| Lithium
Batteries
We have dealt with the issue in a total of 8 newsletters. The U.S.
D.O.T. website deals with batteries in no less than 52 notices and
publications. We remind everyone that all batteries (yes, we do mean
ALL, including your favorite AA and AAA, C, D, and 9 volt batteries)
are forbidden in transportation unless they are packaged in such
a way as to prevent short circuits. The next time you buy those batteries
note that they are in a very tight blister pack that prevents any
movement. The batteries all face up. And they are also difficult
to remove. And that's just the inner packaging. Anything less efficient
is not likely to be safe, or, legal.
The Air Line Pilots Association has presented
some new facts about
lithium batteries that are used in laptop computers and cameras.
Tests completed by the U.S. FAA and the British CAA indicate that
these batteries have the ability to breach defenses such as fire
extinguishing agents. Heat from a single battery fire is sufficient
to ignite adjacent batteries in the packaging. Molten lithium burned
explosively, spraying white-hot lithium to a radius of several
feet. The fire can reach a temperature of 1400°F (aluminum
melts at 1200°F).
For those visitors who really get into that technical material
check out www.fire.tc.faa.gov/pdf/04-26.pdf
Just before we were ready to send this newsletter to our Webmaster
a recall of lithium batteries for cell phones was issued. The problem?
Batteries igniting, and, in at least one case, exploding causing
injuries to the cell phone owner. To make matters worse, there
are also reports of counterfeit batteries that do not meet the
minimum standards for quality control and safety.
IATA Changes in the 46th Edition, 2005
You can get a heads-up on the upcoming changes by going to IATA's
website at http://www.iata.org/whatwedo/dangerous_goods
We will have some comments regarding the changes in our next newsletter.
If you are not yet aware of a major change in the dangerous goods
declaration, the declaration at the bottom of the IATA declaration
should read:
“I hereby certify that the contents of this consignment are
fully
and accurately described above by proper shipping name and
are classified, packaged, marked and labeled, and in proper
condition for carriage by air according to applicable national
governmental regulations”.
If you wish to use up your old stock of declarations you can insert
the following in the additional handling section of the declaration:
“I declare that all of the applicable air transport requirements
have been met.”
Competition for the IATA Dangerous Goods Regulations
Labelmaster of Chicago will introduce a compliance book dealing
with air regulations that will probably stir some interest in the
transportation industry and will directly compete with the IATA
Dangerous Goods Regulations. The book is based upon the ICAO Regulations,
which is the legal basis of air regulations worldwide. It should
be available for distribution within days. Check our links section
of this website for a direct link to Labelmaster.
|
Air
Bag Inflators -
Our complaints about the handling of air bag inflators attracted a lot of attention
in the August Newsletter. If you care to add your two cents you can send us feedback
by addressing your comments to info@r-a-specialists.com
U.S./MEXICO Cross-Border Dangerous Goods Seminar -
The Dangerous Goods Advisory Council conducted a very educational two-day seminar
in San Antonio, Texas on October 25-26, 2004. The seminar focused on the
differences between the U.S. HAZMAT Regulations and the Mexican NOMS (Normas
Para el Transporte Terrestre de Materiales y Residuous Peligrosos). What
did we learn? A lot.
The program covered all modes of transportation. Representatives
of both governments and a large number of business entities were
in attendance. If you missed the seminar and are still experiencing
delays and frustration you missed a great opportunity to straighten
out problems on cross-border shipments in both directions. The
outlook? Grim. Mexico’s system of changing regulations is
a very slow and tedious procedure. There is no single set of transportation
regulations such as 49CFR or Transport Canada or ICAO or IMO. Multiple
Mexican agencies share jurisdiction over HAZMAT transportation
and the prospects of timely changes are not good. But, at least,
we learned how to cope.
Important Dates -
November 17–19, 2004
DGAC Board and Committee Meetings
DGAC Annual Conference and Hazardous Materials Transportation Exposition, St.
Louis, MO
Open to the public (fee)
March 3-4, 2005 -
Note - there is a change from the original dates that we
posted last month.
DGAC Global Conference, Antwerp, Belgium
Focus on International Dangerous Goods Issues - All Modes
Open to the public (fee)
9-11 - Forever on our minds.
As 11 September approached we were compelled to mark that eventful day in history
and to assure the families and friends of the 9-11-2001 victims we have not
forgotten. A year after that terrible disaster we discovered a website by
Seaworthy Systems Inc. of Essex, Connecticut. It was a touching tribute to
the families and victims of 9-11. We featured it on our website at the time.
It is still an emotional experience. If you care to review it again click
on
http://attacked911.tripod.com/
We salute Seaworthy Systems for their thoughtfulness.
Hope to see you in Antwerp! |
