FMCSA to Require Permits for Some Hazmat Loads
he Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration announced plans last week to require carriers of hazardous materials to apply for federal permits to carry certain goods — including explosives and radioactive material — beginning Jan. 1.
The rule, which was published in the June 30 issue of the Federal Register, said trucking companies wishing to haul toxic inhalants, liquefied natural gas, explosives or radioactive materials must apply for permits.
“This regulation will promote the safe and secure transportation of the most dangerous hazardous materials,” FMCSA Administrator Annette Sandberg said in a statement announcing the plan.
However, said David Osiecki, American Trucking Associations’ vice president of safety and operations, the rule “adds to the administrative burden” on hazmat carriers.
“I think we’re still a bit disappointed we have a new federal permit — and a continuation of more than 40 state permits,” Osiecki said.
Cliff Harvison, president of the National Tank Truck Carriers, called the rule “a complete waste of federal resources.”
“This program largely duplicates the existing hazmat regulatory program, which has been in place for almost two decades,” he said.
In its Federal Register notice, FMCSA noted that some companies and industry groups had said the rule could alter the hazmat transportation system by causing some companies to discontinue hauling hazardous goods.
“We certainly heard, early on in the process, that this rule could change the marketplace,” Osiecki said. “There may be carriers that would stop hauling certain commodities as a result of this rule . . . and that could change the supply and demand equation.”
FMCSA said, “commenters may have overstated the impact” of the permitting process. “While it is possible that the nature of hazardous materials shipping may change due to new security awareness, FMCSA believes the market is well equipped to meet the ever-present demand for the transportation of hazardous materials.”
To obtain a permit, trucking companies must meet a series of requirements set by FMCSA that include having a “satisfactory” safety rating and a “satisfactory security program in place.” The agency also said companies must be registered with the Research and Special Programs Administration, the Department of Transportation unit that deals with hazmat issues.
To obtain a permit, companies must give drivers a phone number they can use to contact someone who could determine whether or not the truck was on an approved route. That number must also be available to law-enforcement officials.
As an added security measure, FMCSA said it would require companies with permits to develop a “communications plan” for maintaining contact with trucks hauling hazardous materials.
Carriers could use electronic tracking devices, or radio and telephone calls to monitor their rigs, it said.
For haulers of radioactive materials, FMCSA said that there were extra requirements, including a written route plan and a pre-trip inspection by a government-approved inspector.
FMCSA spokesman Bill Mac-Leod said that in a February 2003 agreement approved by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, a coalition of safety, labor and advocacy groups — including Public Citizen, Citizens for Reliable and Safe Highways, and Teamsters for a Democratic Union — agreed to drop a suit against the trucking regulatory agency as long as FMCSA published several new rules, including this one on hazmat permits.
FMCSA was also required to publish the rule under the Hazardous Material Transportation Uniform Safety Act of 1990, MacLeod said.
MacLeod also said that FMCSA “is taking this action because certain highly hazardous materials, if released accidentally or intentionally during transportation, have potential to be used by persons seeking to do harm, or present a greater hazard in the event of a crash.”
This story appears in the July 5 print edition of Transport Topics. Subscribe today.
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