Appendix A\nHazardous Substance\nADCOM Express, Inc.\n2462-C South Santa Fe • Vista, California 92084-8002 • (760) 727-6461 • Fax (760) 727-5809\n010170\nJuly 5, 2001\nMr. Edward T. Mazola\nDirector, Office of Hazardous Materials Standards\nU.S. DOT/RSPA (DHM-10)\n400 7th Street S.W.\nWashington, D.C. 20590-0001\nDear Mr. Mazzullo:\nI am looking for some guidance in determining when a hazardous material\nunderstand for example, that acetone has a 5000-pound RQ in a single\nand /or a hazardous waste meets the definition of a hazardous substance. I\npackage. Where I need guidance is when the acetone is an EPA hazardous\nwaste in a solution.\nIn this scenario a 55-gallon drum weighing about 400 pounds, the waste\nstream is characterized as having both the D001 for ignitability and the\nFOO3 for spent non-halogenated solvents. As a hazardous material, the\nAppendix A to the HMT lists acetone as needing 5000 pounds in a single\ncontainer to meet the definition of a hazardous substance.\nAs a hazardous waste, the Appendix A to the HMT contains a listing for\nD001 Unlisted Hazardous Wastes Characteristic of ignitability with an RQ\nof 100 pounds. The F003 is also listed with a \"generic\" of 100 pounds and\nacetone specifically named at 5000 pounds.\nDoes the fact that the characteristic waste code listing for D001 reads\n\"unlisted\", refer to the fact that waste streams such as in my example, that\nis waste streams that in fact are EPA \"listed\" wastes, as in this case an\nEPA F0O3 listed waste, render the possibility of this waste being a\nhazardous substance for its D001 characteristic of ignitability a moot point\nbecause it is an EPA \"listed\" waste?\nWhat now do we consider with the F003 portion? If we know that our\n400-pound drum contains 50% acetone and 50% water, we do not have a\nhazardous substance for acetone, we have only 200 pounds of acetone in\nour solution and under F0O3, the acetone listing still needs 5000 pounds.\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\nSince we know the exact amount of the acetone am I correct that we do\nnot need to consider the F003 100-pound factor?\nWhat if we only knew that the acetone solution was a range of say 45% to\n55%, would it then be a hazardous substance due to the generic F003\nbecause we did not know exactly how much acetone we had?\nWhen does the table in 171.8 for hazardous substances come into\nconsideration? If we had a 50%/50% mixture/solution of two materials\nthat were similar in weight, the concentration by weight and the\nconcentration by volume would be the same correct? What happens as in\nmy example, we know that the concentration by volume is the same, how\ndo we determine the concentration by weight?\nThank you. I have written a similar e-mail to infocntr@rspa.dot.gov for\nan unofficial response but I'm very much in need of a written\ninterpretation on hazardous substance determination in general for my\nown understanding and when presenting DOT Function Specific type\ntraining.\nCorporate Transportation Manager\n-","truncated":false,"body_characters":6214}