TRANSPORT DANGEROUS GOODS - A
PRIMER
Transportation of Dangerous Goods Act, 1992 - An Act
to promote public safety in the transportation of dangerous goods.
Each day, products defined as dangerous goods, that are necessary for
maintaining Canadians' quality of life are shipped from one point to another
within Canada. They arrive on highways, at airports and harbours and depart
from Canada on the same highways, and at the same airports and harbours.
These shipments are far too numerous to accurately record but number in the
multi-millions each year. With this amount of movement, there is great
potential for endangering human life and damaging our environment through
mishaps in the course of transportation. It is essential for manufacturers,
shippers, carriers, terminals, users and governments to continually work
towards minimizing the risk of mishaps in the transportation of dangerous
goods and the harm done by mishaps that do occur. To this end, governments
have developed statutes and regulations that apply to all stages of
dangerous goods movement and inspection and enforcement programs to achieve
compliance with the legislation. In Canada, the federal government and each
of the provinces and territories have enacted legislation to regulate the
transportation of dangerous goods. While the jurisdictional coverage of
these pieces of legislation varies, the intent is consistent and, to that
end, each piece of legislation adopts the Transportation of Dangerous Goods
Regulations made under the federal statute.
What is a Dangerous Good?
Many products pose some danger while being transported, but dangerous
goods are generally products that are inherently dangerous whether or not
they are in transport. Special precautions are called for to ensure their
safe transportation. The TDG Act, 1992, defines the term "dangerous goods"
as follows;
...means a product, substance or organism included by its nature or by
the regulations in any of the classes
The schedule referred to is, of course, the Schedule to the TDG Act,
1992, illustrated herein, which identifies nine classes of dangerous goods.
How are Dangerous Goods Classified?
Classification matters are dealt with in Part III of the regulations.
Persons who manufacture dangerous goods or products containing dangerous
goods cannot offer them for transport unless they have been properly
classified. Each dangerous good falls within one of the nine classes of the
Schedule to the Act and is further identified by Divisions within the class.
The Division is a more precise identification of the danger associated with
the particular good within the general class. The Division may have
reference to the flashpoint of flammable liquids, the sensitivity of
explosives or the danger associated with compressed gasses. There is also a
Packing Group (PG that is a part of the classification of some dangerous
goods and is noted as PG I, II or III. The packing group indicates the level
of hazard within a classification, with PG I representing the greatest risk
of danger.
"Handling" Dangerous Goods
The TDG Act, 1992 defines the term "handling" as meaning the loading,
unloading, packing or unpacking of dangerous goods in a means of containment
or transport for the purposes of, in the course of or following
transportation and includes storing them in the course of transportation.
Perhaps the most important aspect of handling is the packing of dangerous
goods into a means of containment; it is generally believed that if the
packaging is suitable, the risk of a serious incident occurring is greatly
reduced. To this end, representative committees from industry, government,
environmental groups, and others develop standardized designs and methods of
manufacturing packaging or means of containment for particular types of
dangerous goods. These standards in containment are referred to as Safety
Standards and are adopted by Section 6.2 of Part VI of the regulations,
which makes reference to particular standards as Schedule XIV.
A general requirement in the regulations stipulates that when no standard
packaging is prescribed, the dangerous goods must be packaged in a way that
ensures no discharge, emission or escape of the dangerous goods that could
result in danger to life, health, property or the environment.
Consignment inspections at distribution points for manufacturers,
carriers, or purchasers focus on the type of packaging used in the shipment
of dangerous goods.
Identification of Dangerous Goods and Communication of Hazards
The regulations prescribe labels and placards for each classification of
dangerous goods as well as information to be in documents that must
accompany the consignment of dangerous goods.
The prescribed markings and documentation are intended to convey the
nature of the danger to handlers and accident responders. Generally, smaller
packages are required to be labelled while larger shipments that are shipped
in bulk containers are placarded. Transport units that are used to ship
dangerous goods must be placarded in accordance with the regulations.
Prescribed documents must accompany the consignment and be readily
accessible.
Placards are a clear indication that a transport unit contains dangerous
goods that otherwise might not be identified as such immediately. When an
accident involving a transport unit occurs, these placards alert responders
to the presence of dangerous goods and the necessary precautions to avoid
injury and damage can be taken. In the proper circumstances, responders may
examine the contents of the transport unit to locate the particular
consignment of dangerous goods and/or examine the documentation accompanying
the consignments to obtain more precise information about the dangerous
goods being transported.
Training
The regulations require that, with few exceptions, every person engaged
in the handling, offering for transport or transporting of dangerous goods
be trained in the aspects of these activities that are applicable to their
assigned duties. This is a selfevident, important concern in managing the
shipments of dangerous goods. Without training, workers are not able to
select the proper packaging for a consignment, or properly label and
document it. Without labelling and documentation, placarding of loads may
not occur and a resulting accident caused by improper packaging will
escalate into a very serious incident for responders and greatly endanger
public safety generally.
Violation Remedies and Penalties
Effective enforcement requires that knowledgeable persons monitor the
flow of dangerous goods consignments to ensure compliance with the Act and
regulations. For that purpose, the Act has created inspectors to cover the
many facets of packaging and transportation of dangerous goods and given
them various powers to ensure public safety. When inspectors determine that
dangerous goods are being handled or transported, they may inspect the
consignment and use the powers under the Act to ensure that any movement of
the dangerous goods is in compliance with the Act and regulations. On
occasion, it may be necessary to prosecute offenders and the Act provides
for this type of enforcement action.
Prosecutions
Prosecutions are undertaken for violations of specific sections of the
Act. The penalty provisions provide for fines up to $50,000.00 for first
offences and $100,000.00 for subsequent offences in summary conviction
proceedings, and up to two years imprisonment for indictable offences. The
Act also contains some special provisions with respect to orders that may be
made by the convicting Court. The orders may be made in addition to any
other penalty imposed and they cover such matters as prohibiting a person
from engaging in an activity regulated by the Act, requiring a person to
compensate others, repair damage to the environment or, contribute to
research in respect of the transportation of dangerous goods.
Conclusion
While regulation of an industry or activity is sometimes regarded as an
obstacle to commerce, this enactment is supported by those involved in the
industry as well as the general public. They recognize that the primary
purpose of regulation is to ensure the safety of everyone affected by the
movement of dangerous goods and the preservation of our environment. The
potentially dire consequences of uncontrolled movement of the many hazardous
products created by our society certainly underscores the need for effective
regulation and enforcement.
Schedule
Class 1 - Explosives, including explosives within the meaning of
the Explosives Act.
Class 2 - Gases; compressed, deeply refrigerated, liquefied or
dissolved under pressure.
Class 3 - Flammable and combustible liquids.
Class 4 - Flammable solids; substances liable to spontaneous
combustion; substances that on contact with water emit flammable gases.
Class 5 - Oxidizing substances; organic peroxides.
Class 6 - Poisonous (toxic) and infectious substances.
Class 7 - Radioactive materials and radioactive prescribed substances
within the meaning of the Atomic Energy Control Act.
Class 8 - Corrosives.
Class 9 - Miscellaneous products, substances or organisms considered
by the Governor-in-Council to be dangerous to life, health, property or the
environment when handled, offered for transport or transported and
prescribed to be included in this case.
Compliance and Operations Branch
Transport Dangerous Goods Directorate
Transport Canada
344 Slater Street
Ottawa, Ontario
K1A 0N5
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