{"operation":"document","citation":"CHI-96-002","title":"City of Fairbanks, AK — Hazardous Materials Safety Interpretation","source_type":"guidance","agency":"Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration","status":"guidance","official":true,"published_on":"1996-06-27","effective_on":null,"summary":"CHI-96-002 response to City of Fairbanks, AK concerning 174.14.","machine_formats":{"json":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-chi-96-002.json","markdown":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-chi-96-002.md"},"app_url":"https://regulus.evalyn.ai/document/phmsa-interpretation-chi-96-002","source_url":"https://www.phmsa.dot.gov/sites/phmsa.dot.gov/files/legacy/interpretations/Interpretation%20Files/Hazmat/ChiefCounsel/CHI-96-002.pdf","body":"<<<PAGE 1>>>\n\n•\nof Transpontation\nUS. Department\nnie! Couns\nlice of tr\n100 Sevenin SI\nAdassegin SC 20590\nSpecial Programs\nResearch and\nAdministration\nJUN 27 1996\n•\nMr. Michael Pulice\nDirector of Public Safety\nCity of Fairbanks\n656 7th Avenue\nFairbanks, AK\n99701\n•\n•\nDear Mr. Pulice:\nI am responding to your April 22, 1996 facsimile letter\naddressed to Mr. Hilder of my staff concerning shipments of\nammonium nitrate through a rail yard in the center of\nFairbanks. You raise questions concerning State and local\nregulation of hazardous materials at various points during\nthese shipments.\nThe situation you describe involves the delivery at the\n¿airbanks rail yard,\nlb. rail car containing ammonium nitrate.\napproximately once a week, of a 100,000-\nYou\nthis rail car is placed on a siding for off-loading into truck\nstate that\nFairbanks.\nhoppers for further transportation to a mine location south of\ncars containing ammonium nitrate are present on this siding at\nYou also indicate that as many as five full rail\nany one time.\nYou\nthe Fairbanks rail yard for delivery and storage of large\nstate that your department wishes to prohibit the use of\nshipments of armonium nitrate and other hazardous materials\nthat will be used at this mine. You indicate that there is a\nrail siding south of Fairbanks, closer to the mine site, which\ncompany opposes use of this siding on the grounds that this\n1s sufficient to hold several rail cars, but that the trucking\ninstances of theft and vandalism.\nlocation is difficult to secure and there have been past\nAs I believe you already understand, the Research and Special\nto conduct thorough reviews of state and local requirements\nPrograms Administration (RSPA) does not have adequate resources\noutside of the preemption determination process set forth in\nby the\n49 C.F.R. S 107.201 st seq, Informal reviews are also hindered\nabsence of the public input that occurs in the formal\ndetermination process established in the Federal hazardous\nmaterial transportation law, at 49 U.S.C. § 5125 (d) (1). Also,\nthere is no information as to the manner in which the\nrequirements are actually \"applied or enforced, \" a factor on\nwhich a determination of preemption often depends. 49 U.S.C.\nS 5125 (a) (2).\n\n<<<PAGE 2>>>\n\n2\nNonetheless, at your request, I am providing my personal,\nyour letter.\ninformal, and unofficial comments on the situation discussed in\nS 5125 preempts either (1) a local prohibition on storage of\nOn this basis, I do not belleve that 49 U.S.C.\nammonium nitrate at the Fairbanks rail yard for longer than the\nperiod of time necessary for the off-loading and onward\nmovement of the ammonium nitrate to the mine site, or (2) a\nrequirement that rail cars containing ammonium nitrate must be\ndelivered to the trucking company at the rail siding south of\nsecurely and (b) the State or other political jurisdiction in\nFairbanks when (a) this delivery can be done safely and\nthat requirement.\nwhich that siding is located agrees with and joins in imposing\nanswered as follows:\nThe four questions set forth in your letter are rephrased and\n1.\nDo Federal hazardous material transportation law,\n49 U.S.C. S 5101 et seg., and the Hazardous Materials\nammonium nitrate in rail cars on a siding at the\nRegulations, 49 C.F.R. Parts 171-180, apply to the\nFairbanks rail yard?\n. Any \"storage\" incidental to the \"movement\" of\nproperty is\nconsidered to be a part of the\nmaterial transportation law and Hazardous Materials\ntransportation covered by the Federal hazardous\nRegulations.\nThe issue is not whether hazardous\nmaterials are in \"storage,\" as opposed to being in\n\"transportation, \" but whether any storage is part of\nthe transportation.\nStorage that is incidental to\nmaterial transportation law and regulations.\ntransportation is governed by the Federal hazardous\n2.\nIs there a limit on the time during which these rail\ncars can be in storage incidental to their movement\nand, therefore, subject to federal regulation?\nThere is no absolute time limit. Whether the\nhazardous materials in these rail cars are governed\nby Federal hazardous material law and regulations\ndepends on whether the storage is incidental to the\ncontinued movement of the ammonium nitrate or whether\nthe storage is for another purpose. However, a rail\ncarrier must forward a shipment of hazardous\nmaterials within 48 hours of receipt (plus Saturdays,\nSundays and holidays).\n49 C.F.R. S 174:14\n\n<<<PAGE 3>>>\n\n3\n3.\nIn what instances do Federal regulations supersede\nlocal regulations?\nI enclose a copy of 49 U.S.C. S 5125 which provides\nconcerning the transportation of hazardous materials\nin summary, that a State and local regulation\nis preempted in the following situations:\na.\nwhen it is impossible to comply with both the\n•\nFederal regulation and the State or local\nregulation.\nb. when the State or local regulation, as applied\nand carrying out of the Federal hazardous\nor enforced, is an \"obstacle\" to accomplishing\nmaterial transportation law and regulations.\nc. when the State or local regulation concerns a\nsame as\" the Federal hazardous material\n\"covered subject\" and is not \"substantively the\ntransportation law and regulations.\nThe five\ncovered subjects are listed in S 5125 (b) (1).\n4. Are there federal regulations governing the handling,\nseparation, and transloading of ammonium nitrate?\nYes.\nHandling, loading, and separation regulations\ngoverning rail\ntransportation are contained in 49\nC.F.R. Part 174 (see especially SS 174.55-174.81 and\n174.510-174.580) •\nThe comparable regulations\napplicable to motor carrier transportation are set\n• =':\nforth in Part 177 (see especially SS 177.834-\naddition to the classification of hazardous materials\n177.848).\nThese nodal-specific requirements are in\nin S 172.101 (Hazardous Materials Table), the genera.\nrequirements for shipments and packagings in Part\n173,\nand the hazard communication requirements in\nPart 172, Subparts B-G.\nFor additional information, I also enclose the most recent\nindex and summary of preemption determinations and\ninconsistency rulings issued by RSPA.\n\n<<<PAGE 4>>>\n\n4\nPlease feel free to contact Mr. Hilder of my staff at the above\ndiscuss any of these matters further.\naddress, or by telephone at 202-366-4400, if you wish to\nSincerely,\nDone, Enacatio for\nEdward\nAssistant Chief Counsel for\ni. Bonekemper, III\nHazardous Materials Safety and\nResearch and Technology Law\nEnclosures\n•..\n•","truncated":false,"body_characters":6373}