Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation

Page 1U.S. Department of Transportation Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration 1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE Washington, DC 20590 March 13, 2025 Drew Watts Regulatory Compliance Specialist Council on Safe Transportation of Hazardous Articles 101 Ridge Street, Suite I Glens Falls, NY 12801 Reference No. 24-0047 Dear Mr. Watts: This letter is in response to your June 5, 2024 letter requesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180) applicable to the exceptions for “UN0012, Cartridges for weapons, inert projectile or Cartridges, small arms, 1.4S,” “UN0014, Cartridges for weapons, blank or Cartridges, small arms, blank or Cartridges for tools, blank, 1.4S,” and “UN0055, Cases, cartridge, empty with primer, 1.4S” in accordance with 49 CFR §§ 173.63(b) and 175.75(c). Specifically, you ask whether a package can be fully prepared for transport by air in accordance with the International Civil Aviation Organization Technical Instructions for the Transport of Dangerous Goods by Air (ICAO Technical Instructions) and also be affixed with the 49 CFR §§ 172.315(a) or (b) limited quantity mark, and, if so, whether such a package would be eligible for the 25kg inaccessible cargo compartment limit exception in 49 CFR § 175.75(c). We have paraphrased and answered your questions as follows: Q1. Can a package containing less than 25kg of UN0012, UN0014, and UN0055—offered as a fully regulated shipment for international air transportation (e.g., packaged, marked, labeled, and documented) in accordance with the ICAO Technical Instructions—also be affixed with the limited quantity mark with or without the symbol “Y,” specifying air transport, in accordance with 49 CFR § 173.63(b)(1)(i)? A1. Yes. A package containing less than 25kg of UN0012, UN0014, and UN0055—offered as a fully regulated shipment for international air transportation (e.g., packaged, marked, labeled, and documented) in accordance with the ICAO Technical Instructions—can also be affixed with the limited quantity mark with or without the symbol “Y,” specifying air transport, in accordance with 49 CFR § 173.63(b)(1)(i). However, using the limited#

Page 2quantity mark with the “Y” may frustrate the shipment for air transportation for the following reasons. As PHMSA explained in the January 17, 2013 final rule that added the 49 CFR § 173.63(b)(1)(i) marking requirement, the ICAO Dangerous Goods Panel Working Group of the Whole (DGP-WG/12) has not authorized these 1.4S articles as limited quantities.1 The DGP-WG/12 has noted, however, that packages bearing the limited quantity marking of other modes can still be accepted for air transport provided all additional requirements of the ICAO Technical Instructions are met. As PHMSA and the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) also noted in the January 17, 2013 final rule— albeit in the context of a proposal to remove the air limited quantity marking authorization in 49 CFR § 173.63(b)(1)(i) that was not adopted—retaining the option to display the air limited quantity marking by all modes may result in confusion and potentially frustrate shipments of packages with the air limited quantity marking for air transportation. In other words, while the HMR authorizes the use of either limited quantity marking, since the ICAO Technical Instructions do not authorize these materials to be shipped as limited quantities by air, it is advisable to only affix the limited quantity mark without the “Y” to the package when a shipment is prepared in accordance with the ICAO Technical Instructions for air transport. This will help to reduce potential frustration and confusion with air operators and freight forwarders. Please also be advised that an air operator may have additional restrictions based on its FAA-accepted operator procedures and information. Q2. Is such a package eligible for the 49 CFR § 175.75(c) exception to the 25kg inaccessible cargo compartment limit? A2. Yes. A package prepared in accordance with 49 CFR § 173.63(b) is eligible for the exception in 49 CFR § 175.75(c). We 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 1 Hazardous Materials: Harmonization with International Standards (RRR) (HM-215L; 78 FR 988)#