# Bureau of Waste Prevention Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

- **operation:** document
- **citation:** 10-0059
- **title:** Bureau of Waste Prevention Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation
- **source type:** guidance
- **agency:** Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration
- **status:** guidance
- **official:** true
- **published on:** 2011-04-08
- **effective on:** Not available
- **summary:** 10-0059 response to Bureau of Waste Prevention Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection concerning 172.101, 173.120, 173.150.
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- **app url:** https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-10-0059
- **source url:** https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretations/2010/100059.pdf
**body:**

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U.S. Department of Transportation
Pipeline and Hazardous Materials
Safety Administration
1200 New Jersey Ave, SE
Washington, D.C. 20590
APR 0 8 201\
Mr. Bill Siroll
Chief, Enforcement Support Branch
Business Compliance Division
Bureau of Waste Prevention
Massachusetts Department ofEnvironmental Protection
One Winter Street, 7th Floor
Boston, MA 02108
Reference No. 10-0059
Dear Mr. Siroll:
This is in response to your e-mail to the Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration's
Hazardous Materials Information Center requesting clarification ofthe Hazardous Materials
Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180). In your e-mail, you ask for confirmation that the
transportation of virgin mineral spirits, such as "NA 1993, Combustible liquid, n.o.s. (petroleum
naphtha), Combustible liquid, Packing Group (PG) III," in non-bulk packages that typically have a
capacity of 50 gallons or less, is not regulated under the HMR. You state that the product: has a
flash point between 140 OF and 200 OF, contains cleaner solvents when shipped from the receiver
back to the manufacturer, is not regulated under the HMR or the Environmental Protection Agency,
and is a state-regulated waste. We apologize for the delay in responding and any inconvenience this
may have caused.
Under the HMR, a waste that is subject to the Uniform Hazardous Waste Manifest (UHWM)
Requirements ofthe U. S. Environmental Protection Agency specified in 40 CFR Part 262 is
regulated for purposes of transportation as a "hazardous waste." A waste that does not require
completion of a UHWM is not considered a "hazardous waste" for purposes oftransportation and is
not subject to the requirements ofthe HMR, unless it meets the definition of a hazardous material
under the HMR. Thus, a State-regulated waste that does not require completion of a UHWM and is
not a hazardous material as defined in the HMR is not subject to the regulations under the HMR.
Such a material may be described using the shipping name, "State Regulated Petroleum Naptha
Waste." However, its description on the shipping paper or manifest may not include a hazard class
oridentification number specified in the § 172.101 Hazardous Materials Table (see § 172.202(e».
A IIcombustible liquid" is defined as a material that has a flash point above 60°C (140 OF) and below
93 °C (200 OF) and does not meet the definition of any other hazard class under the HMR (see
§ 173.120(b)(1». A combustible liquid, that is not a hazardous substance, hazardous waste, or a
marine pollutant and is packaged in a non-bulk packaging, i.e., a packaging having a liquid capacity

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of 450 L (119 gallons) or less, is not subject to any other requirements under the HMR (see
§ 173.150(f)(2». Therefore, the material you described may be shipped using a Massachusetts
Department of Environmental Protection State-specific shipping paper.
I hope this satisfies your request.
Sincerely,
rY~~7-o?SiL.
T. Glenn Foster
Chief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch
Standards and Rulemaking Division
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• Drakeford, Carolyn (PHMSA)
From: INFOCNTR (PHMSA)
Sent: Tuesday, March 09,20102:57 PM
To: Drakeford, Carolyn (PHMSA)
Subject: FW: Request for formal Letter of Interpretation l 0 -ODE,,?
3Lu'rp~V\1~f«S
~
" From: Sirull, William (DEP) [mailto;William.Sirull@state.ma.us]
t(\ Sent: Tuesday, March 09, 2010 2;12 PM
To: PHMSA HM InfoCenter
Subject: FW: Request for formal Letter of Interpretation
Dear Sir/Madam:
Could the Hazardous Materials Information Center please forward the following request for a formal Letter of
Interpretation to PHMSA -OHMS for a written response:
A transportation company provides virgin mineral spirits (petroleum naphtha) (flash point between 140
degrees and 200 degrees Fahrenheit) to its customers in Massachusetts and in return collects the waste
mineral spirits after it has been used to clean metal parts, become spent and needs to be
reclaimed. The virgin mineral spirits and the waste mineral spirits are transported in non-bulk packaging,
typically in containers of less than 50 gallons. The company's Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS) for the virgin
mineral spirits in the section for Transport Information reads:
DOT Non-Bulk Package « 119G container)
Shipping Name: Mineral Spirits (Petroleum Naphtha)(Not DOT regulated)
DOT Bulk Package (>119 G container)
Shipping Name: Combustible liquid, n.o.s. (petroleum naphtha)
UN/NA #: NA 1993
Hazard Class: Combustible Liquid
Packaging Group: III
Placards: Class 3, NA 1993
To ship the mineral spirits in non-bulk packaging, the transportation company uses the following description
on the shipping paper accompanying the transport ofthe waste mineral spirits:
Non-DOT/RCRA Regulated Used Parts Cleaner Solvent « 119 G cont), (Naptha)
Given what the company states in the MSDS for the virgin mineral spirits and on the shipping paper for the
waste mineral spirits, it is MassDEP's understanding that shipments of the mineral spirits, both virgin and
waste, in non-bulk packaging are NOT USDOT-regulated. Therefore, MassDEP is requesting a Letter of
Interpretation regarding whether MassDEP can prescribe a State-specific shipping paper to
accompany shipments of waste mineral spirits in Ma.ss. collected in non-bulk packaging by the transportation
company? The State-specific shipping paper would typically be Signed by a consignee in another State. The
waste mineral spirits is a Massachusetts-regulated hazardous waste (waste oil) but it is not regulated under
the USEPA RCRA (Resource Conservation and Recovery Act) hazardous waste program.
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If there are any questions about this request, please contact me as directed below .
•
Thank you for your assistance with this matter.
Bill Sirull
Chief, Enforcement Support Branch
Business Compliance Division
Bureau of Waste Prevention
Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection (MassDEP)
One Winter Street, 7th floor
Boston, MA. 02108
phone: 617-292-5838
fax: 617-556-1063
email: <william.sirull@state.ma.us>
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