{"operation":"document","citation":"05-0300","title":"Health and Environmental Excellence Center — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2006-01-03","effective_on":null,"summary":"05-0300 response to Health and Environmental Excellence Center concerning 177.834.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-05-0300.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-05-0300.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-05-0300","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/2005/050300.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nMs. Cheryl A. Burke\nRef. No. 05-0300\nDistribution Safety Consultant\nDupont Safety, Health and Environmental\nExcellence Center\n1007 Market Street\nWilmington, DE 19898\nDear Ms. Burke:\nThis responds to your November 18, 2005 letter requesting clarification concerning the\napplicability of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) to\ncargo tank loading operations.\nA cargo tank loading operation may be considered a pre-transportation function or a\ntransportation function depending on the circumstances of the particular operation. The\nfilling of a cargo tank or other bulk packaging or the loading of packaged or containerized\nhazardous materials onto a transport vehicle by an offeror is regulated as a pre-\ntransportation function under the HMR. A pre-transportation function is a function\nrequired under the HMR to assure the safe transportation of a hazardous material in\ncommerce. Thus, an offeror must comply with applicable HMR requirements concerning\ncompatibility of lading with the packaging, outage and filling limits, securing of valves and\nclosures, venting, segregation, cargo securement, and similar provisions.\nThe attendance requirements in § 177.834(i) apply to loading and unloading operations\nconducted by carrier personnel. Shipper personnel filling a cargo tank prior to the onset of\ntransportation in commerce (i.e., the arrival of the carrier and the attachment of motive\npower) need not comply with the attendance requirements in § 177.834(1). Similarly, the\nattendance requirements in § 177.834(i) do not apply to unloading operations conducted by\nconsignee personnel after the carrier delivers the cargo tank, disconnects the motive power.\nand leaves the unloading site.\nI hope this answers your inquiry.\nahn A. Gale\nChief, Standards Development\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Standards\n177.8346)\n050300\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nFile: Cargo Tank Loading Attendance\nMr. Edward Mazzullo\nU.S. Department of Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration\nOffice of Hazardous Materials Safety\n400 7th St., S.W.\nWashington, DC 20590\nREQUEST FOR INTERPRETATION CONCERNING USE OF REMOTE VIDEO SURVEILLANCE\nTO OBSERVE CARGO TANK LOADING OPERATIONS\nDear Mr. Mazzullo:\nWith the enacting of HM-223, questions have arisen concerning the need for physical attendance within 25 feet\nof a cargo tank being loaded with regulated hazardous materials.\nPrior to HM-223, at least 2 published interpretations from the Office of Hazardous Materials Standards\n(attached) made it clear that under certain circumstances - namely when the carrier's obligation for\ntransportation has ceased, the cargo tank has been placed on the consignee's property, and the motive power\nremoved - the cargo tank was no longer considered to be in transportation, and therefore the attendance rules in\n49 CFR 177.834 did not apply.\nWith HM-223, the regulations changed to define the loading of a cargo tank as a \"pre-transportation function,\"\nto which the HMR do apply.\nQuestion 1. Under the current regulations, does a cargo tank being loaded under the circumstances described\nabove (i.e. when the carrier is not present or involved, and the motive power has been disconnected and left the\narea need to be attended throughout the process by a qualified, alert person within 25 feet of the tank and\nhaving an unobstructed view of it?\nQuestion 2. If attendance is required, is the use of remote video surveillance in the control room an acceptable\nalternative to having a person within 25 feet of the tank?\nOur questions are raised for two reasons. Cargo tanks containing liquefied compressed gas can take upwards of\n6 hours to load. Physical attendance during that entire time period, particularly during inclement weather, places\na new and burdensome requirement on an operation that previously was not subject to this requirement.\nAlso, pre-HM-223, the tank car regulations had read such that the unloading of tank cars had to be attended by\nan unloader during the entire period of unloading and while the unloading connections were intact. A number\nof formal and informal interpretations were issued by the Office of Hazardous Material Standards and the\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\n1) An employee was made responsidie for unloading and was taminar with the nature and properties of\nthe material being unloaded;\n2) The employee responsible for unloading was instructed in the procedures to be followed during\nunloading and in the event of an emergency, and had the authority and ability to halt the flow of product\nimmediately and take emergency action;\n3) In the event of an emergency, the system was capable of immediately halting the flow of product or\nalerting the employee responsible for unloading;\n4) The monitoring device provided immediate notification of any malfunction to the person responsible\nfor unloading, or the device was checked hourly for malfunctions; and\n5) In case of a malfunction, the device would no longer be relied upon and instead the individual\nresponsible for unloading would constantly observe the unloading.\n(The use of remote observation through signaling systems and video surveillance has now been incorporated\ninto the tank car unloading regulations that apply to transloading operations.)\nAn interpretation that remote observation of cargo tank loading is permissible - under these same conditions that\nwere acceptable for tank car unloading - would help to relieve the regulated community of this new and\nburdensome requirement, while still providing an equivalent level of safety. Again, we are seeking this\ninterpretation of the regulations as they apply when the carrier's obligation for transportation has ceased, the\ncargo tank has been placed on the consignee's property, and the motive power removed.\nYour assistance in clarifying these issues is most appreciated\nSincerely,\nCheryl C. Burke\nCheryl A. Burke\nDistribution Safety Consultant\nSafety, Health, and Environmental Excellence Center, DuPont Building 6096\nph: 302-774-2778; fx: 302-351-4111; e-mail: cherry.burke@usa.dupont.com","truncated":false,"body_characters":6048}