{"operation":"document","citation":"04-0068","title":"Inland Paperboard and Packaging, Inc — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2006-02-22","effective_on":null,"summary":"04-0068 response to Inland Paperboard and Packaging, Inc concerning 178.601.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-04-0068.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-04-0068.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-04-0068","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2004/040068.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nMr. John H. Rutherford\nRef. No. 04-0068\nInland Paperboard and\nPackaging, Inc.\n8501 Moller Road\nIndianapolis, IN 46268\nDear Mr. Rutherford:\nThis responds to your letter requesting clarification of\nthe non-bulk packaging testing requirements under the\nHazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-\n180). Specifically, you ask whether it is permissible for\nthe inner packaging of a combination packaging design to\nleak when drop tested. In the scenario you describe, the\nleaking inner packaging contains a non-regulated material.\nThe inner packagings containing regulated hazardous\nmaterials in the combination packaging design do not leak\nwhen subjected to the drop test protocol under § 178.603.\nI apologize for the delay in responding and any\ninconvenience it may have caused.\nThe answer to your question is no. Under § 178.603 (f) (4)\nof the HMR, there may be no leakage of the filling\nsubstance\nfrom the inner packaging(s) of a combination or\ncomposite packaging design, hazardous or otherwise, in\norder to successfully pass the drop test. In addition, the\nleaking substance, hazardous or otherwise, may have an\nadverse effect on inner or outer packaging integrity under\nconditions encountered while in transportation.\nI trust this satisfies your inquiry. Please contact us if\nwe can be of further assistance.\nSincerely,\nHattie b. Mitchell\nChief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n178:601601\n040068\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nA Temple-Inland Company\nMr. Edward Mazzullo, Director\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\nU.S. DOT/RSPA (DHM-10)\n400 7\" St. SW\nWashington, D.C. 20590\nDear Mr. Mazzullo:\nI have a question about testing we have been doing for one of our customers under 49CFR 178.601 (g)(1),\nSelective testing for combination packagings, Variation 1. I have talked with the Hazmat Information\nCenter about this issue a couple of times, and have gotten conflicting answers, so I need a definitive\ninterpretation please.\nThe customer packs various sizes of PET and HDPE plastic bottles inside an outer fibreboard shipper.\nThey also include in these shippers various sized bags of non-hazardous powder which is part of the\nmixture for their product. The bags are a lightweight plastic that is thermally sealed, but are similar in\nconstruction to an off-the-counter sandwich bag. The powder can be sodium benzoate, sodium citrate or\naspartame and are not considered hazardous. The bottles contain liquids that are either PC it or PG I\nhazardous materials.\nIn some orientations of the drop tests we noted that the bags were getting punctured by the bottles.\nHowever, since the bags contained non-hazmat product we questioned the Information Center as to\nwhether we could still pass the test because the hazmat-containing bottles did fine. We were told that as\nlong as the outer shipper contained the powder within it, we could pass the drop test. We believe that we\ncan contain the powder by using a gusseted heawy-gauge plastic bag liner inside the shipper, so we passed\nthe test.\nLater, another configuration of this V I shipper included one bottle of liquid hazardous material\nsurrounded by four, hard-plastic widemouth bottles containing non-hazardous powder again. Upon\ndropping these combination packagings some of the powder bottles broke, while the hazmat bottle\nsurvived fine. We asked the Information Center the same question about whether we can pass the box\nanyway as long as we contain the powder inside the shipper by using the gusseted bag. This time we\nwere told no, the plastic bottle must meet the same requirements as the bottle containing the hazardous\nmaterial.\nSo you can see, I have received conflicting information. Please tell me: if I can contain the non-\nhazardous powder within the box by using a heavy plastic liner, and if the hazmat containers remain intact\nduring testing, can I or can I not pass the drop test if the powder containers (plastic bottle or plastic bag)\nare damaged?","truncated":false,"body_characters":3972}