{"operation":"document","citation":"24-0124","title":"Catawba Corps — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"2025-07-10","effective_on":null,"summary":"24-0124 response to Catawba Corps concerning 173.453.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-24-0124.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-24-0124.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-24-0124","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/2025-07/240124.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\nU.S. Department\nof Transportation\nPipeline and Hazardous\nMaterials Safety\nAdministration\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, DC 20590\nJuly 10, 2025\nJohn B. Woodbury\nPackaging Management Council Coordinator\nCatawba Corps\n3533 15th Street E\nLewiston, ID 83501\nReference No. 24-0124\nDear Mr. Woodbury:\nThis letter is in response to your December 2, 2024, letter and subsequent email correspondence\nrequesting clarification of the Hazardous Materials Regulations (HMR; 49 CFR Parts 171-180)\napplicable to fissile exceptions for radioactive materials. Specifically, you ask whether the\nexceptions for fissile materials specified in § 173.453(b) allow for the packaging mass to be\nincluded as part of the non-fissile material mass, when calculating the 200:1 solid non-fissile to\nfissile mass ratio for compliance with this section.\nYes. The packaging mass can be counted towards the solid non-fissile mass in the 200:1 ratio\nfor fissile exceptions as found in § 173.453(b), provided that the mass of any lead, beryllium,\ngraphite, and hydrogenous material enriched in deuterium are not included in the calculation of\nthe 200:1 ratio.\nI hope this information is helpful. Please contact us if we can be of further assistance.\nSincerely,\nT. Glenn Foster\nChief, Regulatory Review and Reinvention Branch\nStandards and Rulemaking Division\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\nDecember 2, 2024\nStandards and Rulemaking Division\nPipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration (PHMSA)\nU.S. Department of Transportation (DOT)\nEast Building\n1200 New Jersey Avenue, SE\nWashington, DC 20590-0001\nRequest for Clarification of 49 CFR 173.453(b)\nDear Sir/Madam:\nThe offsite transport of a radioactive liquid stream in large quantities for treatment and disposal\nis being evaluated. This waste stream is planned to be managed over 11 years and have a\nvolume of approximately 24 million gallons. Each shipment will consist of 5,000 gallons in a\nsteel tank. The waste stream in question is a liquid with a small amount (-0.3 ppm by weight) of\nfine suspended solids. This stream meets the requirements for LSA II based on the A2/g\nconcentration and contains 15 grams or less of fissile material.\nThe Department of Transportation incorporated the requirements for fissile material exceptions\ninto 49 CFR 173.453 on January 26, 2004, (HM-230) based on the requirements contained in\n10 CFR 71.15. In the Federal Register dated January 26, 2004, \"Compatibility With IAEA\nTransportation Safety Standards (TS-R-1) and Other Transportation Safety Requirements,\"\nclarification was added that the mass of the container could be used in the calculation of the\nsolid mass required by 10 CFR 7115(b). The discussion in the Federal Register does not\npreclude liquids in §71.15(b).\nBecause 10 CFR 71.15(b) and 49 CFR 173.453(b) have the sam� language, in reviewing 49\nCFR 173.453(b), \"An individual or bulk packaging containing 15 grams or less of fissile material\nprovided the package has at least 200 grams of solid nonfissile material for every gram of fissile\nmaterial. Lead, beryllium, graphite, and hydrogenous material enriched in deuterium may be\npresent in the package but must not be included in determining the required mass for solid\nnonfissile material.\" Each shipment will contain greater than 3,000 grams of solids based on the\nsolids in the liquid and the mass of the steel tank. Lead, beryllium, graphite was not factored\ninto the mass of the solids. Deuterium is not present in the waste stream. Does this meet the\nrequirements of 49 CFR 173.453(b) to be fissile excepted?\nYour clarification of this issue will be appreciated.\nRespectfully,\ny� w��c/67\nJohn B. Woodbury\nPackaging Management Council Coordinator\n3533 15th Street E\nLewiston, ID 83501\nPhone: 509-438-6342\nEmail: john.woodbury@catawbacorps.com","truncated":false,"body_characters":3787}